Video Reviews

The software mentioned on my May 16th review IS called "AVID Xpress" -- not "AVID Express" -- when my review was edited someone changed the spelling, possibly thinking it was a typo/mistake?

The TRV-900 is, by far, the best camcorder you can buy short of a professional model. The picture quality blows away the competition (must be those 3 CCD's). In most cases, you won't be able to tell the difference between the TRV 900 and professional cameras costing several times its price. The TRV-900 has every feature a consumer could want, including a progressive scan mode that lets you take high quality still pictures and save them directly to tape or a flash memory card (not included). You can also capture still images from tape and save them on a floppy disk (drive included) or flash card.

The LCD screen is large and bright. The menu controls are easy to use once you decipher the manual (see below). Sound quality is noticeably better than other camcorders I have used. Low light performance is great. For those who are interested, all automatic exposure, white balance and focus functions can be overriden and controlled manually.

On the down side, the unit is a bit heavier and a bit larger than most other mini-dv camcorders. You have to open the lcd screen to reach the button that activates the menu controls. The camcorder comes with a very nice lens hood, but it is threaded in such a way that you cannot install a filter between the lens and the hood - you have to install filters in front of the hood thereby increasing the risk of glare. Finally, the manual was obviously translated from Japanese and is full of annoying little errors.

But these are all minor shortcomings that do nothing to detract from the amazing picture quality and features. In summary, if you are looking for a Mini DV camcorder and can afford this one, then you need look no further.

You want it - you got it. Excellent picture quality; Sony steady-shot that really works; still-image capture to tape (or extra adapter card+memory stick a must!); bright LCD display; variable audio feedback; IEEE firewire, controls that are easy to reach and are learned-responses for those familiar with previous Sony cams.

Specifically, we use this unit for green-screen compositing of people, environments, and virtual products. The firewire coupled with Adobe Premier is a god-send. Simply said, that is essentially all you need (plus consistent overall lighting in a green-screen environment). G3 or PC - firewire will suck it down as fast as anything I've seen.

Positively get the custom aluminum case if you do a lot of travel and want to keep your camera happy. This will keep all your components safe and somewhat easily accessible. Get a 2+ hour battery; the NP-750 battery has plenty of gas - surprisingly the LCD does not drain the juice too quickly. A PC transfer card for the memory stick would be nice - but you can get away with plugging the IEEE and transferring from memory card or to tape.

The construction and attention to product detail is marvelous. Little rubber covers, positive audio clicks, all the nifty nick-nacks want you to have Sony make your next car. Sure there are a few quirks - but there's few products that have such high quality and high value as the TRV900!

This is an excellent system considering all the features you get for the price. I bought it to replace the Altec Lansing ACS54, and what an upgrade it is.

There are a few compliants I do have with this system. The constant hissing is a nuisance (though it's almost inaudible over computer noise and usually unheard when anything's playing), but I've heard that if you bug Logitech hard enough they'll send you an upgraded control unit that solves the problem. The other problem is that sounds are a bit muddled unless you remove the satellite covers (I got this idea from one of the numerous z680 reviews). With certain instrumental pieces, it sounds almost like a completely different system. (I keep my on because I'm afraid I'd do something stupid and break it.)

But on the bright side look what you do get: Coax and Optical digital connections and the standard 3 port analog connection,DTS and Dolgy Digital Decoding, and Dolby Prologic II encoding in music and movie modes and of course THX certification (though I consider that more marketing than anything else).

Sound quality is of course top notch compared to most other computer systems, comparable to that offered by the high-end Megaworks and Klipsch sets though I do have a few nitpicks. Removing the cover helps sound brightness though the highs still seem to roll off when approaching the upper limit (maybe it's just a placebo effect). The bass is awesome, but sometimes I find it too awesome; it completely drowns out the satellites. The Klipsch isn't without faults either; I'm not a big fan of its sub or its performance at high valume. The Megaworks have excellent satellite performance, and the bass is tighter, but somewhat lacking in games and movies (and I use that term loosely; none of these systems have lacking bass compared to your mid-to-low range computer speakers). Granted no computer speakers are going to equal high-end home audio setups, but these 3 sets come the closest, though each has its own quirks. The price and features provided by the Z680s swung my opinion.

