The PS3 died.
While playing a DVD, the machine suddenly stopped. I thought the problem was the BD player, and I disassembled the system, based on information on YouTube, to remove the DVD, which would not eject.
The system would run the BD motor each time it was started, but then stop and beep.
It is not certain that the problem is the BD drive. BD drives are going for about $60 on Ebay, so it seems to make no sense to repair the device. I’ll sell it on Ebay.
Update: The Vizio player was a bust. It had problems with my HDMI switch. The Sony BDP-S590 is a much better choice. I have had no problems with this model.
I replaced it with a Vizio blu-ray player with Internet Apps. The model I got at Walmart for $94 does not show up on their website or on the Walmart website. Here is the Vizio page for the VBR140. It’s a compact unit with built in Netflix, Hulu and Amazon – and buttons on the remote to activate each one. It also has other services such as Pandora. I have tried MP3 CDs in the device and they work fine with a useful menu to navigate to your songs.
The only thing I’ll miss that I used with the PS3 is the DLNA streaming of photos and music from my other computers that were acting as media servers. I don’t see that function in the device.
I’m very happy with the new player. It has only HDMI video out, Optical Audio, RCA stereo audio, Wireless and Wired Ethernet. Setup was very easy. It automatically got it’s internet address from my router and tested the connection and then when I hit the Netflix option I could sign into my Netflix account and start streaming right away. The Netflix interface is exactly the same as on the PS3. I was concerned that it might have a dumbed down interface but it’s quite functional, just as with the PS3. I played PS3 movies for several hours and it worked without a hiccup.
Quite a functional device for less than $100.
– windy
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