Great versatile DVD/CD/MP3 player
938893
There are lots of 5-disc DVD/CD changers available now, and a few of them even play MP3 discs, but what sold me on this one was the fact that it will play my MP3s in random order. I've looked at about a dozen 5-disc changers with MP3 capabilities over the last few months, but the one feature they were all missing was the ability to play MP3 songs randomly. When you can cram 100+ songs onto an MP3 CD, you don't usually want to hear them in the same order every time. This DVD changer can play the tracks from 1 disc randomly, or you can load up 5 MP3 discs and have the random pick from all of them (500+ random songs). An added bonus for some people is the ability to play WMA-encoded songs, but watch out - WMA's that have been flagged as copyrighted won't play. If you turn on the TV when MP3 files are playing, you can see the folder and the first 30 characters of the song that's playing; an on-screen menu also lets you easily select folders or songs to play.
Other than its MP3 capabilities, it's a pretty standard DVD/CD changer. It is not a progressive-scan player, though, which is odd since it's so new. The manual says it can play DVD, CD, Video CD, CD-R, and CD-RW, as well as DVD-R discs that were "recorded on a Panasonic DVD video recorder". Things it says it won't play include DVD-Audio, SVCD, Divx, and Photo CDs.
Panasonic opted for minimal controls on the face of the unit, which probably allowed it to be fairly thin (it's the shortest multi-disc unit I've seen) but means that you have to run most things from the remote, including choosing which disc to play. On-screen menus help you set up the player and show you which special options you've selected. Oddly, pressing the Stop button on the remote or the unit stops the current feature (song or movie) but the disc remains active - you must press Stop a 2nd time to tell the player that you're done with the disc and want to switch to something else (like change to another disc). When the unit powers off, the power stays off, so there's no point in plugging it in to your amplifier hoping that you only have to use a single Power button.
No changer is perfect, but the only things I've run into with this one are minor annoyances rather than actual problems. And it's great to finally find a changer with true random functionality for both my CDs and MP3 discs. If you want a single unit to function as both a DVD player and a CD changer, this one does it all for you, in a very slim package.
By the way, despite what the Amazon information about this changer says, it does not have a "shuttle dial" or a "unified remote control".
Pros:
 - DVD changer with CD, MP3, WMA capabilities
 - MP3/WMA songs can be played in random order from one or all discs
 - Change 4 discs while playing the 5th
 - On-screen setups and MP3 file/folder selection
Cons:
 - No progressive scan
 - Must use remote for most functions
2695764
I bought this player from amazon.com itself. Initially I was bit skeptical that how can it have so many features with very small price, but after I tested this product I'm fully satisfied with its performance. It plays everything from audio CD to DVD. Region hack for this player is also available on net.
This can play both NTSC & PAL formats.
If you are not very much Brand-Name crazy person then this is good piece at great price.
1705867
The Vantec AVOX Mobile Multimedia Jukebox is nice to have for:

* Digital Multimedia Player via Home TV or Car LCD TV

* USB 2.0 External Storage via PC Supports(NTFS, FAT32)

It Provides clear crisp Audio: Stereo, and Digital Coaxial 5.1ch. Sound

It has Excellent Video: Composite, HD Component 480p, 720p, 1080i, The Video Processor does an excellent job of up-converting the videos and JPEGs to Hi-definition Video output.

* Rip your own DVD's and put them on AVOX Jukebox and use the Built in DVD Manager for Playback of DVD, It displays Original DVD Titles and functions like a high end DVD player with 1080i Upconverted resolution for HD TVs

* Easy Firmware Upgrade when available for additional features.

Pros:

* Perfect for slideshow presentations

* Easy to use storage device with good USB 2.0 Speeds

* Light weight and transportable

* Supports a wide variety of video and music formats

* Supports Stereo, Digital Coaxial 5.1ch. sound

* Excellent Quality HD 1080i output for HD TVs

Cons:

* Uses expensive notebook hard drives

* Limited range on remote (less than 11 feet)

* Lack of a random feature out of the box

* Lack of M3U play lists support

* Cheap Body construction (Bottom and sides are plastic)

* Lack of S-video output

* Supplied cable are very short to connect to a home theater

* Gets hot too quickly and poor heat dissipation due to plastic construction

* Having a lot of files makes one feel tired of navigation using the remote.

