Excellent Budget DVD Player for Enthusiasts
590861
If you're putting together a High-Def Home Theater, you should have the DV-970HD on the short list for your DVD player. Besides being a universal player, it's most significant capability is that it can UPSCALE standard 480p DVD video to HD resolutions. This is useful if the deinterlacing/scaling capability of your TV/Monitor is not that great.

Another significant capability of this player is that it can do 480i over HDMI. This is what *I* use the player for, and it's great if you're using an external video processor that can provide reference class deinterlacing and scaling. In this instance, the player makes a fine digital transport for DVD.

I have also read positive things about this player's capabilities as a CD transport.

For what you get for the price, it's hard to find any fault with the 970. The documentation can be a *tad* confusing, and this is not helped by the additional "Advanced Setup Guide", which, in my opinion, only further confuses matters. (This isn't really a big deal, except that Clint DeBoer, in typical Clint DeBoer fashion, begins the guide by disparaging the standard documentation and bragging about how much better this "Advanced" guide is.)

I definitely recommend the DV-970HD! (For those of you needing 1080p up-conversion, consider the DV-981HD.)
2971551
I would definitely recommend this unit to anyone. I have had no problems playing mp3 cds, vcds or svcds. DVD play is great as well. The features are pretty basic (zoom, ffwd up to 10x, etc) but if you just want to pop a movie in and watch it, you'll have no problems. It plays all regions (with a slight hack to get to the menu). Like others have said, not having an on/off button on the remote does get a little tiresome, but this is the only unit at this low price that plays all formats of cds, and the on/off problem is a small price to pay for this feature. The next step up would be progressive scan and dolby digital/dts decoders, but that would jack the price up too much. Overall, it's a great DVD player and an awesome value if you have the need to play mp3s, vcds etc.
305782
This is an exceptional value in terms of features at this price. DVDs look beautiful through the S-video input, virtually unheard of at this price. The built in speakers are par for this range, not great, not terrible. But the audio line out is clean and crisp, so hook up your stereo and turn off the internal speakers. Multi-component remote works fine -I'm controlling the VCR and DVD player with it easily. The only complaint is slightly bowed screen edges. Only really noticeable sometimes when a channel's call letters are placed way down at the bottom corner and get slightly clipped. Was only looking for a cheap second stereo tv with audio line out -the nice s-video was a bonus surprise!...
2992082
This system offers a fairly well rounded package for those looking for an all in one unit that offers DVD, CD, DVD-R, and Radio options.  Setup will be simple for some, however cable customers may find a trip to Radio Shack necessary to make the appropriate connections.  The particular instructions I needed were not provided in the documentation, & required some technical assistance from my local cable company. Sound quality is good, although bass is very "boomy" unless you make manual adjustments to the EQ system.  Like many units that burn DVD's, this unit is fan cooled, and it runs constantly, even if you're just playing a CD.  Do not expect the sound quality to match separate components...this unit simply can't do that, however this system is quite listenable.  Like many similar units, midrange is lacking.  The DVD recorder works very well & it's performance shines.  Panasonic has obviously done their homework, and this DVD-R doesn't have any of the annoying glitches & problems that the other brands seemed to be plagued with. For $400, this unit is a very fair value.
992947
My wife and I had finally decided to buy a DVD player, but we did not know where to start.  We searched high and low on many DVD player reviews, but eventually made our way to Amazon. Com.  Every site of course points to the  best DVD players being in the $300 to $400 range, but we wanted to stay in  the $200 to $300 range due to our budget.  We were going to go with RCA  because everything else we owned was RCA.  But looking at the reviews, it  seemed that there were way too may problems with their DVD players.  We  finally decided after looking thru Amazon's DVD player reviews to go with  the Toshiba SD1200.  Before we bought it we went down to the local  electronics shop to see it and get a hands on perspective.  The sleazy  salesmen there were telling us that it was a very bad DVD player and we  trying to get us to buy a $400 Pioneer DVD player that had all the fancy  features and sound options.  But we still went with the Toshiba DVD SD1200  and we are very happy with it.  The Matrix plays in the DVD player just  fine as with any other DVD's we have.  The sound just jumps out at us even  with our small home stereo system we have.  This DVD player is great and  has all types of features we never knew it really had.  I have had no  problems playing any type of DVD's and even rentals.  Although I clean the  rentals with a cleaner before I put them into the DVD player.  The DVD  player boasts a zoom feature that is pretty neat, but when you zoom the  picture starts looking like a VHS picture, so it is not too effective.  You  don't have the optical outputs, but I have heard those come loose easily.  You get S-Video, composite and traditional RCA out, although if you use the  RCA out, what is the purpose of buying a DVD player?  Use the Composite or  S-Video, or you will be missing some of the big picture.  Did I mention the  sound was incredible?  We have a small Sony Mini Stereo System and the  sounds screams at us even through our outdated stereo hardware.  I can only  imagine with fear what the sound will be like when we upgrade to a Mini  Home theater system, we will more than likely get kicked out of the  apartment complex.  One last thing, this DVD Player is the best first time  buyer (that's me) I have found where you want to keep your within your  budget.
4404642
I guess we sometimes are lucky and sometimes not. Wanting a nice silver progressive scan DVD, I was debating between a Panasonic and this one, but the nice experience prevailed and, having happily owned a JVC stereo system a few years ago, I settled for this DVD player. So far, I have not had any complaints, plus it's very easy to use and it looks very slick in our living room. For the low cost, I would highly encourage even those customers considering the REALLY cheap options to pick this one up instead. You will be find it a rewarding and affordable option to fulfill your DVD playing needs.
2362118
I had been in the market for a set of inexpensive bookshelf speakers when I stumbled across this brand new model Sony system at a local retailer.  For the price, this unit is pretty hard to beat, with a fairly extensive feature list and only a few drawbacks.

