Toshiba 4205 Cinema Series. This unit boasts ease of use and extraordinary clarity. I have played this unit on my Sony 1991 KV-32XBR55 (still has the most incredible sharpness and picture that surpasses anything Sony put out over the next 7-8 years). I love the edge enhancement on the Toshiba 4205 because it gives even a greater edge to the already amazing clarity of the picture the 4205 provides on certain discs, such as T2. The 4205 has some of the best DVD clarity I've observed on DVD players that cost twice as much. The 5-disc carousel works wonderfully. The additional features are excellent and plentiful. I wanted a progressive scan player but they were too costly because the 4205 was given to me as a gift. I've since seen three progressive scan models and I can tell you that the clarity on this unit surpasses them all. I don't believe you can go wrong with this player if you want all the bells and whistles you could want, plus extraordinary picture. Very quiet transport. I am thrilled with this unit and so are my friends. I have had many friends do research on various units ranging from $500-$800. They have felt that the clarity of picture plus the features this unit offers surpasses units far more expensive. A good bargain for what you get. I would wait 6 months to one year for the next generation progressive scan models, unless you are willing to spend about $700 and over for top of the line models offering progressive scan.

The only thing I don't like is that the remote does not have a light feature to illuminate the keys in the dark. The remote merely has keys that "glow" for viewing the keys in the dark. This is my only complaint, and it's a minor one.

Great picture, extradordinary clarity, ease of use, a multiplicity of useful features, and a great value.

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First DVD player after using a sony unit for one month and after testing many different units and after much research.

Great picture and sound, build, plays CDR (a big plus)

remote is not illuminated

After having used toshiba sd2200 earlier i could get myself to buy anything else...for the price/performance is far greater in toshiba than any other brand. Sony doesn't play CDRs and the picture quality in JVC and pioneer are questionable. So for me it was just a choice between sony and toshiba...which toshiba won easily for it could play CDRs and has a very high S/N ratio (>110db). Excellent sound, gold connects, good build (heavier than the most of the players I've seen). For the kind of money I paid, this is a great player. I did not bother with Denon/Marantz/Nakamichi.....the price they charge for similar features drove me nuts!

Similar Products Used:

toshiba sd2200 and jvc523gd

easy to use, cd-r, great pictures, lots of features

panel display a little lacking

had it for one day, and so far very pleased. I took back the 660 because (see my review) no cd-r, non-intuitive interface, bad remote.

Remote is very easy to use, great picture, great sound. I adjusted the contrast and brightness on the machine as per the instructions demo disc that came with Fight Club. In essance the I set the contrast way up and the brightness way down. However, it did something funny to my sony trinitron: The pictures kept going blank (but not the sound) and the tv's on screen display kept turning on. This happened in the same spots -- i.e., when there was a lot of light in the picture. (Maybe this was to protect the tube or something). Anyway, when I reset the controls on the dvd, everything was fine. I will keep you posted on my experiences with this machine.

I wanted to get a machine that plays dvd-audio. But the only one at good guys was a 600 dollar panasonic.

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sony 550, sony 660

see below

see below

I am following up with my previous review (See below)
I have it hooked up to a sony trinitron via s video
When I set the "black level" on "enhanced" the picture cuts out all together on the dark scenes.

When my TV's "tv/video" switch is set to "video" and there is no source, the words "dvd" appear on the screen. During the scenes where the dvd cuts out, the tv's "dvd" appears on the screen indicating that no signal is coming through.

My first though it that when the enhanced black is turned on, maybe there is not enough signal.

Anyone else have this !? I am going back to good guys this weekend to hook it up to one of their tv's (as per the advise of the toshiba cust. service)

Great Picture, multiple outputs, handy remote, intelligently crafted.

Troubles cycling the five disc tray.

I bought this DVD player after many months of comparison at all the electronics stores in my area, and then bought it from abesofmaine.com for a lower price. I wanted a system with the clearest picture available for my budget, and I got a lot more than that. I am not a huge audio fan because I am not allowed to be. I live in a small apartment with very old neighbors around me, so I just wanted something that wouldn't make me ride the remote all night so as not to wake them, but I found that this system is by far the most subtle when it comes to sound. I can play it at low volume and never miss a bit of dialogue, and that really makes me happy. During the afternoon I'm able to crank it through my mini-component surround system and it performs very well at higher volumes. Though audio is not that important to me, this player shows me why so many people swear by its sound output.
When it comes to picture quality, this player whoops up on all comers. The black level is untouchable, always staying true, and the resolution has made my DVD collection seem brand new, as if I was watching VHS on my old RCA player! I use an S-Video cable to connect my new player to my Sanyo 27 inch television, and you can tell that it really pushes the limits of the televsion, offering clarity that no one would expect with Wal-Mart quality televisions. I am really impressed by this player, and I don't feel any remorse for plopping down 300 bucks for it.
The only problem with the player is its disc tray, which could be much easier to cycle. I felt the first time I tried to retrieve a disc on the other end of the tray that there was a tiny little troll inside the machine keeping me from getting my hands on the disc I wanted. With practice I'll be able to smite that darn little demon troll by making the tray complete a full rotation with one stroke, but for now I'll be forced to dust myself off as he beats me time and again.
I recommend this player to those who want the best for their budget. Though we will all be able to afford preogressive scan someday, at the moment we want to be close. For those of you that want to move from entry-level to mid-level in affordable style, go with this player, it's as good as it gets.

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RCA entry level DVD player.