* Playlist can be created, But does not stay between reboots!
1793368
This cd/mp3 player hardly skips! If you vigoursly shake it back in forth in your hand for a good 25sec (when playing a CD) you might get a quick milisecond of audio loss. But when you are playing mp3s, it NEVER SKIPS no matter what you do to it! Its also very easy to use, although the lettered buttons for typing searches in may take awhile to get used to. Its fairly compact, light, and using NiCD or NiMH batteries will help on the battery life. The instruction booklet gives the following times (by the way, mine was entirely in english, I have no idea what other reviewers were talking about)
Battery life is 3-10 hours depending whether ESP is on or off and whether you are playing mp3s or CDs. (Mp3 battery life is much longer than CDs and ESP is always on for Mp3s whereas it is an option for CDs.)
Note: Mp3 playback always has ESP on.
I highly recommend purchasing some high drain batteries (this player takes two at a time, so get four so you can charge two and use two)
And of course this CD/Mp3 player scrolls ID3 tags on the 2 line LCD display (you can edit them in the Winamp program by right clicking the song, selecting file info, checking the ID3 tag box, and filling in the artist and track) Otherwise ID3 tags are usually embedded in the mp3. This mp3 player will hold about 200 songs!
Another nice feature is the ability to search for songs and albums (albums are the folders that contain more songs). You just hit the search button (once for files, twice for albums) and punch in the first few letters for the file/folder you are looking for on the CD, and it will take you right there. If there is more than one match for your query, it will blink and you can go through them with the search up/down keys.
It is worth noting that it takes 2-3 seconds to switch tracks or directorys when playing mp3s. When you first turn the player on, it takes 5-30 seconds to start up (depending on how many mp3s you have). But its nothing and you get used to it!
I hightly recommend using "data cd" with Adaptec's Easy CD creator (don't use direct CD). In the program, you chose the songs you want and can create folders and subfolders with different songs under them (referred as albums, you can place entire CDs under them and label them by that CD's title, or you can make albums as artists, or make them as genres). So then after you burn the CD on a cd-r or cd-rw and pop it in the player, you can search for a folder (album) by typing in C,L,A (thats all you would probably have to do), hit enter, and then the classical folder comes up with all your classical songs. Or, if you know exactely what song you want, do a file search and hit M,O,Z and get Mozart. Really nice, although it will get easier with bigger displays in the future. But at a price this cheap for something this good! WHY WOULD YOU BUY A GOOD MP3 PLAYER THAT HOLDS 64MB AND ABOUT 1 HOUR OF SONGS FOR $150-$300 WHEN YOU CAN GET A EXCELLENT CD PLAYER THAT NOT ONLY PLAYS CDS, BUT 650MB OF 10 HOURS OF MUSIC AT THE SAME QUALITY FOR A CHEAP PRICE !
Basic stuff: it plays 32-128kbps files (i have heard that it can do 192, but I haven't tried it yet). You can always reduce or increase song's quality to 128kbps in Musicmatch. Includes 45sec ESP (works great), line out, headphones (actually the memorex brand fits and works nicely), car adapter, ciggerate lighter power adapter, standard AC adapter.
Also includes features such as programming tracks (up to 24), digital 45sec ESP, repeat, repeat all, repeat directory, intro, random, and DBSS (bass enchancement) switch.
OVERVIEW: (if you were too lazy to read everything above)
BUY IT NOW!
3446105
Fantastic DVD duplicator, great price, unit can't be beat
2457459
Love this DVD player. It is sleek and light, easy to set up, reasonably intuitive remote, and doesn't take up much space. This was an upgrade to our earlier Philips DVD player (not sure of the model), the major improvement in this is that it plays more formats than the earlier one we had (MPEG4 for example). Another huge benefit of this model is that it allows you to play videos directly from a hard drive, saves us the trouble of burning DVD's or copying to a USB memory stick. Absolutely recommend this product.
4592011
Sturdy, functional, many different play options, remote.  It only plays CDs, however.  No problem for me, that's all I want it to do and integrates well with other Onkyo  equipment.
4671199
The Zen V Plus is a nifty little device that accomplishes a lot of audio tasks. It is an audio player and recording, and also displays JPEG pictures and small video files.

  I found the usability of the Zen to be very good for it's size. You have to hold the "On" button for least one second to activate the player and this prevents it accidentally turning on by mistake in your pocket. The battery management is also well designed: the display dims a few seconds after you press any of the buttons. If the Zen isn't playing, it automatically turns itself after a few minutes. By virtue of these features, I found that I get hours of play before the unit needs recharging which is done by hooking up to a USB port on your computer.

  Sound quality is very good: I was surprised given the Zen's small size and very light weight. In fact, the unit is so small and light, you'll want to attach the strap to prevent yourself losing it. The display is bright and readable. One thing I especially like is that Zen only plays one folder of music at a time and then stops: it doesn't keeping playing one folder after another endlessly like other players do. It's like playing only one CD or record at a time. There also is a "set bookmark" function for going back to an exact spot in a recording.