This unit is the brand new "step up" to the popular HDX265 model system.  The speakers are the same, but this unit adds digital dolby decoding, additional digital input capability (important for decoding Digital Dolby from satellite or cable boxes) and support for the new "S-AIR" system that allows wireless connectivity to other rooms in the home.

Sound quality from this setup is good, although not impressive if you are used to higher end sound from seperate components.  Certainly good enough for use in a bedroom or other application (I put this in a small workout room).  Sound quality is better than most shelf systems in the same price range and should give most other all-in-one-box systems a good run for their money.

Setup is extremely simple with color coded wires for all of the different speakers.  Unfortunately the wires terminate to special connectors that plug into the back of the main unit.  This would make extending/replacing the wires a pain.  The unit includes a microphone and a nifty auto-calibration feature that sets all of the speaker levels correctly with a few taps on the remote control.

The remote control itself is handy, but on the cheap side.. it's pretty basic but gets the job done.  It will control all of the unit functions and even allow for basic control of an iPod that is connected to the included iPod dock.  The remote control can also be programmed to control most model TVs.

DVD output from this unit is very good and the HDMI output is great for quick and easy cabling to an HDMI equipped flat panel HDTV.  DVD startup and controls were quite snappy and the unit can hold up to 5 CDs or DVD in the built in cartridge.  The unit will up-convert DVD to 1080P resolution over the HDMI output.  While not nearly as good looking as my Blu-Ray player, it will still look quite good on most small to medium sized TVs.

The best features of this unit are the HDMI output, extra inputs (one digital and one analog), iPod dock (which works with the remote control) and DVD up-conversion.

There are drawbacks, as there always are with these all-in-one deals.  The iPod dock doesn't have any onscreen output or control, which is a bit of a drag since you can't see what's on the iPod screen from across the room.  The main unit is physically quite deep (about 15 inches) which means it won't fit on smaller shelves.  Also annoying is the lack of any bass or treble control.

The unit has two sound modes, "movie" and "music" and a bass enhancer (which I turned off as it made the bass sound boomy and obnoxious for music listening).  There is no stereo 5.1 mode which would allow for output to all 5 speakers from regular stereo sources like an iPod.  Instead the unit has a 4 channel matrix mode that uses the main, rear and subwoofer speakers for stereo.  This is kind of a shame since the center channel speaker is the clearest sounding one of the bunch.  The center channel does sound decent when watching or listening to TV and DVD sources.

