Sony DVPSR510H DVD Player, with HDMI port (Upscaling)

• Sony DVPSR510H DVD Player, with HDMI port

Thin profile, connects to flat screen TV with HDMI or older TV with yellow, white, red RCA cables.

Inputs and Outputs

Analog Audio 2ch Output(s): 1 (Rear)
Composite Video Output(s): 1 (Rear)
HDMI® Connection Output(s): 1 (Rear)
Digital Audio Output(s): Coaxial Audio Output(s) - 1 (Rear)







Connection to TV using HDMI



Remember to select the DVD player's HDMI input using the TV remote.





DVD Player - front panel has power on/off button, disc tray open/close button, play/pause/stop buttons, skip forward/backward buttons and a front-panel display to show status information.

Even the lowest cost DVD players have amazing capabilities. Surround sound output, component video output, ability to play MP3 on a CD-R, audio CD, JPEG photo files on a CD-RW and DVD Audio are just some of the capabilities.

DVD releases typically include a variety of additional material, such as movie trailers, documentaries, behind the scenes footage, storyboards, deleted scenes, and alternate endings. Some include two copies of the film, both widescreen and standard. 

DVDs can also include additional content that can be accessed on a computer, such as more information on the movie, games, and access to material over the Web. 

Over the past years an abundance of affordable DVD players have made it to market, meaning they're now well within the price range of the average household. Also the catalog of DVD movie titles is filling up at a fantastic rate.

Stay with the name brands however, Sony, Panasonic, Toshiba, Samsung. You may be disappointed with the bargain brands.

DVD Background:

DVD stands for Digital Video Disc (or Digital Versatile Disc). It's a disc that's almost 5  inches in diameter, 1.2 mm thick, and can store 4.7 or 8.5 gigabytes of data on one side (or the equivalent of about 6,800 floppy disks).

In 1994, Sony and Phillips announced that they would jointly develop a technology that would replace CDs for data storage. The intention was also to develop a media format that could replace VHS tapes and LaserDiscs as a way of storing movies and delivering them to consumers. Meanwhile, Time-Warner and Toshiba were working on their own competing technology.

The two teams unveiled their products within weeks of each other, and the rush to market was on. Apple, Compaq, Fujitsu, Hewlett-Packard, IBM, and Microsoft collectively feared that another VHS-vs.-Beta war would ensue - these companies wanted to use DVD technology for their computers, and the last thing they wanted to worry about was adapting their product for two different formats. So they demanded that DVDs be made in only one format.

So Sony, Phillips, Toshiba, Time-Warner and a handful of other companies all got together and decided on a uniform standard for all DVDs. 

On a CD, the data is read off the disc using an infrared laser; a DVD works in the same way, but it uses a shorter wavelength laser so that it can read smaller "pits" or little pockets in which data is stored. Smaller pits mean more of them on a disc, hence more information. 

DVDs also have not one, but two layers per side that can store information. And DVDs can carry info on both sides (front and back) for a total of four data-holding layers. So while a CD can fit about 20 minutes of compressed video, a DVD can hold about 135 minutes… per layer. That means that one double-layered double-sided DVD can hold up to 9 hours of movies.

If that's not enough:

• DVDs play with 480 lines of horizontal resolution. Compare that to a VHS tape, which plays with 250 lines.
  
  
• DVDs sample audio at higher rates (all that means is that the sound is better).
  
  
• DVDs can support multiple aspect ratios - that is, movies can be viewed in their original wide-screen versions (16:9 ratio) as opposed to their formatted-to-fit-the-screen ones that TVs use (4:3 ratio).
  
  
• DVDs can hold up to 32 language tracks.
  
  
• DVDs can support split screens, director's cuts, alternate endings, voiceovers, and more.

Q: What was the first movie put onto DVD?
A: The Beatles' A Hard Day's Night

Digital Video Discs (DVD's) are compact disc (CD) sized discs that contain a whole movie with a Dolby Digital soundtrack plus extras, such as interviews, behind the scene footage etc.

DVD vs. VHS
DVD players provide picture and sound quality that easily surpasses anything you can get with a video cassette recorder (VCR). This has made DVD players one of the fastest growing consumer goods ever.



What types of DVD players are available and how much do DVD players cost?

Types Of DVD Players

Compatible DVD and CD Media (discs)

DVD Video Features

Audio Features

DVD Players:

You can get a good DVD player at a budget price. Even a budget player will provide a picture clarity that VHS tape could never achieve, with sound quality that is measurably superior. 

DVD players don’t just play DVDs, but other formats as well.

When DVD players first appeared in 1997/98, they were designed to play DVD-Videos, Video CDs and CDs only. But since then manufacturers have added more features to DVD players allowing them to play many formats.

For example MP3 audio playback is available. A more recent feature is the ability to play digital photos in JPEG format from a CD-R as slideshows. Also most players will play CD-Rs, CD-RWs and DVD-Rs, but not other DVD recordable formats.

What features should you look for when buying a DVD player? The answer depends on what disc formats you want to play. 

