How to Update Firmware for a Blu-Ray Disc Player

Blu-Ray players, like a number of newer technologies, are thrust into the marketplace before all the bugs are ironed out, and before all of the advantages are fully exploited. Because of this "built-in obsolescence" they are made to be updatable, or upgradeable by the consumer--YOU. The procedure is known as updating or "flashing" the firmware. If you have internet access, a CD writer, and CD creating (burning) software, the process is easy. So, before you tear your hair out because you've just thrown away hundreds of dollars on a piece of equipment that seems to fail as often as it performs (or even more so), settle into your office chair, crank up your pc, and take a deep breath. This will take a lot less time (and money) than a visit to your therapist.

1.) Go to your favorite search engine (such as Google or Yahoo) and type in the name of the manufacturer of your Blu-Ray player. When the results pop up, click on the appropriate manufacturer site. What we're looking for here is a link for "support" or "downloads" or "software"--or, in some cases, there will actually be a link to "firmware," precisely what we've come here for. With some manufacturer sites, the link is right in front of your face; with others you'll have to dig a little bit.

2.) Search for your product on the manufacturer's site. This often requires narrowing down choices via drop-down menus or search fields. Here's an example of a search for a firmware update for the Samsung BD-P1000: Click on the Samsung site; click on the "Support" tab; Under "Choose your product type" locate and click on "Blu-ray" (a subset of "audio/video"); a window pops up displaying the option "Choose a product model" followed by a scrolling list of all Samsung Blu-Ray players. Click on your model (in this case, BD-P1000) and click "okay."

3.) Find your download. Usually once you've found the page for your specific model, there will be options to download various errata, including manuals, press releases, spec sheets, guides, etc. Find the "firmware," "software," or "update" link (in the case of Samsung, there's a tab in the middle of the page labelled "firmware") and click on it.

4.) Download the firmware. Click on the link to the actual firmware (The Samsung version reads: Update firmware(Only for USA and CANADA) (ver.1.9)) which will open a window providing details about the firmware version, sometimes including detailed instructions and known issues. Click again to start the download process. A window will pop up asking if you want to save, which you do, so indicate so by clicking the appropriate button. This will download the firmware file safely onto your computer where it will sit there doing nothing, like a seed waiting to be planted. Don't worry; your computer won't know how to run it because it's specifically designed to work only on your Blu-Ray player. What you want your computer to do is save (or "burn") it on a recordable CD (if you're in the woods on this one, ask your teenager or flag one down on the street).

Make sure to follow the manufacturer's instructions and notes regarding the implementation of the update.

5.) Write the firmware to CD and load it into your Blu-Ray player. In my experience with firmware, usually a simple click on the downloaded file will automatically trigger my computer's CD-writing software (Nero Burning Rom, for example) to lead me, step by step, through the simple procedure of creating the CD. If you do not know how to create a CD, please find that information elsewhere on the web or Associated Content, or ask a friend. Once the CD is complete, eject it from your computer and load it into your Blu-Ray player (as per manufacturer instructions). IMPORTANT: Let the procedure complete itself; it will take some time and the player may appear to freeze up. Do not turn the power off during the process or you may permanently damage the player. Mine takes about 15-20 minutes to update and goes through 3 separate phases. When it has completed updating, the player will display a message saying so and eject the disc.

Now you'll be able to play new Blu-Ray discs, though some of the advanced features may not be available to you depending on the age of your player.

Important note: Most of this software is Windows-based only, so if you have a Macintosh, you'll have to borrow a friend's pc to burn the disc.

For PHILIPS owners: If you own the PHILIPS BDP9000 you are in luck. It is a clone of the SAMSUNG BD-P1000--internally, it's exactly the same--which means you can update it with Samsung's firmware. I own a PHILIPS BDP9000 and have been frustrated with their lack of customer support. They haven't updated their firmware in nearly a year as of this posting (2-2-09) for this machine which went for $1000 new. Samsung, however, updates their firmware regularly. I have updated my machine using SAMSUNG BD-P1000 firmware and the machine reads all Blu-Ray discs now (though it thinks it's a Samsung). The load time is still very slow, because this was the first BD player out there, and occasionally it'll freeze up and I have to turn it off and on again to unstick it. Other than that, it works great and reads every disc I load.

The primary purpose of this article has been to reassure you that your Blu-Ray player may not be malfunctioning per se, rather becoming outdated occasionally as the technology progresses, and to help remedy the situation without having to run out and buy a new one every few months or to swear off purchasing new technology in the future because you feel you've been ripped off too many times. Be aware, there is some risk to this procedure; consider whether you'd rather keep a player that no longer plays Blu-Rays or risk updating it. Good luck!