Samsung BD-D5700 WiFi Blu-ray Disc Player (Black)

• Play your Blu-ray Discs or select from a wide variety of multi-format discs
• Connect to Samsung "Smart TV" Internet TV services for streaming media, social networking, and more
• Enjoy music, video, and photo files from both USB and networked DLNA-certified devices
• Built-in Wi-Fi for a wireless network connection without the hassle of cabling
• High-definition audio with decoding of Dolby Digital TrueHD and DTS Master Audio
• Enhanced Picture Qaulity
• Fast booting and loading time
• Samsung Smart TV
• WiFi Built-in

I bought this machine about a week ago. Was concerned about the reviews that critized the Netflix streaming but comforted by the person or two that said the firmware updates would cause it to work. Anyhow, no problems. I followed the set up instrucitons on the screen and it has been working fine. Pic is great. Streaming is too. Have viewed several movies--streaming and DVDs-and everything seems to be as it should be. I am receiving my internet from Comcast using a Netgear N 150 router (a recent addition from them). And by the way, if the firmware was updated during installation, I wasn't aware. All I did was follow the instructions as they came along ----entered my password from Comcast ---and the one from Netflix.

I have never written a review before (it probably shows) but felt I should cause a lot of the BlueRays have been receiving some bad press. Almost went for a PS3 even though I am not a gamer...but that would have been a waste of another 100 or so.

Only negative is the remote. Too many buttons. Obviously not a big deal and at some point I may remember what I need to push without looking.

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It surprises me how many negative reviews I read about Blu Ray players in general that have nothing to do with the player, but has everything to do with the person's lack of knowledge about electronics. While researching for a Blu Ray player for my parents, I came across a guy who gave a player a negative review because the player's box didn't tell him that the cable modem that he was using wasn't capable of supporting two Ethernet connected devices and that he would need a router for the player and his home computer to be hooked to the internet at the same time. It is not the Blu Ray manufactures job to inform the customer of basic facts. That would be like getting mad a car dealership for not telling a customer that the automobile needs gasoline to work correctly.

The next one that drives me crazy is when people complain about firmware updates. Wake up people. Your player is a dumbed down computer that is made especially for videos and will need updates from time to time. Do you get mad at Microsoft every time your home computer gets updates? No, you don't. It may be annoying, but you do it anyways because you know it will make your computer run better. Also, whining about needing an update right out of the box is plain stupid. In fact, it makes me feel more secure about my purchase. It lets me know that the manufacturer is still working to make my device better even after they have my money. And it lets me know that if any new apps are released, my player may be able to handle them and, once again, make my home theater experience better.

The Samsung BD-D5700 was purchased because of the Built-in WiFi (I really have no idea why they even make WiFi Ready Players). I researched and compared all of the mid-priced Blu Ray players with Built-in WiFi and it came down to either a Samsung or Sony. I wanted the Hulu Plus App and these were the only two with that option. Both the Samsung and Sony models had decent reviews but each had a few negative aspects. The Samsungs had a slow load time reviews (time it takes to power up the player and play a movie) and the Sony models apparently had some spotty WiFi video steaming (Netflix, Hulu, YouTube). This player was going to be used at my parents on an N wireless router, so the Sonys were out. But a few weeks later I ended up buying a Sony that I hooked up to a hard line in my own house. Both work amazingly and have not had a single issue. But then I knew what situation each was going to be used for and planned ahead. And just so this review is complete, the Samsung does not load as fast as the Sony, but it is nowhere near the wait time as the earlier Blu Ray players.

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I haven't much to add to the recent decent reviews for this product. I'll give you my $0.02 and let you decide whether or not it helps.

I bought this after the death of my beloved LG BD390 whose ability to recognize any and all disc both puzzled and frustrated me. What I loved about that player was its ability to play almost anything I burned to disc and the added convenience of Netflix streaming. What I didn't like, even when it was working, was main menu structure and the lack of sorting/searching for the Netflix app.

So flash forward to March of this year when I lost the ability to play any discs and was left with a device that could only stream Netflix (although a bad interface) and computer content (which was the spotty dnla) and I'm ready to research the purchase of something that will hopefully last longer and be more of what I want in an all around player.

With the expansion of online content I was hoping to find a player that was essentially a Roku box with the ability of playing blu-ray discs...and be able to play a host of other video filetypes (divx, avi, mp4, mkv etc) from streaming and from files burned to a data disc. I know that was a lot to ask, but I was hoping that this year's LG offering would be the ticket. After reading reviews here on Amazon and elsewhere, I see that LG is having difficulty implementing their online content (i.e. hulu plus etc. not coming online--something I was looking forward to adding since I don't subscribe to cable) and factoring in my 1.5 year short-lived player, I wasn't too happy to jump back on the bandwagon. So I turned toward Sony and Samsung (my TV is a Sammy and the Anynet feature was icing on the deciding-factor-cake). Sony has a good reputation and feature set (Netflix, Hulu+, dnla, etc.) however, they have limitations on what filetypes are compatibile with the player (for me, this was important since I have hundreds of compressed video for my kids that we use on the TV and portable devices).

So, stacking up the feature lists, this player was ahead...stacking up the reviews, I should wait until 2012 to buy a player. Well, I'm somewhat impatient and decided to give Samsung the benefit of doubt.

It's been a month, and so far so good. The online content does take some time to access. However, it works...just be patient; the dedicated Netflix button works well. I currently have Hulu+, Vudu, Youtube, Vimeo, Netflix, Picaso, Pandora, et al. all working fine with no problems with the high definition content. And having them all work, albeit slower interface than any computer, is better then having a faster interface with none or only a few of them working. Plus, the Netflix interface lets you search and see new arrivals! I find that I really like the Hulu+ interface and find myself using that service more and more. I do hope that Amazon VOD becomes available, but currently have enough to keep me occupied for the forseeable future.

Well, I won't be purchasing the Roku & Blu-ray combo. I don't need to. Wait, what about discs you say; afterall this is a blu-ray player: Blu-ray looks fantastic (I only wish one could skip all the ads from the Netflix discs), all content streaming or otherwise has worked (mkv, divx, etc.) and my kids are happy about that. I'll update this review if things change.

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I bought this to use with my Samsung UN55D6000 LED TV to avoid buying the proprietary Samsung wireless adapter. I wanted to wirelessly stream movies and video thru Netflix and YouTube, as well as from my computer. Unfortunately, I was quite disappointed in the streaming quality. Both Netflix and YouTube are very choppy. I did head to head comparisons with my Wii and Roku HD boxes and they both streamed wireless video flawlessly, while the Samsung spit and sputtered along intolerably. It was like the modern equivalent of the old 8mm projectors in grade school, when the film would get stuck.

Other cons:

Entering anything with the onscreen "keyboard" is onerous at best, intolerable at worse. Try it in a store and you'll see what I mean. The problem is exacerbated by the fact that keypress response on the remote is slow, so entering an e-mail to use Netflix in the SmartHub is measured in millenia, not seconds.

"UltraFastPlay" disc loading was was neither fast nor ultra.

Biggest pro:

Incredible image quality. Can't say enough good things about that. And because it does that SO well, I have forgiven it for the other shortcomings. I am keeping the unit, and just streaming video via Wii.

Maybe a software update will sort out the above streaming issues. Samsung?

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I'm not sure what's causing all the negative reviews, but I bought this a few days ago and had it set up in less than 10 minutes...and I'm not a "tech geek" either. The built-in WiFi automatically picked up my home network and setup was a breeze! My wife loves watching streaming media on NetFlix and the image quality is perfect. We watched an entire movie on NetFlix last night, and you would not be able to distinguish whether it was streaming online or from an actual disc. Absolutely no buffering delays, and image quality was better than HD cable.

I did a lot of research before buying this model (and I agree with the other review...I have no idea why they even still MAKE Wifi "ready"....just build it in and be done with it), and this Samsung has the best features for the best price. They are consistantly adding to the available apps and the selection is great. I have not ventured into many of them, as I pridominatly bought this for NetFlix. I do have a Samsung Plasma, so I'm sure that helps the overall compatibility, but I have had ABSOLUTELY NO ISSUES with this player.

I can't say enough good things about the BD-D5700. No problems with load time, buffering streaming content, or playback. I would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a Wifi built-in Blu-Ray player with great Internet apps especially if NetFlix is a must.

JVC GR-D250 MiniDV Camcorder w/25x Optical Zoom

Of course like any person who spends 300 bucks on something you expect it to perform admirably, while knowing full well that there are more expensive models out there. This little DV camera does quite the job. Starting from the packing all the way down to the technical features. In a world were you get less and less JVC seems to have done pretty well. Instructions for the camera come in 3 languages, all of the peripherals; lens cap, multi-voltage power plug, RCA cables, and straps are actually well designed and usable. The camera itself is quite user friendly, and intuitive. After opening and sorting the contents I had the camera up and recording in less than 5 minutes.

Pros:

1. Very fast rewind and fast forward.

2. Light weight, and compact.

3. Clear display that you can turn and flip in almost every direction

4. Great zoom features and very good recording quality.

Cons:

1. No DV tape included. I was smart enough to pick up a two pack at the same time.

2. If you have big hands it may be a little hard to manipulate.

3. Although I didn't buy a tripod, it looks as if you can't eject the tape while the camera is attached.

Would I buy it again? Absolutely.

I bought this camcorder for $300 which is a good price because this camera gave me tons of features and a clear picture. Great for shooting family videos or amature movies like I make myself. It's very small too. Over all im very happy with this camcorder. Yes I edited my review earlier there was a humming noise, but it turned out to be my fan. I love this camcorder!

