stargirl wrote:

DVD-S128 (http://www.samsung.com/ve/products/dvdplayer/dvdplayer/dvd_s128.asp). It's not a recent model since we've had it for 1 or 2 years. it doesnt say on the site if the firmware is upgradeable though. i hope it is!

Thanks for the info, stargirl. I'll check it out.

amrayu wrote:

hi groink- i bought the liteon model from: mypcgoodies.com theirs was the cheapest that i found so far, at $107.00 bucks. they have free ground shipping as well, but since i live in California, there was tax (since the company is in CA also). so the total came out to be: $115. decent price (even compared to ebay), ebay sellers i saw were selling these machines for $108-$130 (shipping excluded).

Amrayu:

Did you buy the LVD2001 or LVD2002? I just visited the site and they only have the LVD2002... Could the LVD2001 be obsolete?

Groink:

Possible bad news: Looks like the LITEON LVD2001 might be obsolete and is to be replaced by the LVD2002. And the LVD2002 might not be remote hackable, at least according to the LITEON Taiwan site: http://www.liteonit.com.tw/DC/english/lvd_2002.htm. It might be wise to do some investigating or wait for Amrayu's review... I don't know which one she bought: the 2001 or the 2002...

http://www.whiningdog.net/Reviews/Gadgets/Video/20031202-LiteonLVD2002/

the 2001 model is discontinued, everything is pretty much similar with the 2002 model (with the exception of the PCMCIA slot, which the 2002 doesnt have). also the 2002 model is cheaper, and 2001 firmware can be used with the 2002 model.
the only other thing is the 2002 model: 480i scalable to 480p
while the 2001 model: 720 and 1080
(the last difference, doesnt really matter if you have a HDtv).

i bought the 2002 model, since theres not many differences...also it is still hackable to remove region codes..
_________________

amrayu wrote:

http://www.whiningdog.net/Reviews/Gadgets/Video/20031202-LiteonLVD2002/ the 2001 model is discontinued, everything is pretty much similar with the 2002 model (with the exception of the PCMCIA slot, which the 2002 doesnt have). also the 2002 model is cheaper, and 2001 firmware can be used with the 2002 model. the only other thing is the 2002 model: 480i scalable to 480p while the 2001 model: 720 and 1080 (the last difference, doesnt really matter if you have a HDtv). i bought the 2002 model, since theres not many differences...also it is still hackable to remove region codes..

Excellent! If this doesn't convince Groink, I don't know what will... I'm even considering it...

Thanks again.

Hmm,

I was going to say you should get Philips Vertical DVD580M, but darn it, I just check Target website they already update it to DVD590M, which cannot be hacked and the feature is not as much as 580. When I bought 580M it was region 1, but it was hackable to all region or if you want to choose by region, it's possible too and it plays dvd-r/+r flawlessly, I think the only missing thing is it cannot play divx/avi, if it is, I think this player is superb, because it takes up so little space as it's vertical and you can just slot in the cd/dvd. The best thing about this also is that it automatically turns off itself if you forgot to turn it off after you watch the dvd within 15 mins. Well, if you can find one, I think it's worth buying.

Bawel

just got my liteon 2002 dvd player!
so far i played ayumi hamasaki Surreal dvd Region 2 (hacked with the remote), played fine.
played Autumn in my Heart Disc 9 (PAL version), played fine.
played Jem's encode of Since I met you episode 14 (video:DivX 3 Low motion, audio: mp3), played fine.
played Ruroshin's encode of Otousan episode 1 (video: DivX 4 (OpenDivX), audio: mp3), played fine.

although the official site mentioned by bmwracer, said that it is not region free, it can still be hacked with the remote (a secret screen pops up), plus you can remove macrovision as well.
at only $115 (w/tax and free shipping, get it at mypcgoodies.com for $107.00-free ground shipping), this is a GREAT DEAL! One of the cheapest divx dvd players out there! plus you can upgrade the firmware pretty easily.
everything is basically the same as the 2001 model (except those 2 things i mentioned in an earlier post). also the 2002 model is more slim and stylish (the remote too). 2001 models are pretty much sold out and is discontinued, if you do find one theyll cost more than the 2002 model.
no more countless hours of converting and reburning dvds!!!

_________________

amrayu wrote:

just got my liteon 2002 dvd player! so far i played ayumi hamasaki Surreal dvd Region 2 (hacked with the remote), played fine. played Autumn in my Heart Disc 9 (PAL version), played fine. played Jem's encode of Since I met you episode 14 (video:DivX 3 Low motion, audio: mp3), played fine. played Ruroshin's encode of Otousan episode 1 (video: DivX 4 (OpenDivX), audio: mp3), played fine. although the official site mentioned by bmwracer, said that it is not region free, it can still be hacked with the remote (a secret screen pops up), plus you can remove macrovision as well. at only $115 (w/tax and free shipping, get it at mypcgoodies.com for $107.00-free ground shipping), this is a GREAT DEAL! One of the cheapest divx dvd players out there! plus you can upgrade the firmware pretty easily. everything is basically the same as the 2001 model (except those 2 things i mentioned in an earlier post). also the 2002 model is more slim and stylish (the remote too). 2001 models are pretty much sold out and is discontinued, if you do find one theyll cost more than the 2002 model. no more countless hours of converting and reburning dvds!!!