  The included software works well for transferring and managing files on the Zen. While the unit is not straight Windows drag and drop, the Creative Media Explorer accomplishes the same thing. This software also rips music from CDs and is supposed to convert video files to play on the Zen but I couldn't get the latter function to work for my video clips.

  The buttons on the Zen are a little on the cheap side but work well enough. There is a "lock" button that is integrated with the "On" switch: this keeps you from accidentally pushing any buttons during recordig or playback. The Zen also acts as a line-in recorder at 128 or 160 kbps recording rate, and has a built-in microphone also. Sound quality is good with line-in and decent on the microphone. I think these features alone are worth the purchase price. The Zen plays FM radio, but you can't record from it with this unit.

  You can also display your favorite photos one at a time or in slide show format. The Zen also acts as a portable flash drive. To use this function you need to select from an internal menu to decide how much space to give the new data partition.

  As far as "freezing-up" is concerned, my unit froze once when I first used it, possibly due to an incompatible music file that I transferred, and I was a bit miffed. This is simple enough to correct but you need a very small pin to insert in the side of the unit. This causes it to rebuild the file list which takes a few minutes. After doing this once, my unit has worked fine ever since.

  The paper manual is a bit skimpy, as others have noted, but the online manual is sufficient. Holding down the "Back" button, the one with the little left-facing arrow, on the Zen shows you additional options for each function. One slightly amusing feature is that the Zen shows you messages like "shutting down" or "processing" in a separate DOS-like window superimposed on top of the main window. It's reminds you that the Zen is, in fact, a small computer. The Zen also contains a calendar and a nice-looking clock with alarm that, while not sounding a beep or buzz, turns on the audio player to a random track or the FM radio. It can do this from a completely shut-down state but you need to keep the headphones attached if you aren't looking at the display.

  Overall, I like the Zen V Plus and found that it has become a constant companion for air travel and around the house for a variety of line or microphone recording uses.

