Best DVD players & recorders
The DVD player has officially become a commodity, available for sale at Wal-Mart and Rite Aid for $40 or for free with a subscription to a magazine you really don't want. But that just opens the door for specialty DVD players, units that can do much more than just spin discs. At CNET, we've given up reviewing standard players and have focused on the cool stuff.
See all recent DVD player reviews
See all recent DVD recorder reviews
Oppo DV-983H
8.4 Excellent (reviewed 4/17/08)
The Oppo DV-983H is pretty much the ultimate standard-def disc player, but its high price means videophiles on a budget can get a better bang for their buck.
Read review of the Oppo DV-983H
Oppo DV-980H
8.3 Excellent (reviewed 8/29/07)
If you're not ready to get a high-def player, the Oppo DV-980H DVD player delivers excellent performance and an unparalleled feature set for the price.
Read review of the Oppo DV-980H
Oppo DV-981HD
8.3 Excellent (reviewed 2/8/07)
Performing nearly as well as players costing four times the price, the Oppo DV-981HD is an unbeatable bargain for videophiles and enthusiasts.
Read review of the Oppo DV-981HD
Denon DVD-2930CI
8.3 Excellent (reviewed 9/7/06)
We were floored by the Denon DVD-2930CI's image quality, but we were also floored by its high price.
Read review of the Denon DVD-2930CI
Panasonic DMR-EA18K
8.0 Excellent (reviewed 7/16/08)
Outstanding recording quality and tons of features, like flexible recording speed and chasing playback, make the Panasonic DMR-EA18K an excellent all-purpose DVD recorder.
Read review of the Panasonic DMR-EA18K
Philips DVP5960/37
7.0 Very good (reviewed 5/8/06)
The Philips DVP5960/37 HDMI-upscaling DVD player is an excellent choice for budget-conscious HDTV owners and multimedia aficionados, and its DivX playback is a nice bonus.
Read review of the Philips DVP5960/37
Philips DVDR3575H
6.8 Good (reviewed 11/5/07)
The Philips DVDR3575H is pretty much your only choice if you want a DVD recorder with a hard drive these days, but it's not as good as it could be.
Read review of the Philips DVDR3575H
Sony DVP-CX995V
6.7 Good (reviewed 10/28/05)
While the Sony DVP-CX995V has some annoying quirks and takes forever to load with disc information, this 400-disc megachanger does a great job removing clutter.
Read review of the Sony DVP-CX995V
Nu CinePlayer PDP100
6.5 Good (reviewed 9/24/07)
The Nu CinePlayer PDP100 is an extremely small DVD player with a great feature set for traveling, but it lacks the niceties of larger standalone players.
Read review of the Nu CinePlayer PDP100