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This camcorder is a great little camera that is easy to operate. The LCD is clear and the colors are crisp. The needed buttons are easy access. It is lightweight and fits nicely in the palm of your hand.

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I received this camera as a gift and after 15 magical minutes recording with it, I ran into an error message: "Unit in safeguard mode remove & reattach battery." I did what I was told. Several times. Same message. Argh! (to my husband's chagrin, I read the user's manual completely before using it to avoid such a problem...why is this happening to me?!) I searched the web looking for a solution, but all I found were perhaps hundreds of people with the SAME message on similar JVC model camcorders, rendering their cameras unuseable with little help from JVC once their warranty ran out. Luckily I ran into the problem soon enough that we were able to return the product.

Sure, you might not believe me when I suggest to stay clear of this model. I'm constantly disregarding Amazon reviews that preach "do not buy this product!", etc. That's why I'm suggesting that you please take a minute to search the web for this error message before you buy this product and see if you're still convinced you want it. Suggested search on Google: "jvc camcorder safeguard mode error".

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Great single sensor Mini DV camcorder. Has the same sensor and image quality as more expensive models. Easy to use. Great first buy for families who are starting in video. Doesn't have LEDs for night shots, although in most case it isn't a major inconvenience. Sound is good.

Pros:

1. LOW PRICE!

2. Intuitive enough for beginners.

3. Large LCD.

4. Good picture quality.

Cons:

1. No digitizer. Meaning no video in. The model up has it, although it costs a little extra. That's the major draw back form me. (Thus the 4 stars)

2. Cannot confirm it'll be reliable over time. Bought it too recently.

LUKAS LK-7900 ACE Full HD(1080p@30fps) Video Car Digital DVR GPS Recorder Black Box - 32GB + GPS

• 1CH DRIVING REORDER, 1920x1080p Full HD, 30Frame, 135degree Angle, 0.5LUX
• H.264 (AVU Format), Built-in 30-axix impact sensor, Sirf Star GPS Built-in(Saves driving information)
• Security LED Motion, 37mm UV Filter, Real time video output of Blackbox using output terminal
• Emergency Record Button, Sound Recording Button (High-performance MC)
• Sensitive motion detection function, Auto Exposure Function,

To give this review some perspective, my tech savvy is about a 7.5 on a 10 point scale and this is the second dash cam I have used; the first was a Vacron Black Box CDR E-22, which I returned to Amazon (see my review) due to audio problems. I bought the LK 7900 on e bay for two hundred seventy one dollars, free shipping, and it included a power cord, 32gb SD card, GPS, a hookup for using the unit with the motor off (LK 290-12/24VT Auto DC Power Cut Off), a mounting bracket, wire guides and a manual.

3 stars for the manual. The ad said English manual, English firmware, English Viewer. The box contained a manual in Korean. Vendor said I need to go to lukashd.com and download and print the manual. Not good, but I did it. It reads as if it was translated from Korean to English by an app, and is in a very small font. Syntax and nuance are all screwed up and in many places it made no sense at all. The camera had Korean in its firmware, and the viewer was in Korean. Long, frustrating story short the manual, firmware and viewer were convertible to English (of sorts.)

5 stars for video. Using their SD (class unknown/undisclosed) and the default settings (except for time, which I changed to UTC-5 with daylight savings time on the US east coast), daytime video was excellent. License plates, road signs, advertisements, and inane bumper stickers were clearly readable. Night video was evaluated in a rural and suburban environment (none to very little public lighting) and was good; I could read the license plate of the car in front of me, and roadside signs. Using my SanDisk 32 gb class 10 Ultra, I plan to tweak the settings (using the viewer) to see if I can improve video quality. If I have a significant improvement, I will add it to this review.

5 stars for audio. Clear recording and playback. The mic is quite sensitive and will pick up road and wind noises if you leave the window open. It also picked up the noise of my engine running, however, that could be because I have a diesel engine. Overall, this clutter was partly avoidable (wind up the window), and not intrusive.

4 stars for viewer software. Easy to install in PC and use, but not explained very well. No way that I can see to change trip mileage from kilometers to miles. Video and Audio are also great on Win 7 version of Media Player. Replay using Lukas viewer or Win Media player on Win XP Pro does not work on my desktop PC, but this may be because I have an AMD 64 (Clawhammer) processor in this 8 year old homebuilt. Literature says it should work, but ...

Does not have a built in real time or in-camera playback viewer, like the Vacron and others. To me this is not a con. On-site replay can be done, if needed, via a tablet, using a card reader, and the screen would be much larger.

What got me interested in this specific device are the ISO certifications for the company, and the Sony chip. I took a chance buying it the way I did. I wish I could have bought it "Amazon Fulfilled" even if it cost me a few bucks more. So far, it is working out, but only time will tell.

May 12,2013

No noticeable improvement using my 32 gb class 10 SanDisk SD, day or night, after increasing camera settings. This device (Lukas 7900) is supposed to be able to use up to a 128 gb SD.

May 15, 2013

4 stars for the LK 290-12/24VT Auto DC Power Cut Off adapter. Hooked it up. Works great. See http://lukashd.com/eng/product_info/power_lock.html for a description and the manual. Minus 1 star because I cannot see how to change the running time setting, and the manual is so poorly written.

Overall Very satisfied with the camera; recommend it.

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The item works well and has not yet frozen while taking HD video, as have other cameras I had bought from other manufacturers. I am using the 32GB card it came with.

Shipping was incredibly fast, the customs documents indicate it came from South Korea and I had it within a week (it was shipped to Canada)

Hewlett Packard - HP Pavilion dv7t dv7tqe Quad Edition, 2nd Gen. Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-2630QM (2 GHz

When I purchased this laptop it was advertised as having bluetooth. That was not the case. The seller definitely did right by me by refunding the cost of the internal bluetooth kit and cable.

I should note that installing a bluetooth kit yourself is not for the faint of heart as you will have to disassemble the laptop to install it. The module goes just underneath the two mouse buttons on the touchpad.

The previous laptop I had was a DV6 quad which just ran too hot and loud. I'm pleased to say that this is quieter.

The fingerprint reader is a nice addition as well, but it doesn't work with digital persona, so you'll have to do with hp simplepass 2011.

The sound out of this laptop is surprisingly good. Beats audio is basically a built in 2.1 speaker system. (there is a sub underneath the laptop, two stereo speakers at the screen's base plus two tweeters at the front corners). I never cared about sound though as I always use headphones with laptops.

There are a total of 4 USB ports, two on each side. on the left side, the two USB ports are 3.0.

Video: There is 1 HDMI and 1 VGA port.

There is a 10/100/1000 ethernet jack.

two RCA audio jacks as well as 1 microphone jack.

the webcam is "hp trueVision HD" which is basically a webcam that records up to 1024x768 resolution.

The built in microphone is a stereo mic.

The screen is bright as heck, and darkens enough. Even at its darkest level, it's too bright at night though.

Battery life is what you expect from a quad core, 2 hours average.

There is a slot for a second SATA hard drive that can be configured to support RAID 1.

Performance according to windows performance index:

The video card has two modes: high performance or long battery life with an auto switching feature whenever an A/C adapter is connected.

What happens when the mode is switched is that the drivers are swapped between ATI's drivers and Intel HD video drivers.

When on ATI's driver set, the video card performance is rated at 7.4, when on Intel's set, video is at 6.2.

I've upgraded the RAM, but if I remember correctly, the 6gb configuration rated at 7.4

The processor shows 7.0.

Hard drive is highly subject as well. Unless you upgrade to a SSD, expect to acheive a 5.9.

It does support hardware virtualization just note that USB3.0 does not virtualize so you won't have access to 2 of the USB ports in a virtual machine.

The card reader faces the front and only accepts cards half way, so an inserted card does not fit flush with the front of the laptop. A huge annoyance in my opinion as I like to leave an SD card inserted for readyboost and can no longer do so.

No real opinion on the optical drive, but it runs quietly at least.

There is no remote control as with previous hp laptops.

The connector for an HP docking station has been removed so you can't use an HP dock on this sucker. (CRAP!!!!)

There is 1 media key and it opens a web browser.

there is an air intake vent in the upper left corner that you've got to keep clear. so it's another example of a laptop that you can't keep on your lap.

I hope I've covered anything, but comment if you have any questions.

[Update] I was actually asked about installing the internal bluetooth module, so here's a bit more on the subject:

The internal bluetooth is a very small chip with a built-in antennae. It's about the size of a house key without the head. The cable itself has tips that at one end, insert into a specially shaped recepticle on the bluetooth chip and a different tip for another recepticle on the motherboard. I had to pull the keyboard and top plate off of the laptop to insert the bluetooth module. It fits in a small groove that sits underneath the mouse buttons on the touchpad. I really like its position as it gives great bluetooth reception, the best I've seen on any laptop. [/Update]

This item was returned because it was advertised as having bluetooth, however it didn't. In my search for the bluetooth the laptop performed wonderfully. I thought the laptop was great. It was fast, and had tons of room. The speakers sounded really loud and clear. Blu-ray player was incredible. It just didn't have bluetooth and that's one feature I wanted in my laptop. Other than that it was a great laptop.

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6FT Optical audio Toslink CABLE DV CD DVD Dolby Digital

Do not spend more than few bucks for a optical audio cable. Anyone trying to convince you their beast, monster or goliath cable will provide you better audio quality is lying to you digital cables either work or don't work at all.

This one works and it's cheap.