There speakerstruly have made my bedroom a true ROCK STATION (try playing Chemical Brothers - Under The Influence and let the windows cripple to dust). There's some things I read about this speaker system I would like to clarify:

-some people complain about a hissing sound. There is in fact a hiss comming out of the satellites, but IT'S NOT A PROBLEM FROM THE SPEAKERS, it's a problem with the source. Check your source and the connection which you are using. I plugged these babies to my laptop (lousy sound card) and the hiss was quite annoying esp. at high volumes, but then I plugged them to my DVD player and the hissing dissappeared completely. I tried a PS2 and no hiss either, so I came to the conclusion that the speakers themselves DON'T PRODUCE ANY HISS.
-These speakers are LOUD. But when I mean loud, I mean LLLLLLLLLLOOOOOOOUUUUUUUUUDDDDDDDDDD. If you are looking for a speaker system for a small room or just for ambient hearing, you might want to look at Altec Lansing speakers, which sound just as good but no even remotly as loud. The bass sounds OK even at 100% volume and 100% bass (don't try this for a long time or you will pop the speaker). But you don't need to get above 30% bass in order to feel the windows shaking.
-The bass doesn't sound equally loud at frecuencies (try the CB song I recommended above) but honestly, I've heard and tested at least a couple docen commercial home speakers and they all have had this flaw. Only professional or semi-professional speakers (Bose for example) eliminate this volume change. Don't let this be a put-down when thinking of buying this system.
-The only CON if found is the weight. When my girlfriend them to me, the box was so huge and so heavy I needed help loading it in my car. This is because the bass is HEAVY. But when you hear ir roar, you'll see why. =)

If you want a home theather and don't want to go as far 4 digit prices, this is the choice to make. Hook up to 4 devices at a time and change the input with a single click from the remote (you can do EVERYTHING with the remote). Loud, crystal clear sound; deep, loud bass; no distortion at any volume level...what more can a humble man ask? The price is excellent for what you'll get.

Finally, forgive my lousy english (me don't speak english regularly)

these speakers are the best for the money.....this is my second set from amazon.i own 5 computers.the first set i bought a year ago.and just added another set to another computer.i also own a set of klipsch ultra 5.1 that cost about 400.00...and they dont have a remote or decoder with them....the z680s come with everything.and side by side the z680s perform just as good.dont waist your money on the ultras 5.1....buy the z680s for alot less from amazon.you will be amazed at the performance of these speakers. earth shaking bass.and clean highs.im also using creative audigy 2zs sound cards with these speakers.awesome set for the money.and amazon is the best price with free shipping.and they have the best service.....

The Nokia 6600 is really just a glorified 3650: you know the 3650, those bulbous, formless, big phones a few unfortunate ATT customers are carrying around. The Nokia 660 runs the Symbian OS, which works pretty well for most standard phone fare, most of the stuff is not that intuitive, but if you actually learn how to use it all, there's plenty of neat tie-ins.

I've got mine to the point where it checks my pop e-mail, I can send videos and photos straight out to my contacts that have synced via Bluetooth with my Macintosh, and I can even control iTunes on my computer using a great program called "Sailing Clicker". However, I doubt many people will ever get that far.

The camera is decent, the videos are fun and pointless because of their low quality and short length, but the design of the phone is much friendlier than the 3650. The screen does get scratched up, but the phone is very durable. The battery life is also very decent.

This is a very cool phone if you know how to use it, but, for the casual phone user, I would wait for Nokia to really figure out their operating system. If you like this phone but can't stand the size, wait for the Nokia 7610, which has a 1.3 megapixel camera and is a much more standard, dare I say, svelte size.

I did lot of research before buying this phone and it paid off. Thanks to all the people posted reviews on amazon.com and it is my turn to post a review. First of all this is my first Nokia phone and I had a samsung phone earlier. These two companies are so much different in making their phones. First let me get down to the pros.

