Oppo’s UDP-203 is an Ultra HD Blu-ray playing powerhouse

Oppo has taken the wraps off its new UDP-203 Ultra HD Blu-ray player, and will join just a small number of similar players in the UK. Currently, the only UHD Blu-ray players available are the Panasonic DMP-UB900 and DMP-UB700, Samsung UBD-K8500 and the Xbox One S.

What sets Oppo’s player apart is that it could eventually support Dolby Vision with a future software update. There’s a Mediatek SoC inside the player so it can comfortably handle HDR (High Dynamic Range) content out the box, but the chip should be powerful enough to handle Dolby Vision too.

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Both HDR and Dolby Vision provide a wider and richer colour gamut which improves the picture by making all the colour in between the whites and blacks more accurate.

The player itself is black with a brushed metallic front plate but round the back is where the magic happens. Oppo has given the UDP-203 a generous helping of connections including two HDMI outputs, 7.1-channel surround sound speaker outputs, three USB 3.0 outputs and optical and coaxial digital outputs. You’ll also find built-in wi-fi for streaming content over a local network.

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Oppo hasn’t given a specific release date, but has said it will be available in Q4 this year, so just in time for Christmas with an expected £599 price tag, putting it right up against Panasonic’s UB900.