Choosing a DVD player for backups

[akersaz]

My old Sony finally bit the dust, which is maybe not a bad thing. I always back up my kids DVD's & put away the originals away because, well, they're kids. I often had trouble playing my burned DVD's, it seemed that they played fine when they were brand new, but the slightest scratch or smudge rendered them useless. A guy at the local used book & DVD shop suggested that Sony's are known for this.

Soooo, any suggestions for a brand that will be friendly to my burned DVD's? I don't have HD & don't need anything fancy.

Thanks!

[SanderMan]

I have a pioneer that's almost 4 years old. It plays everything I put in it. Never had problems playing dvd backups. Also the cheapest dvd players have often the least problems playing backups and stuff.

[fritzi93]

I don't have HD & don't need anything fancy.

Assuming you're in the U.S. (your profile doesn't specify)...

AND

Assuming you have an HDTV with HDMI inputs...

You could go to Wal-Mart and get the Philips DVP3962 upconverting player for about 40 bucks. Plays DVD, DivX, Xvid, supposedly WMV (haven't verified that), VCD, SVCD, JPEGs, MPEGs, MP3s, and CDDA. If you don't have an HDTV or HDMI, you can still connect it using component cables.

I recently got one for use with my 42" plasma HDTV. Sometimes I just don't want to start up the HTPC. I didn't expect much from the upconversion, but it does make a significant difference. Big difference.

Good luck whatever you get. :wink:

[classfour]

I'm with sanderman on the Pioneers.

I replaced a Pioneer with a Pioneer due to their extreme and kind playing abilities. I only wish the older one had lasted 10 years instead of four.

The newer one is likely one of the last Made In Japan models, plays great.

[akersaz]

Can I ask which Pioneer you have? I am interested because you mentioned made in Japan. I do try (though it's nearly impossible anymore) to buy NOT made in China. I don't hear much about Pioneer these days.

BTW, I am in the U.S. I don't post often so I hadn't paid much attention to my profile. And I don't have HDTV at all. Yes, there are still a few of us left...

Thanks![/quote]

[orsetto]

Pioneer players can be difficult to find in the USA these days, and when you do the price difference over a Phillips isn't necessarily worth it. Current Pioneer models are the DV-300, 400, and 410 with list prices of $69-$99. If you have money to burn, Pioneer also makes "upmarket" versions of these players under their "Elite" brand. These are slightly better than the standard Pioneer models but cost triple the price or more, the cheapest retails at $299.

If you primarily need a player for kid disc backups, the Philips DVP3962 recommended by fritzi93 is an excellent deal. The most affordable Pioneer will be at least $20 more and isn't of much better build quality. Don't get me wrong, I love Pioneer products, but DVD players are now commodity items that every mfr builds to meet a price point. In many cases, an $80 player is no better than a $40 player: the extra money just buys you a nameplate. (With recorders its a little different, there are more operational and feature choices between brands and models.)

[akersaz]

OK, sounds like I have a few good options - now if I can go slightly OT, when I was looking into the Philips on Walmart.com, I found this little machine that interests me: the Philips 160GB Hard Disk/DVD Recorder with 1080p Upconversion

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=10059151

Anyone familiar with it? We will soon be converting our office to a playroom where the kids will (hopefully) do all their TV watching. This will mean getting a second DVR, and this machine looks like it would satisfy many needs. My question is, can you rip DVD's to the hard drive and access the movies via menu (thus eliminating the risk of scratched DVD's forever?)

Thanks.

[orsetto]

The Phillips 3575/3576 recorder is an excellent unit, very fortunate since it is the *only* new DVD/HDD machine still marketed in the USA. However, you cannot copy DVDs to its hard drive and access their menus: the unit cannot be used as a "media center jukebox". You can record a ton of programs from cable to its hard drive, and use the recorders navigation menus to choose among them easily. But no DVD/HDD recorder allows high-speed ripping of studio DVDs to its hard drive. In some cases, you might be able to copy the backup (not the original) to the hard drive, but it would be in real time and would result in a slight quality loss from re-encoding. Also, all menus and chapter points from the disc would be lost. It isn't really worth the bother.

Member wabjxo is our resident expert on this Phillips model, he has created a "sticky" Videohelp thread containing a wealth of information about this unit. Well worth a look.

[Skullwurx]

Had The Same Prob .
Bought a low-priced Panasonic (dvd-s43). Works and Looks(movies) and Sounds Great !