- Symbian OS. Excellent features. It has all the features I could ever think of and the UI is great.
- Display. with 65K colors the screen rocks.
- Connectivity. It has all the cutting edge connectivity(bluetooth, IR) I ever need( ofcourse I can crib on the lack of 802.11 and some other stuff but I want to be fair here). These are simple to use and very useful to transfer files.It syncs with outlook as well.
- Solid call quality. Call quality is extremely good. some times the signal is bad inside our home but I have checked with T-Mobile and it is T-Mobiles' fault. They don't guarnatee the coverage inside buildings.
- VGA camera. Nicely done camera for a phone.To be fair, Let's not compare canon S30 with this camera.
- video recorder is useful sometimes.
- Contacts has several customization options. You can store multiple numbers, change the label etc..
- Solid battery life.

Those are the big pros of this phone and now it is my chance to crib..

- Bulky. I don't know what Nokia is thinking. The form factor could be lot better.
- Sometimes the OS could be sluggish. I am not sure 100 percent sure on this but I want to mention this.
- Video recorder works for only 10 sec. I don't understand what Nokia is trying to do here..
- keyboard is slightly cramped. I don't have any problems with it but some people could.
- Games on the phones suck. I found lot better games online but I need to pay for them.

To conclude this is a great phone and I think this is the best Tmobile phone out there in the market. If you like the shape of this phone, this is the phone for you. There was a good deal on amazon when I bought this phone.

This phone is one of the best I've ever used. It has everything I needed: bluetooth, infrared, support for MMC, camera, and a good operating system with lots of supporting software.

The technical detail:

a. The printer may be operated as a standalone product independant of a computer. It contains slots for both SmartMedia cards and compact flash PC card adaptors so you don't have to have a computer connected to the printer to use it. The printer has its own small LCD display which can be used in lieu of a computer interface to help you select pictures off your cards for printing and the printer also has a rather sophisticated built in capability to format the final product.

b. The printer has both a parallel port and a USB port for computer connection and is compatible with both PCs and MACs. Configuration software is included on CD for both types of machines. No computer cables are included and will cost you about $20 at your local computer store.

c. If connected to a computer, the printer is used to provide printed output for whatever photo editing software you already own. No computer photo editing software is included with the package.

d. Documentation is complete and voluminous. However, the technical document giving all the nitty gritty is provided as a computer PDF file readable by Adobe Acrobat software (supplied in multiple languages) and is not provided hardcopy. If you are buying this printer to use as a standalone device without a computer, this puts you at somewhat of a disadvantage.

e. The starter kit of paper and printer ribbon is adequate to print only five (5) 8x10" prints so you will want to purchase paper and ribbon with the printer.

f. Printing supplies (paper and ribbon) are expensive, costing almost $2 per 8x10" print.

The Subjective data:

The final print produced is 314x314 dots per inch and looks incredible. I have standard 8x10" Kodak prints produced from my digital photos that do not look nearly as good. Unless you are going to take your digital data to a custom printing specialist and stand over his shoulder, you will not be able to obtain a print better than this printer will give you. Recently, I was trying to restore an old 8x10" photo and scanned it into my computer at the highest resolution possible, edited it in Adobe Photoshop, and wound up with a wonderful restoration. By that time the digital image was up to 58MB size. I asked Kodak to print it, and they did. However, their system couldn't handle the large file size and compressed it to slightly over 2MB. Their final print was acceptable but a lot of the detail and my work was lost because of the compression. My computer fed the entire 58MB file to this printer and it produced a superb picture that made the Kodak image look like a childs effort in comparison. I don't know of any printer today that has comperable capability to the Olympus P400.