This cable works great and the price is right on. In this length of cable you are wasting your money if you spend more.

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It works. Optical cables don't requre shielding the way some other cables do. These have plenty of shielding, and good flexibility. And they work. And they're cheap.

Don't let the price fool you. you'll pay $3 each after shipping.

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Pro: The cost

Cons: Durability

The biggest gripe about this product is that picture shown for the TOSLINK cable is not representative of the actual product. One of the reason why I purchased this cable is that it looked solid and durable. I wanted a cable that could last for a long time. The actual product is extremely thinned wire (cheap construction material) and it doesn't look anything like the images shown on AMAZON.

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I bought two of these cables and they are perfect for my home theater use. As other reviewers have noted, optical Toslink audio cables don't need shielding or gold tips or anything, because there is no electrical signal being passed, only very fast flashes of light ... in other words, either the cable sends a perfect digital audio signal, or it doesn't work at all. These work.

Different cables vary on the durability of the cable in case it gets kinked, twisted, crushed or nicked/cut. These cables have a very thin outer layer, and I think they would break pretty easily if abused. Since these cables get tucked away behind equipment, they're not likely to get abused in fact, it's a plus that they are slim and easy to route.

Maybe you should buy a more durable cable if you plan to have it exposed and/or move it around a lot, like in a pro studio for instance. But for most people an inexpensive cable like this one is the best choice.

Toshiba 23HLV84 TheaterWide 23" 16:9 HDTV LCD TV/DVD Combo with HDMI Input

I'm amazed at how many great reviews this device has, given my experience. I've just bought and returned one for work. Sure, there were people (not many) who couldn't see the problems, but I don't see how any videophile could stand looking at it (turned on and playing a DVD internally, at least).

First, the integration is really bad. Put a DVD in and it turns on (of course). It does NOT, however, switch to DVD mode. Then when you manually switch modes you have to wait for it to spin up the DVD, I guess it thinks you just put the disk in for storage or something... The few controls for settings are vague, limited, and there's a 100% disconnect between the player and the screen. Yet another example: ejecting a disk while it's off... *if* it works you have to hold down the button quite a while, it turns the TV all the way on, *then leaves it on once the disk is out*...

It's an HD screen, and I'm guessing with an HD input or DVD player with HDMI out it'd look great. That's because an HDMI out DVD player will almost certainly have some kind of 'upres' feature, whereas the built-in player appears to have none whatsoever. The image is simply crudely stretched to be big enough to fill the screen, and the result on the 23" LCD looks far worse then DVI out of a $199 player to a 50" plasma we also have here. The settings of course give you no control over this process, no way to view the image at native pixel resolution or any other tweaks that one may want.

They really spared every expense with the DVD player by the way, I have never used a DVD player so slow to respond to commands, such as selecting a chapter from the DVD menu, and when it does it usually visually screws it up, starting to start, pausing (maybe showing the menu again for a couple frames) then actually starting, etc.

Finally, there is a warning included INSIDE the box that the HDMI input is not for use with computers, I don't know if they screwed up the HDMI implementation or are saying that because there's no pixel orbiter or what, but that and the fact that this is one of the only consumer electronic devices I've seen in years that is limited to 60Hz power only are yet more ways this unit disappointed me. In the end I was very relieved to be able to return it.

I got this today and am in love. What a great set! The progressive DVD on the side is a nice space saving touch, but this set is awesome for two reasons, picture and aesthetics of the cabinet. I also love the carrying handle in the back. I bought the optional wall bracket, but since we are now considering putting in place of our older 35" 4:3 analog, I haven't mounted it yet, but am using it on the stand little stand that comes with the set. It is completely inoobtrusive, exactly what I had in mind, all about the picture, looks like a piece of art.

I was concerned that after watching an older 35" 4x3 analog set and going to a 23" 16:9 the image would seem tiny to to me, but I realized that the viewing area on the old 35" 4:3 for movies on DVD is not really any larger when you consider the black bars, so I am losing nothing, and gaining in space and image quality.

The set has an HDMI connection, which I have yet to try, as I don't have any components with this capability, but since I plan to get a DVR with this, I wanted to have it. I can say that one of the faults of the 9 year old Hitachi 35" that I had was that it only had one "S" connection, and although that was "State of the Art" at the time, it was quickly not enough to accomodate my needs as I acquired new products like a DVD and home theater.

Anyway, I highly recommend this, I was incredibly impressed with the out of the box performance and the great contrast, and think that this will be a best seller for Toshiba.

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Bought back in May 2005 for about 1047.00 at the time, one of the best DVD /LCD TV's I had seen. No issues with dead Pixels yet, or anything... Good sound, Very clean picture as long as you are viewing from at least 5 Feet, have it in bedroom at 8-9 feet for viewing and its better than my 50 inch Sony * DVD is a bit clunky and looks to be better than 480p + but not up in the HD higher ranges, but still much better than straight Satellite signals! I would still buy this exact TV for the same reasons _ Light weight_ great Picture, good sound_ and fits where you need it to !

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I run a B&B and bought this unit to use wall mounted. Can you believe that whomever designed the remote control neglected to put a DVD Eject button on it and when wall mounted all TV mounted control buttons are unseen because they are on the top. Imagine my delight having to explain to every guest in that unit at every check-in, how to locate the DVD eject button. I am on this site now because I was looking for -and not findinga Toshiba troubleshooting information section as the integrated DVD now makes a grinding noise but refuses to eject the DVD and has no external pin socket to try to reset it. Unless you live across the street from a repair site choose a set without an integrated DVD.

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As several other users have posted, the DVD on this unit stopped reading DVD's within 6 weeks of purchase. Now _I_ have to remove the television from its wall mount, pack up a fragile, flat-screen television for shipping, and pay for shipping to a Toshiba. I am now crossing my fingers that they will fix it, instead of, e.g., breaking it, or doing nothing to it and sending it back to me. Had I known, I would easily have paid an extra $150 or so for a different brand.

iview 2000STB 480i TV Tuner/Receiver -Black

• HD-ready, Integrated ATSC Tuner
• Enjoy over the air broadcasts in digital clarity
• Built-in QAM tuner
• Set Favorite Channels
• Integrated ATSC Tuner

Local over the air broadcasters went through the digital transition 2 years ago. At that time cable users didn't have to concern themselves with the digital transition. Now that the cable companies are going through their own digital transition, there is no denying it, all our old analog equipment needs to be equipped with a digital to analog adapter (DTA) to continue to be useful.

Most digital set top boxes were designed to meet the government standard for the coupons that were available in 2009. Those boxes only tune in Over The Air signals (OTA). Cable signals are sent in a different format. Digital cable signals are sent in either clear QAM or scrambled QAM. Digital OTA signals are sent in ASTC format. This converter is capable of receiving CLEAR QAM and ATSC signals. Finding a box that does both QAM and ATSC is tricky. There isn't a lot of call for QAM/ATSC tuners since after converting to digital most cable providers scramble everything they legally can. This means that most cable providers only send local channels in clear QAM.

My provider,WOW, was different. My provider sends basic cable (65 channels) in CLEAR QAM, so you don't need to use a box for basic standard definition cable, if you have digital equipment. In my search I found that most QAM/ATSC tuners are designed for use with a Home Theater PC and don't have output options for older TVs. I was looking for something that would output Analog RF (channel 3/4) and composite line out . Price was a big issue since some of the ATSC/QAM tuners were more expensive than buying new digital TVs and I could rent an extra DTA for a mere $2 a month. I decided to purchase the iview-2000STB instead of renting another digital to analog adapter (DTA). In two years the iview will pay for itself in DTA rentals, and if I decide to drop cable, I can use this unit with my OTA antenna.

For purposes of writing this review, I briefly hooked this up for use with an antenna. The box quickly tuned in all the channels and seemed to work okay. I have other ATSC boxes, and this one is not nearly as good, but then, this one cost half as much and does QAM which the other ATSC boxes can't decode.

The cable installation was very time consuming. Any digital tuner takes up to 30 minutes to scan the digital cable channels, and this one is no exception. This unit has trouble finding all my QAM channels. Each time I scanned I had different results. I had to go through this scanning procedure 3 times before I got all the channels I was interested in. Each time I scanned, some channels were added and others were lost. It was very frustrating. I'm still missing a few channels that I should be receiving. Once I got all the channels I was interested in, I stopped scanning for fear that I'd end up losing the desirable channels in the process of trying to get a complete list. I've had minor changes in my cable system lineup about every 45 days, and each time I have to go through this painful process.

A really nice feature, this unit does save both your ATSC and your QAM settings so you can switch from one to the other with the press of a button. If you switch between both kinds of hookups this is very helpful.

Once up and running the picture quality on the SD channels was noticeably better than the picture from the cable company DTA, especially when using the line out features. There are many channels available to digital equipment that were not available through the DTA, including the local HD channels. Unfortunately, this box has trouble with those QAM HD signals. The QAM HD channels pixelate every time there is any motion, so those channels are not watchable. This is really not much of an issue since for me since all the channels are also sent in standard definition and I'm working with 4:3 anyway, but if you had a 16:9 "HD ready" TV this might be a show stopper. I'm still happy to have the extra SD channels.

Many QAM tuners use raw cable numbers instead of the aliases sent by the cable company. This unit uses the aliases, so the cable numbers make sense. What this means is that for example USA is channel 13 on the cable box, and 60.1 in the raw numbering. My company is sending 13 as the alias, and for a while they were sending 60_13 as the alias, but its really transmitted on 60.1. It can get really confusing. The good news is if the company uses good aliases the channel numbers will be the 3 digit numbers used by the cable company, instead of 5 digit decimal numbers!

