DVD players with IDE drive mechanisms

[Joe Kelleher]

I've just been given a Philips DVD634 DVD player,with an internal layout
that appears refreshingly simple for a piece of consumer electronics. Even
better, the drive appears to be a regular IDE DVD-ROM drive. Looking on
these groups and some other web sites, it turns out that this is a common
arrangement, but there are claims that some manufacturers are moving over to
proprietary connections. Is this rather sensible design going to disappear
again? Or are these proprietary connections really IDE connections without
added expense of a proper ribbon cable? When I buy players in future, I
really want to make sure they are IDE based, if I can.

Incidentally, the player I've got almost always gives NO DISC with the only
commercial DVD movie I own, but will quite happily play MP3s off a few
DVD+Rs, suggesting it's not the DVD pickup. What might it be then?

Thanks,

Joe

 

[Bob]

"Joe Kelleher"

Incidentally, the player I've got almost always gives NO DISC with the only
commercial DVD movie I own, but will quite happily play MP3s off a few
DVD+Rs, suggesting it's not the DVD pickup. What might it be then?

A cleaning disc solved that problem for me.

Bob