Overall I can safely give this system 4 stars.  The sound is quite good for a sub $300 system, the DVD player with up-conversion is great, and the unit has just enough flexibility through the extra inputs and wireless add-on options to be useable for quite some time.  Certainly it fits the bill as a stereo/DVD-player for my workout room.

//update as of 4/23/2008.

A couple of other little nit picks discovered with this sytem.  I've discovered that the sound mode, bass and other settings aren't memorized per input.  In other words if you are watching a DVD and have the sound mode in "movie" and have the bass turned up and then switch the input to the one for the iPod it is still in the same sound mode.  This is a bit inexcusable considering that even dirt cheap budget AV receivers can remember the settings for each input seperately.
3365686
This is a fantastic basic Blu-ray DVD player at a fantastic price ($59.98 on 1/19/2012). I wanted a Blu-ray player DVD that could also stream Netflix content, and this player fits the bill. Be aware that this player does not have a wireless network card, so you must connect the player to your router with an Ethernet cable. If these specs meet your needs, then I think you will be satisfied with this product.

I did have to perform a firmware upgrade when I first started the Blu-ray player. The upgrade was straightforward, but on the reboot the player froze. I unplugged the power cord and plugged the player back in, and the player booted normally and displayed a message that the firmware was successfully upgraded.
2223403
I have to agree with the reviewer that said that as a straight dvd player it rates 5 stars.  It plays every disk I throw at it including DVD+R and DVD-R.  Using component cables, the images on my Sharp 32" LCD were outstanding and as good as the DVI images from my home theater PC.  I even thought that the svideo output was pretty good and would be more than OK on a regular TV.

As far as the "specialty features" go, I found them uneven.  Simply playing MP3's from a CD-RW or CD-R was easy.  The menuing system is simple and adequate.  JPEG's, however, were very inconsistent.  Some of them came out fine, but others were squeezed so that I had to change the Sharp's view mode to "stretch" to get them properly proportioned.  It could be that this is a setup issue although I couldn't find anything in the manual to deal with this.  Finally, I tried playing a VCD disk and it was highly pixelated.  The disk played fine on my PC.

Overall, I am not disappointed with this DVD player as I planned to use the PC for pics and music anyway.  I bought this as a convenient way for my wife and me to run DVD movies without having to boot the PC if it is off.  If you just want to play DVDs and MP3s you won't be making a mistake in buying this.
61103
I've only had it a few days, but am extremely happy with it.  However, as mentioned before in a previous review, the display is a joke.  Even sitting up close to it the display is almost useless.  Fortunately I don't depend on the display much, but for those that do, you will be very disappointed in it.  However, given what the system can do, and how well it does it, that can easily be overlooked.  I've run some old movies and some concert videos through it and they all come out really great.  This is one player that will not disappoint you if you're looking for an inexpensive, but feature rich DVD player.
3567071
I bought the Sony DVPNS75H as a gift to my daughter, who'd just purchased a 42" Samsung 1080p LCD HDTV. It hooked up very simply via an HDMI cable purchased separately. The upconverting seemed to work fine. The picture was very sharp, sound excellent. By mid 2008, true HD DVD players will be all over the marketplace at under $100, so I'd hold off buying any DVD player that isn't true HD. An upconverting DVD player such as the Sony DVPNS75H is nice, but why not get the real deal for the same money.
3052157
I recently purchased a Panasonic 50" plasma 1080p HDTV. I have a fair number of DVD's and was slightly disappointed with the picture quality via my old DVD player. After becoming aware of these upconverting or upscaling DVD players, I began doing a little research, as I'm not quite ready to spring for a BluRay player, and purchased the Sony NS700H. The improvement in the picture quality is striking. I couldn't be more pleased, given the price of this unit.

