Funai (Magnavox, Sylvania, Insignia, Etc.) Discussion Thread

[ti-triodes]

I was at a Wal-Mart on Long Island this weekend and saw a boxed Magnavox Blu-ray player. There was nothing on display, nor was there a price on the box or anyone there to help me. Sorry I couldn't get the price.

[iontyre]

And yet the Magnavox site lists nothing under blu-ray. Searching the site for blu-ray returns nothing. Seems kind of weird...

[ti-triodes]

Originally Posted by iontyre

And yet the Magnavox site lists nothing under blu-ray. Searching the site for blu-ray returns nothing. Seems kind of weird...

I did a triple take when I saw it. It *did* say Blu-ray player.

[rwestley]

Which Long Island store had the player?

[Ron Jones]

Magnavox was expected to have a Funai manufactured BD player sometime this spring/summer, since they are a sister brand to Sylvania whose BD player was already announced. Both Magnavox and Sylvania are 2nd tier brands names used by Philips. Some retails sell the Sylvania branded units while other, such as Walmart, sell the Magnavox branded units.

[rr6966]

I'm guessing that we are talking about this player :

http://reviews.cnet.com/video-player...&autoplay=true

[Ron Jones]

The first generation of Blu-ray Disc (BD) players manufactured by Funai are now (early May 2008) starting to work their way to retailers. Funai is a Japanese company with manufacturing factories in China. They are the largest manufacturer of DVD players (making over one half of all DVD players sold in North America). They are an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) for many familiar 2nd-tier brand names including:

- Magnavox (Status: starting to show up at some Walmarts at $298)
- Sylvania NB500SL9 (Status: multiple e'tailers, e.g, Amazon, are taking pre-orders)
- Philips BDP7200 (probably a Funai OEM BD player - Status: expected soon at retailers)
- Emerson (Status: ?)
- Insignia (Status: Expected soon at Best Buy)
- Pye (Status: ? at Circuit City)

Note: While Funai also is reported to be the OEM for several models of Denon DVD players, the OEM for the current Denon BD players is unknown.

The retail prices for the Funai manfactured BD players already announced are in the $349 to $399 price range.

Summary of features (to be updated as more information becomes available)

- Profile 1.1 BD Player
- Video Output Resolutions: 480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p (1080p/24 and 1080p/60)
- DVD Upconversion to 720p, 1080i, 1080p
- Support for HD Audio Formats: (probaby bitstream output, no internal decoding)
- HDMI Ver. 1.3
- Weight 9.5 lbs.
- Dimensions: 17.2" x 13.9" x 2.8" (exact dimensions may vary by brand)


Here are links to information related to the Funai manufactured BD players:

Funai USA Press Release

Owner's Manual for Magnavox NB500MG9 (Sylvania owner's manual should be virtually identical)

Insignia BD Player Thread

Sylvania NB500SL9 (Amazon Listing)

Philips BDP7200 CNET Review (probably a Funai OEM BD player)

[Scoob]

Originally Posted by Ron Jones

[IMG]
Philips BDP7200 CNET Review (probably a Funai OEM BD player)

Not sure that is correct that the Philips is a Funai rebadge. As stated in an earlier post, this Funai player weighs 6 lbs. The Philips player weighs 9.5 lbs. I think many are assuming this, but how about some proof? (not being argumentive, just would like to know)

[DavidHir]

I thought I read somewhere where these units are using the Panasonic Unifier (sp) solution. Anyone confirm?

[Ron Jones]

Originally Posted by Scoob

Not sure that is correct that the Philips is a Funai rebadge. As stated in an earlier post, this Funai player weighs 6 lbs. The Philips player weighs 9.5 lbs. I think many are assuming this, but how about some proof? (not being argumentive, just would like to know)

Since neither Sylvania nor Magnavox (both brands owned by Philips) have posted specs for their BD players on their web sites yet, the info on Amazon and the other e'tailers sites for the Sylvania BD player may not be final. We should know shortly if the Philips BD player is just a different packaging of the same BD players being sold under the Magnavox and Sylvania brands, or not.

6/7/08 UPDATE: If you look at the Amazon listing for the Sylvania NB500SL9 it shows the weight as 6 lb. under 'Technical Details' but 9.5 lbs. under 'Product Details' (link in Post #7 above). The 9.5 lb. value agrees with the weight listed by Philips for their new model BDP7200 BD player. Therefore, it is looking more likely that the new Philips BD player is also made by Funai.

[ack_bk]

So what are the price of these at Wal-mart for those that have seen them?

[rwestley]

I just visited the Commack LI store and they do not have any of the units. Does anyone know which stores have them?

[ti-triodes]

Originally Posted by rwestley

Which Long Island store had the player?

East Meadow, but there was only 1 box and I saw it Saturday.

[docsimp]

I saw a few of these in a metro Atlanta store on 5/5/08. There was a price neat the bar code reading $298. I scanned it at the register, and it came up the same. For some reason, it's not on the website yet, nor in the two other walmarts that I checked. I would like to hear some reviews from users.

[Mel2]

I work at wal-mart. most stores should be getting this model in any day now. but they will get them. the funai/magnavox NB500 is the same as the rebadged sylvania NB500 just sold at different retailers. wal-marts will also get the samsung 1500 at the price point of $348.

[iontyre]

Originally Posted by Mel2

I work at wal-mart. most stores should be getting this model in any day now. but they will get them. the funai/magnavox NB500 is the same as the rebadged sylvania NB500 just sold at different retailers. wal-marts will also get the samsung 1500 at the price point of $348.

