inexpensive Standalone that plays MKV and MP4 files on optical disc?

[coyote2]

Is there an inexpensive standalone optical disc player that supports MKV and MP4 playback?

It's gotta be under $100, I don't think I can convince my old dad to spend more than that. I need him to replace his old Philips 3140 since it only plays XviD.avi files, and I can't find much to d/l in that format anymore.

If the Roku 3's USB slot supported an optical drive that would've worked for him. (It'll support USB thumb drives and hard drives, but those aren't practical since he doesn't have a PC and I don't live nearby.)

Me, I'm still happily using a TViX M-6500A. The Popcorn Hour A-410U (we're in the US) looks good to me but costs far more than my dad would spend.

[netmask56]

There are any number of cheaper players that support mkv and mp4 as data, however! and it's a big however, there are so many flavours of mkv and mp4 files that probably would come to grief in a DVD player. eg, MKV's that have compressed headers or contain too many language streams or subs or even chapters. Ditto for mp4.

You really would be better off looking for an economical standalone media player that is capable of periodic updates etc. Since I bought my Popcorn C200 I've hardly touched my Bluray/DVD player, mostly when only when a friend drops by. I rip all my discs to my network.

Not too sure how much a WDTV live is in the US but I'm sure they would be cheaper than in Oz..

For example a local Sydney discounter https://www.kogan.com/au/buy/wd-tv-live-media-player/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=pro...FcOXvQodfpoArQ sells for au$119

[coyote2]

Thank you very much for your reply, netmask56!

Unfortunately I can't connect an optical drive via USB to a WD Live either according to http://wdc.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/2729/~/usb-dvd,-cd-or-blue-ray-support...-version-wd-tv

Can anyone suggest an economical standalone media player one can attach an optical drive to? Or an economical BluRay player that handles MKV/MP4 files well?

Since my dad doesn't have a PC, I need to feed him content on optical disc.

[netmask56]

Well if you have to use discs then you may have to check each mkv and mp4's for compatibility and modify if necessary. Easy enough to do.
Good luck

[dfisher052]

I have had experience with both LG BP135 & Sony BDPS1200 Blu-ray players. They both play MKV, MP4, AVI, XVID (not DVIX).
Amazon currently has the LG for $48 and the Sony for $68. They ONLY connect to a TV or Receiver by HDMI cable (not included). They both also have a USB input on the front that will allow you to play any of these formats from a USB stick or an external harddrive. I have a 1TB loaded with films and have not had any problems playing them on either one of these players. And the nice feature is that they will upscale all of them to HD.

[usually_quiet]

I agree, if you must use discs, and need a device costing less than $100, a Blu-Ray player is the only realistic choice. I gave my parents an LG Blu-Ray player with a built-in media player two years ago. I have used it to play media files from DVDs and BD-Rs, and it works well for that purpose. Although most current model Blu-Ray players will play mkv or mp4 files, the video, audio, and subtitles must meet the requirements spelled out in the manual.