This is the first & only one I've ever had. Zenith - about 6 years old -- so DK how to diagnose: Fix or dump?
It won't load DVDs. Either door OPENS or it says CHECK DISK. Tried this with a variety of discs to rule out disc problem.
The weird part is that at the outset of the "attack", it WOULD sometimes play, but mostly not.
Questions:
Your experience appreciated!!!
HB
it's broke, not worth fixing. Get a bluray player.
Hmmm, If you have time to fiddle with it, one thing you can try is, open it up and clean the head(laser emitter and lens) which may be dirty. Otherwise time to get new one. DVD players are dirt cheap these days. I have couple BD player writer.
- Lens is dirty - Lens head assembly needs lubrication - Mechanical issues with tracking independent of the first two possibilities.
Nave you tried one of the cleaner DVDs? It's a set of small brushes on a disc that clean the laser lens. I thoink they're 5 or 10 bucks.
Do NOT buy a Capello. When my GoVideo started to act up I went to Target to get a new player. I only wanted a plain vanilla and there were several on offer. Out of the box the Capello sounded like a cement mixer, skips randomly, and often becomes completely lost looking for the next episode or the menu.
Ran the cleaner through the GoVideo and it works a lot better.
| So what would Blu Ray do for me? Would I get better watching quality from ordinary DVDs? This is all big mystery to me. |
The last DVD player I bought was $40 for Samsung, at Best Buy. At that price it's not worth bothering with trying to fix an old one.
Whether to get BR is a matter of personal preference. I won't buy one until they're dirt cheap. I don't see the point. But in the next few years having BR may provide more options. My local library already has a fair number of BR DVDs. So if the cost isn't too much more than the cost of a DVD player then it might be worthwhile.
We have a CRT TV and a Samsung flat screen. Frankly, I don't see a difference. Probably I would if they were put next to each other, but as long as the picture is decent it doesn't really matter to me. What I'm watching is far more important than having a super-detailed image. If you get BR and have a HD TV then presumably you'll get a better picture than with plain DVD. If that matters to you then you might want to go see a demo, so you can know exactly how different it is.
I remember going to see the movie Avatar when it first came out. It was billed as an amazing feat of special effects. I thought it was a very stupid movie. Juvenile and poorly acted. Suitable as Saturday morning cartoons for kids. What also struck me was that the 3D detracted from the experience. I quickly realized that one's mind fills in the details easily, while watching "3D" is actually seeing a normal (3D) background with just one item appearing to be in a closer plane. It's distracting. We see 3D in a movie just fine without needing the distracting gimmicks. To me the constant marketing of fancier TVs is the same situation: It's fine if the picture is a little more clear, but I'm much more concerned that what's on the TV be worth my time in the first place.
Shocking! You don't appreciate the finest contemporary ****H'wd can deliver?
You don't resonate to the sound of gunfire and the squish of knives going in?
Your heart doesn't go pitter-pat at the (CGI) sequences of heroes leaping vast gulfs unscathed.
You're not tuned into the latest in racial equality where the villains are ferocious black men with teeth bared?
You presume to put yourself above product churned out for the 13-24 year-old male demographic!
Next thing we know, you'll be demanding a STORY to accompany, or underlie, the spectacular special effects!
Un-American, I calls it!
HB
| Next thing we know, you'll be demanding a STORY to accompany, or underlie, the spectacular special effects! |
Netflix has spoiled me. But who knows... maybe I'd appreciate all the special effects more if I got some new glasses. :)
It sounds like nothing gives you excitement! There is a gigantic difference in in old technology TV's and HD TV! And 3-D isn't just 2 levels of perceived depth either. I know what you're saying about content and story lines lacking...but the technology is amazing!
If he has an HD TV he should get a Blu-Ray, but I would suggest getting a Philips. I've used Philips TVs and DVD/BR for several years and they will play anything that you throw at it. MP3, MP4, DIVX or just about any "common" video or audio files. Last Smart BR I bought was on deals.woot.com for 35 bucks. Shop around and you can find them cheap, but Philips plays more formats than just about any player out there.
[...]
Thanks! Very helpful. Question: How long since you bought your last Phillips? I ask because maybe technology has overtaken the Phillips and other brands now mach it? Not a clue; just wondering.
Costco has a Samsung Blu-Ray for about $74 + tx. Anybody have experience with Samsung? (I tend to run off & buy the last thing anybody advises so need all the input I can get!)
HB
OPPO is the brand that provides the best audio, and the widest range of supported audio and video formats.
Any blu-ray player should be sufficient for your needs.
The most important thing is that it plays what you need it to play. If all you intend to use it for is playing DVDs and BR DVD, then it doesn't matter too much if it plays DIVX or MP4. Same thing with other features, like ethernet, wireless. If you want to stream videos too it and don't have wired ethernet readily available, then you'll need one with wireless.
Ah, refreshing dose of common sense! In fact, all I would envision using it for is DVD & BR DVD, so I should just shut up & buy the Costco Samsung. (But I must also check if I have wired ethernet...)
All the same, I couldn't resist going to the OPPO site and dreaming over the high-end audiophile selection! (At this point I'll be glad if I can pay the shop for latest problem with my '99 Nissan!!!)
Tx everybody for input.
HB
The Samsung for $75 at Costco is wireless. But, did you look at the reviews? Not so good. Before I buy anything like that I take a look at Amazon to see the reviews there. Even if you don't buy it, usually they have a lot of reviews and it's not just the number people give it. A lot of times you'll see people talking about some feature that you weren't even thinking about. Or bitching about some drawback that you wouldn't know existed unless you went to use it.
...another point about WiFi, is that the firmware can be regularly upgrade. In a similar way a PC BIOS is reflashed. The Samsung we have probably gets one every few months...it's a about a year old.
I think what you mean is that any player that is internet connected can be firmware upgraded. Maybe all the ones that are internet capable are wireless, there aren't any that are just hardwired anymore, IDK about that.
| Costco has a Samsung Blu-Ray for about $74 + tx. Anybody have experience with Samsung?
I don't have a lot of experience with different brands. I only buy electronics when I absolutely must. But I do tend to trust Samsung because they're the people with the know-how. I'm pretty sure they make Apple's iPhone screens. In general they seem to be the innovators with that sort of thing. When Samsung used to make hard disks it was typical to find them in OEM computers, which indicates they were probably dependable. I now have a Samsung TV, 2 Samsung DVD players from Best Buy, and a Samsung DVD drive in my PC. No trouble with any of them, except the TV sometimes acts up a bit in hot weather. I don't know whether that's normal. When it's real hot sometimes it will become unresponsive or go black, then turn itself off and back on again. I figure maybe it's an overheat protection, but I don't know.
My only other experience with flatscreen TVs was a friend whose TV burned out. I think it was HP, though I'm not certain. It turned out that a soldered spot on a circuit board was just a hair away from the back metal panel, with no insulation! Somehow it bridged the gap at some point, sparked and burned out the TV. A repair person figured out the problem from the black soot mark on the back panel.
Yes I did, and they were not enthusiastic, I agree.
Not so good. Before I buy anything like that I take a look at Amazon to see the reviews there. Even if you don't buy it, usually they have a lot of reviews
Back to the drawing board! Any other low-end wireless DVD player?
HB
OK, I went on-line and so far leaning toward SONY. A little more expensive than previous suggestions, but reviews mostly positive. Maybe more featur es than I need RIGHT NOW, but it's on sale for $88 at Target. Not a huge S ONY fan, probably based on old information and ignorant prejudice, but this one looks like it might work out.
HB
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