I will be absolutely SHOCKED if any Walmart near me ever has more than one model of Blu-ray player till prices drop to below $200.

So far they have carried nothing but the PS3. And a paltry few discs.

[whitestang06]

Originally Posted by docsimp

I saw a few of these in a metro Atlanta store on 5/5/08. There was a price neat the bar code reading $298. I scanned it at the register, and it came up the same. For some reason, it's not on the website yet, nor in the two other walmarts that I checked. I would like to hear some reviews from users.

Did you happen to notice any features, namely audio decoding capability?

[ti-triodes]

Originally Posted by iontyre

I will be absolutely SHOCKED if any Walmart near me ever has more than one model of Blu-ray player till prices drop to below $200.

So far they have carried nothing but the PS3. And a paltry few discs.

Here's a shocker. I saw a Magnavox and Sony 300 at Wal-Mart on Saturday!

[rwestley]

If the price is starting out at $300 I would not be surprised to see it drop before the holiday season to $249 or even $199. I hope someone buys this player and tries it out. I also wonder If they will stock it at Sam's club?

[Ron Jones]

From the CNET review of the new Philips BDP7200 (probably another Funai OEM'ed BD player - see Post #7 above), it appears that it is decoding the 1080p/24 on the disc to 1080i then doing de-interlacing to create the 1080p/60 output. This was a limitation of the first generation Samsung BD player as well as certain models of the first and second generation Toshiba HD-DVD players. The results are less than ideal performance with visible digital artifacts when using a 1080p/60 output. When 1080p/24 output is used there is no conversion to 1080i and the results are much better, but this requires a HDTV that accepts a 1080p/24 input. Assuming we can confirm the Philips BDP7200 is a Funai OEM'ed player then this same limitation will probably apply to all of this generation of Funai manufactured BD players. I would not have anticipated that any new BD player would have this limitation.

[GizmoDVD]

Don't you guys have a camera phone? Take a damn picture already.

[HDMI Guy]

The results are less than ideal performance with visible digital artifacts when using a 1080p/60 output.

Can this be resolved by using a 1080i output?

[Scoob]

Originally Posted by Ron Jones

From the CNET review of the new Philips BDP7200 (probably another Funai OEM'ed BD player - see Post #7 above), it appears that it is decoding the 1080p/24 on the disc to 1080i then doing de-interlacing to create the 1080p/60 output. This was a limitation of the first generation Samsung BD player as well as certain models of the first and second generation Toshiba HD-DVD players. The results are less than ideal performance with visible digital artifacts when using a 1080p/60 output. When 1080p/24 output is used there is no conversion to 1080i and the results are much better, but this requires a HDTV that accepts a 1080p/24 input. Assuming we can confirm the Philips BDP7200 is a Funai OEM'ed player then this same limitation will probably apply to all of this generation of Funai manufactured BD players. I would not have anticipated that any new BD player would have this limitation.

Yep, this was discussed in the 7200 owners thread some time ago.

[Scoob]

Originally Posted by HDMI Guy

The results are less than ideal performance with visible digital artifacts when using a 1080p/60 output.

Can this be resolved by using a 1080i output?

The review goes on to say that they set the player to 1080i and let the TV scale it to 1080p, and the jaggies went away. So, yes 1080i is a good work around as long as your TV has a decent scaler.

[Scoob]

Originally Posted by Ron Jones

Assuming we can confirm the Philips BDP7200 is a Funai OEM'ed player then this same limitation will probably apply to all of this generation of Funai manufactured BD players. I would not have anticipated that any new BD player would have this limitation.

Ron, if your assumption is correct, then Philips was a bit deceptive at CES this year. They emphasized that the 7200 was their own proprietary design. I guess the last thing to find out is if the audio is exactly the same. If these players bitsream DTS HD MA and Dolby True HD and have 5.1 analog outputs then I guess you are right. I still don't think you can be 100% certain quite yet. If they do turn out to be the same player, then overall this is GOOD news for many. Although there is the 1080p60 issue, there is a work around for it. Also for those with 1080p24, 1080i, 768p and 720p that is a non issue. On my Sony LCD (1366 x 768) the picture is great, the same as my PS3. But the great news is, is that the players load times and quick and error free BD-J navigation are great. Also, the player bitstreams TrueHD and DTS HD MA without any issues. ( I have tested 20+ titles bitstreamed to my Onkyo 605)

[HDMI Guy]

Originally Posted by Scoob

The review goes on to say that they set the player to 1080i and let the TV scale it to 1080p, and the jaggies went away. So, yes 1080i is a good work around as long as your TV has a decent scaler.

Thanks. This fits perfect with my TV.

[Joel802]

I saw the Magnavox player today at Walmart in New Haven Connecticut for $288.00.

[DavidHir]

Originally Posted by Scoob

The review goes on to say that they set the player to 1080i and let the TV scale it to 1080p, and the jaggies went away. So, yes 1080i is a good work around as long as your TV has a decent scaler.

You mean deinterlacer.

[Woodshed]

Originally Posted by Joel802

I saw the Magnavox player today at Walmart in New Haven Connecticut for $288.00.

$288, holy smokes!

[Scoob]

Originally Posted by Joel802

I saw the Magnavox player today at Walmart in New Haven Connecticut for $288.00.

Can you look at the back and see if it has 5.1 analog outs?