LG BD630 Network Blu-Ray Disc Player
See I am always on the
watch for new articles on
new technology. Now, I
ran into a really
excellent piece of content that talks
about technology from a different
point of view. Today’s piece of content is titled LG BD630 Network Blu-ray Disc Player .
LG BD630 Network Blu-ray Disc Player
- Blu-ray disc playback delivers exceptional Full HD 1080p video performance, along with Bonus-view for a picture-in-picture
- Internet access lets you stream instant content from Netflix, CinemaNow, Vudu and YouTube direct to your TV, no computer required.
- Standard DVD Up-Scaling delivers exceptional image quality from standard DVDs with 1080p up scaling via HDMI output
- Dolby Digital Plus lets you experience all of the enveloping surround sound that Blu-ray Disc, high-definition(HD) broadcast, streamed and downloaded media make possible
- Now, with SimpLink you can easily set up and control all of your HDMI connected LG devices with just one remote.
If you want stunning Full HD 1080p and streaming entertainment, you've found it with the BD630 Network Blu-ray Disc Player. Now experience Full HD 1080p unrivaled picture quality, the sound of Blu-ray technology along with the possibilities of having direct access to streaming content from Netflix, CinemaNow, Vudu and YouTube. If you want stunning Full HD 1080p and streaming
entertainment, you've found it with the
BD630 Network Blu-ray Disc Player. Now experience F
List Price: $ 119.99
Price:
See I am always on the
watch for new articles on
new technology. Now, I
ran into a really
excellent piece of content that talks
about technology from a different
point of view. Today’s piece of content is titled Duracell Value Charger With 4AA Pre Charged Rechargeable Nimh Batteries, CEF14DX4 .
Duracell Value Charger With 4AA Pre Charged Rechargeable Nimh Batteries, CEF14DX4
- Charges 4 AA or AAA batteries
- LED to indicate charge status
- Compact size is great for travel
- Plugs directly into the wall - no cords
- Comes with 4AA Pre Charged rechargeable batteries
Duracell Value Charger with 4AA Pre-Charged Rechargeable NiMH Batteries - CEF14DX4
List Price: $ 23.27
Price:
December 27th, 2011 - 09:22
Fast loading for Blu Ray and truly excels at local media playback!,
I was pleasantly surprised with the LG BD630! You get a whole LOT for the money! I am going to try and pick this thing apart somewhat in this review , so if you are interested then Read On Mc Duff!
I purchased this unit for my 81 year old father who has taken to watching Xvid and MKV files from the internet, usually documentaries on WW2 and other history programs. Of course he also watches DVD’s but has not until now delved into Blu Ray or Netflix streaming. I needed something for him that had a very easy to follow menu system and worked WELL with a minimum of glitches.
The player itself is very basic on the outside. The BD630 features an on/off , eject, play/pause and stop buttons on it’s face and a USB slot covered with a little rubber trap door on the right hand side with the disc drawer in the middle. It doesn’t exactly exude high build quality on first glance, but what makes this little player SO good is the software inside. (more on that very soon) Mind you, it isn’t totally cheap looking and as the saying goes good things can and DO come in small packages.
This is a very small (not very deep) unit and also a very lightweight one. It came packed with a decent PRINTED manual , basic cabling (you will need an HDMI or Component cable) and a functional remote that uses only 1 AAA cell, also included. It comes with a couple of printed adverts for Netflix and even a small sticker on the top of the unit that screams NETFLIX at you. (easily removed) The power cable is attached. You get composite video out, stereo RCA audio outs , Component Video and HDMI Out , a Coax Digital Audio out and a LAN port for connecting to your home network if you wish to use the Netcast features such as Netflix and You Tube.
Being at the low end of the LG food-chain, this particular player is NOT DLNA enabled and to play your video files (other than blu ray and DVD) you must stream from a USB device be it a thumb drive or external hard drive. You can not connect this unit via the Ethernet connection to your computer. LG starts including THAT feature a few more models UP from this one. I guess that is understandable given the price point.
The connectivity is very good really, you can use this device with everything from an analogue standard TV all the way up to 1080p HDTV and your audio options are just as good with the analogue stereo outs, or the Coax digital which can handle up to 5.1 Dolby Digital or DTS and the HDMI which can pass thru the uncompressed Dolby TruHD or DTS Master Audio tracks that accompany much of the blu ray releases. You can set the Video output to match your TV resolution, set picture aspect ratio to play 4:3 programs as is or to stretch them to fill your screen. The USB port can be used to connect a USB thumb drive or even an external hard drive. It isn’t too picky about the formatting of the drive and can also support up to 4 drive partitions. That alone is amazing for the price and a nice touch.
This brings me to my first and only MAJOR complaint about this machine. It is SO lightweight than when you plug in your USB drive or cable to it, the unit itself tends to push backwards. Perhaps adding some non slip little rubber feet to the bottom with a couple drops of super glue would easily solve that.
Just be aware that if you are not careful, you run the risk of knocking the thing over when accessing that feature. Note: To access any BD Live features you may wish to download and view, a USB drive is required as there apparently is minimal onboard memory. I personally disable BD Live on every machine I have as this tends to slow loading times.