Once a channel has been tuned in, you can go in through the menu system and set the skip for channels you don't want to see when cycling using the channel+ and channelbuttons. Try that with a cable supplied DTA! You can also assign channels to a favorites list for tuning ease. Another tuning feature is the "prog" option. The prog option lets you page through the channel list. The list includes both the channel number and the identifying info letters, like NBC, ABC, WTVS.... Very helpful if you need to tune in ESPN, or the SPEED channel and don't know the number.

This unit has closed captioning, so if your older TV doesn't have CC, this unit will supply it. There is a menu entry with adjustments you can make to the CC appearance.

The remote control was small and crowded and has an odd layout. The unit doesn't always respond to signals from the remote. It is a problem with the remote, not the unit itself. The unit responds perfectly to my universal remote. The unit ships without the 2 AAA batteries needed to operate the remote.

The screen prompts were unclear. Little things like figuring out how to directly enter a channel were a challenge. I had to read the 23 page manual to figure out how to do things with the remote.

The unit boasts of an electronic programming guide (EPG), but they should probably not even mention it at all. It is a terrible excuse for an EPG. Of course I have Dish Network and Echostar ASTC adapters, so any other EPG is going to pale in comparison. I was curious and hoping that this unit would give me some info on the cable side, but my provider doesn't send any program guide information, so the EPG doesn't work with my cable.

Pros

Price, the price on this unit is approximately the cost of a 2 year rental of a cable company DTA. The price was also about 1/2 to 1/4th the price of any other qam/atsc tuner that I could find.

Handles clear QAM (unencrypted digital cable channels) as well as ATSC (over the air digital)

Has an on/off and ch+/chbuttons on the front of the unit (see picture I submitted) which is great because remote is so small its easily lost.

output options are good for older analog equipment. I found that most ATSC/QAM tuners are geared more towards PC use instead of for use with analog equipment and had output that was geared towards newer equipment.

outputs analog RF channel 3 or 4 output, just like a VCR, and has the ability to allow the RF to pass through untouched, I believe this is called loop through.

outputs composite AV (Yellow/Red/White connectors)

Stores both the OTA and QAM cable channel settings, so you can switch back and forth with the cable/air button without having to rescan.

Allows you to skip the channels you don't want. I sure wish the cable company DTA would do the same.

has a Favorite function

has the "prog" feature for tuning while paging through the list

Gets more local channels than the cable company rental DTA box, even when you ignore the HD channels that were found.

This unit does not use raw cable numbers

Better picture than the cable company DTA.

More output options than the cable company DTA

This unit has closed caption (CC) feature

Cons

remote is crowded and poorly laid out and unintuitive. (See the image I submitted.)

remote is unreliable

it takes a long time to change a channel. The screen goes blank for about 5 seconds.

it takes a long time to turn on, before you see the iview logo and longer still for the unit to actually start tuning.

it is tricky to get all your cable channels

poor excuse for an EPG (electronic program guide) for OTA.

pixelates when picking up the local QAM HD channels. It basically doesn't work on my High Definition clear QAM. ***

*** Edit my cable company changed some of the HD channels to a lower QAM channel number, and when they did those HD channels didn't pixelate anymore. so apparently this is an issue with the upper channel numbers. ***

Even though this was not a glowing review, I did buy a second unit, because this unit is definitely better than the cable DTA. I would have tried something different, but I couldn't find anything else that compared. I have very nice analog equipment that I am not ready to retire. This unit gave my analog equipment a new lease on life.

Please let me know if this was helpful to you.

Buy iview 2000STB 480i TV Tuner/Receiver -Black Now

I just bought and installed two of these. The main claim to fame for this box is that it decodes clear QAM on cable in addition to off-air ATSC. Most Digital to Analog converter boxes are off-air ATSC only.

pros:

-demodulates clear QAM

-picture quality is good

-RF and baseband outputs

-allows you to delete unwanted channels from the scan list

cons:

-poor remote control range, especially off-axis

-user interface for deleting unwanted channels is painful to use

-daylight savings feature doesn't work

-audio level on RF output is undermodulated (volume is very low, so hum is a problem)

-autoprogramming is very slow, about 20 minutes.

Read Best Reviews of iview 2000STB 480i TV Tuner/Receiver -Black Here

I needed an external tuner to use my tunerless dvd recorder with my new TV that already had a built-in tuner. This little gadget works great! I had to try the different settings (ch 3, ch 4 or loop through) to find the one that worked with my setup, but once I found it, setting the TV to ch 4 and setting the tuner to ch 4 (just like an old time VCR) and then using autoscan, it started picking up channels right away! I did have to scan a couple of times to find all the channels I wanted, but it only took about fifteen minutes each time. The only reason I didn't rate it a 5 is because the user guide that comes with the product is pretty useless. It doesn't explain things clearly. But using the guide that came with the TV and the dvd recorder, I was able to figure things out. The programming guide and the channel selection list that saves favorites and skips channels not visited are great features!

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I needed a cable box that could receive the unscrambled channels provided by my cable company Verizon Fios. Most of the low cost boxes out there could only handle over-the-air signals provided by an antenna. My quest was to find something that could not only process digital TV signals but the ones being sent along in the QAM format, used by Fios. This box did the trick. The footprint of the device is small and cheap looking and many have complained about the small size of the remote contol (which does not come with batteries). But this cable tuner works just fine.

Not all the instructions are clear and one has to do a little experimentation but this unit goes for less than $ 35. For me, it is a better alternative than buying a new TV with a built-in QAM tuner or renting another box from the cable company.

First, I simply did not have the problems other people encountered -straight out of the box, this device has worked as expected. (Actually, it's been better than expected, since I was anticipating the problems others wrote about.)

For my purposes -being able to get my *clear QAM* cable-TV signal into a large monitor with no built-in tuner -this works perfectly. I pulled it out of the box, popped the batteries (2 AAA, purchased separately) into the remote, and was watching TV on my monitor within a half-hour. Previously, I had to do all this through my computer in a very annoying set-up.

I happen to know, from a previous experience mapping all of the digital channels coming through my cable, that this device correctly pulled all of those channels. Quality wise, they all looked about as good as could be expected. Unlike some reviewers, I did pull in HD channels along with the standard-definition channels.

PROS: Small simple box, small simple remote; easy to set up; excellent price (I compared many others); worked perfectly for my situation; ability to program channels to eliminate those you don't watch; easy ability to switch between cable and antenna if you have both coming in

CONS: Changing channels is slow -delay of about 2 seconds each time; for my signal, the channels came in without alias, meaning channel 96 is actually 128-1388, which is obviously annoying to directly go to... someone wrote this can be corrected, but maybe this depends on the cable provider's signal; the online channel guide may or may not work, but this is due to your cable signal, not this device; no ability to store pulled channels if you re-scan

So, yep, very happy with this puppy. I've been trying to solve this situation for a while, and this does it. Just a few important things to know as you consider:

1. "Pulling channels" is a slow and inconsistent process. Mine took about 15-20 minutes and pulled 67 channels. Though I got all available, I know other reviewers are correct that it can be hit or miss.

2. As far as cable is concerned, you will ONLY pull in clear-QAM (unscrambled) digital channels -you will not pull in any analog channels. This is important to know, because my cable signal is actually carrying both, and the channels are not all the same. In other words, if I plug my cable into an old analog TV, I get a different set of channels... some are the same as the digital set coming through this device, but most are not. (Some digital channels are not available in analog and vice-versa.) So, if you've been watching cable on an analog TV and switch to this device, just know that you MAY discover a whole different set of channels coming in, and that may be good (more, better channels) or bad (fewer, worse channels). Of course, you can always set up a splitter, with cable going into your analog TV and also into this device.

3. What I wrote above, that your signal may not generate convenient channel numbers to dial up. Also, some may not be identified. So, you'll be going through them, seeing all these weird channels and may not even know what they are (if an onscreen programming guide isn't provided by your cable company).

4. Again, changing channels is not fast. This is not uncommon with digital, apparently, as I've had the same problem with Cox and DirecTV. The delay is only about two seconds between channels, but that may be a big deal for you.

5. You'll need to buy batteries for the remote -2 x AAA.

6. Your only output is AV (the red, white, and yellow connections) or RF (coax). Your only input is RF (coax).

I don't have an antenna, so I can't comment on this device being used that way.

I'd give this 4.5 stars if I could -the half-star deduction only because the box can't store channels you've already scanned, if you want or need to re-scan.

Sony DCR-DVD92 DVD Handycam Camcorder w/20x Optical Zoom

My 8 year old learned to use this within 5 minutes. It has a touch screen with easy to find controls. Pop the mini DVD in--format--record--finalize--and play on DVD player. This model does not have a USB connection to your computer or a remote. It is really designed for minimal editing--tape and go. Buy an extra battery and lots of mini DVDs as they only last 30 minutes.

I have never used/purchased a mini camcorder before. This one was very easy to setup and understand. The video quality seems to be very good. I have not used the camera/photo option yet. The DVD played on my DVD player without any problem. The touch screen menu is super easy to use. I don't plan on editing my video's, or downloading them onto my PC, so I went with this model. Pretty much, using a DVD-R, it's load, record, finalize. That's it. Then pop it into your DVD player to watch. I guess the limitation is only 30 minutes of recording time on the DVD, but that's plenty for me. Cost of the DVD-R's is about $3.00 each, so that is bearable for me as well. I played around with a DVD-RW. Rewriting the disk was easy, and the VR mode allows you to do some editing if you need to. I would have purchased this item on Amazon, but didn't because I was unsure if I'd be happy with it, so I purchased from a local retailer for about $50 more than I could of from Amazon. I paid $570 for it at the retailer.

