Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

Recommendations for Desktop DivX Players?

Posted by Cliff on from the hassle-free-hardware dept.

Gheesh asks: "Early this year I was thinking on buying a desktop DVD/DivX player. When the KISS issue with MPlayer arose, I decided to postpone the purchase until things cleared up. Six months have gone by and there is not much useful information around on the licensing and hacker-friendly capabilities of the various hardware players that have appeared since then. Can anybody provide some insight into this subject?" Are there any hardware players out there that aren't mired in licensing fights that actually are worth the money?

28 comments

  1. This is a joke, right? by Txiasaeia · · Score: 2, Funny

    Trust me, Penny Arcade's DivX machine is the *ONLY* one you want to get.

    --
    Condemnant quod non intellegunt.
  2. get the kiss player by nocomment · · Score: 1

    Then install OpenBSD and run kissd. :-)

    --
    /* oops I accidentally made a comment, sorry */
    /* http://allyourbasearebelongto.us */
  3. Xbox by Vaevictis666 · · Score: 5, Informative

    Not for everybody, but I went the modded xbox route. Using a soft mod you can get XBMC on it running divx (or xvid, ogm, whatever) off of the DVDRom, hard disk, or even over the network. No remote control unless you get the DVD remote addon or a wireless controller, but it does work quite well. And it sure beats bringing the PC out from the other room :P

    1. Re:Xbox by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

      How do I soft mod my XBox? Web link? Google is not giving me anything.

    2. Re:Xbox by sycotic · · Score: 4, Informative

      amen brother!

      http://www.xboxmediacenter.com

      cheap and effective with the added bonus of being able to play games too (and linux for all you loonie linus lovers ;-)

      and of course if you actually want to download XBMC you will be needing none other than XBINS http://www.xbins.org - the definitive homebrew software archive for XBOX enthusiasts!

      just to keep you in the loop once you're interested you also can't go past _the_ modding/homebrew news source http://www.xbox-scene.com

      --
      -- If I were a fish, I'd be wet
    3. Re:Xbox by Vaevictis666 · · Score: 4, Informative
      Soft mod being a software mod. This is using a special save game. Instructions and tutorials and such can be found at www.xbox-scene.com. (Try the "Tutorials" link up top)

      Xbox-scene also has gobs of information if you want to go the whole way with your xbox and get a mod chip.

      Other than that, like the other guy said, xbins.org has a whole slew of homebrew games and such, ranging from emulators to actual homebrew games, file utitlies, and the like. You will generally need to go on IRC to download them, since they are built with the official XDK and as such are illegal to distribute. I do highly reccomend XBOMBERBOX if you have 4 controllers and have a few friends that would enjoy a few rounds of bomberman :)

    4. Re:Xbox by Earlybird · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Are there any Xbox players with web-based front ends?

    5. Re:Xbox by Tobias+Luetke · · Score: 3, Informative
      There is nothing compareable to a modded XBOX.

      Indeed not even a pc connected to a TV can compare because the xbox has a HDTV compatible tv out and there are no affortable HDTV out pc gfx cards yet. ( none which aren't more expensive then the entire xbox anyways ).


      Here is a good article from toms hardware

      Here another quote from the same site :
      As things stands, the scope of functions offered by a modified XBox has little or no competition. Only a full-value mini PC can overshadow the Microsoft multi-talented capabilities, but the question of convenient remote control remains unanswered. Unfortunately, the XBox itself has to be taken to grips if you want to get the full range of functions from it. If you can stomach the loss of warranty cover, and have a few hours to configure it, $240 (260), including modifications, will buy you what is a nigh-perfect device for home use from a reseller. And this particular article is a couple of months old now. In the meantime xbox media center was updated with amazing features and the xbox price dropped to 200$.

      As a added boon the xbox runs the best games which are released nowadays ( sadly ).

    6. Re:Xbox by cdrudge · · Score: 2, Informative

      Yes. XMBC has a web gui for queueing up files. I'm not sure how well it works as I've only used it once I beleive.

    7. Re:Xbox by Naffer · · Score: 1

      No HDTV out video cards? My Fx5900 does HD out with a DVI to component video adapter.

    8. Re:Xbox by Tobias+Luetke · · Score: 1

      Yea in this case your hdtv chip would be in the adapter, not on the gfx card.

      This would be a way to get HDTV out though, you are right.

  4. VideoLAN VLC by jeremy_dot · · Score: 2, Informative

    I would suggest VideoLAN VLC. It is a low footprint video player that can use the common codecs when they are installed (ie you have to install the Divx for Linux and a third party DVD Decoder). It's open source and has been ported to multiple distributions of Linux.

    You can get it at http://videolan.org

    It also runs on Windows.

    1. Re:VideoLAN VLC by thegoldenear · · Score: 1

      they're looking for a dedicated HARDWARE player

      "Are there any hardware players out there that aren't mired in licensing fights that actually are worth the money?"

