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Venturer SHD7000 End User Reports and Owner's Thread! - Page 2

post #31 of 417
11/26/07 at 8:18pm
So its an A3 with a different outer shell?
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post #32 of 417
11/26/07 at 8:36pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by sswingle View Post

So its an A3 with a different outer shell?

In my opinion, you are looking at the Microsoft / Broadcom platform shared by all inexpensive Chinese players; and the Toshiba A3 just happens to be one of those inexpensive Chinese players sharing the same platform. Literally, Toshiba gave this design away and is at the same time using it for their own players. It will be interesting to examine some of the Chinese CH-DVD (China High Definition DVD) players to determine whether they are duplicates of the A3 design. I tend to think they will be very similar. In that event, there will be amazing uniformity among all Chinese players, whether for domestic consumption or for export abroad. Some of the domestic player production will spill over to the United States. Try to imagine, if you can, Sony's S300 BD design shared with and duplicated all over China; and you will get an idea of the Pandora's box that Toshiba, Broadcom, and Microsoft have opened up. The Venturer is not an A3, is made by a non-Toshiba manufacturer, but it has the guts (hardware and software) of the A3. Toshiba determined that it would be better to share the technology and achieve market penetration than to keep it to themselves and perhaps lose the war to Blu-ray. JMHO.
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post #33 of 417
11/26/07 at 8:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by webphilosopher View Post

Literally, It will be interesting to examine some of the Chinese CH-DVD (China High Definition DVD) players to determine whether they are duplicates of the A3 design.

It's not CH-DVD anymore, it's
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post #34 of 417
11/26/07 at 8:50pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by theone2 View Post

It's not CH-DVD anymore, it's

Thanks for the correction. The DVD Forum approved that, I understand. Looks right purty.
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post #35 of 417
11/26/07 at 9:51pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by webphilosopher View Post

In my opinion, you are looking at the Microsoft / Broadcom platform shared by all inexpensive Chinese players; and the Toshiba A3 just happens to be one of those inexpensive Chinese players sharing the same platform. Literally, Toshiba gave this design away and is at the same time using it for their own players. It will be interesting to examine some of the Chinese CH-DVD (China High Definition DVD) players to determine whether they are duplicates of the A3 design. I tend to think they will be very similar. In that event, there will be amazing uniformity among all Chinese players, whether for domestic consumption or for export abroad. Some of the domestic player production will spill over to the United States. Try to imagine, if you can, Sony's S300 BD design shared with and duplicated all over China; and you will get an idea of the Pandora's box that Toshiba, Broadcom, and Microsoft have opened up. The Venturer is not an A3, is made by a non-Toshiba manufacturer, but it has the guts (hardware and software) of the A3. Toshiba determined that it would be better to share the technology and achieve market penetration than to keep it to themselves and perhaps lose the war to Blu-ray. JMHO.

Actually, I think these all still run Linux, do they not? Also, I believe the SoC in the A3 is the NEC Emma3. Not sure what you mean by that Pandora's Box comment.
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post #36 of 417
11/26/07 at 9:56pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by theone2 View Post

It's not CH-DVD anymore, it's

these days, what isnt?
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post #37 of 417
11/26/07 at 11:01pm
So, from power on to tray eject what is the time?

Also, from power on with disc inserted?

If you have posted allready sorry for asking again but to be way faster than a tosh is exiting news!!
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post #38 of 417
11/27/07 at 4:19am
Quote:
Originally Posted by evolver View Post

Actually, I think these all still run Linux, do they not? Also, I believe the SoC in the A3 is the NEC Emma3. Not sure what you mean by that Pandora's Box comment.

Too strong and the wrong metaphor. My bad. This move by Toshiba will have many consequences. Pandora's box implies they will be bad consequences. It would be fairer to say consequences will be mixed, depending on your point of view. In any case this platform may result in numerous Chinese companies producing virtually the same player. That could be good or bad, depending on your perspective. In any case, HD DVD could expand very quickly this way. Obviously, Toshiba has decided that sharing the technology will help them more than hurt them; I don't think Sony has arrived at that point yet. It would be interesting to see how many of the China HD DVD players show HDA3 in the firmware.