All and all, I am very pleased with my purchase thus far. I did however order an extra battery and battery charger through Amazon saving myself about $20 from what it would of cost me at the store.

Again, I am not an expert on camcorders, nor have I used anything comparable before, so for me, I have nothing to complain about by comparison. Some of the limited reviews available on the Internet say that this is still a developing technology, and may be worthwhile reading if you already own a mini camcorder, or are looking for something that may be a bit more flexible, or has more features, or better resolution. I can only say this camcorder works exceptionally well for my needs.

Buy Sony DCR-DVD92 DVD Handycam Camcorder w/20x Optical Zoom Now

Most people, when it comes time to buy a camcorder, are overwhelmed with the overabundance of choices on the market these days. Either this is the first time that they've decided to purchase a camcorder or they haven't upgraded since they purchased their old 8mm or VHS-C 10 or 15 years ago. With all of the choices and relatively little difference between them, this camcorder is definitely one of your best bets. It is probably the simplest camcorder on the market today. If you are ready to join the DVD camcorder craze, this is the perfect place to start. First of all, the DVD92 is very easy to understand and set up. It's as simple as: 1.) Load the disc. 2.) Press record. 3.) Finalize the disc. That's it! The mini-DVD's play in virtually any DVD player on the market. The mini-DVD's are relatively inexpensive, depending on where they are purchased. Ebay is a great place to find deals on any type of camcorder media. The DVD92 also features a 3.0 MegaPixel still-shot function which is absolutely wonderful. You can enlarge your still images up to a 5x7 without any distortion or "digitizing". The still photos are conveniently separated on the DVD from the video, allowing easy transfer to your computer. The video quality is a given, DVD-quality is as good as it gets without venturing into the higher priced High Definition camcorders. The sound quality is phenomenal, featuring a built-in surround sound microphone. The only drawback I could find was that the DVD's can only hold, in standard DVD quality, 30 minutes each. Then I got to thinking...How many times do you record for more than 30 minutes at a time? Anyhow, you can lower the video quality if you have to, and give yourself a total of 60 minutes on each disc, the same amount of time you would get on a standard MiniDV tape. So if you're in the market for a new camcorder and you want something that is very user-friendly and of exceptional quality (as Sony camcorders have been for the past 15+ years), then look no further. I guarantee you won't be disappointed.

Read Best Reviews of Sony DCR-DVD92 DVD Handycam Camcorder w/20x Optical Zoom Here

For all the people giving this camera bad reviews here and everywhere .. What do you expect from a camera in that price?

This cam has it all .. get an extra battery, external flash if you want and you're all set!

Whoever complains about the still picture quality..GO GET A DIGITAL CAMERA INSTEAD! i have both .. Sony DVD92 and Canon Ixus 40 .. both small and nice.

Videos taken at night were ok .. i mean OK! I used it in the desert with NO LIGHTS at all .. and this baby performed VERY WELL! just switch "super nightvision" and shoot!

miniDVD's carry 30mins of video .. which is enough . get a double sided miniDVD .. format on cam..edit on cam and go :D

There isnt a USB port .. but still YOU CAN EDIT YOUR DVD's using 3rd party software. why pay more for a camera with usb port when you can edit your videos on your pc?

Minus one star because sony tries to fool people and say there isnt a USB port..there IS but no drivers and why not supplying a better battery? why do we have to buy the FP90?

Buy this camera for travelling .. fun and indoor :)

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Pros:

1) 20X zoom is nice which is very imp for an handycam.

2) Easy to use. You don't have to read the manual.

3) looks wise its awsome.

Cons:

1) If you need to download the DVD recorded video to your laptop you have to look for a ripper software. Sony should have provided this software along with the Handy Cam.

Pantech C300 Phone (AT&T)

I got this phone when I renewed my Cingular service about three months ago. All I've ever wanted is a simple-to-use, reliable, SMALL phone that I could easily carry around. I have no use for internet features, IM/texting or a camera in a phone... which is probably a good thing as far as this review goes.

Cons:

1.) The camera is grainy and extremely limited in function. If you snap alot of pics with your phone, this isn't the one for you.

2.) My first battery wouldn't hold a charge for even one day. The second one lasts much longer, but still not as long as advertised on the box.

3.) My phone came pre-loaded with only melody and sound effect ringtones, no "regular" tones that sounded like a phone ringing.

4.) I gave up waiting on the internet to log on, so I can't even comment on it's functionality.

Pros:

1.) It's freaking tiny. As a guy who likes to carry his phone in a pocket rather than in a belt holster, this phone is the perfect size. I hardly even know it's there.

2.) Signal strength is great. I have no problem hearing calls, nor does anyone have a problem hearing me.

3.) The interface is really really easy to navigate though you'll have some problems if you got big fingers.

So all in all, I'm satisfied with the Pantech C300 because it does the very basic things I need from a cellphone very well, in a very small package. All the other features are a bit lacking in my opinion and that is why I'm only giving it 3 stars.

I originally returned this phone because I thought it didn't meet my criteria for contact info (more than one phone number, e-mail addresses, notes), but I was wrong. In fact it can store 800 contacts with 3 phone numbers, 2 e-mail addresses, notes and other stuff (the SIM card holds an add'l 250 contacts). So I returned my Nokia 6102i (which was too slow in performance for me) and went back to this phone.

Cool features:

I love the flash with the camera which you can also use as a flashlight (press the down arrow on the outer left side while the phone is closed). The up arrow pressed down firmly for a few seconds triggers the camera. One button gets you to your contacts, another button directly to the calendar. The navigation performance is FAST! With the Nokia 6102i, there was a delay in navigating. The vibrate mode (which I use) is powerful. The multimedia messaging performance is pretty good. Sending an image to my email took just a couple seconds. Other cool features are a unit converter and world time.

This is the perfect phone to carry around your waist even while jogging. I found a lot of the other flip phones out there were too heavy, bulky, long, or wide.

The only drawback for me is how long it takes to turn off and on. It takes 10-12 sec to power on and 20-30 sec to power off. Other than this, I love this phone.

Buy Pantech C300 Phone (AT&T) Now

If you want a phone that does a lot, don't get this one. When I was shopping for a new phone I wanted one that was small, loud, and vibrated strongly. I had a hard time hearing my old phone (a Samsung x427m) ring or feeling it vibrate in my purse. I wasn't looking for a phone that did a lot or had bluetooth. If you have the same requirements for a cell phone as I do, then this phone is a great option. It's small, it's loud, and it vibrates off the table.

Pros:

~very small, light, thin

~loud

~strong vibration

~camera (I wasn't looking for a cameraphone, but I like it now that I have it...just don't expect to use it as you would a real camera)

~outside screen

~you can use the flash as a flashlight...and it's bright

Cons:

~sometimes people tell me they have a hard time hearing me...I find myself having to talk louder than I used to have to on a cell phone

~the buttons are small...i often hit 2 at once or the wrong one when texting (not a problem i've had before with other phones)

Read Best Reviews of Pantech C300 Phone (AT&T) Here

I have only had the phone for a few months but it seems durable enough to last a long time.

I am disappointed that you can't put the phone on speaker phone while you are calling someone and it is ringing. You have press two buttons to put the phone on speaker phone and if you have dialed any numbers during the call you have to clear them out and then press two buttons to put it on speaker phone. If you don't clear out the numbers it flashes over and tries to dial the numbers on the other line.

My other big grip with this phone is that it doesn't delete old text messages when new ones come in. Instead it says your inbox(or outbox) is full and you have to delete the oldest messages one by one or you can delete all messages. There is no setting to have it automatically delete old messages and that is a pain.

I like to color screen on the outside on the phone so you can see who is calling and that you can set personal ringtones for each caller. You can also assign a picture to a caller. The only problem is that it can't be a picture that someone sent you from there phone, it has to be one that you took on the camera. This is very strange since they are both jpg's and both taken on camera phones. Pictures that are sent to you are stored in a different place than pictures that you take with the camera phone. They should be stored in the same place. Conversely you can set the wallpaper background picture to either type of picture.

Ringtones and Games The ringtones that come on the phone suck. I know this is because they want you to buy rinetones but they should at least have one ringtone that sounds like something ringing. The phone only came with one game, again because they want you to buy them.

I have used the wireless web to read news and sports scores and it works fine. You have to scroll allot because of the size of the screen but that's ok if you want a small phone.

No bluetooth but I'm not a fan of looking like a cyborg any way.

The small size of the phone is one of it's best selling points but it should be pointed out that the small keys make it a little more difficult when sending text messages. If you send more than 2 text messages a day you should consider getting a different phone. The keys need to be more like the old Motorola Vader.

Even with all the things I would change about this phone I still recommend it over the competition. I hope the designers work out the kinks in the next model and I will buy it again.

Here's a Tip/Trick about the phone: Hold down on the external down button to turn on the camera flash and use the phone as a flashlight.

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Perfect if you just need to carry a small basic phone. Not recommended for folks looking for lots of bells & whistles.

Call volume and range is good, especially given the small size.

Camera image quality is ok for web photos (VGA 640x480), but this wouldn't be the phone for you if you need to make prints from your photos. It also doesn't take video (surprised). No memory expansion slot (mini SD or otherwise).

The biggest con was the lack of blue tooth support. If you need to use a headphone you'll need one with wires (argh!). If your state has a law on requiring you to drive hands free then this might not be the right phone for you.

