I'm old hat, I know. I still use VHS and CD's. Would anyone explain the benefits of DVD's, please? How essential is it to have a system? What are the best things about having a system? The worst?
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07-05-02, 11:39 PM
Sherasi
I don't think DVD's are "essential".. but I love my DVD's.. the largest advantages to me are as follows:

Advantages:

#1 You can zoom immediately to any scene you want without forwarding

#2 You can zap past all the commertials at the front

#3 They are smaller/more compact to store

#4 They do not get injured when the appliance breaks down (eg: eaten VCR tapes)

#5 You can program the remote to do various things with the DVD and it is done instantly


#6 Cleaner picture quality permanently.. VCR tapes degrade with use

#7 More movie choices are coming out strickly DVD (ie Star Trek:TNG entire series)

#8 Lastly, the price of DVD's are fairly comparable to VCR tapes

Disadvantages:

#1 Not yet inexpensive to record

#2 Can be easily damaged with deliberate intent(but so can the VCR tapes really)

#3 They ARE more expensive (but not prohibitively)

#4 The fact that you need to replace a possible extensive VCR library with the DVD library

#5 Some TV brands need units to adapt the DVD player.. (around $40)

#6 There are writable DVD's coming out, but at this time I believe they are NOT rewritable yet.



Over-All Opinion

I prefer the DVD's.. and they will last forever with a little care.

[This message was edited by Sherasi on 07-05-02 at 11:49 PM.]
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07-06-02, 02:54 AM
VivienneHa
Hi Bab,I would have to say that I agree with everyting Sherasi has said about DVD's with just two additions,I have occasionally found that DVD's (usually rented ones) "stick" at a certain point and know matter if you press the ffwd or back button will they not move from that point,you have to stop the film and go back to the scene again or skip it completely.On the plus side,here in the UK there is so far no advertising on DVD's,it wasn't till Sherasi mentioned about skipping the adverts that I realised this,but if you have them in the states ,then I expect it won't be long before they decide to do the same here.
Viv.
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07-08-02, 10:24 AM
sae501
Bab: One of your questions asks about a system. If you are referring to an audio system with regard to DVDs it is very essential. One of the greatest advantages that DVDs offer is the audio. Any movie that is encoded in 5.1 or DTS surround is infinitely more exciting than one that is recorded in stereo. Most people think of big action scenes in movies with explosions and aircraft flying around the room, however there are movies with very subtle surround effects that make for a great experience. Some scary movies will have little noises come from behind or off to one side that you'll swear someone is in the next room in YOUR house! This type of effect can only be had with a DVD and a good surround system. The picture quality is just spectacular with a depth, texture and dimensionality that cannot be obtained from a tape source. One respondent above mentioned recordable DVDs. These are indeed available as are rewritable DVDs. The prices have begun to come down and will continue to do so as other companies offer more products. If you have a stereo system currently you can build from that to create a surround system to go with your DVD player.
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11-06-03, 10:49 AM
butter
what brands are good and reasonably priced.
thanks
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01-27-04, 06:01 PM
Cindycat
It's been almost two years since the post that talked about DVD's sticking, so maybe you all have learned about this by now...but, just in case...if your DVD sticks, take it out, wash it with mild soap and cool water, then dry it with a soft cloth or one of those cloths made for eyeglasses. Fixes it right up.
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04-13-04, 03:53 PM
BookHunter
Babthrower.

It took me years to get a dvd player, I didnt want anything to do with it. Then my mom bought me one and that was it, I was hooked. We love it. we hooked up a surround sound system, it rocks!
Advantages to me are:
dvd's take up less space and vhs tapes
dvd's have special features that vhs tapes do not have
You can skip scenes
zoom in zoom out
The prices of dvd players and dvd movies have gone down in price considerably since they first came on the market.
I have nothing bad to say about them..Good luck!
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04-13-04, 05:46 PM
Rakuchild
We finally bought a dvd player about 2 years ago. What I like best about dvd vs. vhs is there are more options regarding languages and captioning. I'm a fan of anime and enjoy hearing the characters speak in Japanese even though I have no clue what's being said. Then I can compare the English voices and captions and how it was translated. Also there are often more choices of language in the captions-English, French, Spanish. Sometimes the bonus features really rock too.

When we made the decision to buy a dvd player, I asked my friend whose husband repairs electronics what brand he recommended. He said he never had to repair an Apex dvd player and that's what they had in their house. We bought a 3 disc player that also plays cd's, mp3's and kodak picture discs plus it can be used as a karaoke machine. It's worked beautifully. This past winter we bought an Apex dvd/vcr combo and have been very happy with it so far. I also bought my daughter a simple Apex dvd player for about $50 that will play cd's and mp3's and it has worked well for her.
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04-15-04, 01:40 PM
Elexina
DVD's... hmm, let's see, oh right: I hate them. They are a big pain in my rear end.
Benefits? Well, yes, the quality is good for longer, but it is not any better initially.

Drawbacks? You can't just take it out of the player and then put it back in and start right up where you left off. You have to find the scene you were at, and then even that is not exact.

One thing I do like is that when you pause it, it stays paused until you unpause. VCRs have this annoying habit of deciding for you when you are ready to start watching again...

Another thing: Playstation 2's play DVDs. That is great, because we HAD to get the PS2 anyway, so we didn't have to get a stupid DVD player, too. Smile
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04-15-04, 01:55 PM
methos

quote:Originally posted by Elexina:
Drawbacks? You can't just take it out of the player and then put it back in and start right up where you left off.



Strange, my DVD player does start up at the exact spot I stopped watching, unless I tell it not to.

Personally, I wouldn't have gotten a DVD player except that I wanted a CD player.

I'd share more, but after a topic's been around for nearly 2 years ... Wink
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04-16-04, 10:29 AM
Elexina
No kidding? You must be cooler than I. My DVDs and CDs have minds of their own.
What I'm talking about, though, is if I'm watching "The Family Guy" and Andy wants to play a racing game and takes my DVD out and puts his in, when I want to go back to my DVD, I have to search for where I left off. A VHS tape will just be where you left it.

Yeah, though, this is kinda old, huh?

This message has been edited. Last edited by: DorianGreyed,