stand alone MPG/WMV player

[confused2011]

Hello, does anyone know of a stand alone player that will play MPG and WMV files? I'm looking for a DVD or blu ray player, not media player, that will play these formats. Thanks

[Ai Haibara]

You're limiting yourself rather severely by only looking for a DVD or Blu-Ray player. Windows Media support in a DVD player is rather rare, and offhand, I don't know of any Blu-Ray players that support it. Also, none of the players (DVD or Blu-Ray) are likely to support DRM-encoded Windows Media files.

Those players that do support playback from files MAY support MPEG videos, but there's no guarantee.

My Phillips DVP-5990 (and the 5992) do support WMA/WMV playback, but not all forms of it, as I recall (I think it may not like certain forms of WM3 and WM9 encoding) - and, of course, as it's a DVD player, videos must be in SD resolutions. It does support MPEG video file playback (subject to SD resolutions as well, of course), but I'm not sure if it'll handle all the different video+audio combinations for MPEGs.

[confused2011]

Thanks so much Ai for replying. The reason I want the DVD/Blu Ray Player is because it is for my dad and he is pretty old school so he doesn't know how to use a media player. He can figure out how to use a dvd player and to insert the DVDs with WMV and MPG files.

I'm excited to know that there is at least 2 players (the 5990 and 5992) which may play these files but after searching around a bit, I can't find them for sale online in Canada. Would you know where I can buy them in Canada? Thanks again.

[jman98]

confused2011 - Please pay very close attention to Ai Haibara's excellent response which has warned you of specific requirements for your files to playback. Pay special attention to the fact that only older versions of WMV will work. VC-1 will NOT be supported. And high def resolutions (anything above 720x576) won't work either.

Using a media player is in no way harder than trying to play stuff back on a DVD player. For example the Western Digital models can play from USB flash drives and you could train anyone how to copy a file to a USB drive, remove it correctly from a PC and then plug it into a Western Digital player. Plus media players will work with more recent versions of WMV and they support high definition resolutions. To be blunt, if you'll give your father files in Divx format instead of WMV you'll have fewer problems. My dad is retired but he's able to play files I send him in Divx format without any issues. My experience is that WMV just isn't all that common any more. Even a lot of the Xbox supporters have thrown in the towel and realized that trying to get files in a format the Xbox will play is a losing proposition and it's just better to get a media player that can handle MKV.

[Bonie81]

Hello, does anyone know of a stand alone player that will play MPG and WMV files? I'm looking for a DVD or blu ray player, not media player, that will play these formats. Thanks

i hv sony bd player which playes raw mpg (not VOB) flawlessly. i never tried wmv coz i hv none of them.
long back i hv tried mp4 and mkv with ac-3, but only i can remember is it was out-of-sync, so never kept on trying and stick to mpg.

[smitbret]

PS3 comes to mind (unfortunately).

[jagabo]

Be aware that WMV is a container. There are several versions of video and audio codecs (WMV1, WMV2, WMV3, WMA1, WMA2...) and many players will only play some of them. And many players will be limited to standard definition frame sizes too.

[confused2011]

Thank you so much everyone for your advice and input. I'm a novice at this and was probably too excited to hear about the Philips players without understanding the specifications required for playing the WMV/MPG files.

My dad's friends give him DVDs with the WMV/MPG files so I'm pretty much stuck trying to find this player. I don't think I will have much success finding the player I need though based on what you guys are telling me. If anyone knows of one, please please let me know. Thanks.

[em-t-wallitt]

I haven't seen any new Philips DVP5990 or 5992 in stores, so most likely you'll have to buy it used on craigslist, eBay, or in your local classifieds.

There is another option, the Pioneer DV-420V-K.
Page 9 of the user manual specifies wmv support:

• Resolution of up to 720 x 480
• Supports files encoded using wmv9 series
• No advanced profile support

The manual does not mention mpeg support. However, I did burn a data disc with mpeg and wmv files using a DVD-RW disc, loaded the disc in the player and both types of files played. On most files, I was able to jump to a specific time within the file. Fast forward and reverse worked too. You can have the player go through every file in alphabetical order on the disc from the currently selected file and then stop. You can program the player to play specific files in a certain order. Resume feature only works if the player is on.

I have some pet peeves using this Pioneer for mpeg and wmv file playback though.

