Philips DVP642 DivX-Certified Progressive-Scan DVD Player
I Encountered a Manufacturing Problem
I purchased this, having read the reviews here, for my parents -- who did not yet have a DVD player. <br /> <br />After connecting it for them, we found that the signal it was sending to the TV would cut out -- for about a second at a time -- periodically, such as every five to ten second or so.  The TV would go to bluescreen only to continue the DVD a second later. <br /> <br />It was fantastically irritating, and I tried connecting the DVD player to another television set but this yielded the same result.  We purchased new cables to connect the DVD player to the TV, thinking they might be at fault.  Again, the result was the same. <br /> <br />After hours of talking with Philips, they came to the conclusion that it was a manufacturing problem, and we had to return the device.  We decided to get a different brand. <br /> <br />This was very annoying, especially given that this was my parents' first DVD player. <br /> <br />I should note, however, that we may well have been a rare manufacturing defect -- this could be a one in a million thing.  (This is the reason why I'm giving two stars instead of one.)  I am perfectly willing to concede this possibility, and that the other 999,999 DVD players out a million might be sterling devices.  I have no ill will against Philips -- in fact, my respect for the brand factored into my decision to purchase this product.  But this happened, and I thought I'd let you know about it. <br /> <br />I should also note that Amazon was wonderful about the return.