Set up took less than two minutes after connections were made. The machine boots quickly. Easily as quickly as my Oppo BDP-80. Things got VERY interesting when I loaded a Java heavy Blu Ray disc and it loaded VERY quickly. I can honestly say this machine loads a Blu Ray disc FASTER than my Oppo (a nice fast machine) and that blew me away just to see it happen. Playback was as expected. GREAT! DVD up-conversion to 1080p was average for a new machine today, but better than average for machines only a year or so old. And the disc tray itself is solid and goes in and out without any sort of loud rattle of worrisome grinding noises. (a complaint for some Oppo BDP-80 and 83 users)
The Netflix GUI is about the same as on the current crop of LG TV’s. Your performance is going to depend more on your internet connection and speed than the LG software which in my opinion is very good. Navigating my Instant Queue was a bit sluggish but I have the same problem on ANY of my Netflix enabled devices. Once you start playback and it loads, things work just the way you would expect and want them to.
It is noteworthy to mention I had NO problems at all playing DVD-R and CD-R discs. Discs containing Xvid and other video file…
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|December 27th, 2011 - 09:37
Would be great if network connection worked,
I bought this player to replace an existing BR player because I wanted the Netflix streaming. That worked perfectly when I got it and we used it for 6 weeks with no problems.
Then, it decided to update the firmware. Now it will not connect on the network. It has no error messages, nothing you can adjust (other than static IP), and you cannot revert the firmware.
I contacted LG, who are good about answering the phone. They admitted that some firmware version had a problem and had me manually upgrade. That did not help.
I contacted Netgear and through the logs from the router, they say the player is generating a lot of crc errors.
I contacted LG again and they had me send it to them. They sent it back with a note saying that they saw no problem. I tried it and still no luck. So, it is worthless for the purpose.
I have no idea if this would work better with another vendor’s networking, but I have 20 different kinds of devices connected wired and wirelessly with no problem (from PCs and Macs to PS3s and Wiis and music players and mobile devices). So, I believe that LG has made some terrible change in their firmware but will not own up to it.
So, be forewarned and be VERY careful about taking any new firmware from LG.
NEW INFO: after getting a network snooper, I was able to see that the LG is using bad DHCP messages. Some routers can accept them, but the netgear cannot (and I suspect others cannot either). I switched to static IP (and setup the assignment in the router) and now it works. You should not have to do that, but that is what it took.
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|December 27th, 2011 - 10:04
Good Batteries, Bad Charger,
This package (CEF14DX4N) includes four new Duracell ‘Pre Charged’ NiMH AA cells, plus a simple charger. The batteries are similar to the Sanyo eneloop low-self-discharge cells. In fact, based on their identical technical specifications and physical shapes of (+) and (-) terminals, I am convinced that the Duracell Pre Charged AA is actually SANYO eneloop AA underneath a different wrapper. Therefore all the good things you heard about eneloop apply to Duracell ‘Pre Charged’, too.
The ‘value charger’ (CEF14) included here, however, is not a good value because:
1. It is a timer-based dumb charger, meaning that it doesn’t detect when cells are full charged. It simply charges at 360mA for 6 hours and turns off. You have to wait until your cells are fully exhausted before recharging, otherwise they will be over-charged. With a ‘smart’ charger, you may choose to top-off your rechargeable cells any time.
2. It can only charge either 2 or 4 AA cells in pairs. This is very inconvenient if you have appliances that require odd number of cells.
3. It can only charge two AAA cells, and you cannot charge any more AA cells at the same time.
My advice is to get the CEF23DX4N package for just a few dollars more (*). It comes with four Duracell Pre Charged cells (2xAA + 2xAAA), but the included charger (CEF23) is far superior in every aspect. It even operates from your vehicle battery, and doubles as an USB charger, too.
[Update on Dec 24, 2008]
I was only half-right when I boldly proclaimed that “Duracell Pre Charged AA are rebranded Sanyo eneloop cells” in my original review. It turns out that the first batch of Duracell AA cells I bought from Amazon are made in Japan, and those are identical to eneloop (both mechanically and electrically). But lately I bought some more Duracell AA from a warehouse club. Those are made in China, and they are identical to the Rayovac Hybrid.
[Update on Feb 15, 2010]
I have confirmed that the new Duracell ‘Value Charger’ has several improvements over the old model:
- Works from 100-240V AC (instead of just 120V AC)
- Able to charge 4 AAA at a time (instead of just two)
- Semi-smart charge termination (stops when BOTH cells are fully charged)
The only remaining drawback is thet it charges in pairs only.
(*) [Update on Oct 7, 2010]:
Duracell has discontinued the excellent CEF23 charger (at least in the US) last year. So prices for the remaining inventory have skyrocketed. If you need an inexpensive charger that can handle individual cell, consider the Sanyo eneloop MDR02 2-cell charger.
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|December 27th, 2011 - 10:51
Better charger now?,
I purchased the CEF14 charger with four batteries and the charger supplied is not the same one pictured, nor is it a “dumb” charger as some have described. It can also charge four aa or aaa batteries and is not limited to two aaa’s again as some have described. When I tested it, different batteries charged at different speeds and the charger switched modes to a trickle charge when a set became fully charged.
As for the batteries themselves, they do indeed seem to be comparable to Sanyo Eneloops or Rayovac Hybrids at a slightly lower price.
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|December 27th, 2011 - 11:10
Perfect for digital camera,
Not sure how Duracell did it, but they solved the one con with the Ni-mH type batteries. These pre-charged, Ni-mH batteries don’t discharge when not being used, so they’re perfect for digital devices. This charger with 4 batteries doesn’t cost much more than just the 4 batteries alone. Here’s what you do: acquire twice as many of these batteries w/ the green label as what your digital camera will take. While you’re using one set in your camera keep the other set in this charger. Then, when the set in the camera go dead, just swap them out with the set that’s in the charger. You’ve always got a set of fresh batteries and no waiting for batteries to charge, plus no buying batteries for a long time. This is more expensive initially but saves a lot of $$$ in the long run.
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