New Toshiba DVD Player Anyone?

Early B. · August 2008

Anyone seen or heard about the Toshiba XD-E500?

http://reviews.digitaltrends.com/review/5531/toshiba-xd-e500-review

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001D9IWIY/ref=amb_link_7349732_2?ie=UTF8&me=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=right-1&pf_rd_r=13C5ZW0X3ZMKT1DJ9QMH&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=434803301&pf_rd_i=507846

Looks like a very nice player for standard DVDs. It could be a decent "bridge" unit until Blu-Ray players come down to $149 and the discs become much more affordable. Prices for Blu-Ray aren't dropping fast enough. That's why a little bit of competition can be a good thing for consumers. Bring back HD-DVD, I say!!

OK, back on topic. I wonder if the picture quality on this unit is superior to the Tosh HD-DVD players which have very good upconverting capabilities.

Ron-P · August 2008

Bring back HD-DVD? HA HA HA. That format war did nothing for prices, bringing it back would again accomplish nothing.

Also, if you do your shopping you'll find you can land most Blu-ray discs for $15-$20, not much more then SD-DVD yet quality that far exceeds it. I'll never buy another SD-DVD player, waste of money.

My experience with Toshiba players will keep me away from their product for a very, very long time.

Early B. · August 2008

Ron-P wrote: »

Also, if you do your shopping you'll find you can land most Blu-ray discs for $15-$20, not much more then SD-DVD yet quality that far exceeds it. I'll never buy another SD-DVD player, waste of money.

You're in a small minority. The vast majority of consumers aren't willing to purchase their favorite movies over again in BR format and buy a higher priced BR player just to get HD movies. Standard DVD players will be around for a few more years, and innovations in standard DVD technology will likely be welcomed, especially if it's affordable. HD is wonderful, but it's something many of us can do without.

Sherardp · August 2008

Buy a Xa2 instead, awesome for upconversion

WilliamM2 · August 2008

Early B. wrote: »

You're in a small minority. The vast majority of consumers aren't willing to purchase their favorite movies over again in BR format and buy a higher priced BR player just to get HD movies. Standard DVD players will be around for a few more years, and innovations in standard DVD technology will likely be welcomed, especially if it's affordable. HD is wonderful, but it's something many of us can do without.

I agree. I still think DVD will out live BluRay, by many years. DVD is already well established, and good enough for the average consumer.

The future is "On Demand" and downloads, but right now plain old DVD still has over 95% of the market.

Ron-P · August 2008

Everyday more and more people add HD channels to their TV viewing, more and more HD TV's are sold every day. HD is nothing but a growing format and Blu-ray is a part of that growth. Blu-ray's growth was faster than that of SD-DVD when it first was first introduced. Blu-ray will continue to grow as the demand is there for it. When Blu-ray prices drop to that of current SD-DVD prices (2-3 years is my guess), SD-DVD will be a dying format.

Considering that the shelf growth at most major B&Ms for Blu over this last year has more then tripled in size, I'd hardly say I'm in the minority.

Serendipity · August 2008

I'm still wondering how did Blu-ray win so fast?

But for now, HD DVD and regular DVD's look fine.

grif32 · September 2008

Ron-P wrote: »

Bring back HD-DVD? HA HA HA. That format war did nothing for prices, bringing it back would again accomplish nothing.

Also, if you do your shopping you'll find you can land most Blu-ray discs for $15-$20, not much more then SD-DVD yet quality that far exceeds it. I'll never buy another SD-DVD player, waste of money.

My experience with Toshiba players will keep me away from their product for a very, very long time.

Format war did nothing for prices

BR had to drop their prices of players fast and going alot lower then they really wanted to. Other wise we would of had nothing but $899 and up on players.

$35 and higher for disc

BR was an unfinished product as well. It made them get their 2.0 players out as well.

Also it MADE BR put out better disc. Do you remember BR quality at the beg. of the war? Man alot of their transfer sucked. So yes the format war was huge.

