Introduction The Aiwa DX-DW1 is a portable DVD/CD player that measures six-and-one-half inches wide by seven-and-one-eighth inches deep by two-and-one-eighth inches high. This baby bear of a DVD player lists at $1,000.00. $1,000 you might say … come on! The $200.00 DVD price barrier was broken months ago. I know – I know, that's a lot of porridge. Read on. Our story begins with the features of the DX-DW1. First, the unit contains a five-and-four-fifths inch active matrix color TFT (thin film transistor) display that can adjust 180° from the closed position. Located below the screen are the manual set-up, brightness, color and mode controls buttons. The first three of these controls are self-explanatory. The mode control allows you to switch between screen aspect ratios: full screen, which displays 16 x 9 or widescreen; normal, which leaves left and right black borders; zoom, which enlarges the picture from the center point of the display to ...

Introduction The Kenwood DV 2070 is a DVD player that gives you a high-end interface and style on a modest budget. At $850, it comes equipped with many of the tricked-out features you need for a your home theater. The DV 2070 passes a DTS and Dolby Digital 5.1 signal with ease and will play DTS as well as traditional 16-bit 44.2 kHz CDs. The Kenwood DV 2070 is not outfitted with DVD-A capabilities, but it can output a sampling rate as high as 96 kHz with 24 Bit DAC resolution. The 2070 is also outfitted with component video outputs. The most striking feature of the Kenwood DV 2070 is its simple to use and elegant interface. The DV 2070 is far from the black box school of audio video component design. The Kenwood DV 2070 features a highly stylized silver front plate that lights up with a icy blue DVD logo. The trick ...

Introduction The Onkyo DV-C600 is a six-disc CD and DVD changer. Yes, a DVD changer. This multi-featured unit is priced near the middle of its competition: $579.95. Now, if you had a similar reaction to mine, when I was told that I'd be reviewing a DVD changer, you might be thinking: why would I ever want to load six DVDs? I just want to slide a movie in and watch it beginning to end. Well, read on for the pros and cons of this machine. With DTS discs becoming more common, it's important for your player to be DTS compatible. The DV-C600 is DTS ready. (Of course, your receiver must be able to decode DTS. ) The unit also supplies you with advanced ten-bit 27 MHz video D/A conversion (which gives you four times the accuracy of conventional eight-bit, 13. 5 MHz players); gold plated component video output for use with digital TVs; gold ...

Introduction The KD-1800U is a DVD player that has broken the $200.00 price barrier. The unit lists for an extremely affordable $199.00. That's right: just $199.00. And wait, there's more. The KD-1800U contains many of the features found on higher priced players. All kidding aside, for those of you who are not familiar with Konka, the company is a global consumer electronics company based in China and was established in 1980. The company touts products that have been recognized as the "National Best Selling Products" in China and has been granted "The Most Famous Brand of China" while holding 25% of the Chinese TV market. The United States subsidiary is Konka USA, Ltd. Back to our regularly scheduled programming: I've seen the Konka brand from time to time but have shied away from products on account that I didn't believe that the performance would hold-up. Well, the KD-1800U has turned me around. Some of the features ...

Introduction The DaViD is a highly tricked-out $4,500 high-performance DVD transport built by Theta Digital in Southern California. The DaViD is 19 inches wide by three-and-one-half inches high by 16-and-one-half inches deep (without cables), with a choice of black or silver exterior finish. The faceplate is modern and ornate, featuring milled aluminum extrusions for many of the basic direct access buttons, such as open-close, chapter up-down and power. Theta Digital has been pushing the limits of consumer digital playback since 1987 with its Generation One DAC. Historically, Theta, especially with CD and Laserdisc transports, has modified the best of the OEM market. (OEM refers to the practice of buying the parts of a basic player, i.e. a CD or Laserdisc, and reassembling them with modifications.) The DaViD is no different in that its heart and soul is a Pioneer 404 DVD player. Theta repackages the transport in a new box and deals with technical performance issues that ...