I spoke with several video geeks, even a couple in the box stores, and all told me the same thing -- this type of DVD player will work best with a 1080p TV and an HDMI connection. Since this is the configuration I have, it works beautifully.
1143228
My old Polaroid DVD player went out unexpectedly and I found myself neck-deep reading reviews and trying to figure out how to replace it with a newer model.  I use this at home in bed and for travel, both work-related DVDs and entertainment.  I looked extensively at several Sony, Panasonic, Philips and Toshiba models all in the $150 to $250 range.  I first bought the Toshiba S1900, but just couldn't hack the grainy screen resolution.  It also wouldn't play one of my home-made DVD formats, so I took it back to Best Buy.  Meanwhile, I read some more reviews and other consumers have raved about the LG Screen Resolution ... an impressive 800X600 for this unit.  When I looked harder at them in a side-by-side comparison at the store, it became obvious that no other portable DVD player was even close.  (The specs for the others I reviewed are about half the screen res of this unit.)  Also, the store salesman I talked to told me that LG makes all their own parts, and also sells components to all the big-name brands, specifically LCD displays, and that they have been doing so for years.  So far, so good.  This unit does in fact play all the DVD formats I have.  Also, I got it for $149 at Best Buy ... $40 less expensive than the Toshiba I returned.  The remote control works well, including a power on/off switch which was missing on the Toshiba model and others I have reviewed.  The only thing I don't like about it is the exterior casing only comes in white; I would have preferred black or silver, but that's a small tradeoff overall.  I am slightly hard of hearing, and was not overly impressed with the on-board speakers of any of the units, however this one seemed to match the 8.5 inch Panasonic unit that was my number two pick.  My headphones and earjacks work well in this unit and provide ample sound for me.  I am pleased with this purchase and recommend it.
3831392
As the third generation of DVD players come to themarket,Toshiba, (one of the companies that took part in itsdevelopement) has created a winner. Let me state that this player has features and performance specs that 2 years ago would make it a high end product. To get the most out of this DVD player you should have a mid,or high end home theater reciever, good speakers and component outputs on your viewing monitor. Though this player will look good using any of its video outputs, its high end features should be utilized to get the most out of it. Using the component outputs,this player passed all test specs that are featured on either, Video Esstiantials test DVD, or Avias test DVD. In short....OUTSTANDING video reproduction. Also I have to point out that the high quality DAC's used for audio reproduction compare to a top end CD only player. Even if you don't have many HDCD's this units DACS will certainly sound more open, sweet and less harsh then other players in and above its price range. However,if your a audio-videophile with a good to better home theater set-up, you will appreciate all of this players positives, overlooking the few,(and I mean few)negatives...NOTE..I had NO problems playing any of my 125 DVD's with this player,and the remote is perfectly adequate.
1710304
I got my first DVD Player back 1998 and, every year since then, I've updated my equipment: from high end Toshiba to high end Pioneer, from low end Philips to low end RCA. Of course, before I ordered the OPPO, I had read the stellar Customer Reviews but, honestly, I didn't expect such a great player for such a low price. Obviously, the best results are obtained via the DVI output (Component OUT is not progressive) and, from then on, it's a real dream: no overscan (my worst nightmare), great upscaling (especially in 720p), great PAL playback (my Westinghouse LCD is universal so there's no conversion involved - that helps a lot), upscaling change on the fly (no need to go back in the setup mode), etc... Had the OPDV971H been released under a familiar "brand" name, it probably would have sold for four to five times the price. However, at $200 shipped from Amazon, it's literally a steal. Highly Recommended.
3446105
Fantastic DVD duplicator, great price, unit can't be beat
2199205
I don't think, you can get anything so good at such low cost. The sharp screen quality was the most pleasant surprise, including the phenomenal portability. I was able to run DVDs from India, just like advertised, so that's great. The on-board buttons are a little clumsy (the pause button sometimes takes more than 1 push to pause) and fast-forwarding is only available on the remote. Also the fast-forwarding is only X2, so it can take quite a while to fast-forward. Otherwise, again, I am very happy with this product (though have owned it only for about a month) and I would have no reservations in recommending it to anyone, who wants a reasonable product at a low cost.