There has been a revelation in the ongoing decline of physical media – and, as someone who treasures their 4K Blu-ray library, it was the update I’ve been waiting for.
A recent report from the Digital Entertainment Group (DEG) confirmed that after an extensive period of decline, 4K Blu-ray sales returned to growth in the United States, with a 12 per cent rise in 2025 compared with 2024.
While physical media sales fell overall, this was only by 9.3 per cent. That's undoubtedly still a drop, but it’s much less severe than expected; and it could well be a sign that optical media is coming back into fashion.
With streaming fatigue setting in from the abundance of available services, all of which offer various tiers that lock features behind pay walls and slowly increasing subscription costs overall, the renewed uptake of physical media seems to be a natural step.
Furthermore, more people are striving to get the best picture and sound performance out of their TVs, projectors, soundbars and surround sound speaker systems – and 4K Blu-ray is the best way to accomplish this.
There is, however, one slight issue, and it's one I've drawn attention to before. It’s undeniably great to see sales figures rise for 4K Blu-rays; but what will people play them on?
There are very few manufacturers still producing dedicated 4K Blu-ray players. Sony and Panasonic are the only remaining brands in the mainstream space, while Magnetar is one of the only options for enthusiasts who don’t want to scour eBay and pay above the odds for a discontinued Oppo or Pioneer player.
We’re willing to bet that most people are feeding their UHD Blu-rays into a PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X. They are the most readily available and current 4K Blu-ray players on the market – and, of course, they have the dual-purpose appeal of also being game consoles.
Unfortunately, from our testing, we have found that these consoles don't perform to the same level as a dedicated Blu-ray player – though they certainly aren’t bad options.
All the entries on our best 4K Blu-ray players list launched in either 2018 or 2019, apart from the Sony UBP-X700, which had an incremental update last year to remove the streaming features. There has been no official word from Panasonic on whether it will update its 4K players any time soon.
Pair that with prices that have actually increased rather than decreased since launch (Panasonic's entire range has gone up in price since our initial reviews), and I can see why 4K Blu-rays haven't been the most compelling option for consumers in recent years.
I've done my bit to promote the format to anyone who will listen, but these manufacturers also need to show their commitment to ensure the format continues this reported growth.
While we’re at it, I’d be thrilled to see the likes of Samsung and LG return to the optical disc player market. They pulled out years ago despite offering some seriously impressive disc players.
The likelihood of this happening is, of course, quite slim, but I shall continue my campaign for new players regardless.
MORE:
Read our full Panasonic DP-UB820EB review
As well as our Sony UBP-X700 review
And check out our picks for the best streaming devices
