Best DVD player iwth USB

[manju_sng]

Hi All,
Glad to find this forum where I hope to get best suggestion for my queries at the earliest.
I need a basic DVD player with following requirements. I have narrowed down to LG DV 356/DV 388 & Samsung DVD-P480/R ot 1080pk.
1. As of now I don't have HTS. I'll be using it for my Flat CRT TV Sony HP213M93 which has very good woofer & tweeters.
2. I need best USB capability., should be able to play most formats thru USB.
3. Only reason for choosing LG (and ignoring Philips) is service. Hence better repair/service required.
4. As LG doesn't give full specifications (like Audio/Video DAC capability details), I request you to compare the above mentioned models and let me know your suggestions, so that I get best Audio & Video capabilities. Samsung 1080PK doesn't have DTS decoder. How does it affect?
5. I saw that Onida-DFX5990 has most of these features. But only in Philips / Samsung Video & Audio DAC specs are given. Since my 3 priorities are best audio, video & USB function and as I don't need HDMI please advice. I'm willing to spend upto 5000 if my desired features are best even if I don't use HDMI. And also as of now I don't have any HTS.

Thank you..
Manju

 

[venkatcr]

Glad to find this forum where I hope to get best suggestion for my queries at the earliest. I need a basic DVD player with following requirements. I have narrowed down to LG DV 356/DV 388 & Samsung DVD-P480/R ot 1080pk.

1. As of now I don't have HTS. I'll be using it for my Flat CRT TV Sony HP213M93 which has very good woofer & tweeters.
2. I need best USB capability., should be able to play most formats thru USB.
3. Only reason for choosing LG (and ignoring Philips) is service. Hence better repair/service required.
4. As LG doesn't give full specifications (like Audio/Video DAC capability details), I request you to compare the above mentioned models and let me know your suggestions, so that I get best Audio & Video capabilities. Samsung 1080PK doesn't have DTS decoder. How does it affect?

Hello Manuju, welcome to HifiVision first. Please do stay with us and give us feedback on how you enjoy your audio/video.

Regarding the players, you have set some tough decision parameters. Whew !!! I would rate the players as 1080PK first, followed by 480R, followed by LG's 356. As you said, LG does not give any specs, and it is difficult to make any decision. I think LG is a new entrant to the DVD player market. Samsung has been around for some time, and I have personally seen a Samsung at work. Some members of this forum are using Samsung players and are very happy with it.

Regarding Samsung's omission of DTS decoding, that is quite a surprise. In any case, for you immediately, it will not make too much difference as most DVDs come with both DTS and Dolby Digital coding. When you upgrade to a AVR and multiple speakers. you can connect through a coaxial or optical connection and allow the AVR to decode DTS. All AVRs can decode DTS and that will not be an issue.

5. I saw that Onida-DFX5990 has most of these features. But only in Philips / Samsung Video & Audio DAC specs are given. Since my 3 priorities are best audio, video & USB function and as I don't need HDMI please advice. I'm willing to spend upto 5000 if my desired features are best even if I don't use HDMI. And also as of now I don't have any HTS.

Regarding the Onida, I don't see any special features that makes it attractive. I don't see any details on up-scaling, nor DTS decoding.

I think Samsung may be a good option for you. As I have been saying elsewhere, please take a DVD with you, take an audition and then buy the player.

Cheers

 

[manju_sng]

Hi Venkatcr,
Thanks for your reply & valuable suggestions. As suggested I may go for samsung 1080PK or 480R and update my feedbacks on this forum once buy the player.

Thanks & Regrads,
Manju

 

[SwaFa]

Know your looking at Samsung , LG etc models.

You could also consider Pioneer DVD players.

Pioneer DVD player models DV310 and DV410 available for 3200/- and 4500/- approx. Grey Market.

DV310 does not have HDMI and upscaling features like DV410.

Playing movies, music via USB is available in both models.

For more info on either models you could look at Pioneer Singapore .

 

[venkatcr]

Swafa, Manju has narrowed down to LG DV 356/DV 388 & Samsung DVD-P480/R or 1080pk. That is the reason I have not mentioned Pioneer.

