My DVD player was stolen! (1 Viewer)

[Dave Gilbert]

Came home today to find my wife waiting for the police. Some kids broke in and stole my DVD player and a half dozen DVDs. Looks like they were interrupted because they left behind a shopping bag FULL of other DVDs that they had hand-picked from my collection. They must have sat down and looked through them because they left a bottle of Coke, but took my binder of DVD Profiler reports on all my DVDs and my fully programmed universal remote!
Those sick bastards even left behind the Playstation, but took the memory card, where I was 20 hours into a Final Fantasy game. AAAGGGGGGHHHHH!!!!!
Whew, I needed that. Anyway, I now seem to be in the market to replace my Toshiba 1600. Can anyone give me any suggestions for an economical replacement? I'll probably replace it this weekend; I don't think I can go without a player for too long. The withdrawl is already starting, and it's only been 5 hours since I came home.
Thanks for letting me get this off my chest,
Dave

 

[Paul Clarke]

Sorry to hear the bad news. Look on the bright side. Now you have a good incentive for several upgrades. The first being:

an alarm system for your residence. Just think of the fun hours you'll have installing all those contacts and sensors. Being an avid HT fan you're already well adept at concealing long runs of wire...

and second, a new DVD player. If you were satisfied with the 1600 and don't feel the need for more performance, stick with the 1700. It's dirt cheap.

If I were you, I'd look upon this as an opportunity to get more bang for my buck and get something 'better for less.'

 

[Wayne Ernst]

Can anyone give me any suggestions for an economical replacement?

It doesn't get any better (or cheaper) than this: Daewoo DVD-5700 from Sam's Club for $99.00. Of course, this price depends on either you or a friend having a membership. However, the 5700 has got lots of great features and the quality isn't bad. I replaced my Toshiba 1600 with this player and never looked back.
Here is a good forum with lots of information on this player: Nerd-Out Forum on Daewoo Players
Sorry to hear about your misfortune. The DVD player is easily replaceable, but the programmed remote, Playstation memory card and your sense of security are not -- at least for the time being.

 

[KeithH]

Dave, sorry to hear the bad news. Do you have insurance? I suppose the worst losses there are the remote, memory card, and DVD Profiler reports. Again, I am sorry. I agree with the suggestion of a home alarm system. That was the first thing I took care of after closing on my house last year. The movers finished bringing things in my house at around 4 p.m. one day, and the alarm company was here at 8 a.m. the next day.

You don't necessarily have to install an alarm system yourself. I don't know how things work in Canada, but here in the US, alarm companies often have good deals such as free hardware and installation in return for a three-year contract that runs $25-30 USD for basic monitoring.

As for a new DVD player, take a look at the Sony DVP-NS500V interlaced player. It plays stereo and multi-channel SACDs and is a solid component for the money. The standard street price in the US just dropped from $300 USD to $230 USD. For $330 USD or a bit less, you can get the Sony DVP-NC650V, which is a five-disc carousel version of the 'NS500V. For $250 USD, the Toshiba SD-4700 gives you progressive-scan video output and DVD-Audio. Finally, for around $200-230 USD, consider the Panasonic DVD-RA60 interlaced DVD-Audio player.

Here's wishing you a smooth and rapid replacement of your lost items.

 

[Dave Gilbert]

Thanks for everyone's concern. I feel a little better after a night's sleep. All things considered, I think I got off lucky.

My brother-in-law is an electrician's apprentice who is used to installing alarm systems, so we'll have that this week. There isn't really a point to going through insurance because I have a $500 deductable, and it's not worth claiming $100-200 if my premiums increase.

I noticed that the Toshiba 2800 is on for $229 CDN, so I'll probably go with that. It's cheaper than the 1600 was when I got it last year, and plays mp3s and VCDs too. Never had any problems with the last one.

Most of all, I'd like to thank those who responded for their concern. Cheers.

 

[KeithH]

Dave, the alarm is a good idea, as it should provide you with piece of mind. Smart move.