We bought this as a pre-pay Cingular phone plan but were able to get Cingular to unlock it to allow us to use our old ATT SIM in it.

Pyle PSPL05R Digital Sound Level Meter with Recording Function

I'm happy this isolates the sound being recorded, its sensitive and very accurate yet withstands recording ambient noise, partly to due with the wind screen cover on the microphone receptor which without will pick-up even the sound of breathing so hard to get accurate readings without it......EXTREMELY SATISFIED!!!

Like the first reviewer, I also just received this item so I can't say much about its performance, but the manual is so bad it is unintelligible. That immediately puts into doubt the quality of the engineering in the product. The legends on the smaller buttons are somewhat faint but I wouldn't say they look worn off on mine. I downloaded a PDF user manual at the Pyleaudio.com website and it is even worse (scrambled pages). For half the price I could have purchased a unit that lacked the record and some other features, and those featurese are not going to be usable unless I can puzzle out how to use it on my own.

The sturdy, padded cases is nice. It is easy to turn the power on and get a reading. Hitting power again briefly toggles on a backlight (that's nice). By randomly pushing buttons, I can change between A and C weighting (there is no information about why one would want to do that but that is easy to learn on the web). The large, central "Level/Rec" button switches between dB ranges and includes "auto" at setting 04 for the full stated range of 30-130dB. The "F/S" (fast/slow) button obscurely toggles a mark below the dB level numbers from left to right but doesn't seem to change the fast rate (faster than every second) that the readout changes. I think "Slow" is supposed to update each second.

Oddly, when I change the range, the readout changes dramatically. That doesn't make sense to me. I would think in the wrong range it should be pinned at the max or min level, but holding the unit in my hand while my laptop is nearby reads ~33 at level 1 (30-80), ~44 at level 2(50-100), ~60 at level 3(80-130), and back to ~33 at level 4 (auto). The values change continuously within a small range at all settings. A tiny word appears in the upper left corner if it is out of range ("over" or "under") -not really legible without a magnifying glass, but once you know it is there, that is useful. But the design of the range feature seems almost as bad as the design of the manual. Can I even trust the simple readings without separately calibrating the device? I guess it is useful for relative readings.

It has a "time chip" feature which seems to allow setting date and time. That would be nice but I can't tell how to use it yet and so I don't know if it keeps track of date and time when turned off or when the battery is changed. The manual claims it supports a separate power supply using the non-existent "DC 9V connector on the side panel." It does have a tripod jack.

When I figure out how to use the max/min and recording functions and get a better idea of how useful this device is, I'll update the review. Unfortunately I'm not going to invest in an different, more expensive brand/model or a $300 calibration device, so I will not be able to know if it is accurate, just reproducible.

Buy Pyle PSPL05R Digital Sound Level Meter with Recording Function Now

The meter is very nicely packaged in a foam lined snap-to-close carrying case.

The user manual was poorly written by someone whose first language is NOT English. Cannot figure out how to complete some functions. It is terrible.

Some of the screen printed labels on the meter buttons / switches are faded and hard to read, as if the meter had been used a lot...even though it is new.

Also the manual says that an AC adapter can be used but there is no place on the unit to plug it in!

I have not actually used the meter yet, so the jury is still out on its performance.

Read Best Reviews of Pyle PSPL05R Digital Sound Level Meter with Recording Function Here

The recording function appears to only capture the data for each point that you hit record. Other data logging sound level meters capture a stream of data over the period that you choose. This was a critical feature for me so I returned it and purchased the Extech HD600 Datalogging Sound Level Meter (which is 5x more expensive but that's what you have to pay for data logging). My frustration with this product is that the description is unclear about the "recording function" feature. Otherwise I'm sure it's a fine sound level meter for live monitoring.

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I bought this sound meter after much research. I looked at several other brands and models and decided to try this one because it offered a wider range of coverage and the cost was not too high. This meter covers decibel ranges down to 30db which I needed. Measurements down to 30db allow you to measure ambient room noise in very quiet situations such as urban household environments. If you attempt a measurement in a sound proofed room then you will get an Out of Range indication but that's to be expected. It also has preset ranges that allow for more precise measurements and a wide range preset that covers the whole spectrum that the meter is capable of measuring. The display is well lit, easy to read but the controls can be a bit cumbersome until you get used to them. The sensitivity is good also, it seemed to respond to even a dog barking outside in the distance which is encouraging. The case it comes with is well padded and provides quite a bit of protection for transporting the unit from place to place. All in all, this meter is a pretty good sound meter for the price and works well. I would recommend it highly.

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Sony BDP-S5000ES Blu-ray Disc Player

• High-end Blu-ray Disc player with Sony's 14-bit HD video processor plus HD Reality Enhancer and Super Bit Mapping technologies
• Full HD 1080p output for Blu-ray Discs and upconversion of standard DVD video to 1080p
• BD Live capable for accessing bonus content from BD-Live Blu-ray Discs; Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD; 1 GB built-in memory
• Outputs: 1 HDMI,1component,1 S-Video,1 composite,1analog audio 2-channel, 7.1-channel),1digital optical audio,1 digital coaxial audio,1Ethernet,1RS232
• Includes remote control and composite AV cable; measures 17 x 14.37 x 4.92 inches (WxDxH)

This player is the promise of Bluray fully delivered. As before, video is spectacular. Audio is spectacular in every codec as well. DTS master audio (not included in previous sony products except PS3)and Dolby HD are fantastic. The internal decoding and full bandwith 7.1 PCM output is a great plus for all of us that have audiophile equipment that does not include internal decoders for the new formats. This also ensures that users of HDMI version 1.1 equipment don't have to fret about having 1.3 compliant equipment to enjoy the rewards of completely uncompressed 7.1 surround. Works beautifully with my Rotel 1069 preamp through HDMI. However, best of all, the player is finally fast. For those that have owned previous generation bluray players the most annoying thing about the technology was the patience testing load times. That was the bad old days, welcome to the good days, plop in the disc and go. In my expirience, even with the fast load feature set to off it is at least twice as fast (if not faster) as my departed BDPS2000ES. The menus and additional features work seamlessly and instantly, no more "processing time" hastle. I'm using it with an Elite pro110 plasma and can attest that its video fidelity is reference quality, it simply doesn't get better than this, for any price. Build quality is impressive, the player feels like its built from a ton of bricks and its completely silent in operation, the fan is inaudible (at least I have never heard it). The internet connection is excellent, just plug and go. In fact, this player has essentially zero negatives from any performance standpoint, NONE. Its not a particularly attractive piece of gear, simply a box with a tray in the front, but that is fine. Which, of course, leads to the only negative, its price. For those that want the very best in videophile equipment, the price is justified simply because its performance is, for the time being, second to none in all parameters, better yet, it demonstrates that the technology has finally reached fruition. This player is the first evidence that bluray is now a mature technology with no performance or functional compromises. Hopefully all its funtional advantages will trickle down to more affordable players soon. BTW, anyone that dismisses this player as an expensive alternative to a PS3, has not used it, or at least has not used with gear that will plainly show the significant differences in audio and video performance. Very highly recommended.

One more thing...... The picture of the player is inaccurate that is the BDPS2000ES, Cheers!

Buy Sony BDP-S5000ES Blu-ray Disc Player Now

I just got my BDP-S5000es yesterday. I had been using Sony's original BDP-S1 in our home theater and have enjoyed its picture and audio quality for the past 2 years. I have auditioned other Blu-ray players including the Pioneer Elite series, but never really saw or heard any clear cut reason to spend $$$$ to upgrade until now.

The BDP-s5000es is an enormous improvement in both video and audio quality of any of the units that I have tried.

First, the picture. Stunning is the only way I can describe it. I am veiwing Blu ray movies through a 1080p projector on a 120" screen. If there are any problems with the image in terms of color, saturation or clarity, you'll see it with the picture that large. It is flawless. The few scenes I have been able to play so far all have better contrast, greater depth and more intensity than my previous player. In short, it looks as good as film to my eyes.

The sound is equally as impressive. Up until now, I have been using the audio processor in my Krell preamp to decode the 5.1 and 7.1 soundtracks with results that were far superior to the analog output of my older player. The downside was that I couldn't decode the Dolby TrueHD and DTS HD signals that many of the discs now have. The BDP-s5000es has and outstanding built in decoder for these HD formats and an equally impressive analog output stage that allows for the most realistic recorded audio presentation I have ever heard. The difference isn't subtle, but it is difficult to describe. An example of what I am talking about is in the the James Bond movie "Casino Royale". In one scene, James and Vesper walk out onto a terrace after losing a poker game to his rival. In the Dolby Digital soundtrack, the sounds of the city are all there in the background clear, clean and pristine a well recorded sountrack. However, when I played same scene using the Dolby TrueHD soundtrack through the analog outputs of the 5000es, it sounded like correction it felt like the walls of my room disappeared and I was outdoors. It was startling. It didn't sound like a great recording, it made me feel like I was there. The subtle spatial and sensory information that is lacking from many recordings was all there to be heard and felt.

As for the setup, it was very quick and easy. There was one small quirk that I noticed. Because I am using the players decoder and analog outputs, I needed to go into the audio setup of the Sony to adjust speaker levels and positions. The setup process went quickly enough as I was able to match all of the speaker levels up or down in 1/2dB increments except for the subwoofer. I needed to boost the output to the sub by 1.5dB but the Sony would only allow me to turn it down, not increase the level. I had to start over using the sub's output as the reference level and match the other speakers to it. Not a big problem, but a bit strange.