(Simeon Hein is the author of the OPENING MINDS softcover and audio books, and PLANETARY INTELLIGENCE: 101 Easy Steps to Energy, Well-Being, and Natural Insight.)
4187265
I can't expound on a product if it hasn't been given my utmost satisfaction.  After hearing about this dvd player from other sources I had to see for myself.  The Coby TFDVD7100 Portable DVD Player is one great product for half the price you pay for an expensive player.  After I received it from Amazon.com I quickly opened it up, read the instructions with little ease and turned it on after inserting a dvd movie.  And, behold it was exactly as it was described. Its compact 7" flat screen, (wide screen) picture was crystal clear and the headphones (included), gave a reasonable sound from the movie in stereo.  The sound alone without the headphones is not the greatest but better than most. This player has everything you need.  Just to mention a few: Slow/Fast Motion Play, Zoom Operation, Composite Video Output (can be attached to your TV) with Optical Audio Output, Built in Stereo Speakers and much more. The best feature I love is the Lithium-Ion Polymer Rechargeable Battery which can be attached to the bottom of the player, (out of sight) not like other players. It also has a remote control unit.  Compatibility: DVD/CD/CDR/RW/MP3/JPEG.  Like I said, a terrific dvd player for half the price of an expensive dvd player.  It didn't take me long to order another one for a member of my family.  The Coby family deserves 5 stars for this wonderful product.
4434993
I love listening to music all the time and in a few weeks I am going to CA and I didn't want to take all of my cds and cd player. I also didn't want to spend a lot of money. This one is perfect for just what I need. I find myself using it at work also. I put my speakers on the mp3 and I am able to listen to my music. I have also used it on my car for a 3 hour trip. It was great because didnt' have to change cds all the time. So far I have 354 songs, 20 cds. It took a day or so to learn how to use it. The one thing I don't like but it's not a big deal is the volume. The low setting is a little bit high for me still; other than this is perfect for me. If you are interested in just getting the bare necessity this one is the one.
1988562
I recently decided to unpack my immense CD collection, which had been boxed and gathering dust in storage for over a decade or more.  As I have built out my home theater and related speakers and audio system, I realized that buying a decent standalone CD player was called for.  My audio | video receiver is an Onkyo, and I really appreciate their hardware.  I am now enjoying a return to physical media for my music, and the Onkyo C-7030 is simply a tremendous CD player.  The audio quality is spectacular, and if you are in the market to add a dedicated CD player, I highly recommend this Onkyo unit.  I have it connected solely via the optical cable, and it is now delivering blistering and accurate music from my CD collection, and I am even buying new CDs for the first time in many years.
4414593
This unit has it all from legacy formats like cassette and CD to slipping in a memory stick filled with your downloads. The playback is great for a compact system and the battery power makes a versatile unit. The remote control nice when the unit is plugged in.
  This unit is pricey but a great value because if its quality and versatility.
  Cold beer, sunshine and a quality music source defines summer for me.
3482865
I really enjoy my new audio player. I had a CD player. Now,<a data-hook="product-link-linked" class="a-link-normal" href="/Pioneer-DEH-3300UB-CD-Receiver-with-iPod-Direct-Control-and-USB-Input/dp/B004BLJXLQ/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_rvw_txt?ie=UTF8">Pioneer DEH-3300UB CD Receiver with iPod Direct Control and USB Input</a>&nbsp;with the additional formats I can listen to MP3's in most types of storage. My favorite is the flash drive through the usb port. The sound quality is great and I am really enjoying it. I only wish the player would read DVD discs with mp3's on them. Over all the unit is a rave. I sure am glad I purchased it.
857742
I just received this for my birthday and I have been very impressed.
I looked at MP3 players for a while and could not decide on the best memory/$ ratio, since there are from 32MB all the way up to 12GB, some with plugable cards. This solution is ideal since you get 650 MB per CD and obviously they are swapable.
So as soon as I got it, I went to my computer and selected two entire Phish concerts (usually about 3 hours a piece), an MMW concert and another CD and burned them all to one CD. The reporoduction of each track was excellent and each track title scrolled across the display as it was playing. (You must name the tracks specifically for this to work, but I have been methodical in storing my MP3s since I started collecting.)
When the CD first starts, there appears to be some delay during initialization. This lasts about 10 seconds. Subsequently, the next/prev track response is immediate, as is skip forward/back within the same track.
The unit itself has the basic navigational buttons, Volume (buttons, not fial) track repeat mode (there are several and I have not figured them all out yet ) , program, plus an equalizer button which switches between presets for Normal, Rock, Jazz and Ultra Bass. It also has a hold switch which disables all buttons, but conveniently, it does not disable the buttons on the remote which has its own hold switch. There is also a navigation button but I have not figured out how it works yet, There is a headphone output, a line output and 4.5V DC power supply input on the side. Underneath there is an Electronic Shock Protection switch to select between 40 and 10 seconds, the former presumably consuming less battery power. I think this switch only applies to regular CDs (not MP3s) since the MP3 shock protection is much longer.
The remote, (which plugs in between the unit and your headphones, has the same stop/start, pause, prev and next buttons, also has the equalizer and volume control buttons, plus a nice little clip on the back.
The performance of the MP3 player is sort of interesting. It buffers what it needs and then stops spinning. My rough estimate is that it spins every 2.5 minutes for 20 seconds. I assume this preserves battery life by eliminating redundant spinning.
The unit also comes with a leatherlike holding pack (which this consumer will not be wearing) and an AC power supply, as well as several pieces of software which I have not opened yet.
I think the potential of MP3 CD players is awesome ( I am sure high end stack stereo systems will have this capability soon) and this is a good showing of the technology. I think I can now burn every album of each of my favorite bands onto just a couple of CDs. For example, Phish's Hampton Comes Alive, a six CD live set will now fit onto one CD. And yes, I realize there is degradation in sound quality, but I hardly notice it. I have also started burning all available CD material of bands I like onto one CD, so for example, all of MMW's CDs will fit on one MP3 CD.
Another excellent feature is the upgradeable ROM. You simply go to the RioVolt web site, download the latest (as of this writing it is 2.01) file, burn it to a CD and place the CD in the player and press play. Upgrades offer enhancements such as improved caching, shorter wait times between tracks and increase the sampling rate on MP3s.
I should also point out that the player also supports Windows Media format. Compared to MP3, this may seem trivial, but I have found that I am able to download and save ASF and WMA streams which I can then burn to CD and listen to on my Rio. (eYada archives for example). I am not sure if ASF are supported directly, but renaming them to WMA files makes the play fine.
Burn away and enjoy !
2859228
That's a cheapest and feature-load DVD changer I could ever Imagine.
It plays virtually anything - any media CD/CDR/CDRW/DVD/DVDR any file mp2/mp3/wav/jpeg/mpg, you don't even need to bother putting your mpg video into VCD/SVCD format! It'll play it! Actually you can put everything on one CDR (mpg video, jpg pictures, mp3 music) and play it! You can create directory structure and it will act as a computer to dig up your files from existing CDs. Plus it has microphone input and Caraoke capabilities!
It comes with everything for basic connection, including audio&video cables, even batteries for remote.
Jpeg rendering is really fast even for big files, plus you can make slideshow and it has zoom capabilities too!
Just to say, this is not an ideal DVD player, but for this money it just amazing!
Remote is kinda mess, small buttons and digits is hard to read and sometimes features are not intuitive, but after a wile you can feel comfortable enough.
561221
If you need a simple mp3 player for listening to music and books on tape, don't need to watch movies or jpeg pictures, this may be the unit for you.  The interface is the best I've seen on iaudio players: simple, reliable, easy to use.  The sound, as in all i audio units, is excellent and, for those of you who listen to albums (not `songs') iaudio is one of the few players that allow you to organize music and books the way you want and with the titles you want to give albums and tracks within albums.  This feature frees you from annoying IP tags and will show folders organized and named just as you desire and as dragged from your PC to the Music folder of the U5.  It is this feature that makes Cowon products the best choice for those who listen to classical music.  Thus, you can have a folder for Opera, Chamber Music, Leider, Symphony, etc. and within which, separate folders for individual albums and, using the Folders option, display them as such.  Of course, the unit has options for displaying the contents using IP tags, individual tracks, tracks by artist, etc.; the usual options found in most mp3 players.  U5 also has the variety of options that now seem almost standard in mp3 players: equalization for various frequency bands, timer, clock, auto shut off, bass boost, vice recorder, record from FM, etc.
All of the music and BOT I load come from CDs and, so, can't address issues of loading/ripping from on-line sources.  The ripping from CD software that comes packaged is easy to use and perfectly adequate.  I also don't use `playlists' but that option is present on included software.