Also the quailty of BR over SD DVD does not FAR out exceeds. I would say some discs yes and others not. Alot of crap transfers still coming out. They really need to step it up now that HD DVD is gone.

On topic:

I think this is great for those who have a huge SD DVD libary but I think price needs to be $99 not $149 or whatever its at for it to exceed.

grif32 · September 2008

appadv wrote: »

I'm still wondering how did Blu-ray win so fast?

But for now, HD DVD and regular DVD's look fine.

PS3 helped BR win without it BR dies.

mmadden28 · September 2008

Ron-P wrote: »

Everyday more and more people add HD channels to their TV viewing, more and more HD TV's are sold every day.

This is true, but this has nothing to do with the comparison between HD/BR formats and SD-DVD. SD-DVD is much better looking on the screen in wide screen that SD broadcast stuff. At least with SD-DVD, you get full wide screen, but with SD broadcast, its 4:3.

skykeys · September 2008

I am waiting on Blu-ray players. I just purchased an Oppo DV-980H, Universal player. It's not even Oppo's best player, and I think the picture is slightly better on the 980H than on my previous Denon DVD-1920. (My Denon unit was fried in an electrical storm a couple of months ago).

The 980H is a stellar audio and video performer for $170. It plays SACD and DVD-A discs and sounds great. I did lots of research on Oppo - originally found out about Oppo from someone on this forum, and I think it's the definitely the best value going, and one of the best players out there no matter the cost. The Oppo DV-983HD is even a better video performer, but my primary focus is on audio, so I didn't feel the need to pay more. I'm very happy with the 980H.

FYI: Sony did just announce a couple of new high-end players; a Blu-ray unit and a CD/SACD audio only player.

Regards.

WilliamM2 · September 2008

The 980H is a stellar audio and video performer for $170. It plays SACD and DVD-A discs and sounds great. I did lots of research on Oppo - originally found out about Oppo from someone on this forum, and I think it's the definitely the best value going, and one of the best players out there no matter the cost.

The Pioneer DV-48AV uses the same video processor, and has a much better build quality in my opinion. You can get them at Vann's on closeout for $99 w/free shipping, now that's value.

http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/486974189/pioneer-dv-48av;jsessionid=D05683AF63A164179608149F9EFD9A79.web0

skykeys · September 2008

WilliamM2 wrote: »

The Pioneer DV-48AV uses the same video processor, and has a much better build quality in my opinion. You can get them at Vann's on closeout for $99 w/free shipping, now that's value.

Well, that would seem to make the Pioneer a good value. I am not familiar with that model, so I'll take your word for it that it has good video processing.

But a guy who mods both Oppo and Pioneer players says that the Oppo sounds better than the Pioneer DV-58 AV. I assume the 58 is a higher quality unit than the 48.
http://www.tweakaudio.com/EVS-2/Oppo_Player_Mods.html

If sound is important to you, my research on many forums suggests the Oppo would be a better choice. I don't have anything against the Pioneer. I do have the Oppo, and I really like it.

Regards.

sucks2beme · September 2008

I don't buy disks. I do have netflix. Good luck getting BR tittles, long wait.
Both my son's have PS3, and one left his PS3 here while at college.
Does it look better than upconverting? Yes. Enoght for me to pay more
or wait longer for movies? NO! I'm not all that hot on BR. I have a smaller tv
(42") and upconverting works pretty good.
Note: I don't watch many movies. The Mrs. or son #2 do.
I am not anyone's target audience. But there's still a lot of us
out there. SD DVD will be around for a while. Kinda like CDs.
There's so much content out there that will never be moved over to BR,
that SD DVD wil be hanging out for years. Sorry, Hollywood.

Early B. · September 2008

IMO, at its current pricing, BR players aren't worth upgrading. They need to be at $149 or less by Xmas to pique my interest. Otherwise, I'm afraid newer technologies (i.e., downloads) may eclipse BR in a year or two. Hell, if the Tosh XD-E500 comes closer to HD quality on standard discs than existing upconverting players, it could conceivably stunt the growth of BR.

mmadden28 · September 2008

If only the cable companies would broadcast stuff (the non HD stuff) equivalent to what you would get when watching a DVD, now that would be cool. SD (4:3) is junkola, but SD-DVD is nice--I would rather buy a DVD at $10 than rent one (onDemand) in 4:3 for a few dollars less.