If you load a data disc with mpeg and wmv files only, a file browser does not immediately appear. The TV screen shows MOVIE for a moment and disappears. You'll have to press the Menu button on the remote to bring up the browser. Oddly enough, using a usb flash drive do not require the extra Menu button press.

The time search feature is not as easy as it should be. It brings up a fullscreen menu that obscures the video. You press Play Mode on the remote, scroll to Search Mode, scroll to Time Search, scroll to Enter The Time and enter the time you want in minutes and seconds. So if you wanted to jump to 1 hour, 10 minutes, and 33 seconds of a two hour movie, you need to enter 70:33 (60 minutes + 10 minutes and 33 seconds).

If you decide to use a flash drive in the usb port, it will take some time for larger files to play. Drives must be formatted as FAT32.

I noticed the odd a/v sync issue using either data disc or usb, but the files did play. You may find the 420 in some Future Shop and Best Buy stores as demos, but it appears the 420 is no longer available in the stores. Unless you can find one new online at one of the web retailers or buy it used as I mentioned earlier. The Pioneer is designed to be a DVD player first. The file playback is a bonus, but not guaranteed as mentioned in one of the previous posters.


The Insignia NS-WBRDVD2-CA will also play mpeg and wmv formats as well (page 25). You may need to upgrade the firmware first. You can play one file only or play all the files in a folder. The latter option plays all files in alphabetical order. I don't believe you can program the player to play specific files in a certain order like the Pioneer. To get back to the file browser, you have stop the player. Pressing the Menu button will not work.

You can jump to a specific time within a wmv file, but not within an mpeg file. No file resume playback feature.

The filenames displayed in the file browser and text used in onscreen status information are tiny, so this player may not be good for your dad's eyesight. He may not like the touch panel control buttons (Eject, Play/Pause, Stop, Skip back, Skip ahead, Power on) on the player, but they do stay lit in the dark. Wifi disconnected message appears once in a while if you do not have wifi enabled.


In the pdf manuals, mpeg and wmv file playback is mentioned for the following blu-ray players:

The more compact Insignia NS-BRDVD4-CA is identical to the NS-WBRDVD2-CA minus the Wifi, front time counter display, and touch panel controls (page 60).

The newer Dynex DX-WBRDVD1-CA looks a much smaller version of the Insignia NS-WBRDVD2-CA and can play mpeg and wmv files as well (page 52).

Insignia NS-WBRDVD3 (only for USA?, page 33)

Pioneer BDP-430 (page 6)
Appears to have no mpeg support, but wmv is supported.

Seiki BD660
Can't find the manual. Available at Walmart. More info:
http://forums.redflagdeals.com/seiki-bd-live-blu-ray-player-bd660-info-support-thread-.../#post12176363

Sony BDP-S185/BDP-BX18 (page 22)

Sony BDP-S370/BDP-BX37 (page 32)

Sony BDP-S380/BDP-BX38 (page 25)

Sony BDP-S470 (page 32)

Sony BDP-S480/BDP-S580/BDP-BX58 (page 30)

I don't own any of these, so I can't verify this. Some of these players may not be available in stores. All page numbers I've quoted in my post are "printed" on the page of the pdf manuals. Good luck in your search for the right player for your dad.

[Ai Haibara]

Yeah, you might check some of the more recent Philips models, as well, to see if they also have the capability to play Windows Media and MPEG files. (That probably includes their Blu-Ray players, which might allow for support for NTFS-formatted flash drives and HD resolutions. I can't guarantee the latter, though.)

My parents just received a Sony Blu-Ray player as a present, and I noticed it reportedly does support MPEG and WMV playback. I'm not entirely sure I should recommend a Blu-Ray player, though - most of them seem to want an online connection, now, and your father may not like the hassle of having to deal with keeping the player updated (or some Blu-Ray movies refusing to play if the player isn't kept up-to-date...)

(Yes, some discs may actually include updated firmware for some players and automatically attempt to update your player, but that can also be a hassle.)

[confused2011]

EM and AI, I can't thank you enough. You have giving me much to research and think about. I will do my due diligence and hopefully make the correct purchase.

EM, you are awesome. Thanks so much for all that info. I very much appreciate it.

AI, I didn't realize that Blu ray players may require online connections and thought that it was an added bonus. If that is the case, then my dad would definitely not bother with it. Thanks again very much.