Great news, Amrayu! I hope Groink sees this post... This should put him over the top...

Keep throwing stuff at it if you can, and see if it hiccups or not... Thanks again for the news!

bmwracer wrote:

Great news, Amrayu! I hope Groink sees this post... This should put him over the top... Keep throwing stuff at it if you can, and see if it hiccups or not... Thanks again for the news!

It does!!!!! I'm sold on the LITEON 2002 model! I'll wait until after Christmas to place an order. BTW, earlier tonight, I went to Circuit City, and NOTHING there played DivX. The workers there thought DivX was something like Region-2, and said you can't buy them in the U.S. I wonder why these major manufacturers (SONY, Panasonic, etc.) won't put DivX into their players? Either that, or CC just won't sell them... That would be rather ironic because a few years ago CC was actually pushing DivX movies and the acompanying disc players when they were trying to push the "disposable movie" idea.

--- groink

groink wrote:

It does!!!!! I'm sold on the LITEON 2002 model! I'll wait until after Christmas to place an order. BTW, earlier tonight, I went to Circuit City, and NOTHING there played DivX. The workers there thought DivX was something like Region-2, and said you can't buy them in the U.S. I wonder why these major manufacturers (SONY, Panasonic, etc.) won't put DivX into their players? Either that, or CC just won't sell them... That would be rather ironic because a few years ago CC was actually pushing DivX movies and the acompanying disc players when they were trying to push the "disposable movie" idea. --- groink

No surprise about CC, I hate going there. Good Guys, too. Best Buy is a little better, but you're not gonna find this kinda stuff there: they only sell mainstream stuff and this stuff is below the radar...

Man, I'm getting that twitch to buy the LVD2002 as well... Somebody stop me!!!

It's after Christmas, Groink... Didja order the LVD2002 yet?

bmwracer wrote:

It's after Christmas, Groink... Didja order the LVD2002 yet?

I have the print-out of the review and the web address right in front of me... I'll place the order later on today!

--- groink

groink wrote:

I have the print-out of the review and the web address right in front of me... I'll place the order later on today! --- groink

Are you buying it from mcpcgoodies.com like Amrayu did?

I'm really thinkin' about pulling the trigger myself...

bmwracer wrote:

Are you buying it from mcpcgoodies.com like Amrayu did? I'm really thinkin' about pulling the trigger myself...

Well, I tried getting it from mypcgoodies.com just now. I was able to add the item into the shopping cart, but it freezes when I add my zip code to re-calculate the shipping. Obviously there's no ground shipping to Hawaii. I'll try again on Monday.

--- groink

I recommend the Yamada 6100 (sometimes named as Umax 6100)

Bedi wrote:

I recommend the Yamada 6100 (sometimes named as Umax 6100)

Are there any reviews of this player? Is it remote hackable? Is it available in the U.S.?

Sorry for all the questions, but we need more info!

Ah sorry I should have add a link in my first post here -_-"

Shortly:

What are the strengths? Plays DivX 3.xx, 4.xx and 5.xx, XViD, WMA, MP3, JPEG, ASF, VCD, SVCD, DVD (of course!).
Upgradable firmware

What are the weaknesses? Sometimes it "hangs", doesn't play WMV

See this player reviewed:

http://www.vcdrookie.com/eng/index.php?option=tools&task=viewarticle&artid=9&Itemid=57

http://www.reviewcentre.com/reviews6703.html

http://electronics.reviewindex.co.uk/reviews_uk/B0000B0A4H.html

however you may check if it's available in the US
Here in Germany it's pretty rare.

Bedi wrote:

Ah sorry I should have add a link in my first post here -_-" Shortly: What are the strengths? Plays DivX 3.xx, 4.xx and 5.xx, XViD, WMA, MP3, JPEG, ASF, VCD, SVCD, DVD (of course!). Upgradable firmware What are the weaknesses? Sometimes it "hangs", doesn't play WMV See this player reviewed: http://www.vcdrookie.com/eng/index.php?option=tools&task=viewarticle&artid=9&Itemid=57 http://www.reviewcentre.com/reviews6703.html http://electronics.reviewindex.co.uk/reviews_uk/B0000B0A4H.html however you may check if it's available in the US Here in Germany it's pretty rare.

Arigato gozaemashita.

dou itashimashite

Here's my update... I ordered the LITEON LVD2002 this past Monday. I had trouble working with mypcgoodies.com, and their 1-866 number didn't work. Also, it appears that they disabled the ability to purchase the unit off their web site. Looks like they just plain ran out of them! So I guess maybe this thread is the cause of that!!! hehehe...

So I ended up going with another company, linkbyte.com. Paid a bit more, $118.94. Their website was professionally designed, functional, and easy to use. Shipping to Hawaii is a huge chunk of change, $41.07 to be exact. However, I think it would be that much anywhere else (USPS Priority shipping) seeing the shipping weight of unit is about 11 pounds, so I don't have an issue with it. Hopefully the unit will be here by this coming Monday! It's just too bad a company like Circuit City, who sells LITEON DVD writable drives dirt cheap, couldn't bring in any of LITEON's DVD players.

--- groink