I have owned this printer for nearly two years. It has been trouble-free and has given me hundreds of beautiful pictures that have the look and feel of high-quality photo prints. I use Photoshop Elements to clean-up my images and to size them for printing. Photoshop elements allows me to place multiple images on a full sheet of paper. I recently showed some travel photos to a friend. He said, "I've seen digital pictures before but never any that looked this beautiful! What kind of a camera do you have?" I told him that it wasn't the camera, it was the printer. The printer, itself, is not hard to set up and use. At first , you must pay attention to how you load the ribbon, but if you look carefully at the instructions, you will be fine. A negative review mentions the micro lesions on the surface of the prints. It is true that there are a few extremely fine scratches on the plastic surface of each page . However, you will never notice them unless you take them to a window and tilt the picture around to catch the light just so. In normal viewing, you will never know they are there. And they are only on the clear, plastic coating that covers the pigments on the paper. (The paper makes four passes over the thermal head. Three passes put the color on, the fourth applies a protective coating of clear plastic.) The drawback to this printer is that it will not print larger than 8X10, and not quite a true 8X10 at that. Personally, that has never bothered me. I don't do a lot of 8X10's, and when I do, I put a border around the print, put it in a frame and it's fine. The quality of the pictures continually amazes everyone I show them to. I think this is a great photo printer.

Finally, a dye sublimation photo printer that gives you prints larger than 4" x 6"! The colors are rich, and the pictures are very sharp. There is nothing on the market today that is in this printer's class. If anyone is interested in quality prints of digital images, this printer is an absolute must have. I would recommend printing images that were taken with at least a 2 megapixel digital camera. I have an HP Photosmart P1000 printer that does very well, but it cannot compete with the P400. You can't achieve the same quality print with an ink jet printer.

fun, indeed. I have been online with xbox live for over a year now. I loved it at first, but then came to realize that it has in many ways detracted from my video gaming experience. when you first go online, the competition seems fierce, and the challenge is there to try and be the best.

However over time comes the realization that you will NEVER be the best. In every online game I've played, the top 10-15 players are all cheaters. You will find this out in time on xbox live, but in every single game people will cheat against you, corrupting the overall experience.

And a last note, THIS IS NOT FOR CHILDREN!!! Just because a game is rated T for teen or E for everyone, the esrb ratings are guaranteed to change once your child goes online.
People will swear, and be incredibly disgusting. KEEP YOUR CHILDREN AWAY FROM XBOX LIVE!!!!

For adult gamers, I encourage you to visit www.xbox.com, and check out the xbox forums. There are many other adult gamers there, and they all play the games you are interested in.

Since it doesn't say how much an aditional year cost, I'll say it here: you gotta pay $50 for an aditional year. Unlike Sony, Microsoft does charge every year, but most magazines say that Microsoft's online gaming is better than Sony's. The quantity of games and quality of Microsoft is better than Sony's.

I was never much of an online gamer. I had played a couple of them, but I would much rather get my friends together and play them face to face. It's much more enjoyable because you actually KNOW the person and because of the whole bragging thing. When I played online PC games, I felt unconnected to everyone else, even when playing team games like CTF. You can chat to dudes on your team via the keyboard, but you can't do that on the fly. If your playing a FPS online and are facing say three opposing team memebers, you can't type in a request for backup without getting shot. XBOX LIVE solves this problem with the headset. It is very rare to see someone online without one. You can easily strategize with your team mates and call for backup quickly if needed. Being able to talk to your team makes you feel more like a team.
The friend feature on XBOX LIVE is awesome. You can tell where your buds are at all times, even if they are on a different game. And it's easy to send a friend request. Just click the players bar and scroll down to the person's name you want to send a request to. Or you can type the person's gamertag in at the XBOX LIVE dashboard. Also, say you're playing Rainbow Six 3 and your team is really getting pounded. You can invite your friend to play with you, even if he's not playing the same game as. This ensures that you can contact and invite your friends at anytime you want.
XBOX LIVE also temendously extends the life of your games. I had stopped playing Return to Castle Wofinstien a year and a half ago, but then I got XBOX LIVE. I was on that game for hours and hours of extra gaming time. There's always good competition, you rarely will be the uber killer. On the flip side, you can learn from the better players if your a newb and start wailing on other gamers in no time.
Overall, XBOX LIVE is a purchase that (I think) pays for itself. I have gotten fewer new games because I'm always getting new experiences out of my old ones. It is a very good investment for anyone looking to further there gaming skills or just looking for a helluva good time.