  5. Momitsu V880 by Tyrdium · · Score: 4, Informative

    The Momitsu V880 seems to be pretty famous over at AVS Forums. It plays DivX, XviD, MP3, and pretty much anything you can throw at it. It's got a DVI output, and the image quality is supposedly at the top of the pack. One of the only places I've found in the US that sells it is Extreme Phono. The V880 costs about $250, and they're supposed to start selling the V880N (networking capabilities) around late June for about $400.

    1. Re:Momitsu V880 by Tyrdium · · Score: 4, Informative

      Sorry, this is the correct address.

  6. Lite-On by Nynaeve · · Score: 2, Interesting

    I got a Lite-On LVD-2002 for $100 and I really like it. I can play my DivX MST3K movies on it. :)
    There is a LVD-2010 out now for $200, but the last word is that it is not available.

    1. Re:Lite-On by WoTG · · Score: 2, Informative

      I've got one of these too. I got it for around the same cost, after counting for the exchange rate.

      It has served me well. Almost every NEW DivX file that I throw at it plays with no problems. It doesn't like a lot of the old DivX3 files though.

      Be warned, it is flash upgradable, BUT they've only released one (flakey, by many reports) update and they don't intend to release any future upgrades. I wonder if it's hackable...

      I also wish the MP3 playing functions were smarter. Really, who wants to listen to CD full of 100 MP3's from start to finish OR listen to a single MP3 from the middle of the alpha sort and then stop.

  7. xbox by ezelkow1 · · Score: 2, Interesting

    like the previous post I suggest the modded xbox route. Softmodding is still debatable since it still has a few issues, using an actual modchip to just play homemade software is probably a bit more legal than using an exploit within ms's code. Anyway, im not a legal expert and am completely wrong about it but in any case for the money you will not find a better standalone player than a modded xbox, thats pretty much the sole reason why i purchased mine. A home entertainment unit that can play pretty much any format in existence as well as constant updates all for the price of a midrange all in one standalone.

  8. Try the Phillips DVP642 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative

    It plays DivX 3 4 and 5 and you can make it regionfree just using the remote. Here is a link

  9. Philips DVP642 by nekdut · · Score: 2, Informative

    I just bought a Philips DVP642 from CompUSA for $69. For the price it can't be beat. Plays Divx 3,4 and 5, Xvid and a bunch of other formats. I haven't had any problems playing anything yet.

    Check out this extensive thread at fatwallet:

    http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/messageview.php?ca tid=18&threadid=306890

    1. Re:Philips DVP642 by dubl-u · · Score: 2, Interesting

      Yep! I have one of these and it's a pretty swell box. There have been a couple things that xine will play that the DVP642 won't, but by and large it's been great. It also plays music and will show photos. The firmware could be a little better and the remote needs a better UI, but for the basic functions it's a fantastic value.

      I haven't had a TV in years, and have been reluctant to get anything with a tuner; it's too easy to "just see what's on" and suddenly realize that you've watsted two hours that you'll never get back. But this in combination with a projector, a GreenCine subscription, and an occasional download via my computer's CD-RW drive has been great.

    2. Re:Philips DVP642 by tsa · · Score: 1

      The Philips DVD 737 also plays all this. It looks nice too. I have it; it works well.

      --

      -- Cheers!

  10. GeeXBox (software) by LazyBoy · · Score: 1

    I'm running GeeXBoX on an old laptop. It's a very nice distro. Eventually, I'll probably build my own mini-itx system.

    --

    If Chaos Theory has taught us anything, it's that we must kill all the butterflies.

  11. UMAX / Yamada 6600 by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Interesting

    ... is an awesome piece of kit, it plays anything you throw at it, divX, Xvid yadda yadda yadda. Firmwire upgradable. Optical out, Dolby 5.1, multi region, remote control. its silver and has blue LEDs!

    I bought mine after two friends raved about theirs, haven't been dissappointed.

    only cost me 59 (~$100). Ebuyer is your friend.

  12. What about software solutions? by Paul+Carver · · Score: 1

    Has anyone had any experience with software media front ends?

    I'm pretty happy with my current means of recording but I would really like to have a diskless VIA EPIA based machine that provided a nice GUI using TV output and IR remote input to browse all the video files on other networked machines (SMB, NFS, etc.) Right now, video playback involves VNC and a keyboard/mouse.

    The problem with MythTV is that it REQUIRES a capture card in the backend box. You allegedly can create front end boxes without a capture card, but you must have at least one backend with a capture card. I'd like to have just a media front end, not necessarily a Myth front end.

  13. get a laptop by cryptozoologist · · Score: 1

    they are the most hackable desktop dvd players imaginable

  14. divx is still around? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Hasn't that gone away already?

    It's not a very good idea. DVD's these days are so cheap that a pay-per-play scheme such as divx isn't very cost efficient. And your local rental place probably has better hours, a closer location, and a better location than Circuit City.

    Stick with a plain old DVD player, or just use your PC. Don't go for faddy activation schemes. You'll thank me later.