I'm looking for any DVD player that's pretty cheap and doesn't have tons of issues. It doesn't have to be all that great, I'm probably going to get a new one early 2001. I just need something to play DVDs since my DVD-ROM in my comp died.
Any suggestions?

you can get a nice Sony DVP-S360 for under 200 dollars at Mercata I believe if you're a new customer(they give you 100 dollars in store credit which can be used for up to 20% off). The Toshiba SD1200 can be had for around the same amount. Cheaper than that is the Konka(not sure of the model number) player that had a few minor issues that have been fixed apparently. That can be had for around 160 i think. Personally, I'd go with the Sony or the Toshiba. When you do get a new player just ebay the old one.

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Dave My DVDs My Humble Home Theatre

Check out the Pioneer DV-333. This is an awesome player for the under $200 range that you are looking at.

Avoid the current RCA, Samsung, Oritron, Philips, and Hitachi models in the sub $250 price range. Your money is much better spent on the reliable and superior performing Toshiba SD1200, Pioneer 333, and Sony 360.

If MP3 playback is not an issue, I would even recommend you avoid the Apex and Raite players. While these units are featureful, their DVD performance (audio and video) and build quality can not hold a candle to the better Sony, Toshiba, and Pioneer models.


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A free Tibet - Keep Hope alive...

The new Toshiba SD1600 (think that's it) got a good review on etown www.etown.com and it's even cheaper than the Tosh 1200 it replaces.

Dave Morales summed up the choices pretty well. Tosh, Pioneer and Sony are the best value even in the basic players.

1) Tosh has had some playback issues of late. You don't want to be mailing your player in immediately for a firmware upgrade.

2) Pioneer 333 is a great choice if you want and need CD-R playback capability.

3) Sony 360 (no decoders in this one, need the 560 if you need a decoder) is my favorite of the three if you don't need CD-R capability. It may still come with the 2 DVDs for $5 coupon from Columbia House (no further commitment and no auto mailings). So, if it is still there, even an extra $20 for the Sony will net a couple of cheap SE type DVDs.

Since you don't want 'issues' which I wholeheartedly agree with, go with Sony or Pioneer depending on your need for CD-R playability.

I have a Pioneer receiver that has built in Dolby Digital for 5.1, but no DTS. My question is, if I were to hook up the Sony 360 to my receiver, will it be able to decode a 5.1 signal, or am I out of luck with this player without a DTS receiver?

The Sony 360 has NO decoders. They must be in your receiver. If your receiver has no decoders, you will not get 5.1 sound.

The only player I know of with BOTH decoders is the Panasonic A-320

xcheckers wrote:

"The Sony 360 has NO decoders. They must be in your receiver. If your receiver has no decoders, you will not get 5.1 sound."

So, I guess that means I would be fine since my receiver has built-in Dolby Digital decoding.

I have an Apex. It's true you get what you pay for, but that's all I could afford, plus the mp3 feature is pretty cool even though it could have been a lot better (it only displays 8chars and no spaces on screen). While the video quality isn't the best, it isn't completly horrible. The audio is pretty good. The remote sucks, but the price is very reasonable even if it means walking into the dreaded CC.

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Tee Moore:
xcheckers wrote:

"The Sony 360 has NO decoders. They must be in your receiver. If your receiver has no decoders, you will not get 5.1 sound."

So, I guess that means I would be fine since my receiver has built-in Dolby Digital decoding.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

You will get the DD 5.1 soundtrack passed through but not the DTS 5.1 as you receiver does not have DTS capability. In order to get DTS sound the DVD player has to be able to pass through a DTS signal (which the Sony 360 does) and the receiver has to have the capability to decode it which from what you are saying your receiver does not.

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