Pros:  small and light, fits easily into a shirt pocket.  Excellent sound, very good FM tuner, simple interface, good instruction manual (on CD), seems sturdy and well built, ability to rename and organize music as preferred (as above).  Controls:  I've not encountered problems with the controls mentioned in a few other reviews: they seem perfectly adequate and provide good tactile feedback when pressed.  Maximum volume is more than adequate and the unit sounds great even with inexpensive run-of-the-mill earbuds.

Cons:  Not many: battery life is adequate but not as long as in the D2 but the U5 is smaller and much lighter and I'm happy to pay with battery time for size and weight.  A memory card slot for extending capacity would have been nice: Sansa does it and Cowon should for the U5.  On the other hand, I find that 8 gb is more than adequate for a large amount of music and BOT.  Further, it's simple to delete files and load new files: requires no special software and can be done on any PC.
Bookmarks: apparently bookmarks are available but not well documented (see other reviews).  I can't get them but, perhaps, need to update the firmware.
Service: most users agree that Cowon service leaves a lot to be desired.  I've purchased 5 different Cowon units and they have all been trouble free so can't speak to the issue.
Price: I notice that the price on Amazon varies from week to week:  I bought mine from Amazon for $65 plus $6.50 for SH in early November 08 and a few weeks later noted that their list price was $93.

Bottom line:  for me this is the best of the Cowon units for playback of music and BOT: light, easy to use, complete freedom in organizing files, no proprietary software needed, relatively inexpensive, sturdy and well made.  It needs a better bookmark feature but else is a winner.
3300873
This universal player was universally recommended to me by friends who care about either extremely high quality audio sound and/or those who want something that can play any format. This unit accomplishes both of those superbly. It has a top-notch DAC that renders CDs and also MP3's with wonderful audio fidelity and musicality. And it handles every format under the sun. So far, it's a 5-star review.

There is one shortcoming which is maddening but fixable. The device can play MP3's -- indeed it plays them superbly. But you can't connect your iPod to the Oppo as it doesn't recognize the device. Your only easy option is to connect an external hard drive or USB memory stick. I could probably live with that. But the part that drives me crazy is that you need to turn on your video monitor to navigate all the menus and in order to play a track. I tried to memorize the sequence of button presses and arrow moves not to have to fire up my LCD projector to play an MP3 but couldn't find a way. Couldn't they have included even a 3-line text display on the device so what you wouldn't need to run your TV to play music. After all this is as much a CD/ music player as a DVD/video device.

There is solution - I bought a small 8" LCD screen for about $100, which I use to navigate the menus to play music. Seems silly and is annoying, but it works, and I still consider it worthwhile for an otherwise superb machine.

Two other notes: in theory you can network the device with the right kind of hard drive, although again this involves a computer or some other way to sort through directories.

Second, the Oppo works very well with Netflix, which allowed me to get rid of my Roku.