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DVD sadness
Jan. 3rd, 2004 10:08 pmOn the advice of ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
bluetrafficcone I downloaded the open-source DVD player VLC to see if that resolves my Mac's DVD playing woes: some DVDs play without a hitch, some play with numerous pauses, many won't even start. No matter how carefully we clean them.
We rented "Finding Nemo" from the new Hollywood Express on Elm St. near Davis for $2.09 for 4 days (they categorize it as a kids movie even though it's a recent release). Tried to watch it tonight, and alas -- it took minutes to appear on the desktop, minutes more to get into the movie menu (suffering numerous pauses in the menu animation), and couldn't even start the movie. We tried both discs (widescreen and fullscreen versions), both of which looked flawless to the eye, in both the Panther DVD player and VLC.
So it looks pretty clearly like a hardware problem. I'm pissed off that I spent an extra $200 or whatever on the mid-level gumdrop-style iMac to get a DVD drive, and then didn't actually try to use it until after the warranty had expired.
Now we're shopping for a cheap DVD player we could stick under the coffee table, which would entail devoting half of the coffee table itself to Brandi's TV (currently in storage). Circuit City appears to be the place to go, with two different models for $30 after $10 rebate. Both are currently out of stock, so I can't go settle the matter by buying one there tomorrow (which would be my normal MO).
Update: I just bought one of the above from circuitcity.com for $33 after $7 rebate, free shipping. I also got the 3-year warrantee for $15, because I've gotten the advice that price-crashing electronics tend not to last for years, making their (now cheaper) extended warrantees actually worthwhile.
bluetrafficcone I downloaded the open-source DVD player VLC to see if that resolves my Mac's DVD playing woes: some DVDs play without a hitch, some play with numerous pauses, many won't even start. No matter how carefully we clean them.We rented "Finding Nemo" from the new Hollywood Express on Elm St. near Davis for $2.09 for 4 days (they categorize it as a kids movie even though it's a recent release). Tried to watch it tonight, and alas -- it took minutes to appear on the desktop, minutes more to get into the movie menu (suffering numerous pauses in the menu animation), and couldn't even start the movie. We tried both discs (widescreen and fullscreen versions), both of which looked flawless to the eye, in both the Panther DVD player and VLC.
So it looks pretty clearly like a hardware problem. I'm pissed off that I spent an extra $200 or whatever on the mid-level gumdrop-style iMac to get a DVD drive, and then didn't actually try to use it until after the warranty had expired.
Now we're shopping for a cheap DVD player we could stick under the coffee table, which would entail devoting half of the coffee table itself to Brandi's TV (currently in storage). Circuit City appears to be the place to go, with two different models for $30 after $10 rebate. Both are currently out of stock, so I can't go settle the matter by buying one there tomorrow (which would be my normal MO).
Update: I just bought one of the above from circuitcity.com for $33 after $7 rebate, free shipping. I also got the 3-year warrantee for $15, because I've gotten the advice that price-crashing electronics tend not to last for years, making their (now cheaper) extended warrantees actually worthwhile.