I didn't jump on BR or HDDVD when during the war, however I did get an HDDVD player for my XBOX360-how could I not-for $150 it was a steal. I really only had 2 HDDVD movies until the war ended, then when prices dropped, I bought a Tosh HD-DVD player and have been racking up on HD-DVD titles for less than $10 (less than SD in some cases)

I'm waiting on the BR bandwagon-current titles are still way to high for me-theres probably only a small handful of titles I would really want in HD anyway, and some of those I already have on HD-DVD-so its not worth it for me right now. Some amazing deal would have to be offered.

WilliamM2 · September 2008

Interesting review of the Toshiba, all hype?

http://reviews.cnet.com/video-players-and-recorders/toshiba-xd-e500/4505-6463_7-33224998.html?tag=mncol;lst

mantis · September 2008

Early B. wrote: »

You're in a small minority. The vast majority of consumers aren't willing to purchase their favorite movies over again in BR format and buy a higher priced BR player just to get HD movies. Standard DVD players will be around for a few more years, and innovations in standard DVD technology will likely be welcomed, especially if it's affordable. HD is wonderful, but it's something many of us can do without.

In the retail bussiness, Blu ray players are selling everyday. I Install 30 Blu ray player and maybe 1 standard player now. New Dvd players are at a stand still almost. When you own a HD tv and experience blu , there is no reason to keep buying new DVD players or movies unless it's not offered on Blu yet.

I never thought Blu ray players where expensive. buying a player for 399.99 is the price of a good DVD player. Years ago a good DVD player was 1,000.00.

If regular DVD still does it for yeah then by all means stick with it, I have like Ron moved on and really enjoy Blu ray. I really Enjoyed HD DVD as well and still do. I have no desire to ever buy another DVD.

Dan

grif32 · September 2008

sucks2beme wrote: »

I don't buy disks. I do have netflix. Good luck getting BR tittles, long wait.
Both my son's have PS3, and one left his PS3 here while at college.
Does it look better than upconverting? Yes. Enoght for me to pay more
or wait longer for movies? NO! I'm not all that hot on BR. I have a smaller tv
(42") and upconverting works pretty good.
Note: I don't watch many movies. The Mrs. or son #2 do.
I am not anyone's target audience. But there's still a lot of us
out there. SD DVD will be around for a while. Kinda like CDs.
There's so much content out there that will never be moved over to BR,
that SD DVD wil be hanging out for years. Sorry, Hollywood.

Long wait for BR titles from Netflix?? I have netflix and thats all I rent is BR and NEVER waited for any title new or old.

grif32 · September 2008

mantis wrote: »

In the retail bussiness, Blu ray players are selling everyday. I Install 30 Blu ray player and maybe 1 standard player now. New Dvd players are at a stand still almost. When you own a HD tv and experience blu , there is no reason to keep buying new DVD players or movies unless it's not offered on Blu yet.

I never thought Blu ray players where expensive. buying a player for 399.99 is the price of a good DVD player. Years ago a good DVD player was 1,000.00.

If regular DVD still does it for yeah then by all means stick with it, I have like Ron moved on and really enjoy Blu ray. I really Enjoyed HD DVD as well and still do. I have no desire to ever buy another DVD.

Dan

Well BR players are collecting dust around here in NY. I see piles of them everywhere I go. CC , Walmart etc and talk to the sales guys there and they said that right now they are not selling and either are their movies.

I agree ONCE you expirence blu then SD DVD's suck. But for the average Joe to expirence Blu prices need to come down on players.

You install 30 Blu Ray players a week, month?

