why do many people have APEX?

[masterpp]

I've seen many friends who have APEX. What so special about Apex?? Do they look for quality, macrovision disabled, cheap price, last-longer, can read scratched DVD, got everything(vcd, mp3, music, dvd-r, dvd+rw), or what???

I'm planning to buy a new one with Progressive scan. I have Sony 62" HDTV. I just want the best quality. I'm thinking about buying Sony 5-disc DVP-NC655P.

Should I buy Apex or Sony DVP-NC655P? I want quality and last longer. $$ is not a problem

are there other brand that has reading scratch better than sony which has Pricision Drive 2?

[vitualis]

I think that the Apex units have been popular (in North America) because they are cheap.

If you are looking for quality, you probably don't want to go with Apex.

Regards.

[solarfox]

Not necessarily -- there were, and are, other brands on the market here in the states which are just as cheap as the Apex units. What made the Apex units popular was the combination of price, and the fact that they would play just about anything that would fit in the tray, and that they were easily hackable for region-free, macrovision-free operation. This, at least, was the basis for my recommending the Apex players to a lot of people...

Unfortunately, with Apex's recent decision to drop VideoCD support from their players, I've had to stop recommending them. I suspect you'll see them become less popular as time goes on, as the word-of-mouth which once worked in their favor starts to work against them.

[jolo]

Really cheap prices and lots of features.

It's about the price !!

[valzuniga]

If money is, or isn't the only deciding factor, the Apex still comes out on top with all it's user base, and all the knowledge out there about this great little player, don't forget it's bargain price!

[kitty]

The older models could play a slice of bologna with decent quality let alone any type of CD/(SVCD)/DVD/MP3 disc.

I too am disappointed with the drop of VCD support. I'm waiting for another manufacturer to come out of the crowd with something better.

[MikeV]

I just bought an Apex AD-1110W at Walmart for $48 and it has played everything I put into it. Store bought DVDs, VCDs, Mpeg and Jpeg files, and a DVD-R i burned with Nero. My old Toshiba will only play VCDs and store bought DVDs. For me it was price and compatability, picture looks good on a 60" TV as well.

[SatStorm]

Apex models are easy to find in US and they use to be flexible on all matters.
That has nothing to do with picture or hardware quality.

About Sony: Because they have the best TVs out there, it doesn't mean that they have the best DVD standalones also! From what we say untill today, sony DVD standalones are not enough flexible. That is a bad thing today.

Basicly, before you decide what to buy, read the DVD players list.
First, decide if you gonna use VCD, SVCD, CVD, 1/2 D1 DVD, Reggion 2 DVD, home burn DVDs, etc in the future. Then choose what is better for you.

In europe we have many alternatives: Cyberhome, Encore, Crypto, Comet, Yokohama... Even certain Pioneers, aiwas, Manhattan, etc. Most of them are hard to find in US. But they are good standalones, if you track one, look out for them. Test them if neccessary!

[Donovan]

Apex plays PAL and NTSC - my reason for buying. I test my PAL DVD's before sending to family in South Africa.

[snarfo]

I have an Apex 5131 3-disc changer. It plays (or rather, played) everything I fed it, but a couple weeks ago it stopped playing regular DVDs! It still plays vcds and svcds and mp3s, but no DVD playback. As a result, I've been switching cables on it with my Sony 5-DVD changer, which plays DVDs and VCDs only.

I'm ready to chuck them both and get a changer with progressive scan that will play DVDs, SVCDs (VERY important), VCDs, and mp3s. However, it seems no manufacturers have SVCD compatibility listed for their players. Any suggestions?

[Feuerwehr]

If you are looking for progressive scan I would avoid the Apex AD-800. It has problems with SCVD playback, and it is somewhat picky on which DVD-R's it likes. Picture quality is acceptable for viewing most DVD's, and it does PAL for NTSC TV, but if money is not a factor I would look elsewhere.

[Greg12]

They were the first units to feature MP3 playback.


Their's a story in Time Magizine this week (the one w/ LOTR Two Towers on the cover) about the guys who own APEX.

[yg1968]

It is possible to make some of their DVD player region free. See this website:

www.nerd-out.com

[tim_theToolman_taylor]

region-free, hackable, cheap price, and vcd playback is what made them popular. Quality wise, they don't hold a candle to the big four (sony, panasonic, jvc, toshiba). I suspect a lot of computer "tweakers" like them. something to fiddle with.

[fmctm1sw]

1] Cheap
2] Plays a lot of formats (at least used to). I got while the getting was good....

[QazzaQY2K]

Hmm how about the new Kiss DP-500 DVD player .. it also plays DivX

http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/021127/270248_1.htm[/url]

[wwmw]

I just bought an Apex AD-1110W at Walmart for $48 and it has played everything I put into it. Store bought DVDs, VCDs, Mpeg and Jpeg files, and a DVD-R i burned with Nero. My old Toshiba will only play VCDs and store bought DVDs. For me it was price and compatability, picture looks good on a 60" TV as well.

Hello; Mike will it play Video Avi and Divx formats downloaded from the Interenet and burned to CD-R?

TIA!
William

[wwmw]

The older models could play a slice of bologna with decent quality let alone any type of CD/(SVCD)/DVD/MP3 disc.

I too am disappointed with the drop of VCD support. I'm waiting for another manufacturer to come out of the crowd with something better.

Hello;; kitty do you know what some of the older model numbers were? I'm looking for something that will play Avi and Divx movie formats that I download from P2P clents like Imesh and Kaza.

TIA!
William

[wwmw]

1] Cheap
2] Plays a lot of formats (at least used to). I got while the getting was good....

Hello; will it play Video Avi and Divx format movies downloaded from the Interenet and burned to CD-R?

TIA!
William

[wwmw]

Hmm how about the new Kiss DP-500 DVD player .. it also plays DivX

http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/021127/270248_1.htm[/url]

Hello; Qazza will the Kiss DP-500 play Divx movie format downloaded from the Interent P2P Clients like Imesh and Kaza? I download allot of Divx and Avi formats.

TIA!
William

[MikeV]

Veron

Your email is not working , so here is your answer.
The Apex i got is a AD-1110W(says on the box and unit). I think Walmarts across the country are carrying different models of the Apex. The Walmart flyer i received showed the AD-1010W but, the Walmart here in San Antonio only had the AD-1110W.

I use TMPGE to convert all my movies to VCD( use the Video-CD NTSC profile) and then i burn them with Nero 5.9 and they have worked in all my players.

[schwinn]

So called brand name players like Sony, Phillps etc would not until recently play VCD's , SVCD's etc that were burned on a computer. They still won't play Pal Disks on the models sold in North America. Also microvision couldn't be turned off on most models. So while they may have a better picture in some cases, you were limited to store bought VCD and DVD disks. Many /most people here want to play the disks they make on their computer on there stand along DVD player through the TV. Sony etc in the last year have seen the light and have started selling players that play CDR and CDRW disks. The Apex and many others play nearly anything and are cheap in price. I have been very happy with the picture quality of my Apex/GE branded player.

[MrPhelps]

I just bought Apex 1201 from Circuit City and it plays DVD, VCD,SVCD,MP3,KODAK CD and jpeg's. ($50.57 out the door) :P

I don't see people talking about the "Jpeg" ability very much here and I think it is one of the best features of my player.

You buy a digital camera so you can do everything in house and editablity(Hope its a word) so why wouldn't you want to through your jpegs on a cd or dvd to look at them.