Best ~$80 Progressive DVD player (1 Viewer)

[ChrisConklin]

What's the best prog. player i can get for around $80? I had my mind set on the JVC, but would i be better off w/ the cheaper offerings from Panasonic or Pioneer? I'm interested in the highest picture and sound quality w/ as many features as possible. Thanks, and sorry for sounding like a newbie.

 

[Don_Berg]

They are all equally bad, you have to get up to $250 to get a good quality progressive player. The JVC has the most features for under $100 if thats all you care about.

 

[FrankMorris]

Liteon 2100, $149 delivered at newegg.com. Upscales to 1080i superb picture. I know this is more then your budget but it would be worth it. Good Luck!

 

[Don_Berg]

That Liteon 2001 is discontinued and not available anymore! The new Liteon models don't upconvert to 1080i anymore.

 

[NickSo]

Quote:
The new Liteon models don't upconvert to 1080i anymore. ... through its component outputs...

Quote:
They are all equally bad, you have to get up to $250 to get a good quality progressive player I was kinda taken aback by this... Maybe he just needs it for a small TV in his kids' room, or just a replacemtn DVD player, or maybe he's just new to DVD and doesnt have the cash to get a $250 player. If somebody asks for a $80 progressive player, imho you recommend a $80 player, not a $250 player...

The JVC's are known for a stutter problem, where the video stutters on quick pans and such. I'd say check out the Pioneers or Panasonic. Toshiba maybe, but they have the CUE (not sure bout pioneer or panny)

 

[Don_Berg]

Thats why I said all the under $100 models are equally bad, there is no "best" one. I'd say save up that $80 toward a good model and when you have saved up $250+ then get a real "good" one.

 

[ChrisConklin]

The reason i'm lookin for a sub $100 player is to go w/ the 32 inch Samsung EDTV i'm planning on buying in a few days, so the screen size isn't going to be large at all. I've been using the Toshiba 2108 for the past 4 years or so and it cost me $300 at the time. Since i have to buy the new TV, possibly new monster cables, just bought Digital VE, i don't want to break the bank on a DVD player now which is why i was in the market for a "budget" player (oh yeah, plus i'm a college student).

 

[Dave-Z]

At that price range, I would recommend just going for something you think looks good and where you like the remote. Most of the features will be the same across the board on these models, minor marketing differences notwithstanding.

I, too, bought a simple entry level model for the basics just to tide me over for a year or two, until I fork out the bucks for a nice 840p large screen. or whetever else is the best picture at the time. For now, my 27" flatscreen is also just a tide-over and I saw no reason to spend any kind of good money on DVD tech now, when I really won't be able to realize a significant difference for 2 years or so.

Oh, one thing I would suggest you make sure you get with your player are all of the apropriate outputs. Some only have optical or digital outputs, etc... you can find a cheap dvd player with all of the bare necessities at your pricepoint, but there are a few models that hold back on something you might want before you upgrade. i.e. some won't even play audio cd's, let alone mp3's and other video formats.

I got the Mitsubishi DD-6040 for $75 or 80, it plays all various formats, including DD, DTS, DTS-es, CD, mp3, avi., etc... No problems with it at all, quite a good deal until I'm ready for a high end model.

 

[ChrisConklin]

I just noticed that on bestbuy.com they have the Toshiba 4900 on sale for $80, anyone heard anything good or bad about it (i.e. chroma bug). From Toshiba's website it appears to be their top of the line single disc player, guess i'll have to do some searching here on the forum...

 

[Don_Berg]

Toshibas are all pretty bad with the chroma bug and poor de-interlacer, go for a top-rated model with a Faroudja or Silicon Image de-interlacer.

 

[Shane Morales]

Geez, man, save yourself some cash and step away from the Monster cables. Those things will kill your budget.

 

[BrianWoerndle]

You probably do not need a new DVD player. The TV probably has a deinterlacer built in (All HDTVs do, but I am not certian about EDTVs). So if you send the TV an interlaced signal, it should convert it to progressive scan. The deinterlacer in the TV is bound to be just as good as in an $80 DVD player.