What dvd player now?
Posted by: Wiltshireman on 29 July 2006
Hi All, Tonight my Toshiba SD210E dvd player has shown me signs of dying (the picture went black and white and no connection problems or anything else have been found). It was a well recomended machine and has served me very well. It cost me around £230 several years ago and it really gave a decent picture but what do I replace it with? All my stuff is Toshiba and I would prefer to stick with that brand but I am open to suggestions. The reason / problem I have is that all the more costly players are recorders and I am not really sure that is what I want as my video recorder still does everything I need it to. My only stipulation is that the machine is silver in colour and doesn't cost more than c£250 as I only spend real money on decent hifi equipment like Naim and Linn. Thanks in advance for your help.
Posted on: 30 July 2006 by Jono 13
Posted on: 31 July 2006 by Paul Hutchings
If you're sure you just want a player I'd get a Toshiba from somewhere such as Richer Sounds.
I can't help but think the expensive ones are a bit pointless unless you have a screen capable of getting the best from one.
Posted on: 02 August 2006 by TimCarter50
For me, Pioneer have the best DVD players at each price point. I bought a 626 (c.£230) some years back and its still going great.
Posted on: 02 August 2006 by PJT
quote:
Originally posted by Jono 13:
...
The bonus of HDD recording from analogue and DTT with DVD recording and playback. I have an earlier model which is fantasic, no more hunting for video tapes as a program is about to start.
Jono
100% agree, the HDD recording is something I would not want to live without - I've got the Sony 910...
Pete
Posted on: 10 August 2006 by Wiltshireman
Thanks for the advice and I will check out the HDD thing. The Panasonic really looks good but £399 is a little more than I was intending to pay but I will sus one out and take a look. Cheers all.
Posted on: 10 August 2006 by Graeme Randell
I've heard that standalone players have a better picture quality than dvd recorders. My Cambridge Audio DVD-55 player certainly has the edge on my Tosh XS-32 (HDD/DVD). The other thing is that a number of disks (DVD-R and DVD-RW) which I use to back-up from the Tosh will only playback on the Cambridge Audio (or PC/Mac). Not sure if the Panny is as fussy with media, maybe check with an AV forum site, otherwise you maybe restricted with your choice of disks.
Graeme.
Posted on: 11 August 2006 by Jono 13
To quote Panasonic web:
"Super Multi Format Flexibility
The DMREX75 offers recording onto and playback from ALL DVD disk types. i.e. DVD RAM -R/-RW , +R/+RW, including the new dual layer and 16 x speed -R disks, allowing total freedom of choice and potential to share cherished recordings. In addition to the expected playback of music CDs, the DMREX75 will now playback MP3 and JPEG from both CD R/RW and DVD-R, an additional bonus for those archiving digital photos on their PC."
so all bar hd-dvd or blu-ray.
Jono
Posted on: 11 August 2006 by Fraser Hadden
A trick I employ with electronic gear I need but am not fanatical about is to go for a model just superceded.
Product cycles are only 12-18 months anyway so one is not losing much technically by this approach.
E-bay will provide a new, slightly out-of-date, device at maybe 50% of the price it commanded a few months before. Just search on the usual big names.
Fraser
Posted on: 15 August 2006 by Alan Paterson
With HD-DVD and Blu-Ray on the horizon it may be worth just buying a cheap toshiba player. There are a few highly recommended players from toshiba that are priced around £80-120.
These have features that would have cost a fortune on players a couple of years ago.
Posted on: 15 August 2006 by bhazen
quote:
Originally posted by Alan Paterson:
With HD-DVD and Blu-Ray on the horizon it may be worth just buying a cheap toshiba player. There are a few highly recommended players from toshiba that are priced around £80-120.
These have features that would have cost a fortune on players a couple of years ago.
Get the Toshiba 3960, $50 U.S. or so. Cheap, and sounds surprisingly good playing CDs!