My understanding is that the A3 and the Chinese platform were to be Windows CE. Has someone verified this one way or the other? The menus could look the same, even with a different operating system.
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post #39 of 417
11/27/07 at 5:05am
Quote:
Originally Posted by webphilosopher View Post

Too strong and the wrong metaphor. My bad. This move by Toshiba will have many consequences. Pandora's box implies they will be bad consequences. It would be fairer to say consequences will be mixed, depending on your point of view. In any case this platform may result in numerous Chinese companies producing virtually the same player. That could be good or bad, depending on your perspective. In any case, HD DVD could expand very quickly this way. Obviously, Toshiba has decided that sharing the technology will help them more than hurt them; I don't think Sony has arrived at that point yet. It would be interesting to see how many of the China HD DVD players show HDA3 in the firmware.

I see this as a good thing. With one reference design that is shared across many manufacturers, the scale of economies to produce these players is considerably low. Support may be next to nothing from the actual manufacturer, but if the firmware is sourcing from Toshiba, it should have frequent updates and fixes. This is what Nvidia does in the computer videocard industry, except they don't manufacture an actual product like Toshiba does with the A3.

Looks to me like Toshiba is giving Chinese manufacturers a reason to keep those factories running, churning out these cheap low end players for the masses. The manufacturers probably make a bit more on these than those $29 disposable dvd players. The one bad side is that Toshiba has somewhat tarnished the value of the A3. Who would buy the A3 if it actually turns out the Venturer really is an A3, which it most likely is. Perhaps Toshiba wanted to make its initial money off the low end while it could (A1, A2, A3) and then move its product upscale, eventually leaving the 1080i lowend market for China and mass production.

Doing so does get rid of a 'knock' against Toshiba - that not all of their players are full 1080p.
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post #40 of 417
11/27/07 at 5:13am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Damed View Post

I own an HD-A1.

I bought this for my brother for Christmas. Yes, it was the price that determined the choice.

Will he mind if you pop the cover and take a picture?
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post #41 of 417
11/27/07 at 5:19am
Back in September on DVDTALK I said this would be the case. Last week here on AVS I said the same thing. I'll say it once more. Toshiba HASN'T been producing their players. They have been outsourcing the production of the a2's, a3's and the rest of their HD players. The factory that's producing the Venturer is the same factory that has been making the Toshiba's. If you like the build quality of an A3, then this is what you should expect from the Venturer since it came from the same place, made by the same workers. I even said I could sell them for $199 CDN, but was worried Walmart would beat the price due to a rumour. I was wrong about the Walmart price, but this is GREAT news for me because I can make a profit on the Venturer's after all
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post #42 of 417
11/27/07 at 6:03am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by deez View Post

So, from power on to tray eject what is the time?

Also, from power on with disc inserted?

If you have posted allready sorry for asking again but to be way faster than a tosh is exiting news!!


See my first post. I timed eject button to tray eject, and disc load to first image.
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post #43 of 417
11/27/07 at 6:30am
Well, since it is rumored that all Toshiba players are capable of playing TL51 discs, my bet is that is will be able to also. It also means that any any other future upgrades or fixes should work great on this player. That takes away most of the worries or concerns.

Note: I did say 'rumored'. I wouldn't count on anything concerning TL51 until an official annoucement is made.
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post #44 of 417
11/27/07 at 6:32am
Wonder if, like a lot of those Chinese made dvd players, this one will be able to be made region free?
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post #45 of 417
11/27/07 at 6:40am
If you are within your return/exchange period, and the Walmart still has these in stock, care to try a firmware update to 1.3 via burned CD?

Or, possibly pop the cover and take a few pictures. I am assuming this uses the Broadcom chip, not sure if the A3 does as well. If so then I think the Toshiba firmware updates will work fine. If the Toshiba A3 is not based on the Broadcom, the firmware may not work.