Simply put this cable is a must have for the XBOX! In my opinion, Monster Cable is the best in the business for audio and/or video cables. Yes, they are a little pricey, but you get what you pay for here. The quality of this cable is top notch. If your TV has S Video Ins, trash the standard a/v cable that comes with the system. What a difference! You gotta get this cable. Peace.

This cable is typical Monster. Perfect. But pricey as well.

One thing which is not obvious is its optical digital capability. Hidden in the end of the connector which connects to the xbox is an output for digital audio (That cable is not included by the way). But its nice to know that if I do end up buying a digital capable receiver I do not need to buy a new cable. Its performance has been wonderful. The 10 foot cable could be useful too.

I also purchased the comparable product by Microsoft, the Advanced A/V pack. I ended up returning it even though it is about half the price. The microsoft one is just plain junky and poorly designed. They divide up the connection into two stages. First the large connector leads out of the xbox and with a ~1.5 foot lead leads to a large ugly box. You then connect up all the cables to this box and to your TV. Its just a mess of cables at this point. I like simplicity and the Monster Cable has it. It fits me perfect. But pricey.

THe first thing i do when i buy any console is get a Monster S video cable, then i get the games. The thing with monster is its the best, but it cost alot. When first released cables cost $50, but now its reasonable. I think Monster goes over the board with the development of this thing. Just read the product info. Basically if your TV gots svideo hook up, get these.

Philips is going to hate me for writing this, but I have found TiVo to be useful even though I am not a subscriber to their service. I hesitated to buy this for a while becuase I thought either a small monthly charge or a large one-time payment went with the cost of the recorder. I read in the documentation that the recorder would have "limited capability" without the subscription to the service, but that amount of capability was really what I was looking for, so I don't plan to EVER subscribe to their service.

Without subscribing, I can pause live TV, do an "instant replay" of it, and record by time and channel. TiVo is more convenient for doing these operations than a VCR because I don't have to fool with tapes and cue them up to find the beginning of a show. Because TiVo is digital, the video quality is better than a tape. On the highest quality setting I have the same level of digital quality of my satellite dish. The thing that I've found the most useful is that I can watch a recorded show while making a recording of another, which a VCR can't do.

I realize that some people like the features that come with the TiVo subscription. If people choose to pay for those things, that's their choice. I can't use the TiVo guide to look through the listings and select by name a program to be recorded. TiVo doesn't make suggestions for me based on the shows I've previously selected, and it doesn't automatically record my favorite shows if the time changes. But I know which shows I want to record every day, and DirecTv has a good guide that I can search through to find other shows to record. When I come home in the evening, I still have good shows to spend my limited TV time on, and I still have the money that I would have spent on the service.

listen...you're life will never be the same with TiVo. I didn't convert until my two brothers kept recommending this product. Now you can watch AND record TiVo shows at the same time. If you miss the beginning/end - it doesn't matter - you can slew to whatever point in the recorded program. Sounds inconsequential, but it isn't when you've missed the beginning of the nightly news, that all so important soap opera, or whatever your fancy. One of the best features is the fast forward/rewind 3-speed scan - once you hit play, it plays back at the last visual pause/transition, starting you at your program.

The unit starts 'learning' your TV preferences by content; there's also a personal voting scale so the unit can start learning and recording on downtimes. This is great for reruns - but becomes troublesome to delete constantly if you record at high quality resolution or have a ton of shows lined up. Also, there a 'season pass' that essentially records the specified show whenever it appears in the tv lineup; this is a problem if you'd like to override just one of the shows for an alternate specific show. You'll just have to revert back to manual setting of time/date recording. Oh, the setting of time/day recording like VCRs is over, you can search and select by show name, search by type of subject matter (drama, news, etc).