Are they standalone or the PS3? Because standalones are not selling well according to everything I read anymore. Just the PS3 (which i own and think its the best BR player out there)

AsSiMiLaTeD · September 2008

I don't understand people who say dumb things like the Blu Ray - HD DVD competition never did anything for price or quality improvement. I'm not on one side or the other since I own both, but statements like that are just...dumb

marker · September 2008

WilliamM2 wrote: »

I agree. I still think DVD will out live BluRay, by many years. DVD is already well established, and good enough for the average consumer.

The future is "On Demand" and downloads, but right now plain old DVD still has over 95% of the market.

Samsung Exec: Blu-ray Will Be Gone in 5 Years

http://www.electronichouse.com/article/samsung_exec_blu_ray_will_be_gone_in_5_years/

Ron-P · September 2008

marker wrote: »

Samsung Exec: Blu-ray Will Be Gone in 5 Years

http://www.electronichouse.com/article/samsung_exec_blu_ray_will_be_gone_in_5_years/

First off, everything gets replaced in this hobby, that's the nature of it. But, you have to take into account consumer saturation. Blu-ray is still in it's infancy, no way in 5 years will Blu-ray be gone, the average joe will just be getting into it at that point. But will Blu-ray last forever, nope. Something bigger and better always comes along, but not in 5 years time.

AsSiMiLaTeD wrote: »

I don't understand people who say dumb things like the Blu Ray - HD DVD competition never did anything for price or quality improvement. I'm not on one side or the other since I own both, but statements like that are just...dumb

Please explain why it's dumb. Competing formats never do the consumer market good. Very few people bought into both formats because they all were waiting to see what would happen, now that one's dead Blu-ray will start to really take off and as the format ages prices will fall.

As with everything new, it's expensive. SD-DVDs were just as expensive as Blu is now, as were the players back when it first hit the consumer market

grif32 · September 2008

Ron-P wrote: »

First off, everything gets replaced in this hobby, that's the nature of it. But, you have to take into account consumer saturation. Blu-ray is still in it's infancy, no way in 5 years will Blu-ray be gone, the average joe will just be getting into it at that point. But will Blu-ray last forever, nope. Something bigger and better always comes along, but not in 5 years time.

Please explain why it's dumb. Competing formats never do the consumer market good. Very few people bought into both formats because they all were waiting to see what would happen, now that one's dead Blu-ray will start to really take off and as the format ages prices will fall.

As with everything new, it's expensive. SD-DVDs were just as expensive as Blu is now, as were the players back when it first hit the consumer market

Fewer people bought in but to say the war didnt bring down prices is crazy. Like I stated without HD DVD you would still have $1000 standalone players and $35.00 disk

HD DVD made BR bring down prices, have a CRAP load of bogo's etc...

Where are all the Bogo's now?? Yeah not happening like they did with HD DVD around.

WilliamM2 · September 2008

Please explain why it's dumb. Competing formats never do the consumer market good. Very few people bought into both formats because they all were waiting to see what would happen, now that one's dead Blu-ray will start to really take off and as the format ages prices will fall.

If Blu-Ray is really going to take off, why have sales of new players slowed since HD-DVD died? And DVD sales are still growing at this point, although very slowly.

Deadof_knight · September 2008

who in the world says Blu ray is only slightly better than sd-dvd what are you watching it one good lord you must be blind.

Ron-P · September 2008

grif32 wrote: »

HD DVD made BR bring down prices, have a CRAP load of bogo's etc...

Where are all the Bogo's now?? Yeah not happening like they did with HD DVD around.

Have you visited Amazon lately? They almost always have Blu's at 50% off, or multi-disc specials, almost always. When HD-DVD was around they're weren't very many anyway. Prices are lower now and there seems to be more specials now then there when HD-DVD was around.

Right now Amazon has a 45% off special on Blu-ray disc bundles and 40% off all Disney Blu-rays, deals like these were not around during the HD-DVD days, not as frequently anyway.

WilliamM2 wrote: »

If Blu-Ray is really going to take off, why have sales of new players slowed since HD-DVD died? And DVD sales are still growing at this point, although very slowly.

Ummm, have you been around lately and taken note of the economy? How about the fact that the holiday's are fast approaching to which we will most likely see some great deals that people might be holding out for. To say Blu sales have slowed because HD-DVD is now dead is laughable.

