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Thread: Play Station2

  1. #1
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    Play Station2

    I was thinking of buying a DVD player to hook up to my TV then found that you can play DVD's on a Play Station2 (ok so I haven't kept up with technology, too busy messing about with my computer).
    Being a little on the tight side I was thinking why not buy one and kill two birds with one stone, watch films on DVD and be able to play games as well.
    As I don't know much about these gamey machine thingy's I have a few Questions.

    Are they any good as DVD players?
    Do I need to buy an extra Ram card and why?
    What extra's, if any should I buy?
    Has anyone got any tips they can give about these machines?

    Thanks in advance

  2. #2
    Senior Member uncle_jimbo's Avatar
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    dont buy a ps2, its 1 1/2 years old and still at $300, instead buy an X-Box it still costs $300 and an extra $30 to play dvds, but its much newer and you get a 8gig hard drive and out of the box ethernet networking with it.

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    Originally posted by uncle_jimbo
    dont buy a ps2, its 1 1/2 years old and still at $300, instead buy an X-Box it still costs $300 and an extra $30 to play dvds, but its much newer and you get a 8gig hard drive and out of the box ethernet networking with it.
    Ya but the ps2 has hundreds of games out and a lot of them are really cool...but I digress. If you are not really into consule gaming, why bother. Just buy a dvd player, they are really cheap right now, like 180 CDN or so, spent the rest of the money on your computer upgrades or buy a dvd player for your computer for like 100 CDN or less....
    To me, clowns aren't funny. In fact, they're kind of scary. I've
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    Senior Member dmoltrup's Avatar
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    The PS2 is an OK DVD player with a few drawbacks:

    Whenever I play a DVD, it seems I accidentally hit a button on the controller and end up having to replay the entire chapter.

    Some people say that they have difficulty getting it to play multi-layer DVDs, although I've had no problems.

    The PS2 doesn't sync the sound and video correctly. On some DVDs it's barely noticable, but on others, it looks like an old Chinese Godzilla movie. This is a known problem on several DVD players, the PS2 and some other SONY players being the biggest name players affected.

    If you get one of those remote controls to operate the PS2 like a standard DVD player, SOMEONE is going to press buttons on it when you're playing a game. This is extremely annoying, ESPECIALLY in a major fragfest when you have friends over. You see, the PS2 remote control is seen by the unit as another controller. The models that let you plug a controller into it, so you don't have to constantly swap can cause interference. They just move the controller buttons around to make it LOOK like a standard remote control.

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    Don't buy a PS2 with intentions of using it as a DVD player. It's DVD playback sucks most of the time, and there's a list of movies a mile long that either won't play, or don't play correctly in it. Sony really dropped the ball on the PS2's DVD playback capabilities, IMO. Even a $130 cheapo DVD player would be 10 times better.
    I am disrespectful to dirt!

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    Thankyou one and all for your input.

    After reading the reply's I think's I will forget about a PS2, sounds a bit like old technology, things certainly move fast nowadays don't they.

    Think's I may buy a DVD for my puter, seems a bit naff if the PS2 remote control won't work properly, has problems playing multi-layer DVDs and the sounds not right. Might look into one of these X-Boxes, like the idea of the 8gig hard drive and the out of the box ethernet networking (just need someone to play with, my girlfriend like's playing games but not on the computer ).

    Don't look like I am going to save any money after all.

  7. #7
    Honorary Admin Fatal_Exception's Avatar
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    i bought my sister and her husband a PS2 recently and they have no problem with dvd playback.... they like the available games, too... they specifically asked me not to get them an X-box because of the paucity of games for the forseeable future.... the husband has beta hardware (?) that allows him to run Linux and access the internet via cable modem... they like everything about the system

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    Originally posted by Fatal_Exception
    i bought my sister and her husband a PS2 recently and they have no problem with dvd playback.... they like the available games, too... they specifically asked me not to get them an X-box because of the paucity of games for the forseeable future.... the husband has beta hardware (?) that allows him to run Linux and access the internet via cable modem... they like everything about the system
    Got my interest. I need to know more.

  9. #9
    Senior Member dmoltrup's Avatar
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    [1.35] Why are the audio and video out of sync?
    There have been numerous reports of "lip sync" problems, where the audio lags slightly behind the video, and even reports of the audio coming before the video. Perception of a sync problem is highly subjective--some people are bothered by it while others can't discern it at all. Problems have been reported on a variety of players (notably the Pioneer 414 and 717 models, possibly all Pioneer models, some Sony models including the 500 series and the PS2, new Toshiba models including the 3109, and some PC decoder cards). Certain discs are also more problematic (notably Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels; Lost In Space; TRON; The Parent Trap; and Austin Powers).

