Akai DVDS3500 DVD Player

Rating:
Summary: One of the better cheapies
Review: Four stars for satisfaction, not absolute performance. I haven't found a region hack for the little Akai yet (I have other machines for that), and so far it won't play my old SVCDs acceptably (ditto). That said, it scores high for two things: Performance/price (when there's a $10 rebate) and adjustability-- the Akai is the only cheapie I know of that has BRIGHTNESS, CONTRAST and SHARPNESS controls that actually do an effective and useful job. The Akai uses a Mediatek chipset (1379? looks like it) that many inexpensive DVD portables use, which means a simple GUI that's easy to navigate. That CONTRAST control comes in very handy with JPEG files, which tend to be very contrasty. So far (2 months) the machine has been reliable and easy to use. The remote is a step above the average cheapie too.

Rating:
Summary: Spend a few more dollars and get a brand name.
Review: I regret trying to save a little money by purchasing this model. It's okay for some discs, but any DVDs made by Universal show up blurry and wavy, and anything from Lion's Gate has the brightness fading in and out in ten second intervals from bleached out to almost black. Save yourself some money in the long run and buy a system from a more famous company.

Rating:
Summary: A waste of money!!!
Review: The so-called "User's Manual" is miniscule and shows no connection for cable! Batteries supplied with remote control were dead - must be three or four years old! The only way I'll ever get it to work is to hire a technician! I'm surprised Amazon would carry this kind of junk!!!

Rating:
Summary: Poor performance
Review: This device doesn't tells you if it is on or off. The red light is always on, even the DVD is off. Its hard to view a movie: always fails the image, cutting scenes or jumping without any previous notice. It is a piece of crap.

Rating:
Summary: quality is a problem!
Review: This device is just lasting about a month, then video output is a problem. Usually products Amazon carrying are OK level for quality, but this is first time I had a bad experience.

Rating:
Summary: This DVD player stinks!
Review: This DVD player is a big disappointment. First off, when you eject a DVD, the tray does not even clear the roof of the player the entire way, so if you have a 2 sided DVD, the top of it gets all scratched, and since they have yet to develop a scratch resistant DVD this is a very bad thing. Secondly, you can't even turn off the power with the remote, you have to use a manual button on the player itself that looks like it's from the '80s. [...] I'd highly suggest moving on to the next DVD player on your list.

Rating:
Summary: Built to Last!!!!
Review: This is a very nice unit. I bought it for the bedroom and it ended up replacing the Sony unit in my family room. I use it every day and the Progressive scan makes all the picture difference in the world. Do yourself a favor and pick this unit over the no-name brands.