The term 'product' is misleading - this machine is a computer with one/two hardrives, a modem that allows for updates, all the current input options (satellite, S-video, RCA) and comes with all the cables you'll need and more. The all-knowing eye semantics on the front facia is a bit ominous, but true to its function.

Since it's inception, you can find extremely good bargains for refurbished units straight from the factory which work perfectly well. Get a unit with one harddrive if you've got the choice...research a bit and you'll see why if you're a hacker. The folks who designed and put all this together should get some sort of couch-potato award.

If you're even bothering to VISIT this site, you are a person that needs Tivo. I bought our Tivo two years ago, and it has transformed our lives. Seriously. We never, ever bother to rush home to avoid missing Friends. We never pick up a TV Guide. We never miss new episodes of Trading Spaces or Modern Marvels. Sopranos? Got it. Sex and the City? We've seen every one.

The funniest thing about having Tivo is that it changes your television conversations with others... I might tell someone about a cool new show (something Tivo selected FOR me that I wound up liking, for example), and the person will ask, "What channel is it on?"

I have no clue.

"Well, WHEN is it on?"

No idea. Tivo takes care of everything! I watch WHAT I want WHEN I want. Channels... times... superfluous!

Tivo takes EVERY SINGLE responsibility or burden off of you, the television watcher. Cliched as it may sound, Tivo really is "TV Your Way!" It's easier than a VCR with better quality, control, and versatility... I can certainly understand why the media isn't advertising it (have I MENTIONED that I haven't watched a TV commercial in TWO YEARS?), but I can't understand anyone not having this in his or her home.

It streamlines your television viewing, and saves you time, turning television into an active and dynamic pasttime, instead of the modern-day opiate of the masses. Sound good to you? If you get it, I cannot imagine you regretting it!

I bought this player 4 months ago when it was first released from Japan while on a trip to Asia. I did extensive researches prior to buying this player and I bought it for its value for money, performance, picture/sound quality and ease of use.

Now, I'm not a serious audiophille or do I intend to spend huge amount of dollars to get those top of the range DVD player (ie. Onkyo, Yamaha, etc). I want something practical, which I believe most of you do as well. And guess what? Surprise, surprise -- I've got so much more than what I bargained for.

The picture is superb, sharp and crisp on my 30 inch Loewe TV. Colour is bright and does not "bleed". Sound is excellent when connected to my Yamaha 795a and no audio-sync problems. In addition, the zoom function, built-in DD5.1, DTS(sounds better than DD!) and HDCD(remarkable audio quality) encoders, component-colourstream and S-video output, dual disc trays and virtual N2-2 surround sound for those with a 2 speaker setup system made this unit complete with features. Mine has got two additional mic inputs for Karaoke and it's gold in colour but are of the same parts and build. It's easy to setup and use as well. Having said this, find me a DVD player that is close in comparison in regards to price, performance and function.

About compability issues -- ZIPPO! Now, do bear in mind that my DVD is Region 5, and although it has been multi-zoned, it played Saving Private Ryan (DTS -- Region 1), Haunting, US Marshalls, Deep Blue Sea (all DD -- Reg 1),Matrix, Mummy, Fifth Element, Tomorrow Never Dies(DD -- Reg 4), T2, True Lies (DD -- Reg 5) flawlessly without any lock-ups, freezes, pauses (except for changing layers for dual-layered discs) or audio-sync problems.

I guess it is unfortunate that some reviewers have problems with this player. Maybe you should examine your connections properly and call up Toshiba for assistance before jumping the gun about this unit? I have 2 other relatives who bought this unit from here (Reg 4) upon my recommedation and they too did not have any problems with it.

Maybe I do agree with some reviewers that the remote is chunky but it serves its purpose very well. Besides, who buys a unit (VCR, amp, tv for that matter) for it's remote anyway? Get a Universal remote and that should solve the problem.

In conclusion, I would say this is an awesome purchase. It's definitely worth every dollar spent on it. Have a read in those DVD magazines and you'll find the SD-3109 unit get very good ratings and reviews from professional audiophilles. I would suggest you visit your local electrical outlet to see it for yourself. Get it, you won't regret it!