Thanks for answering all our curious questions.
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post #46 of 417
11/27/07 at 7:01am
I bought my A2 on January 23 2007. On the box it says; "Made in China."

How can you expect someone to build an HD DVD player - or for that matter a BD player when you have to have specific components that do specific jobs.

There is no "Super SoC" that combines the SoC with the GPU . . . yet.

Does the Emma3 support WinCe? I know the Sigma 8634 says "supports Linux OS" and Broadcom says nothing. This SoC DOES support WinCe:

http://www.st.com/stonline/products/...e/bd/12876.pdf
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post #47 of 417
11/27/07 at 7:30am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Haneke View Post

Back in September on DVDTALK I said this would be the case. Last week here on AVS I said the same thing. I'll say it once more. Toshiba HASN'T been producing their players. They have been outsourcing the production of the a2's, a3's and the rest of their HD players. The factory that's producing the Venturer is the same factory that has been making the Toshiba's. If you like the build quality of an A3, then this is what you should expect from the Venturer since it came from the same place, made by the same workers. I even said I could sell them for $199 CDN, but was worried Walmart would beat the price due to a rumour. I was wrong about the Walmart price, but this is GREAT news for me because I can make a profit on the Venturer's after all

Yes, I've also been suggesting the same thing - that Alco Electronics (Venturer's parent company) manufactures some of Toshiba's players.

However, I was just guessing. Are you saying you know this for a fact? If so, which models does Alco make?

Who makes the loader? Is that Alco too, or is the HD DVD loader from Fuh Yuan? BTW, Fuh Yuan's HD DVD loader is $57.

Quote:
Originally Posted by rallen View Post

Wonder if, like a lot of those Chinese made dvd players, this one will be able to be made region free?

Given that it's almost identical to the A3, my guess is no. Indeed, some distributors have asked Venturer, and were told no.
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post #48 of 417
11/27/07 at 7:52am
The Venturer is most definitely based on HD-A3 reference design, slimmed down in areas to save costs.

Looks like an awesome deal. My only gripe is the poor model name for a cheap player. SHD7000? If read Shh - D 7000, well I'm sure you see the problem with that
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post #49 of 417
11/27/07 at 7:56am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ruined View Post

The Venturer is most definitely based on HD-A3 reference design, slimmed down in areas to save costs.

Looks like an awesome deal. My only gripe is the poor model name for a cheap player. SHD7000? If read Shh - D 7000, well I'm sure you see the problem with that

The old JVC D-VHS players model numbers were DH-30000 and DH-40000. Why, I have no idea.
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post #50 of 417
11/27/07 at 12:09pm
Thread Starter 
Just as an interesting note, I was back at Walmart and now they are out of stock.
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post #51 of 417
11/27/07 at 12:12pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Damed View Post

Just as an interesting note, I was back at Walmart and now they are out of stock.

How much stock did they have?

Was the Wal-Mart flyer advertising this for today?
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post #52 of 417
11/27/07 at 12:16pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by BuGsArEtAsTy View Post

How much stock did they have?

Was the Wal-Mart flyer advertising this for today?


I was told they got 5 in. When I saw them, there were 2 left. I took 1, and the other is now gone as well.

The flyer came in today, and isn't a sale - it's an "Every Day" item and price. I've heard reports from people seeing 8 to 15 units at stores in the GTA (Greater Toronto Area)
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post #53 of 417
11/27/07 at 2:46pm
I just picked one up at the Industrial Rd, Walmart in Ottawa, Ontario. The kid in electronics said the players arrived today and they received two units. Only one left now
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post #54 of 417
11/27/07 at 4:34pm
I went to the Agincourt Toronto Wal-Mart. They had zero, and while the guy there was quite knowledgable about HD DVD, he thought I was crazy when I asked about the Venturer player. I should have just showed him the HD DVD brochure they had on display.

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post #55 of 417
11/27/07 at 5:28pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by BuGsArEtAsTy View Post

and while the guy there was quite knowledgable about HD DVD...

