Official OPPO BDP-83 Owner's Thread [technical talk only] - Page 6

I thought they said they would pay for return shipping even if you just don't like it?

From this web page:
http://www.oppodigital.com/blu-ray-bdp-83/EAP.aspx

FWIW, updating firmware on a USB stick takes all of a minute. 1.5 minutes if you include the reboot.

... so it sounds like the point of the 50-person EAP vote is to see how exasperating the unsquashed bugs are to the unwashed masses. (See what I did there?)

Thanks for the writeup. And congrats to the 50. Vote Yes.

I should point out that USB installs are also trivially easy presuming you already have a computer on the internet that has a USB socket.

You need something like a USB thumb drive (very inexpensive) formatted in the traditional FAT32 or FAT16 formats. These work both with Windows computers and with Macs.

When Oppo gets their public firmware release mechanism up, there will likely be a web page you go to for the latest firmware file. Download that file, unzip it (which results in a folder), and copy that folder to your USB thumb drive. Eject (dismount) the USB thumb drive from your computer. Power up the Oppo, plug in the thumb drive (there is a USB socket conveniently located on the front of the player) and voila! The player will find the upgrade on the drive and offer to install it. The installation process itself is completely automatic. The player shuts down at the end of the install and you can then unplug the USB thumb drive.

No muss, no fuss.
--Bob

Excellent thought, MRinDenver. Adding on to it, even if they have 5000 in a warehouse, if they are downloading last minute firmware, they might still have a limited inventory to actually ship per week.

The Beta testers are somewhat inured to problems. Believe me the player was a LOT worse 6 months ago.

The EAP program gives Oppo a chance to get feedback from fresh eyes.

Oppo discussed with the Beta testers the feature set and quality level the player needed to achieve before EAP shipments began. We all came from different perspectives on this. I was probably as tough as anyone in my list of requirements.

To their credit, Oppo met them all rather than rushing the player out too soon. I believe this player really is ready for the EAP owners.
--Bob

I have a question about the firmware: is it easy to go backwards and install old firmware? On the slight chance that the firmware updates makes things worse (this has happened to me), it would be nice to be able to just load the old firmware back on without having to hack the old firmware file (which I had to do).

OPPO will probably release a fixed version much sooner than I had to wait, but it still would be nice.

Shoot! Now I really wish I'd been chosen Ah well, all good things...

If the experience during the Beta testing is valid as a guide, most firmware releases can be rolled back without problem.

However every now and again there is a firmware release that can not be rolled back, or that can only be rolled back in a more complicated fashion -- i.e., you have to go even further back and then re-install the version you were originally trying to get to.

One of the advantages of doing USB firmware installs is that you can save the various install files on your computer in case you do want to roll back.
--Bob

Now I am really excited to get my hands on this unit.

Come on Oppo, send me my shipping notification email.

Thanks for the great write up Bob.

My bad, didn't recall correctly!

I see no mention of divx or xvid playback in the preliminary specifications, but unless a beta tester or EAP participant tells me otherwise, I continue to believe that these formats are included in "other audio/video/picture files." Divx and xvid were my initial reasons for becoming interested in the BDP-83, after all.

Will someone please confirm that the player plays divx and xvid - preferably from a USB-connected device?

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And have any of the EAP invitees received notification of shipment or some other indication of when they will receive the units? I'd like to know when I can begin living vicariously through you guys.

I haven't spent much time with the feature, but yes the BDP-83 will play divx/xvid files via USB.

Yes, it does. High-def contents, which is new for Oppo. High-def mpeg2 as well.

-Bill

Now that the winners and loosers are dealing with the respective emotions does anybody have any idea how many people actually signed up for the EAP?

Does anyone know if the USB port on the back can support a hub so that multiple devices can be connected via the back connector... I'm wondering if I can have the BDP-83 potentially replace a media server.

By my estimates, 1600-1700.

I haven't tried a hub, so that would be a good experiment.

I know each USB port will support multiple addressable devices: I have an mp3 player with two pieces of storage and both are visible to the player.

A lot of things you would want in a media server are probably not available.

-Bill

For those of you speculating as to whether the price will remain at $499 when the EAP ends, the Early Adoption Program section of Oppo's website says, unequivocally, "The price for a unit of BDP-83 player is US$499." Nothing about an exclusive price "for the EAP program." To me, that says that Oppo does not intend to raise the price.

You might be right about that. I've ISO-ripped most of my DVD library to play through a Klegg Mediashare, but the movies don't look as good as they do on my DVD player (Sony 9000-ES). And although the Klegg has a DVI out and says it upscales, the output quality isn't very good. So I'm hoping that I can play the movies through the OPPO and take advantage of its far superior electronics. Thoughts anyone?

ISO will not be supported. Further limitation is due to the FAT32 file size limitation. It will play VOB and MPEG2 files no problem.

• There is no .iso support.
• Only FAT and FAT32 file systems are supported, limiting file sizes to 4GB.
• Apart from mkv, which is new, the range of supported codecs and containers is not as broad as for previous players. I'm hoping future firmware will expand the list.

-Bill

Bob: Thanks for the write up and continued support to the membership with answering follow up questions....it's appreciated.


This question is to Bob, Joerod, Mark or anyone one of the beta testers...

I assume the answer is "the same"....but I'll ask any way.

Is the Blu Ray PQ performance the same vs your current player? Joe, I know you've seen most, if not all of the current crop of BR players....what are beta testers findings?

Do we think that the not supporting ISO and NTFS are likely to be permanent?

Does the remote look the same as say the 983's? Any other buttons other than the blue/red/green ones that BR players have? I was wondering if it had a 10-30 replay/ff button like the Sony 550?

Yes, we do.

Actually, I don't know why not on NTFS, so we could keep asking.

ISO means "piracy" in the industry and the chip maker refused to support it.

-Bill

Both are hardware limitations.