Hope my contribution helps.

In december I purchased this (Region 1 player) for a reallygood deal and I didn't go wrong. I'm only 16, so this was no smallpurchase for me; and I learned it was well worth the money! I'm not just saying this because I'm blown away by DVD in general, but because I've seen other players, and this one holds strong against others. I use the built in DD (Dolby Digital) decoder because I have no DD decoder in our amp (just 6 channel discrete input). I've heard it when hooked up to a DD amp with a optical digital cable, and it seems better, but mine was still a lot better than VHS, and I also don't have really high end speakers, but still have low-end Infinty. The picture looks great on the 35" JVC TV, but I can't use component video on it, just S-Video, still looks fine though. I've tried 3 CDs with HDCD encoding, but the player didin't realize that they were HDCD compatible, i don't know why, maybe 'cause I've got it hooked up with anolog cables with the 6 CH Discrete. The zooming isn't really necessary, but that doesn't mean this player is a waste of money! The dual disc system is an added bonus, not really an extra cost, so hey why not? All the outputs are gold plated too. I've played at least 25-30 discs, and haven't noticed a flaw in playback at all. The only (MINOR) "hickup" was during "The Bone Collector" where for about 1 or 2 seconds, the picture sort of froze and sound was lost, then it came back, the disc may have been dirty though - rented. As for the remote, i don't know how much better other players' remotes are, but this one is fine, a lot better than the Panasonic A-120s is, easier to use in terms of setting up anyway. The shape is kinda weird of the remote though. One thing that was a real bonus, like mentioned below, is how easy it was to set up. Once hooked up (I don't know what the heck people are talking about when they say they couldn't even get it hooked up) you do about 2 minutes of set up with the easy on screen menu of stting up sound, tv screen size (4:3, 16X9) and a bit others, and then your ready! It would be nice to get a widescreen HDTV though, they say the Widescreen DVDs especially, look better on these TVs, the "compressed" image is supposed (and does!) look even better. The only annoying thing is, is that I haven't gotten my 5 free movies yet, maybe the mail is extremely slow and it didn't get there in time. You can't go wrong, honestly!

I've had my 3109 for about 4 years now. It was my first purchased DVD player, and i've never regretted it. I think back then I paid on Ebay for new - $230 (including shipping).

I put in a lot of time watching DVDs, at least 6-8 hours a week. The setup menu is detailed and useful, the image has always been great through s-video, the sound has never let me down. The double-tray has proven useful over time. The zoom has always been fun. The multi-angle was cool for the two movies that had it (6-string Samuarai was one). I've had some noticeable pausing from time to time with double-layer DVDs, and recently it balked at playing a particular disk that it's played before. he recent upgrade of my TV has prompted me to get a replacement DVD player with a DVI port. Aside from that one DVD, I'm still playing movies whilst waiting for the replacement momitsu 880 to arrive.

If you're considering getting this now, keep in mind:
1) no progressive-scan
2) no DVD-R, DVD+RW, etc. format disks
3) no MP3, though it does read CD-Rs with wav files

You're probably better off buying an 80 dollar new Toshiba or Panny but if it's a hand-me-down the image and sound quality are excellent. I'll be retiring this player to the bedroom.

I received my Garmin 2610 a week ago and I have been having lots of fun ever since.
I saw a review where another buyer had troubles with the software that comes with the unit. The operating system on my computer is an ME too but I got the software installed with the help of a Garmin tech. This is my first GPS but the unit is really user friendly. Even I could use the unit in my van the first day that I received it. I have a van, truck, and a motorcycle that I will be using the unit on and it will get it's share of use. I always worry about my wife getting around but I don't have to worry any more. Yesterday she had to go to the airport and did not know how to get there. I set a route for her to the airport and showed her how to use the "home" feature to get her back to the house. She made the trip there and back without any problems. It worked so good that I may not ever see the unit again because my wife says that she loves it! I went for a ride on my motorcycle with a few of my friends and found a down side to owning this GPS unit. Now all my friends look to me to get them everywhere we go. If there is a negative to having this unit on my vehicle I can't find it. This is one of the most effective pieces of equipment that I have ever put on one of my transportation vehicles. If you had six stars this product would get it!