• DVD-Video: all DVD players play DVD-Video discs, but usually only in one region. Europe is region 2 and USA region 1, but many players are available as multi-region players. In some cases the region can be changed via the remote control.
• DVD-Audio: an increasing number of DVD players now play DVD-Audio discs. However, unless you have high quality amplifier and speakers, you may not notice any loss in quality using a normal DVD-Video player as most DVD-Audio discs include DVD-Video content (ie Dolby Digital audio).
• SACD: SACD is not a DVD format, but some DVD players include this capability, particularly from Philips and Sony.
• CD audio: all DVD players play audio CDs.
• Video CD and SVCD: Most players will play Video CDs but not all play SVCDs. The latter offer near-DVD quality video but actual discs are difficult to obtain except in Asia.
• DVD-R, DVD-RAM & DVD-RW: Most modern players will play DVD-R discs without any problems, allowing, for example, home movies to be played back. Some, but not all, will play DVD-RW and a few will play DVD-RAM discs. DVD+R and DVD+RW are playable only in some players.
• CD-R & CD-RW: Most if not all modern DVD players will play recordable CDs. To do so requires the addition of a CD laser to the DVD laser pickup, as the dye used in CD-Rs prevents the discs being read by the DVD red laser. Note that such players will also read audio and Video CDs on CD-R.
• MP3: Many players also play MP3 compressed audio files on a CD-ROM or CD-R. In the future other formats such as Microsoft’s WMA may be supported.
• JPEG: Some DVD players play digital photos in JPEG format stored on a CD-R. This is particularly useful for those with a digital camera or for conventional photos that are stored on a CD-R when the film is processed, for example using the Kodak Picture CD format.
• DVD-VR: A few players will play recordable discs with video recorded according to the Video Recording (VR) format.

All DVD players can play DVD-Video discs and the multi-channel Dolby Digital tracks on them. They can also play CD audio discs. Plus, most budget models can play CD-R and CD-RW discs, and some can play MP3 CDs as well. (However, a few very low-end players might have trouble playing CD-R or CD-RW discs, so make a note to check that. 
It's a very important consideration if you burn CDs on your home computer.) When it comes to DVD-Audio, SACD, and recordable DVD, things get trickier. Most budget models cannot decode the high-resolution audio tracks on DVD-Audio discs (however, they can play the Dolby Digital tracks found on most DVD-Audio discs). Similarly, budget models cannot decode the DSD (Direct Stream Digital) tracks on SACD discs (however, they can play the CD tracks found on some hybrid SACD discs). And recordable DVD playback on inexpensive DVD-Video players is still relatively rare with most brands.

The player's front-panel display will be pretty basic — a simple dot matrix, in a single color. But make sure it is bright and legible even from across the room where you will be sitting. The disc tray should be of reasonable quality; there might be some 'give' to it, but it should never feel like it's about to fall off. A budget player might have a remote, but most likely, that remote will only control the player itself; it will not be a universal remote that can control other components. Another feature that is hard to describe has to do with the overall feel of the player. Occasionally, a cheap player feels flimsy. There is no heft to it, as if there aren't any substantial parts inside. While many players in many price categories are compact models, they should have some weight to them and impart a sense of solidity. Unless, of course, they're portable DVD players.

DVD Player FAQ

Q: My new widescreen TV displays the correct cinematic aspect ratio. Why am I still getting those black bars with widescreen movies?

A: The widescreen television aspect ratio is 16:9, which is not a cinematic aspect ratio, but a video standard. Films come in a variety of aspect ratios. Some of the most popular widescreen cinema formats are close to 16:9 (1.78:1), which is one reason this was chosen for televisions. Any film that is not in 16:9 aspect ratio (almost all) will display with bars. For historic reasons, nearly all films are in one of the following aspect ratios: 1.33:1 (will have side bars), 1.66:1 (small side bars), 1.85:1 (very small top/bottom bars, possibly hidden by overscan) and 2.35:1 (larger top and bottom bars). The 1.85:1 is the closest fit to your widescreen television. Please see widescreen.org for details and examples. 

Q: I have an older receiver that I want to use with my just purchased DVD player. This receiver has a digital audio input (optical) for connecting to CD players. I expect to listen to DVD's on my stereo system. If I use this connection will I get digital surround sound? Or should I hook the DVD player to the analog stereo audio inputs on the receiver instead? I tried the hook-up to the "CD" optical receptor on the receiver from the DVD Optical output but got nothing but static.

A:

1. Unless your receiver is capable of decoding digital surround sound (Dolby Digital "5.1" or DTS) you will not obtain surround sound playback. Your older receiver is only capable at most of decoding Dolby Pro Logic. This is the older analog "matrix" type of surround sound, which many films offer. So yes, you can listen to the analog surround sound when available should your receiver have a decoder for it.

2. If you use the "CD digital audio" connection to a receiver with no DD/DTS capabilities you must set the DVD player output to "PCM" rather than "bitstream". Otherwise you will be sending raw digital data to your speakers (that "static" you hear), which can at loud volumes damage a speaker. You may find using the analog stereo cable more convenient to use.

You should be aware that Dolby Digital "5.1" audio may not playback with the best sound quality on a stereo system. For improved stereo sound, you may have to go to the audio options menu on the disc in order to select an alternative audio track. These are provided for improved stereo playback. Choose either "PCM" or Dolby Digital 2.0 track.

Q: I have an older DVD player with Dolby Digital capabilities, but not DTS. I can play a DTS audio CD through my DTS capable receiver, but when I play a DTS DVD I hear only white noise.

A: Your DVD player does not support DTS. It does not pass the bitstream from the DVD. Be aware that supporting DTS and decoding DTS are entirely different matters. A DVD player that supports DTS (it will display the DTS logo) passes the digital audio from the DVD through to your receiver, which decodes it (unless of course you DVD player contains a DTS decoder). The DTS CD's play because your player does not need to support DTS in order to pass the bitstream, which is why DTS CD's will work with any ordinary CD player that has a digital output. To hear DTS DVD audio, you need to upgrade to a player that supports DTS.

Q: I have a DVD that states Dolby Digital 5.1 audio on the package but turned out to be 2 channel with no 5.1 option. Is this a mislabeling problem?

A: Sometimes there is no menu option for alternate sound tracks. To access them you must press the audio button on your remote to change to the 5.1 track. Occasionally there is a menu option to select which audio track you want to hear, but the audio button is locked out so it appears as if there's only one track.