Apex AD-1200 DVD Player

• Composite- and S-video outputs accommodate most televisions
• Supports DVD-Video, SVCD, CD, CD-R, CD-RW, and MP3 CDs
• JPEG and KODAK Picture CD compatible
• Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1 surround sound (through coaxial digital-audio output) gives you immersive surround sound when used in conjunction with compatible AV receiver
• Programmable playback and parental lock

Apex DVD players are made for the most budget conscious of consumers, but my philosophy on buying electronics stands firm: If you're going to get one, spend a little extra and get a good one. The Apex AD-1200 is a tough recommendation even at the low price.

The strength of this DVD player is simple: It plays DVDs. For people who will only watch a DVD occasionally, that is not a problem. It offers good picture quality and decent sound quality. Surprisingly, it plays VCDs and MP3s rather well, which means that those burned CDs that won't work on your stereo will most likely work here. Basically, you can expect a minimal level of performance from this particular DVD player.

But the problems with this model are plentiful. The biggest flaw is the design. This DVD player is light, and feels cheap. Note the absence of a digital display on the player. Also, repeated pushing of the buttons can result in them falling out, so be careful of how hard you press the buttons. Worse yet, the player is loud and clunky. This clicks, hums, and rattles all through the movie. It is like a CD-ROM trying to read the disk.

Having said that it is functional is not so true in the long term. As you would expect from a lower-end appliance, the Apex DVD player will stop working properly after a while. Often, the picture will freeze while the player tries to read the disk, and there are certain DVDs that it cannot read at all. This is a big annoyance, and a good reason to steer clear of this player.

Buying a DVD player is never an easy decision, but choosing one strictly for the price is not a good idea. Most likely, you'll spend more having to buy a new one to replace the Apex brand when it breaks down. Spend a few extra bucks and get a good one instead, and avoid the headaches.

Buy Apex AD-1200 DVD Player Now

OK, if you're an audiophile/videophile, you are not going to be happy with any Apex product, especially the Apex AD-1200. This unit feels light and cheap. There isn't even an LCD display on the front panel to let you know what's playing. This unit, is as cheap and flimsy as they come. But if you can get aside this stumbling block, you will find that the this Apex DVD player is the best value in the electronics world, plus it can play not only DVDs, but also any CDr MP3 disk, any CDr with digital photos in JPEG format (view like a slideshow!!), and also plays any VCD or SVCD disc that you can burn onto CD. There is no other player that can pack all these features in like Apex can! In short, this unit can play virtually any format and reads any backup/burned disc out there. You will not find such compatability anywhere at ANY price. And to think you get all this for a mere [price] is simply amazing. I figure on average, most decent DVD players cost 2x, maybe even 3x as much. But those "other" players won't play your digital picture discs, nor can it play your MP3 discs, and most are not compatible with your CDr burned VCDs and SVCDs.

So far, this unit has worked flawlessly. Video, sound, mechanical...everything is working just perfect, as indicated on the box and manual. Just realize that this unit was not built to be on par with the Denons, Sonys and other bigger name brands of DVD players in terms of quality. This unit was built to be the affordable "Swiss Army Knife" of DVD players. I highly recommend the Apex AD-1200 if you're looking for a multi-purpose player, and ESPECIALLY if you want to play your CDr discs of digital photos, MP3s, VCDs or SVCDs. At a pricepoint of only [price], this purchase was a no-brainer for me. My only concern was whether the unit really worked as advertised....and it does.

Read Best Reviews of Apex AD-1200 DVD Player Here

Unfortunately, I jumped on the APEX bandwagon with both arms and legs. I bought THREE players. One for the master bedroom, living room and the kid's room. In doing so, I wanted to save a buck. Unfortunately, I should have spent the couple extra dollars it would have taken to get into any other brand.

Of the three players, (2 AD500's and this AD-1200), ALL of them had one problem or another right out of the box. Both AD500 series had to go to the shop to be re-aligned. The AD-1200 was the worst. When I received it, the digital display was not functioning properly. I thought, big deal. I bought it to play DVDs, not for the pretty leds. Then, the problems started. ALL movies began to skip, drag and hang up. One time, the door (with three of my DVDs still inside) would not open. Would you send back your DVD player for service with three of your DVDs inside? Me neither. One DVD out of three with damage, I can understand. Two, MAYBE if I am that unlucky. But, THREE IN A ROW? Come on. There must be NO Quality Assurance at this plant. And if there is, someone needs to be beating the pavement looking for a new job.

I gave it two stars instead of one star because all units did boot. :)

Steer WAY clear of Apex brand electronics folks. Spend the dollar and get a little better unit. I'm replacing all these DVD players with different brands myself. If you're interested in used DVD players at a good price, talk to me.

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I recived this player as a Christmas present from my parents. I was really interested in a DVD player because of the Netflix.com service (which I quit after 3 months of bad service) that rents DVD's over the internet. I have only played DVD's in it so far and havn't tried the MP3 capability. (yet) We have a 48" TV that is about 8 years old and only has RF and stero AV inputs. The picture is great and it's nice to be able to rewind and fastforward in differnt speeds, go frame by frame, zoom in, listen in multiple languages (depending on DVD). Lastly there is a coxal output so you can later add a suround sound system. All in all if your looking for a decent DVD player then this is a best buy!

If I were writing this 1 week ago I would have given it 4 stars. For the ridiculously low price it has performed well. Bought it about... when I bought an APEX TV (still good) at [store], but didn't use it more than twice in the first 2 months. Then with [store], watched an average of 2-5 movies a week ever since. The weaknesses of the remote were slightly annoying, but there was NEVER a performance, load or picture problem EVER. And then 2 days after watching a movie with absolutely no problems...I got the dreaded NO DISC ERROR. From an electronics-geek website I visited I gather this is very common...but not very fixable by normal human beings. Looks like this hits the trash tomorrow, to be replaced by a [name] or a [name]. I knew a ... machine wouldn't last forever...but LESS THAN A YEAR?