The network connection went without a hitch. I plugged in the cable and it immediately checked to see if there was an update for the firmware. This is an important reason to consider Sony when making a purchase. As I mentioned, I have the original Sony Blu Ray player and after 2 1/2 years, they are still offering software improvements which allow it to work flawlessly with the latest BD titles. I have updated that machine at least 7 times (from v1.1 to v4.2), all for free, and each time the machine works faster and better. There are not many companies out there that continue to support their products with free upgrades and for such a long period of time. Most just want you to buy the newest model rather than improve your current one.

Also, I saw a previous review about the loading time and thought I'd respond. There is a setting in the setup menu that decreases the time to boot up and load a disc dramatically by leaving the machine in kind of a standby mode. I didn't time it, but I'd say the few discs I've tried to play so far loaded in under 10 seconds with this mode turned on. The downside is that the unit uses more power to do this because it keeps the fan and processor running even when the power switch is off. My guess is that the previous reviewer has not turned that feature on (the default setting for this feature is "off").

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I can share that for my situation the video enhancement of the BDP-S5000s was very real. My raw video material was from a Canon XH-A1s used to shoot an orchestral performance. Adobe Premiere, Adobe Encore, Verbatum blank DVD discs, and a new LG burner were used to make a 1080p/24 Blu-Ray DVD. When my resulting DVD wouldn't play on my Sony BDP-S300 player, I went to a Sony Store to compare new players.

What I cared about foremost was image quality. The short answer is that players absolutely are not the same. However before I get specific I hope you will please indulge me in a little background theory. Blu-ray encoders compresses video by approximately 50x, which the players then need to uncompress (decode). Encoding at a studio can be slow and methodic, however decoding in a DVD player needs to happen in real time, which invites compromises. If the player has a powerful processor as does the 5000s, a beautiful video stream more free of artifacts will result when you play a DVD.

Compared to the 5000s, the lesser DVD players I tried at the store sacrificed some image quality when the picture moved; i.e., they would pixelate to various degrees. For example a person's face would become slightly blotchy for a fraction of a second and then resolve itself. With the lesser players this would happen even on slowly moving images, and I would expect the problem to be more pronounced with fast moving scenes such as with sports. A related shortcoming is that the lesser players had some noise in their images. For example a dark suit that appeared smooth when the person sat still would become grainy when the person moved slowly. Neither of these defects were apparent on the 5000s.

These shortcomings of the lesser players would probably never be noticed by a casual viewer who rightly thinks that any Blu-ray just looks pretty fabulous no matter what. Nonetheless, there is a curse in knowing what to look for, because it is easy to see, and certainly doesn't require a "golden eye". Whether or not they are objectionable is up to the individual. I'll remark that I have no reason to suspect the other video (and audio) claims to not be accurate. In summary, the 5000s player employs a very powerful image decoder, and it buys you playbacks that are seemingly free of artifacts.

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I have owned several high end blu ray players from the likes of Denon, Marantz and Pioneer. I thought they we all solid performers until I bought the 5000ES. This Blu ray player is by far the most solid built and best performer I have ever owned. Video is crisp, great color with lots of tweeks and adjustments at your disposal, with audio via HDMI or Analog the best I have encountered. If you can find one of these beasts still around, I would not hesitate.

I'm a huge analog guy always have been. I never bought into the HD craze until one fateful trip to the Sony store. I saw a big beast sitting sadly in a clearance bin it was marked down to $50; the heft and many connectors on the back quickly caught my eye and held my interest. I felt sorry for it and thought it would be an upgrade to my PS2 which I had up till then been using to play DVDS. Something told me to GET IT, GET IT NOW... so I bought it and took it home. I had a smallish Trinitron and had been using it for awhile when I was bitten by the HD CRT bug using this player on my Trinitron almost felt like using a Ferrari to go to the corner store and back, almost like the player deserved better.

So, a $35 Goodwill acquisiton for a 34" Panasonic CRT HDTV, and an HDMI cable later it was like a window to the world. I just wanted to keep watching things over and over because the video quality is second to none. I've seen cheaper bluray players at friends and family's homes and I really do feel sorry for them. If you have a big set, you need THIS player to do it justice. Even SD content on regular DVDs, the player has an odd way of cleaning up and making look spectacular.

Sony DCR-SX63 Flash memory Handycam Camcorder

Cons: I took videos in low light. By low light, I mean that found in a dimly lit pub. The video started a little dark, but then it seemed the camera adjusted and although you could still tell it was dark in the building, the video was clear. The sound was clear and awesome.

While it did connect to my mac and was recognized, my mac would not play the videos. I am used to more ease of use when connecting to my mac and no need for extra software. Perhaps I could have made this work had I tried more then 3 minutes, but I decided to just use my PC since I had that option.

Pros: My mom actually purchased this for the purpose of video taping my wedding. It took excellent and clear movies for this. The lighting in the venue was not super bright and not dark. It was just average. And the videos are excellent.

I installed the software on my PC and it was the easiest camera software I've ever installed. It worked easily the first time and easily made DVDs for me to send to family and friends. I was very impressed with how easy to use it was and how easy it was to pull the videos off.

The buttons are small on the camera, but they are clearly marked and still easy to use.

After the wedding, my mom gave me this for use on my honeymoon and whenever. It's a very nice little camera... and make no mistake, it is small. It's maybe 3X5X2 inches I guess? Maybe? It easily fits into a pocket. It also very easily fit into my hand. My husband had no complaints about the size of it or how it fit into his hands and they are good manly sized hands.

The battery lasts about 2 hours. And with the standard memory will take between 2 and 4 hours of video. It will take another SD card for even more video. If you are going overseas, I'd recommend taking a spare battery that's all charged.

I like that it comes with all the cables you need to connect to your TV or to your computer.

The instruction manual is clean and easy to follow.

I would recommend this item definitely without reservation for videos. I did not try to take any pictures with this item as I have a camera for this purpose and would prefer to use the camcorder for the purpose for which it was intended... videos. =)

The Sony SX63 camcorder is very compact and fits in your hand. It has only a flip-out LCD view finder, which acts as an on-off switch for the camcorder. The zoom is fantastic at 60x optical/2000x digital. However, the resolution is standard definition, but just fine for my needs. There is also a built-in stereo microphone and LCD light at the front of the camera.

The best thing about this camcorder is no tapes or discs! It uses 16GB internal flash memory and can also use Sony Memory Stick DUO or SD flash cards for additional space. Then you just convert the MPEG-2 (DVD quality) movie files to a PC or to a DVD, DVR, or VHS recorder via the included cables.

It also has a photo mode, but found it's VGA quality to be poor for good photos. Stick with a regular digital photo camera or you can capture frames from video on this camera to create a jpg file, that is better quality than the VGA photo mode.

The camcorder comes with a USB cable, RCA video cable, 1 battery (about 2 hours), and Windows software for converting movies. You can also access the camcorder like a flash drive if you do not want to use Sony's software.

Overall, I recommend this camcorder from Sony. It is a good replacement for my Digital 8mm tape camera, which does not function so well after accidentally dropping it. The moving tape parts are out of alignment. Thus the need for non-moving flash technology with this SX63 camcorder.

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UPDATE August 29, 2010

I used this camcorder for 2 vacation trips this summer. I added a 16GB SD card (about $30 on Amazon) and was able to fit most of my videos on the internal memory and SD card. I also purchased a 2nd, longer lasting Sony battery, which was necessary for long days away from the hotels. And I purchased a Sony pouch to easily carry the camcorder and extra battery on my belt (great portability!).

I transferred video from the camcorder to my laptop during the trip, and burned DVDs before even reaching home. For a small camcorder, it takes really good videos, even in LP mode, which allows more video to be stored in flash memory and on DVD. It's not a HD camcorder, but it has satisfied my needs to capture memories. I had no problems during either trip, which were about 2 weeks each.

Buy Sony DCR-SX63 Flash memory Handycam Camcorder Now

I previously owned a Sony Handycam with a hard drive. I was satisfied with the camera but out of warranty it failed. I wanted an SD camera again as I don't want the hassle of dealing with the huge file sizes and haven't heard a lot of good things about the lower priced HD cameras.

This camera is a very good SD camera. I like how it has 16GB internal memory plenty for my needs and also gives you the option to use SD or memory sticks.

PROS: Construction of the camera is very good. The small doors are all solid and the few actual buttons feel good. Other high points quality of SD footage is great with good proper widescreen ratio, sound capturing with highly sensitive internal mic, smooth footage, ease of viewing of files on PS3, TV, PC. No hard drive and very few actual buttons on the camera. Size of camera is small but feels good in the hand.

CONS Low light performance, touch screen menu system sometimes too touchy and crammed menus. Some people dont like the MPEG2 format.

This is a great camera. This is NOT HD quality so don't expect it. The footage is very smooth and the camera performs well in decent lighting. The camera has an LED that acts as a "flash" to brighten up the scene. They removed the nightshot/nightvision to add this. I would have rather them kept the nightshot mode as they did in previous years.

I returned a competitor product to get this one and am not disappointed!

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purchased for hunting trip to africa,works fine in the house or low light. takes good videos,light,easy to use zoom is great only problem when in sunlight almost impossible to see flip out screen, which means you dont know what you are taping, missed some very good action shots because u cant see screen tried to hold hat over top still didnt work. sony needs to adress this ruined a very good trip to africa because couldnt capture half of the things i wanted

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If you are like me, and don't want to haul both a camera and a camcorder to events and on vacations, this IS NOT the camcorder for you. It takes really bad grainy photos. I should have done more homework. The HD camcorders can take 3 MP photos. This SD camcorder takes photos around 640k! :(

The other issue is the size. It's just too small. I can't imagine this being natural to use for anyone with decent sized hands. The menu is akward to use and the buttons are cumbersome.