WilliamM2 · September 2008

To say Blu sales have slowed because HD-DVD is now dead is laughable.

Of course that's not what I said.

You said now that one format was dead, Blue-Ray would take off, which logically makes sense. Blu-Ray should gain sales by default, since the competition is gone. And yet it hasn't, which shows a general lack of interest in HD discs from the average consumer.

Ron-P · September 2008

Got it, misunderstood what you were saying. While one would think Blu sales would pick up I don't see that happening right when the competing format dies, it may take a few years or longer.

Blu-ray is still very much an enthusiast format, no way is the average consumer ready for it and the sales reflect it, the enthusiast's bought in, sales will slow until prices drop. Add that to the current state of our economy and it's no wonder sales are slowing.

ben62670 · September 2008

Till it does dishes or cost less than a $100 I'll stck with SD;)

grif32 · September 2008

Ron-P wrote: »

Have you visited Amazon lately? They almost always have Blu's at 50% off, or multi-disc specials, almost always. When HD-DVD was around they're weren't very many anyway. Prices are lower now and there seems to be more specials now then there when HD-DVD was around.

Right now Amazon has a 45% off special on Blu-ray disc bundles and 40% off all Disney Blu-rays, deals like these were not around during the HD-DVD days, not as frequently anyway.

.

More specials NOW then when HD DVD was around?? Cmon now. Below are the bogo's for BR while HD DVD was around: Sorry but you are so wrong on this.

I am hoping to see some really good Bogo's this year by xmas but I wouldnt hold my breathe since BR is the only HD format now.

Show me the last Bogo they had. Sure amazon might have B2G1 but jack up their prices. Last one they had included 3:10 to Yuma which before the sale was $18.95 then went up to $27.95 due to the b2G1. So they are not deals

Amazon is a joke with their prices. 50% MRSP does not make a good deal. Look at the 48% of deal going now. What a joke that is. Those titles should be $15 - $20 an nothing more.

12/06 First BOGO for Blu-Ray movies

1/12/07
BOGO @ Best Buy
House of Flying Daggers
Kung Fu Hustle
Black Hawk Down
Monster House
Click
Talladega Nights: Ballad Of Ricky Bobby
Underworld: Evolution

2/4/07 – 2/10/07
BOGO @ Best Buy
CLICK
UNDERWORLD: EVOLUTION
MONSTER HOUSE
HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS
INTO THE BLUE
THE FIFTH ELEMENT

2/9/07 – 2/13/07
BOGO @ Fry’s
For $24.99
Click
Silent Hill
Underworld Evolution
Little Man
Monster House
The Benchwarmers
For $19.99
50 First Date
The Big Hit
House of Flying Dagger
THe Fifth Element
Hitch
A Knight's Tale
Into the Blue
Memento
Stealth
****
Black Hawk Down
Tears of the Sun*
SWAT
Resident Evil: Apocalypse

3/6/07
50% Off @ Amazon
47 Titles Including:
Alien vs Predator
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
Resident Evil - Apocalypse
50 First Dates
Kingdom Of Heaven
Memento
Speed
Fifth Element
Entrapment
Phone
Behind Enemy Lines
Chain Reaction
The Marine
Hitch
One Last Thing

7/6/07 – 7/10/07
2/$25 @ Fry’s
Curse of the Golden Flower
Black Hawk Down
House of Flying Daggers
Hellboy
Layer Cake
Kung Fu Hustle
Resident Evil: Apocalypse
Tears of the Sun
Identity
Stealth
Into the Blue
****
Big Fish
Memento
Donnie Brasco
Closer
Revenge
Hitch
Seven Years in Tibet
Cruel Intentions
Blazing Saddles
Full Metal Jacket
Unforgiven

10/01/07 – 10/20/07
BOGO @ FYE
Pirates of the Caribbean 1+2
Prestige
Apocalypto
Wild Hogs
Reign of Fire
Bridge to Terabithia
D

New Toshiba DVD Player Anyone?

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