Toshiba SD-1200 DVD Player

Toshiba SD-1200 DVD Player
Manufacturer: Toshiba
Product Type: CE

Editorial Review:
Product Description
Watch movies from all zones 1 - 6 with the region free Toshiba SD1200 DVD player. The player can play both PAL and NTSC discs enabling you to watch both USA and European discs on one machine. The inherent quality and flexibility of Toshiba's SD1200 sets it apart from the competition. As a developer of the DVD format, Toshiba consistently leads the industry in the introduction of technological breakthroughs and convenience features. The SD1200 DVD Video Player not only delivers superior video and audio performance, it has all the connections necessary for a growing home entertainment system including ColorStream component video outputs as well as Dolby Digital and DTS compatible digital surround sound outputs. The SD1200 is the foundation for a 21st Century Home Theater... and it's available today.
Amazon.com Review
Straight from the box, Toshiba's SD-1200 DVD player appears to be a lightweight machine--but appearances are deceiving. After plugging it in and letting it spin, we were overwhelmed by this player's audio-video performance.

Although it weighs only 6.5 pounds, the SD-1200 reflects Toshiba's proven track record for building high-quality video components. This is a solid DVD player with sturdy rear-panel inputs and outputs. The SD-1200 provides only a single coaxial digital output and a pair of standard RCA analog-audio outputs (There is no optical digital-audio output.) Although we'd rather see both optical and coaxial, our preference for coaxial digital cables makes it easier to ignore the absence of the optical output--especially since optical connectors have a tendency to pull loose.

The SD-1200's back panel accommodates composite- and S-video cables. Toshiba, which has been at the forefront of promoting component video, also offers ColorStream component jacks. Hooking the SD-1200 DVD player up to a TV with component-video inputs should render a decidedly superior picture, with more natural colors and less video noise. We used the SD-1200's S-video output, however, and saw no compromise in color fidelity. Edges were especially well defined, adding depth to the picture on our 54-inch rear-projection television. Toshiba offers a video black-level enhancement mode that you can access from the onscreen menu. Although it's designed to increase contrast and edge definition, we noticed little improvement with the enhancement; however, we didn't see any degradation either.

Like most DVD players on the market today, the SD-1200 accommodates Dolby Digital as well as Digital Theater Sound (DTS). Unlike some of the low-end models we've tested, however, the SD-1200 performed flawlessly in both DTS and Dolby Digital. We fed the SD-1200 a hefty stream of DTS-encoded movies, surround-sound concert videos, and demo discs, and the player never missed a beat. Our concert videos sounded superb in 5.1-channel surround sound, and the thundering bass and crackling explosions in our action movies portrayed a realism unmatched by lesser DVD players.

For the sake of simplicity, Toshiba opted for a minimalist front-panel design on the SD-1200--but to a fault, as this leaves all but the most basic functions up to the remote control. Although less is certainly more when it comes to front-panel buttons, we would at least like to be able to access the onscreen menu from the player in case the remote is lost or rendered inoperable.

The remote is a pleasure to use, and while the buttons may prove too tiny for large fingers, we like the layout. Left/Right and Up/Down buttons are centrally placed, with the Enter button in the middle. The Open/Close and Power buttons are at the very top, where they belong.

If you don't like the distraction of LED lights, you'll be happy to know that the SD-1200 allows you to dim or deactivate the panel display. You'll also like the onscreen bit-rate meter, which allows you to gauge the video bit-rate allocation at any given second while you're watching a DVD. The bit-rate bar fluctuates from less than 1 to 10, depending on the complexity of a given scene, with action sequences generally measuring between 8 and 9.5. This isn't a feature you'll want to leave on while you're enjoying a movie, but it's cool and thoughtful, and is the icing on the cake for this DVD player.

Performance-wise, the SD-1200 is one of the best DVD-video players we've tested in its price range. --Eric Gill

Pros:

• Good build quality
• Easy to use
• Excellent sound quality

Cons:

• No optical digital-audio output
• No front-panel menu access button

Average customer rating: 3.5 Three years experience It does what I need it to do. CF tranfer too Slow 3 features add up to a decent product. RIP OFF Listmania: digital Photography

Iomega 31308 FotoShow Digital Image Center Manufacturer: Iomega Product Group: CE Binding: Electronics ASIN: B000056L2Q

Amazon.com Product Description

Quickly copy your digital camera memory cards onto inexpensive Zip 250 MB or 100 MB disks, then keep on shooting. You can also connect FotoShow to the USB port on your PC or Mac and use it as a 250 MB Zip drive to store and back up all types of files and applications. FotoShow uses 250 MB or 100 MB Zip disks and accepts CompactFlash, SmartMedia, and IBM Microdrive digital camera memory cards. <P> Iomega provides a one-year warranty on parts and labor for the FotoShow Digital Image Center.

Customer Reviews:

Three years experience.......2002-04-22

It does what I need it to do........2002-03-21

There are a few things that I think would make the Fotoshow better.

1. The card slots are useless when the Fotoshow is connected to the computer via USB cable. It would be nice to be able to use the Fotoshow as a card reader.

2. The power transformer is big and heavy. It should be smaller and lighter for travel.

3. Option for battery/portable power.

4. Faster operation when using the TV.

Overall, I like the Fotoshow. I would like it better if Iomega would fix the items above.

CF tranfer too Slow.......2002-02-28

3 features add up to a decent product........2002-02-26

The biggest reason I got this was the ability to dump my compact flash card to disk. A 20 gig hard drive digital wallet would be
nice but, its about 3 times the cost.

I plan on going to Australia from the US, and did not want to lug by laptop with me. I bought it for this reason alone, although since it was a ZIP drive as well that gave me extra incentive.

I tested it this weekend on both smart media and CF flash and it worked perfect.

Copy of 38 images off smart media took less than a minute. It seemed the same for compact flash.

Retrieving the images from the Zip drive to a computer was efficient. The photos are under a folder called originals.

Hooking it up to your TV and having it display is simple, it just takes a bit of time to process NEW images.

The TV display is so so. SOme of the editing capabilities are nice, but a bit cumbersome.

It was a big plus to display the images on the TV for my wife and parents.

AS a sample of the usefulenss. A friend had about 150 pictures on A CD of my daughter playing baskeball. I copied the images from the CD to the zip drive, (when it was hooked up to my computer of course). I brought the unit to "grandma's" house. Hooked it up to the TV turned it on, and it took about 15 minutes to "process" the picutres. After that we had a nice slide show....

I think grandma is going to buy one......

The only minor issue I had is

The AC power adapter is only 110 60 cycle. Most digital products these days the AC power adapter is 110/220 60/50 cycle. I have a UNIVERSAL power adapter so I should be OK.

RIP OFF.......2002-01-26

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