Cheapo electronics advice
September 1, 2006 9:36 AM Subscribe
Two cheapo electronics questions: Is there any bargain-basement DVD player on Amazon that's better than any other (in terms of quality/longevity more than features), and which of the following used monitors should I get for my Mac Mini?
I can get an older (i.e. '90s) 19" Hitachi CM715 or Sony Trinitron or a more recent (.e. 2000) Dell 17" or 19"; the 17" Dell is also a Trinitron. (If there are specific model numbers of those era Dell monitors that I should watch out for or be sure to snatch up, that's great.) All of these monitors are used and essentially free to me, and my main concerns are a great picture, likelihood of lasting five years and reasonable power consumption. (The Mini comes with a DVI to VGA adapter.)
I can get an older (i.e. '90s) 19" Hitachi CM715 or Sony Trinitron or a more recent (.e. 2000) Dell 17" or 19"; the 17" Dell is also a Trinitron. (If there are specific model numbers of those era Dell monitors that I should watch out for or be sure to snatch up, that's great.) All of these monitors are used and essentially free to me, and my main concerns are a great picture, likelihood of lasting five years and reasonable power consumption. (The Mini comes with a DVI to VGA adapter.)
Seconding the Philips. Refurbished ones are available for cheap on the Philips website with some regularity.
posted by box at 9:56 AM on September 1, 2006
posted by box at 9:56 AM on September 1, 2006
I love it SO MUCH that it makes me forget the difference between 'its' and 'it's', apparently.
posted by amarynth at 9:57 AM on September 1, 2006
posted by amarynth at 9:57 AM on September 1, 2006
Trinitrons have been solidly excellent for me. If you have the desk space, I find working on a 19" is significantly better than on a 17".
posted by anadem at 10:08 AM on September 1, 2006
posted by anadem at 10:08 AM on September 1, 2006
I have this one, purchased about eight months ago from Amazon for under $70. Love it. Plays practically anything.
posted by grabbingsand at 11:25 AM on September 1, 2006
posted by grabbingsand at 11:25 AM on September 1, 2006
No. Wait. I have this one. The Panasonic. Or maybe I bought a $20 cheaper cousin model....
posted by grabbingsand at 11:26 AM on September 1, 2006
posted by grabbingsand at 11:26 AM on September 1, 2006
We have a couple of these trutech dvd players. It is really small and plays everything. Amazon is currently sold out, but we got them at our local Target store for $31.00 each.
If you get that one, there is a related askme about it (apparently the plugs at the back are confusing.)
posted by sciatica at 12:48 PM on September 1, 2006
If you get that one, there is a related askme about it (apparently the plugs at the back are confusing.)
posted by sciatica at 12:48 PM on September 1, 2006
Love the Phillips, have two, only complaint is its goofy implementation of the progressive scan feature which I have not gotten to work successfully with any TV.
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 12:51 PM on September 1, 2006
posted by PinkStainlessTail at 12:51 PM on September 1, 2006
The Phillips is an excellent player (I have one too! I think you're issued one with your Mefi membership nowadays), but I'll second what PinkStainlessTail said -- I've been unsuccessful getting the progressive-scan output to work with my brother's plasma TV. For using S-Video or composite outputs, it's great.
posted by neckro23 at 8:47 PM on September 1, 2006
posted by neckro23 at 8:47 PM on September 1, 2006
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by amarynth at 9:53 AM on September 1, 2006