dvd players
Screens
1:16PM Nick Broughall | Sticking a DVD player in the body of an LCD screen isn’t exactly a revolution of design. But is is handy, especially in smaller screen sizes, which is why Toshiba have released their new DVD/LCD combo models. More »
Toshiba’s Sticking DVD Players In TVs Now
1:16PM Nick Broughall | Sticking a DVD player in the body of an LCD screen isn’t exactly a revolution of design. But is is handy, especially in smaller screen sizes, which is why Toshiba have released their new DVD/LCD combo models. More » 
Entertainment
1.5 Million Durabrand DVD Players Recalled Due To Fire Hazard
8:50PM Danny Allen | The recall comes after 12 complaints of overheating, including five that instances that caused fire and property damage. The $US29 Chinese-made players were sold from January 2006 to July 2009 exclusively at Wal-Mart (US) and ASDA supermarkets (UK). More »
Entertainment
11:47AM Nick Broughall | It seems somewhat strange and unnatural to me that people would buy a portable DVD player in an age where almost everyone owns a laptop, an iPod Touch or a PSP. But then again, I also think it’s strange that people choose dumbphones over smartphones, so who am I to judge? In any case, Toshiba’s catering to the non-DVD ripping or bittorrenting crowd with their latest portable DVD player. More »
Toshiba Portable DVD Player Reminds Us That Some People Don’t Rip DVDs
11:47AM Nick Broughall | It seems somewhat strange and unnatural to me that people would buy a portable DVD player in an age where almost everyone owns a laptop, an iPod Touch or a PSP. But then again, I also think it’s strange that people choose dumbphones over smartphones, so who am I to judge? In any case, Toshiba’s catering to the non-DVD ripping or bittorrenting crowd with their latest portable DVD player. More »
Entertainment
11:30AM Nick Broughall | You have to give it to Akai here. When they say, all-in-one, they really mean it. More »
Akai’s ‘All-In-One’ Entertainment Unit Really Is All In One…
11:30AM Nick Broughall | You have to give it to Akai here. When they say, all-in-one, they really mean it. More »
Business
NSFW: Best Buy Customer Gets Free, Hilariously-Titled Porno With Purchase of DVD Player
7:10AM Dan Nosowitz | There are some serious issues at work here: Best Buy sold a machine as new when it obviously wasn’t, and that’s no good. But the proof is so gloriously graphic, I’m tempted to overlook it.
Entertainment
Don’t Mess with DVD Upscaling Foreplay, Just Buy Blu-ray
6:00AM Mark Wilson | The high definition scientists over at HD Guru make a possibly obvious but nevertheless important point. You should not buy a DVD upscaler—though not for the reason you think. It’s not because DVD upscaling doesn’t bring some benefit to watching DVDs on HDTVs; it’s because most TVs are upscaling already. More »
Gadgets
Classic 1960s Brionvega Radio Gets Retro-Modern Update
1:00PM Gizmodo US Edition | If you’re a fan of retro gadget styling, you’ve probably come across the work of Italian company Brionvega once or twice. One of Brionvega’s most classic designs was the Radiogonografo RR126 from 1965, a versatile piece with folding speakers, a radio, an amplifier, a phonograph and a friendly little robot face. The RR126 is almost impossible to find nowadays and would cost you a fortune–but the company’s coming out with an “updated” version called the RR226. More »
Home
4:30PM Nick Broughall | It’s tough to decide whether Toshiba is being incredibly intelligent or incredibly stubborn in their decision to back upconverting DVD technology instead of Blu-ray. I mean, they were certainly burnt – badly – by Blu-ray with that whole HD DVD format war, but is their decision to stick to DVD smart?
Take their latest DVD player, the XD-E500 DVD upscaler. It’s marketed on the fact that it can take your vanilla old DVDs and upscale them to HD-like quality with 1080p output. That sounds pretty good (although the press release says that standard def DVDs are 480p – not in Australia, Toshiba!). But then there’s the price: $199.
Sure, the Toshy’s got some pretty catchy-sounding tech on board (XDE Technology, anyone?) for upscaling, plus DivX playback, HDMI CEC connectivity and a host of connections, but is it worth $200 bucks? Sony’s latest Blu-ray player has an RRP of $449, but you can pick it up for $380 online, and it will not only upscale your DVDs, but playback Blu-ray movies as well. Even at $150 for the Toshy, don’t most people already own a DVD player?
Still, if the infinite format war takes Blu-ray as its next victim, Toshiba will probably be the company laughing all the way to the bank. More »
Toshiba Stays The Upconverting DVD Player Course
4:30PM Nick Broughall | It’s tough to decide whether Toshiba is being incredibly intelligent or incredibly stubborn in their decision to back upconverting DVD technology instead of Blu-ray. I mean, they were certainly burnt – badly – by Blu-ray with that whole HD DVD format war, but is their decision to stick to DVD smart?
Take their latest DVD player, the XD-E500 DVD upscaler. It’s marketed on the fact that it can take your vanilla old DVDs and upscale them to HD-like quality with 1080p output. That sounds pretty good (although the press release says that standard def DVDs are 480p – not in Australia, Toshiba!). But then there’s the price: $199.
Sure, the Toshy’s got some pretty catchy-sounding tech on board (XDE Technology, anyone?) for upscaling, plus DivX playback, HDMI CEC connectivity and a host of connections, but is it worth $200 bucks? Sony’s latest Blu-ray player has an RRP of $449, but you can pick it up for $380 online, and it will not only upscale your DVDs, but playback Blu-ray movies as well. Even at $150 for the Toshy, don’t most people already own a DVD player?
Still, if the infinite format war takes Blu-ray as its next victim, Toshiba will probably be the company laughing all the way to the bank. More »
Home
LG’s DVS450H Makes DVD Players Attractive Again, Plays DivX HD
8:52PM Kit Eaton | It’s becoming all about Blu-ray nowadays, but LG hasn’t forgotten the DVD player: its DVS450H is doubly interesting for its design and DivX playing. Check out those sleek lines—pretty sci-fi, especially with that concealed display and sliding-door disc tray lid. LG call its shape “floating”, and it can be desk or wall mounted. And its the first “DivX Certified(R) DVD player from a major manufacturer capable of playing HD video” according to LG, with playback capabilities from DVD or hard drives attached to its USB port. It’s due in October for around US$240. Press release below. More »
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