Audio Video News

Good consumer electronics keep getting better and cheaper.

Toshiba is pushing the price:performance barrier with a versatile new DVD player at an amazingly low price. Introduced at the CEDIA 2001, the SD5700 astounded show attendees with its versatility and excellent picture. The DVD player combines DVD-Video and DVD-Audio capabilities with the capacity for playing back normal CDs and home-brew CD-Rs. The suggested price is just below $400.

The silver-face SD5700 includes all Toshiba's standard features, and improves on its predecessor's video performance with the inclusion of a 10-bit, 54-mHz video D/A converter with "super anti-alias filter." Image quality is enhanced by proprietary "Super ColorStream Pro®" circuitry and progressive component video output with "Cinema Mode" processing. Every aspect of the picture is user-adjustable via Toshiba's custom picture settings feature. Multiple camera angles are available for DVDs so encoded. The SD5700 boasts a horizontal resolution of 540 lines. S-video and component video outputs are standard.

The unit's audio performance is also top-notch, thanks to 24-bit/192kHz PCM decoding. The SD5700 is compatible with MP3, normal audio CDs, and compilation discs made on CD-R or CD-RW. It also works very well with DVD-Audio recordings and includes HDCD® precision filtering and decoding. Surround sound is via 5.1-channel Dolby Digital or DTS, with the 5.1 analog output available directly on the 5700's rear panel. An optional optical digital audio output allows the use of external DACs and signal processors, as does the coaxial digital output. Two Toshiba audio features---"Dialogue Enhancement" and "Spatializer® N-2-2™ Virtual Surround Sound"---add to the 5700's array of options. A dynamic range control enables late-night listening without arousing the ire of family or neighbors.

The SD5700 can be operated either via its front panel or remotely, using onscreen commands. Custom video features include "strobing," "four-power picture zoom," and x2, x8, x30, x100 forward and reverse scan.