Internal DTS Decoding, Color Stream, CDR/RW Support

27 Mhz, No DVD Audio

Overall this is an excellent product. It has the best features. The zoom is particularly impressive for a player with only a 27Mhz processor. The 4205 had noticeably better color than similar Sony and Panasonic models at Video Only. It has been able to read all of my CDR audio disks as well as my CDR Video disks.

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Sony DVPS360

DTS Decoder, DVD Picture / Sound, plays CD-R, Remote.

CD Sound

First DVD player was a new Samsung DVD-709 that I picked up for $89 at Ames on closeout. I wasn't even looking for a DVD player and only purchased this DVD because of the price. I did not expect much but was really blown away, the Samsung is really a great player. After two nites I fell in love with watching DVD's.
The Samsung had limited functionality in terms of audio and video outs for connection to my Toshiba tv and audio system. I decided to give Samsung as an xmas gift. While searching and looking at other DVD reviews I found the uBid site.
After reading reviews I put a bid in on a refurb SD-4205 and won. I love this player. My Denon AVR2400 / Yamaha DDP-1 only decodes Dolby Digital, not DTS. I bought Galdiator which has both. Using the built in DTS decoder, I was floored by the sound and have since disconnected the DDP-1 decoder from my system. Using the video component, in my opinion, made my Toshiba TV picture become tack sharp.
I have never bought a refurb before and I'm still undecided if this is a smart move. CD's do not sound right. Sounds like someone is turning the volume up and down. Sometimes sounds like something is in front of the sound. It's hard to explain, almost like the sound is being filtered on and off. DVD sound is find.
Video has had one glich, Saving Private Ryan had some ghosting noise when flames shot out of the bunker at start of movie.
All in all I'm still very happy with this player. If it turns out that it's a refurb problem I would not hesitate on dumping this one and buying another.

BEWARE of UBID. I called the warranty company stated on the invoice and they told me they do not service this unit. Told to call uBid. Called uBid. Told, sarcastically, not to call but to send an email. Sent email. Emailed response was that they are researching what to do and will contact later. No followup after 2 days. I'm glad I'm not holding my breath. I've learned my uBid lesson.
Giving 4 stars overall because I'm not sure if the problems I've encountered are due to being a refub. Otherwise, I would give 5 stars.

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Samsung DVD 709

Fantastic features.
PLAYS CD-RW's with no problem. This wasn't even listed in the specs.

When playing CD's from the 2-channel analog out, there's a problem. The sound fades in and out. Very strange. But it plays CDs fine through the 6-channel output, and somehow, to my surpise, it plays it on all my speakers (even though it is just a stereo signal)

Excellent player. Fantastic with DVDs.

Bought it from OneCall.com, the only factory authorized dealer I could find online that had good prices. I wouldn't recommend buying anything from the shady wholesale dot coms.

5 disc, random all, cd-r compat., remote, optical out

Build quality?, some "buggy" behavior

This is the first DVD player I have owned and it follows a lot of shopping - much thanks to all who post on this site for your invaluable feedback. On the audio side, it replaces a 10 year old bottom of the line Sony 5 disc cd player. I can't really comment on its audio or video quality versus other equipment I have used extensivily, since it's part of a whole new setup that's far beyond anything I have owned before (i.e., that 10 year old system from college days). All I can say is that the picture and sound are superb. I wanted a unit that would complement my Onkyo 575x and a Paradigm Titan-based HT speaker setup, with a 32" Sony V-series television. This Toshiba was the only unit I could find that incorporated all the features that interested me, esp. cd-r compatability (no problems with cd-r so far), randomized play across all discs (many of the changers out there will only randomize one disc at a time and move to the next disc once all tracks have been played), angle and zoom controls, optical outs. In general, I have been pleased with this selection. For the price, you will be hard pressed to find a better unit or one that includes all these features. On the other hand, it's not perfect (at least not my unit). After two successful plays of a brand new Dave Matthews DVD, it suddenly failed to load it. It wasn't dirty. I shut down and restarted the unit and it worked again. Also, I've noticed that when it's playing a random program, it seems to miss the first 1-2 seconds of a track when it changes discs! I've never heard anything like that before so I don't know what to think. The machine doesn't feel nearly as...substantial as this Onk receiver or some of the other players I looked at (Onk, Denon). But it doesn't feel as flimsy as the Sony either. Overall, I am happy and satisfied, but I'm going to keep an eye on it the next couple weeks and make sure I don't have a lemon.

features, 5-disc carousel

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I don't want to use this site solely as a forum for complaints, but so far I am not satisfied with this unit. I purchased new a few months ago. After several weeks of relatively light use, cds started "freezing up." When this would happen, the entire unit would not operate, and had to be unplugged and then restarted to operate. I called Toshiba, and they agreed to replace as there is no service center in my area. I sent the first unit back, and I received a brand new unit directly from Toshiba. The second one had a different problem: the first couple of seconds of audio would be skipped when it started or changed discs. Toshiba agreed to replace this one as well. They sent me another new unit, but it is doing the same thing. I have contacted Toshiba again, and I am waiting to hear back about my options. They acknowledge that it is not operating as it is supposed to. I wonder how common this problem is; I have read at least one review prior to mine that mentioned the same problem/s. Other than that, picture and sound quality are good, and player has many features. I have 2000+ cds and over 50 dvds. I previously owned a Yamaha cd changer (mid-line) and a Toshiba single disc dvd player, neither of which ever had these problems. I will review based on if the unit was operating properly, and will follow-up with another review after resolved.