Cheers

 

[Dushie]

Manju also look at philips they have a new series out 5996 , which comes with USB 2 port, u can play mp3, avi and photos through portable hdd or thumb drive, it has lot of good reviews too, do check out the same

 

[manju_sng]

Manju also look at philips they have a new series out 5996 , which comes with USB 2 port, u can play mp3, avi and photos through portable hdd or thumb drive, it has lot of good reviews too, do check out the same

Hi Dushie,
Thanks for your suggestions. I'm impressed with Pioneer but will not go for it due to scarcity of authorised dealer/service. But please let me know how is the after sales service and performance of Philips DVD players in general. As per specs, it has best of the features among all (Audio/Video DACs, Dolby+DTS decoder, USB etc). But heard from a dealer friend in Bangalore, its service is bad/delay prone & LG has even on-site service. Actually these things should not matter as long as DVD player performs at its best atleast upto warranty period. Please share your views.

 

[venkatcr]

Hi Dushie,
Thanks for your suggestions. I'm impressed with Pioneer but will not go for it due to scarcity of authorised dealer/service. But please let me know how is the after sales service and performance of Philips DVD players in general. As per specs, it has best of the features among all (Audio/Video DACs, Dolby+DTS decoder, USB etc). But heard from a dealer friend in Bangalore, its service is bad/delay prone & LG has even on-site service. Actually these things should not matter as long as DVD player performs at its best atleast upto warranty period. Please share your views.

Manju:

I use two Pioneer DVD players and they are both giving me robust service. Philips is generally a good player, but they have not kept up with the leading brands in the world.

Regarding service, unless you are very unlucky, a DVD player will run for 2 to 5 years without any hassles. Beyond that, it is just not worthwhile even trying to repair it. I mean sub 5000 Rs players. I had a Philips that ran for 10 years, then the remote stopped working. I took it to Philips service center and he wanted 12,000 - more than the original price of the player. At the end just threw it away.

Since technology is changing very fast, manufacturers are pumpimng out new models every year. The new DVD players are so inexpensive for their perfromance, that it makes sense to change them once every two years or so.

This is the standard Sony philosophy that is now becoming universal.

Cheers

 

[dichkaun]

Keep in mind that some DVD player with USB are unable to read from an external hard disk. They only work with a USB thumb drive. So if you intend to use with a hard drive, check before buying.

 

[thevortex]

Keep in mind that some DVD player with USB are unable to read from an external hard disk. They only work with a USB thumb drive. So if you intend to use with a hard drive, check before buying.

Not true. DVDs with the capability of reading from a USB drive ask for only one thing. For the drive to be formatted in FAT32. So, if you can format your 400GB external hard disk on FAT32, then you can connect that with the DVD player and have fun. Alternatively you can even partition it such that you have one portion for FAT32 and the other for NTFS. I have not tried the latter technique but see no reason why this should not work.

 

[unleash_me]

Gotta agree with thevortex here. Btw, for the DIY folks out there, you can may be try this one...
YouTube - Make your WD Passport work with any USB DVD Player
Caveat: I have not tried or even seen if this works

 

[dichkaun]

Not true. DVDs with the capability of reading from a USB drive ask for only one thing. For the drive to be formatted in FAT32. So, if you can format your 400GB external hard disk on FAT32, then you can connect that with the DVD player and have fun. Alternatively you can even partition it such that you have one portion for FAT32 and the other for NTFS. I have not tried the latter technique but see no reason why this should not work.

Theoretically true.
Unfortunately no so true in practice. My friends has a FreeAgent portable which does not work with his Oppo even though it is formatted with FAT.
No harm in trying before buying.

 

[pnredkar]

Theoretically true.
Unfortunately no so true in practice. My friends has a FreeAgent portable which does not work with his Oppo even though it is formatted with FAT.
No harm in trying before buying.

The problem seems not to be partition format, but the power required to drive the drive. The USB has enough to power a pen drive but not a hard disk. In some forums, people are reporting success with externally powered hard disks though!

Regards,
Prasad.

 

[SwaFa]

External powered 3.5", external hard disk should not have a problem.

It is the 2.5" USB powered, external hard disk which will not work.

 

[thevortex]

Actually I have had no problems with a self powered 200GB external HDD and an 80 GB USB powered external HDD.

Not sure if the bigger volume USB powered external HDDs could have a problem.