Mr. De Leon cannot be talking about the 2610.
* It is not hard at all to program addresses from the car - use the remote, or the on-screen spelling capability. You can type the first part of a street (or city, or business, etc) and then see all starting with these characters.
* You can drive to a location and mark it as a waypoint. Then you can easily give it a name (other than default 001) and change its symbol from a box to a school, a house, etc.
* 2610 doesn't have batteries! Use car cigarette lighter or home AC power.
* I think De Leon had the StreetPilot III Deluxe. Using the III is much more cumbersome than the 2610.

For more info, see my other review, the first on this device.

My bottom line: If you're looking for an excellent GPS for navigation in your car and you can afford the price, then this is the device for you!

The Garmin automotive navigation is a great item in which for those new comers who drive or ride from Florida or California. This little item makes it easy for regular travler to find their way around. So in times of going to the club in the next town or just driving around major one way streets this little gadge makes anyone a pro in getting to thier point of orgin. So travel a little safer whether you take the train in holland or the drive to El Paso, Tx. Here's to TRAVELING ON A SAFER LEVEL.

Thank You
Shara L. Bouie
Atlanta,Ga<USA

I've had the Nintendo gamecube since a month after it came out. The titles for the system are amazing, along with the graphics being above par(especially metroid prime), make it the best out of PS2, Xbox, and the Gamecube. all of the games I own surpass most of the Xbox games, and many of the PS2 games I have played. these games include: pikmin, luigi's mansion, super smash bros: melee, NBA street 2, skies of arcadia: legends, wrestlemania 19, soul calibur 2, LOZ: the windwaker, dave mirra 2, mat hoffman 2, tony hawk 4, underground, enter the matrix, metroid prime, and Mario kart: double dash!! a few days ago, i traded in my gamecube, along w/ a few games I don't play anymore, and got the bundle pak. let me tell you, the zelda collection disc is amazing. I've played the original zelda, but I have never got to play zelda 2:the adventure of link. adventure of link could be better, but the original makes up for it. take my word. GET THIS BUNDLE PAK!!!!! oh, and despite how old it says I am, I am really 14. I just didn't wanna sign up...

Why is this product being advertised as:

*Nintendo video game system
*Includes one controller, manuals, and cables to connect to the TV
*Compact design with 4 built-in game controller ports
*Plays a wide variety of games for all ages
*Includes disc with four complete classic Zelda games

As far as I can tell, the people selling this are ONLY selling the Zelda game and NOT including the gamecube itself. Isn't this false advertising?

I just heard someone say that there might be a new Nintendo system coming out.Well I dont know if this is true or not but I will probably buy it.Im definitely NOT going to sell this for it though.I have enough money for it and I wouldnt sacrifice the Game Cube for anything anyway.Its too great a system.Not only does it have great 1st party games like F Zero GX,Super Mario Sunshine,Luigis Mansion and Metroid Prime it also has some of the best games available on any of the 3 systems like Pac Man World 2 and Sonic Heroes.It also has rereleases of old Dreamcast titles like Sonic Adventure and Sonic Adventure 2 and even has a Game Boy Player which more than makes up for a lack of a cd player or DVD player.The Game Boy Player is the best feature of all.True Playstation 2 has more games and X Box has better graphics but can you play Sonic Advance or Super Mario World on them?I think not.I still have the 3 previous Nintendo systems in my closet.Out of the 3 of the previous Nintendo systems Nintendo 64 is my favorite.I guess I dont like to sell things which is why I still have them.When and if the new Nintendo system comes out Ill just wait until they have games like Luigis Mansion and F Zero first.And it better have a cd player because my normal one is too noisy to play in my apartment so I have to listen to headphones which I dont like to do but anyways this is a great system.