LOL No kidding. I visit that Walmart store a lot, and those guys really seemed to know a lot about HD/BD. :P
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post #56 of 417
11/27/07 at 8:12pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ruined View Post

The Venturer is most definitely based on HD-A3 reference design, slimmed down in areas to save costs.

You have some facts to base this claim on? How do you know they "slimmed down" anywhere to save costs?

I'm not slamming you personally, I just hate these kinds of comments.

From the little we've heard and seen, this player is functionally identical to the Toshiba A3 and running the same software out of the box. It comes with two HD DVDs inside the box ... and has an "every day price" of Can$199 -- exactly what Venturer stated in late Aug when the unit was announced.

By contrast, Toshiba's HD A3 "every day price" is Can$349. Are you suggesting $150 of stuff is missing in the Venturer design?

My bigger point is Venturer makes money not in winning format wars but in making electronics TODAY to sell THIS MONTH at a profit. Back in Aug they knew they'd be able to street this at Can$199 and turn a profit. As the unit looks to be very very similar to Toshiba's HD A3 the only conclusion we can reach is: Toshiba's HD A3 ALSO does not cost $200 to manufacture -- and probably under $100 before marketing costs.

Why hasn't a Blu-ray manufacturer (and there are 170 of them as BDA like to remind us) stepped up with a similarly priced unit? Surely Blu-ray isn't three times the price to manufacture? This is the core point: Venturer puts the lie to the "format war" being about quality or choice -- it's about an old boys club and an economic cartel trying to set artificially high prices.

Bravo to Venturer in proving genuine competition can lead to broader market adoption, lower prices, and continued innovation.
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post #57 of 417
11/27/07 at 8:32pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by PopcornReady View Post

You have some facts to base this claim on? How do you know they "slimmed down" anywhere to save costs?

I'm not slamming you personally, I just hate these kinds of comments.

From the little we've heard and seen, this player is functionally identical to the Toshiba A3 and running the same software out of the box. It comes with two HD DVDs inside the box ... and has an "every day price" of Can$199 -- exactly what Venturer stated in late Aug when the unit was announced.

By contrast, Toshiba's HD A3 "every day price" is Can$349. Are you suggesting $150 of stuff is missing in the Venturer design?

My bigger point is Venturer makes money not in winning format wars but in making electronics TODAY to sell THIS MONTH at a profit. Back in Aug they knew they'd be able to street this at Can$199 and turn a profit. As the unit looks to be very very similar to Toshiba's HD A3 the only conclusion we can reach is: Toshiba's HD A3 ALSO does not cost $200 to manufacture -- and probably under $100 before marketing costs.

Why hasn't a Blu-ray manufacturer (and there are 170 of them as BDA like to remind us) stepped up with a similarly priced unit? Surely Blu-ray isn't three times the price to manufacture? This is the core point: Venturer puts the lie to the "format war" being about quality or choice -- it's about an old boys club and an economic cartel trying to set artificially high prices.

Bravo to Venturer in proving genuine competition can lead to broader market adoption, lower prices, and continued innovation.

I think there's a lot of truth in your comments. Maybe Toshiba isn't so "desparate" as the BD fanboys, who still post here, try to suggest. Toshiba made some "big" decisions (sharing technology) a year or so ago and now I think they're beginning to pay off.

Cheers,

Grant
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post #58 of 417
11/28/07 at 7:06am
woo hoo! Gotta check my local Wally World!
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post #59 of 417
11/28/07 at 7:17am
is there a website where we can download and burn a CD of new firmware or do we have to download it diurectly to the player?
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post #60 of 417
11/28/07 at 8:50am
I couldn't see any download links on the Venturer site.

That being said, I just upgraded my Venturer directly to the player. Took about 25 minutes...

Pre-upgrade: 1.1
Post-upgrade 1.3

These numbers seem familiar...


Quote:
Originally Posted by David Susilo View Post

is there a website where we can download and burn a CD of new firmware or do we have to download it diurectly to the player?
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