On the plus side, the video is good. Very clear and no problems with low light conditions.

If you have small hands, and don't care about being able to take photos with your camcorder, then go for it. Otherwise, I recommend against it.

Micca MPLAY-HD 1080p Full-HD Digital Media Player For USB Drives and SD/SDHC (Realtek 1055)

I chose this little box over the NBox and other comparable media players, mainly because it has a wider array of audio/video ports, and it pretty much splits the difference price-wise. I am using the HDMI port for my plasma screen, and the digital coaxial port for my receiver. I am beholden to Western Digital My Passport Essential USB drives, and I couldn't be happier with the results. The HD picture looks fantastic, and the booming 5.1 surround sound far exceeds what I could get out of my laptop. It browses reasonably fast through your files, folders, and sub-folders, and it offers continuous playback of your media. It played AVI, MPG, MP4, VOB, MKV, and pictures with no problems. The box is packed with composite cables and a short component video cable. It has two USB ports, and you can supposedly copy/paste/delete between the two, and apparently you can play a photo slideshow and music simultaneously, neither of which I have tried yet.

However, it does have it's shortcomings. Like most remotes, this one is a little user un-friendly, and doesn't seem to work when you're more than 10 feet away. The manual is scrawny and somewhat disorganized, so read it carefully. It wouldn't cooperate with one of my drives for some reason, and it also wouldn't play any of my Flash videos, not that I ever save them anyway. I put a movie on pause for a few minutes; when I resumed play the audio became out of sync, and I had to cue backwards to align it again. Still, the pros far outweigh the cons--I doubt I'll burn a DVD ever again.

Some tips: if you hook this up and turn it on and get no picture, repeatedly push the "TV Out" button on your remote first, the menu should soon come up in sharp full-color form. I recommend powering down the unit using the on/off switch on the back, rather than using the remote. It's supposed to go into "standby", but it seems to me that it still uses too much power for being inactive, and I'm more comfortable shutting the player down completely before I remove the USB cable. If your movie file is encoded with AC3 audio and you're using a hi-fi, set the digital out to "RAW" so your receiver can decode the Dolby Digital/DTS soundtrack, otherwise you'll just get 2-channel stereo.

All in all, a remarkably versatile little gadget that should round out any home theater, whether you're running out of storage space for your DVDs and CDs, or if you want a convenient way to move your PC experience to the living room. I just hope it's as durable as it performs.

This thing has played every file type that I have thrown at it. It's small and can be easily concealed, but like the pervious reviews, the remote needs to be pointed directly at the device. Setup is a breeze, just configure to widescreen (16:9) and set the tv resolution to 480p,720p,1080p etc.

Buy Micca MPLAY-HD 1080p Full-HD Digital Media Player For USB Drives and SD/SDHC (Realtek 1055) Now

Working exactly as described, have had NO trouble hooking it up, having it recognize and read my files from hard drive, and remote works also. VERY nice to have. However, now that I have had it for about a month, it keeps freezing and then when you try to turn it off, it won't and it won't play or move and so we have to pull the power out of the back and restart it that way, then sometimes it flickers when coming back on and you have to unplug it a second time. I am hoping this problem does not get worse, if it keeps it up at its current rate, it is livable, but if it gets any worse I may become upset. Bummer too, because I love the convenience and if I could afford it I would get one for every room and get rid of all movies and DVD's. :-)

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From the Product Description: "The MPLAY-HD makes finding and playing your media files quick and easy. Its media library feature is like Google for your videos and music, finding exactly what you want is just a quick search away even when you have thousands of files."

Um... My 250 gig hard drive takes two hours to index. That's NOT "quick and easy".

I can imagine that this player would seem perfectly wonderful for anyone just starting out in life, with only a handful of media files. You know: a few dozen songs; the holiday photos; 3 movies. The interface would seem awesome. The 10-second delay while the machine indexed your couple of hundred files would be almost no worse than waiting for your DVD player to read a disc menu. But fast forward to the same person, 6 months later, with a few thousand songs, 150,000 images, and 5 movies, and this player is just an utterly frustrating kid's toy version of what it actually claims to be.

Prior to having indexed everything the player is useless*[but see footnote added after hearing from Micca on this] folders simply don't exist in the menu. Once the index file is in place you are good, unless you power down the player or remove the drive. If you do that you then have to wait for, or cancel, the "quick" re-scan, which takes about a third of the full time but actually doesn't seem to do any fresh indexing. I may be wrong about that. After waiting 40 minutes I usually have forgotten what it was I set out to do.

If you rename files or folders, the old files and folders are all that show up in the menu until the drive has been completely re-indexed, and trying to access them results in an error.

If you delete a folder, even using the player itself, the folder still shows on the menu until you perform a complete rescan, and trying to open it results in an error.

If you forget to delete the recycle bin on your hard drive, or, you know, you actually WANT your hard drive to have a recycle bin, all the recycled files show up as regular files on the scan. Deleted media files show up as all being in the recycle bin folder, under bizarre names, and are all presented first in a list of available files. But deleted folders appear in their original undeleted place in the directory structure, as though you hadn't deleted them after all. If you try to open one of these folders you get an error message.

If you simply add a few folders to your disk drive and plug it back in, the new files don't show up at all until you've done a complete rescan.

Did I say how long that takes? At best, the player can scan about 30 files a second. That sounds awesome until you do the math on how many files there are on your hard drive.

THAT is what makes this player absolutely useless to me.

The reason I bought this player is that I had the earlier version with the exact same name. It was a bit flaky at times if it couldn't read a file it locked up. If you tried to hurry it, it locked up. If it was in a bad mood, it locked up. Curing the problem took 10 seconds: unplug and reboot. It had no frills It couldn't do random play, which was frustrating, but then (unbelievably) neither can the new one, and it had a character maximum for files in a folder: if a folder contained 14,000 files you pretty much had to name them "00001" through "14000" to get them in under the character limit, or the player locked up. But, well, I can't think of anything else I wanted from it that it couldn't do. It was a four star machine and what in particular it could do is take any size hard drive and allow me to navigate the hard drive's directory to find a folder of items to play so that within moments of plugging the hard drive into the player, I could forget the player existed and just enjoy the show.

I figured it was so good that I wanted another one; that way I could play a slideshow on one, and music on the other, and not have to interrupt one whilst making changes to the other.

But instead of the player I was expecting, I received this piece of garbage.

Oh, and after having allowed the new player to scan my disc drive, Windows 7 then suggests the drive may be damaged, and asks to check it for errors. The problem persisted and I re-formatted the drive in order to start over from scratch. After that the drive worked perfectly, enabling me to port files back and forth from home to work without any error messages, until I again allowed the Micca player to scan it. The same thing happened to my backup disc drive.

One time after using my disc drive in the Micca player it became entirely unreadable by Windows 7, resulting in another format; another time after using my backup drive in the media player almost all the files on it appeared to have a different time stamp to the files they were copies of, which meant the backup program basically had to delete the entire disk, file by file, and rewrite everything. This took all evening. I have no evidence that the Micca player was in any way responsible for either of these events. I just mention them in case someone reading this had the same bizarre things happen to them.

During the week I spent struggling to find a way to get the player to work in a way that was useful to me, I encountered a number of other problems and quirks that I neglected to document properly. But, to be fair, the new player does have a few neat tricks I'd like to see implemented on a player that does its scanning on the fly. For example, clicking "play" on a folder allows the player to play everything in that folder, including nested folders. Unfortunately you can't jump in half way; it's all or nothing, unless you are prepared to press "forward" a few thousand times....

Oh. That reminds me:

The old player figured that if you pressed "forward" or "backward" during a slide show, and it responded by displaying the subsequent or previous image, then that ought to be sufficient feedback for you to know it was doing what you asked. That's the sensible way of things. The old player was clever like that. It also was pretty reliable about responding to such a request. The new player, on the other hand, doesn't think like that at all. When you press "forward" or "backward", and the device actually figures out what you wanted and responds to your request (often it just doesn't bother, or it waits 10 seconds to think about it), it then changes the image and throws up a huge arrow in the top right corner of the screen by way of confirming that it is indeed doing what you asked. This ridiculously blatant icon persists for a couple of seconds and is horribly distracting while it is on screen. A manually operated slideshow really tests your mettle. I gave up. It just bugged me too much. The entire player just bugged me too much.

So I replaced the new Micca player with the old player, took the two hard drives I'd used for the test, reformatted them and re-installed all their files, and I am now back to where I was a week ago with nothing to show for my wasted time and money other than this scathing review.

*Added August 15, 2011, and see additional notes in comments: The player works pretty well if you turn off the indexing, and instead of using the "Music" or "Photo" icons you use the "File" icon and then click OPTIONS to select "All Media". You can then navigate the regular file structure and go right to the folder where your stuff is. This information is somewhere in the manual. Way towards the back, I think. I certainly missed its importance when I read through the manual on first opening the box. I have thus altered my rating from one star to three stars. I still think the whole idea of scanning a drive for files in order to build a media library is horribly flawed.

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I just bought this digital player and it works great. The price was good and the quality is pretty solid. The player will not play back videos captured with my cell phone except for the audio portion. Also, the female end of the AC power conection on the player is a bit loose and doesn't keep the plug in place to well (so don't move it around after you have it hooked up or it will get disconected)!

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