A Cheap, Solid DVD player
I'm about to leave for the International Consumer Electronics Show, in fabulous Las Vegas. Things there are new and undoubtedly cool, but I couldn't wait for CES to try out some fun stuff.
Three months ago the DVD player in my living room took a nose dive. I looked around for a new one, something cheap, but with the ability to play the CDs I burn on my PC.
A lot of friends recommended the Philips DVP642. It sells for under $60 (often less if there's a promo) and it's a bargain because it'll play just about any format of video I can throw at it.
For instance, I created a video CD and the Philips played it with no problem. It also plays a slew of other formats: DVD-Video, audio CD, JPEG image CD, and CDs with MPEG-4 or DivX files, as well as DVDs that are encoded with PAL, the disc format used in Europe.
Oddly enough, not everyone's had a good experience with the DVP642. I checked on Amazon.com and a little under 5 percent of the 460 customer reviews were negative.
My experience so far has been good; the player's working fine. My guess is if someone sends you a DVD they've created on their PC, there's a good chance you'll be able to play it on the DVP642.
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I bought one a couple of months ago and it rocks! It will even play VCD compatible MPEG-1 files from a DVD+R, so I can fit several episodes of a TV series onto 1 disc.