fit-to-screen feature???

[eegad]

Hi all. Since most employees at the local electronics/department stores don't have a clue, I figured I'd ask here and get some input from people in the know.

I have an older Samsung DVD player. Problem is that it has difficulty playing DVD-R discs, as well as disks full of JPEG's, so I'd like to get a newer machine. The one thing I *LOVE* about my old player is the Samsung's "EZ View" feature, which lets one expand the size of a wide-screen DVD to better fill the screen of a standard 4:3 TV. This doesn't seem to be a typical feature on most players. Other than Samsung, I don't see such a feature listed, except on some Panasonic players. Are there any other brands/models that have such a feature???

Also....another thing that I like about the old Samsung is that if you "zoom" at 2x or 4x, you can let the disc play at that zoom level *without* any annoying overlays. Most DVD players I've seen, say "2X" or "4X" or whatever on screen when in zoom mode....and the overlay does not go away. The samsung's disappears after a few seconds.


Any recommendations for a player with both these features??? (oh yeah, and I'm looking for a sub-$100 model....nothing fancy. Heck, the Samsung I have with these features only cost $85 on sale 3 years ago).

any help much appreciated.

[tonemgub]

DuDE,

U might wanna tell us da folloin if u want Reel help:

- what samsung model,
- what kind of tv u hav on it,
- what kind of video connection,
- what kind of dvds u play.

den we kan giv u some intellgen solusuns...

[iThinkYouBrokeIt]

WHY would you not watch the movies in widescreen?

Anyways, most dvd players can do a simple zoom function. yes, some of them still have the zoomed image letterboxed, which is weird. My CyberHome CH-DVD 300 can do a simple zoom function and not letterbox the image. It's only $30 or so, depending on where you go, i'd say you could find it for ... $25-$40

It can do 2x, 4x, and 8x zoom. it can play DVD-R/RW, DVD+R/RW, CD-R/RW discs with no problem. It can also play mp3, jpg, and mpg files from discs.

[eegad]

>WHY would you not watch the movies in widescreen?

Well, I would want to on a wide screen / very large screen tv. However, in this case we're talking about a standard 4:3 32" tv watched from a couch 10 feet away. In widescreen, that seems to me the equivalent of watching a 4:3 movie on a 20" screen. But if I enlarge it to get rid of the black bars and just "pan & scan" size it, then I'm happy enough.


> Anyways, most dvd players can do a simple zoom function.

Yes, but LOTS of them keep a "zoom" icon overlay on the screen the whole time, or overlay text that says "4x zoom" or whatever.


>My CyberHome CH-DVD 300 can do a simple zoom function and not
> letterbox the image.

Without any overlay at all? (it disappears after a few seconds, or gives you the option to turn it off?) If so, that would satisfy my needs just fine.

Thanks for the reply.

[iThinkYouBrokeIt]

If by 'overlay' you mean the letters 2x, 4x, or 8x... then yes, it does do that. it goes away after a few seconds. there is no option to make it not display.

A 32in display should be very sufficiant for viewing widescreen movies. I use a 19in tv and it looks fine. Doesn't look as good without my glasses on, though. I wouldnt want to use anything smaller unless im sitting very close, or holding the screen (as in a portable device)