 

[dichkaun]

Maybe that's the reason.
The self powered ones would have trouble extracting that much power from the player.
In that case, you should be able to use the an external USB power adapter like: Cables To Go - AC to USB Power Adapter

 

[illusion]

External powered 3.5", external hard disk should not have a problem.

It is the 2.5" USB powered, external hard disk which will not work.

Hi Guys , me new here , was a regular at AV Forums , and I am really glad to find a Indian Forum for the same . Ok this is one topic which I read and researched at AV Forums and Google. It seems SwaFa you have it the other way around , the thing is that 3.5" external HDD require a lot more power. hence many of them either require dual usb connection or an ac adaptor source. 2.5" hard disks on the other hand require lesser power consumption and as a result the 500mA from a usb source is enough to drive the same. In my last trip to the states I had bought a WD 250 gb HDD for a friend of mine which worked beautifully with my laptop. During HDD intensive operations it never disconnected even once although it used to run hot under extended usage.
OK , now there were many posts in AV forums claiming that the same HDD did not work on older dvd players with USB 1.1 port but lower capacity 80GB HDD created no problems. However since the new Gen DVD players are coming with USB 2.0 it just might have the strength to read a 250 GB HDD . But has anybody in the forum tried the same.It would be great news if the same worked and I presently am on a lookout for a similar DVD player ( My Archos 605 Conked out :-( ) where I can connect and watch my 200 gb of movies and music .

 

[illusion]

Manju also look at philips they have a new series out 5996 , which comes with USB 2 port, u can play mp3, avi and photos through portable hdd or thumb drive, it has lot of good reviews too, do check out the same

I could not find the above mentioned Phillips Model on the Phillips India Site. Are you sure the same has been launched in India ?

Also I had bought a Phillips 5956 ( HDMI + USB 1.1 + Slot Load ) when It was launched around a year back. As ezone did not have the same in stock they had given me a display unit with a promise that they would replace the same with the fresh stock as soon as they arrived . However as they did not get stock I went for a Sony NS 76 ( HDMI but no USB) as replacement. I immediately burnt some previously watched divx movies and to my amazement I saw that Sony performed better especially in low light scenes. The blacks were blacker. I could hardly notice the blocks ( I hope you understand what I mean here) which was a common phenomenon in Phillips but I damn miss the USB functionality . So I have hooked my Sony DVD via Belkin Component Cable( I highly recommend the cable - Picture Quality improvement by 25% !!! ) to my Samsung 29" and now looking for a DVD player with USB for my LCD. But the question is that does the new series 5996 use the same Mediatek chipset as 5956 ?

 

[amol12]

I could not find the above mentioned Phillips Model on the Phillips India Site. Are you sure the same has been launched in India ?

It is indeed listed here DVP5996K/94 - DVD Player with HDMI and USB - Players and recorders - Recorders, DVD and home theater - Philips

Also I had bought a Phillips 5956 ( HDMI + USB 1.1 + Slot Load ) when It was launched around a year back. As ezone did not have the same in stock they had given me a display unit with a promise that they would replace the same with the fresh stock as soon as they arrived . However as they did not get stock I went for a Sony NS 76 ( HDMI but no USB) as replacement. I immediately burnt some previously watched divx movies and to my amazement I saw that Sony performed better especially in low light scenes. The blacks were blacker. I could hardly notice the blocks ( I hope you understand what I mean here) which was a common phenomenon in Phillips but I damn miss the USB functionality . So I have hooked my Sony DVD via Belkin Component Cable( I highly recommend the cable - Picture Quality improvement by 25% !!! ) to my Samsung 29" and now looking for a DVD player with USB for my LCD. But the question is that does the new series 5996 use the same Mediatek chipset as 5956 ?

Although I dont know the answer, thanks for the feedback.

 

[Dushie]

Phillips 5996 has ample no of reviews abroad, and is a gr8 player, it has high speed usb port (2.0) , only problem is as of now i am unable to find it in stock in most of the places i inquired, so waiting for product to be locally available, then u just take ur portable hdd along, plug it in and enjoy,,,

Another point to make notice is that playing high speed flash drives, gives better performance during heavy graphic scenes where at times, pixellisation may happen , many users abroad who are using div x through usb have recommended using high speed flash drives along with the player, also u need to partition ur drive using Fat 32, ntfs won't work