    The cause of the sync problem is a complex interaction of as many as four factors

    - Improper sync in audio/video encoding or DVD-Video formatting.
    - Poor sync during film production or editing (especially post-dubbing or looping).
    - Loose sync tolerances in the player.
    - Delay in the external decoder/receiver.

    Factor 1 or 2 usually must be present in order for factor 3 or 4 to become apparent. Some discs with severe sync problems have been reissued after being re-encoded to fix the problem. In some cases, the sync problem in players can be fixed by pausing or stopping playback and then restarting, or by turning the player off, waiting a few seconds, then turning it back on.

    A good way to test your player is to simultaneously listen to the analog and digital outputs (play the digital output through your stereo and the analog output through your TV). If the audio echoes or sounds hollow, then the player is delaying the signal and is thus the main cause of the sync problem.

  10. #10
    Member tycoonist's Avatar
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    Originally posted by uncle_jimbo
    dont buy a ps2, its 1 1/2 years old and still at $300, instead buy an X-Box it still costs $300 and an extra $30 to play dvds, but its much newer and you get a 8gig hard drive and out of the box ethernet networking with it.
    The X-Box is not a good DVD player. Many people have had problems playing certain types of DVDs on them. Plus, you gotta buy the DVD kit which is about 30 to 40 dollars.

    Just go buy a regular DVD player. Don't spend your money on a system/DVD player if you are not going to buy games for the system.

  11. #11
    Ultimate Member Bizkitkid2001's Avatar
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    Originally posted by tycoonist


    The X-Box is not a good DVD player. Many people have had problems playing certain types of DVDs on them. Plus, you gotta buy the DVD kit which is about 30 to 40 dollars.

    Just go buy a regular DVD player. Don't spend your money on a system/DVD player if you are not going to buy games for the system.
    The X-Box is a very good DVD player! I have watched about 6 different movies on mine so far and have had no prblems. My friend have a PS2 and it skipped sometimes durring the movie shrek. I took the same movie to my house and put it in my XBOX and it didn't skip once.


    And if your not into games that much then go buy and APEX. They are only about $90 and can play more different types of disc then a lot of $200 DVD players. Though many people complain that it isn't as good quality, but I can't tell you if it does or doesn't. I've never used one.

  12. #12
    Member tycoonist's Avatar
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    I have read in many video game magazines that the X-Box wasn't a great DVD player. Now, I don't have a X-Box, but I would believe that some of the people that tested out the X-Box would be correct on that. But, you don't really have to believe me. I would just buy a regular DVD player. However, I still like clunky VCRs and VHS tapes.

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    Ok, if you truly want to buy a gaming system the best one out not based on hardware but based on games hence the phrase gaming system is the PS2. They got the biggest library wit the most high quality games compared to gamecube and exbox right now. If you want a multi task system don't buy a Xbox just upgrade your computer get yourself a sidewinder controller and you can do everything you can wit the xbox plus more. Xbox is basically a computer. Only buy a gamecube if your a nintendo fan and if you like the nintendo famous franchie's like mario, zelda, and metroid (shigeru miyamoto = greatest mind in games). But overall the Ps2 is the best choice because it gots the best games and the most games and that's what a gaming system needs games. And also don't based buying a gaming system based on dvd capabilities because u can get a cheap dvd player that plays dvd perfectly for like 50 dollars now. So in this long explanation my conclusion is based your opinion on the games you are goin to play. Do you want a gaming system with 2 or 3 good games and the rest u would play for a day. or do u want alot of good games to play???

  14. #14
    Member vass0922's Avatar
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    LOVE my PS2!!!
    Quite honestly I've never had a problem with the DVD player its always been very reliable (including wih Shrek!!)

    Not to mention you can play PS1 and PS2 games!!
    HUGE SELECTION!

    Regarding the linux thing, yes you can do this!
    It will come with ethernet and a hard drive.. unfortunatley it is about 200 bucks so I wont be able to get it...

    However, it is pretty cool that you can do that ... NEVER see anything like that on XBox.. with that you get a mobo a cool graphics card and pared down Win2k with directx

    Its a freakin' pc, that gets GSOD's instead of BSOD's
    hate the controller its freakin' huge... I'm 6'4 and the controller is too big and gawdy.. the xbox itself is like an old beta tape player! HUGE!!

    Regarding the ps2 dvd remote, generally its just a controller but you can buy a small remote for like 20 bucks that is very convenient

    Not to mention you can play Metal Gear Solid 2

    However, if you're not a big gamer... follow the others advice and just get a dvd player or a dvd rom

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    My brain hurts.

    This thing is not as simple as I had first thought.

    I really appreciate all the help I am getting here, think I will mull over the input for a few days before making up my mind what to do but think the X-Box is out of the frame for a start.


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