Samsung unveils first 4K UHD Blu-ray player with 60FPS playback

Samsung officially leads the 4K initiative by unveiling the first-ever consumer ready 4K Ultra-HD Blu-ray player, ushering a new generation of high-fidelity entertainment into homes around the globe.

Samsung announced its pioneering UHD player, the UBD-K8500, at IFA in Berlin and touts some major performance boosts like ful 4K resolution at a fluid 60 frames-per-second, a 10-bit color palette that's 64 times more dynamic than standard Blu-rays, and object-based sound formats like Dolby Atmos and DTS:X for UHDBR audio. The UHD Blu-ray player also sports an HDMI 2.0a port to support industry's new high dynamic range (HDR) standard and will be backwards compatible with current Blu-ray discs.

"The new player is also capable of upscaling content to provide UHD resolution for any disc, as well as for 4K streaming services," Samsung's visual display VP Mike Zoller said.

Back in March the Blu-ray Disc Association greenlit the new Ultra-HD disc specification which have capacities of 66GB on double-layer and 100GB on triple-layer discs. To flesh out the UHD player's initial library of content, 20th Century Fox will provide a catalog of current and classic movies from its label.

"When my colleagues at 20th Century Fox first saw the side-by-side comparison of 4K Ultra HD with High Dynamic Range, and compared that to just regular HD, it was reminiscent of the days between standard def and high def. This is a huge step up for our industry," said Mike Dunn, president of 20th Century Fox's home entertainment branch.

Samsung plans to roll out the 4K Blu-ray player across Europe and the United Sates 2016 for a price point "no more than $500".