Specifically brands and features to get
Thanks!
Merry Christmas!

Personally, I am planning on picking up one of those with a VCR and DVD player both built into it. Am thinking that will come in very handy.

Aviator  [img]www.milpubs.com/aviator.gif[/img]

yeah but unless the drive is macrovision free your kinda screwed

where ass i can  use a box to remove macrovision. ie i have seperate vcr and DVD

i got a Apex 1500 got it for a 10 bucks at best buy a while ago plays DVD,VCD,SVCD and MP3 it a great buy unless u plan to use it in a kick ass home theatre setup in that case i dont know

I got my dad one of those sub $100 units from circuit city..(~APEX, I think is the brand) the damn thing works great, I hooked it up to his system and it performs like a charm... it also plays MP3's!!!!  (it uses an on screen display for it too)  works better than my freakin 2 yr old Toshibia which I payed near $240 for.. and doesnt play MP3's  and 2 Music DVD's I have, (1 SRV and 1 MTV unplugged) have problems in it..  I'm thinking of buyin one for myself!!     [whacko]

SO stick with digital sound...any other features?

Definitely pay attention to what it will read. Music DVDs are becoming more common and will only play in some players. There is also some new format that wil play special Karaoke DVDs, should that be your thing.

Also, while it is least likely to affect those of you living in the US and Canada, region free models will increase your options in terms of languages and subtitles available - and also allow you to get foreign releases not available in the US. I am not even sure if you can buy them in the US though - there just doesn't seem to be a demand.


Adam

Definitely do some homework and find one that does not suffer from country codes and region blocking.

Yes, most DVD players restrict what you may view in them.  No buying euro releases.  No early releases.  No mp3.

Thus, spend extra money and ensure your freedom.  Get one without country / region code blocking.

Do you know of any American companies that specialize in selling such? I've been in communication with a company in England but would have less shipping frustrations if I could go with a US company?

Incidentally, I have a perefectly good DVD player, but it will onloy play region 1 DVDs. Kinda sucks when I DON'T EVEN LIVE IN REGION 1!
Also, most region 1 DVDs only offer Spanish and French as optional subtitles. Asian languages of any sort are a rarity - you have to buy them locally. The whole thing is a huge pain in the butt.

BTW, stay away from Sony. As I think someone already said, they are pickiest about what they will play. As the parent company has a huge interest in the recording industry, they adhere strictest to format and piracy prevention type concerns - at your expense. Heck, even their CD burners suck (IMHO).


Adam
Adam

well, to expand on your question.... (I'm not fully up to date on the latest and greatest, but hopefully you'll gleen something from this post.. :)


things to ask yourself:

1. What type of inputs will my TV accept? (std(std(yellow rca)/f/composite/S-video?)

2. What forms of Input does my stereo system accept? (std (red/white rca)/digital (wire/fiber optik)...)

3. What forms of Audio will my receiver process? (dts, dolby....)

4. region coding of the dvd's you plan to use.. (I havent had this problem yet, but if you get or plan to get stuff from europe or ??  you may want to factor this in as mentioned by others)


items #1-3 are very important, you dont want to spend a lot of extra money to get a unit that has many extra features if you are not going to use them...weigh the cost of having those features and future component upgrades. Also remember that DVD players have progressed in technology and prices have dropped...if you can wait and get by with a less costly unit..  the 'high-end' dvd players will drop in price and most likely have 'newer' technology.

Another thing to consider:  DVD burners!

Do an ebay search on "macrovision"  You'll find a number of DVD players that are region free and can disable macrovision.  You'll also find the "box" to remove it.

I suggest this as a source of information.  Where you buy from is your own business.  

Look for "progressive scan".  It's reputed to be better on the HDTVs.  Haven't tried it myself, but it sounds good.  Most of the cheapies will play a single DVD as well as the best ones.  It's the "features" that make the difference.


Do an ebay search on "macrovision".  You'll find a number of DVD players that are region free and can disable macrovision.  You'll also find the "box" to remove it.

I suggest this as a source of information.  Where you buy from is your own business.  [/quote]

Panasonic DVD-RP56

Progresive scan
MP3 compatible
DTS
Dolby Digital

You can find them for about $250 at CircuitCity:
[url]http://www.prodcat.panasonic.com/shop/templates/rect_template.asp?ModelId=11620&show_all=false&product_exists=True&active=1&ModelNo=DVD-RP56[/url]

I have one and wouldnt trade it for squat.