DVD Player
This site last updated 5/1/2006
DISCLAIMER: The reviewer hosting this web page is in no way affiliated,
associated or employed
by the Vendor of this product. Quick simply the reviewer is a consumer who
purchased this product
and decided to create this page because a search on the web
produced ZERO Hits for this model at
time of purchase. The information on this page is no different to that which can
be found on any DVD
player forums and review web sites.
Any comments, feedback and questions please email
flatplanetcafe@hotmail.com .
12-12-2004 Coles has new stock of the Sonwa selling at $55 this time.
This DVD player was purchased from a
Coles Supermarket
late August 2004 for $69aus.
Unit measures
only 5cm
high, 43cm wide and 26cm deep.
The display is not colour but a soft blue and not overly bright.
The instruction manual mentions
Macrovision copy protection and suggests its enabled as well as the Region code
being set to 4.
Unit comes with Composite Video and stereo audio RCA leads, Remote control+2xAAA
batteries.
Warranty card states 12 months from
date of purchase and I'll quote straight off the
warranty card now, check out the section in red.
"If warranty service is required you should:
Telephone the SONWA Customer
care centre on 1300 137 251 for the name/address of the
nearest Authorised Service Centre.
Then deliver the
product to an Authorised Service Centre. Please note freight to and from
the nearest Authorised Service Centre must be arranged by you.
Please provide a copy of your receipt as proof of date of purchase."
The packaging and instruction manual state the following specifications and capabilities:
NOTE : The MT1379GE chip does not support
playing of AVI files, MPEG4 encoded in XVID or DIVX
and cannot be forced to play MPEG4 by just updating the firmware. For a DVD
player to play MPEG4
it must have the MT-1389xx chip. Players like the the ZENSONIC Z300 or Z330
www.zensonic.com ,
XMS888(and othe XMS models from Strathfield) are players that have MPEG4
support.
This unit uses the Mediatek MT-1379GE chip and the PCB, software and
interface are almost
identical to the PRIMA PDV2050 DVD player. If you wish to see the
PRIMA tests click HERE.
However the following tests where specifically done on the SONWA unit:
Played these formats - DVD / DVD-R/ DVD-RW / VCD / SVCD / CD / CD-R / CD-RW / MP3 / JPEG
Played MP3s and JPEG slideshows from CD-R / CD-RW and DVD-R /
DVD-RW media (BONUS).
However unit doesn't play a MP3 at same time as showing a JPEG slide show
like some other units.
Plays MPEG1 and MPEG2 video files (*.MPG ) from CD-Rs and DVD-R media (data format).
Tested MP3 files encoded from 128k to 320K
Plays plain Audio CD format from CDR media ( I should hope so )
The following media types where used in testing :
Databank, Spider, Shintaro, Princo, Ritek x4 DVD-R
TDK 2x DVD-RW
TDK gold, Princo CD-R
Princo CD-RW
The following test have been reported to me by satisfied owners:
Plays Mini DVD recorded CDR's encoded at <4000kbps
Plays DVD media with MP3 content
Plays WMA audio files encoded up to 320kbps ( but doesn't play Lossless WMA)
Converts NTSC to PAL including scan rates to play on PAL only TV's.
Flawless Dual layer transfer using Verbatim 2.4x Dual layer DVD+R media
There have few and far between but here are some issues reported
by consumers who
purchased the $55 model during Dec 2004-Jan 2005.
Microphone inputs don't work. The setup default is MIC
OFF and once enabled in the setup menu
they work but if the unit is switched off the setting reverts to OFF again
(very annoying). NEW
A couple of reported power supply failures, which the
cause was mainly bulging ready to launch
electrolytic capacitors on the 240Vac side of the PSU (Power Supply Unit).
NEW FIX
A few people have reported there units caused RF
(Radio Frequency) & EMI (Electro Magnetic Interference)
affecting AM radio reception on all radios in there households and only
stops when the player is turned off
from the front power switch and not the power standby of the remote or
unplugged from the power point .
This is due to the poor power supply design which has no Australian
standard RF EMI filtering.
While the filter is missing this doesn't mean the unit is any less
safer.
If you have problems you may need to buy a RF/EMI filter (not a surge
protected powerboard) to plug between
power point and players power lead. Try DICK SMITH, JAYCAR Electronics,
any electrical wholesaler or even
Bunnings. Of course in the end the combined price of the player and
filter may mean you where better of
purchasing a known name brand DVD player like a cheap LG.NEW
FIX
When zooming in or out the on screen display showing 2x , 4x etc. doesn't disappear after 8sec.
Reports of DVD players generating
a band of fuzzy lines across the screen that move up and down.
Its known to happen on some older TVs. In some
situations the lines disappear when both the audio
and video leads are plugged directly into the TV. Note
this issue is not common but below is a list of TVs
that are and not affected.
( This may be related to the RF filtering issue stated above)
|
TVs known to display fuzzy lines |
TVs known not to affected |
| Panasonic 68cm (16 years old) | Sony KV2184AS 51cm (12 years old) |
| Sony J29SZ2 68cm (10 years old) | Panasonic TC-36PM10A 36cm (5 years old) |
| Sharp SV2145X 51cm (>10 years old) |
Picture changes brightness or looses sync . This
is not a issue with the player. See section labelled
"Macrovision copy Protection" on this web page.
This DVD Player may have aliases but I'm unaware of them at this time
* Note - The player I purchased states unit is set to Region 4
in the instructions and on the rear panel.
The setup menu has no item for resetting region code and no hack is
available.
Having stated that, certain consumers have reported to me their players have
successfully played
discs coded for region 1, 2 and 4.
Macrovision is ENABLED and not hackable on the Mediatek MT1369 and
1379 chipsets.
So if you connect your DVD player into your VCR input because your TV has no AV
inputs
then your picture may change in brightness level or loose sync.
Some VCRs, namely newer and more expensive models have a proper pass
through circuit
on the front VCR inputs which are not affected my macrovision.
| Known VCRs with inputs than work | Known VCRs with input than don't work (many) |
| Panasonic NV-FJ630 HiFi | Panasonic NV-HD650MKII HiFi |
Parental Lock is set to ADULT and initial Password is set to : 3308 # Its on page 16 Item 6 of the manual.
The unit runs on the popular MediaTek MT1379GE and MT1336E
combination chipsets
also found in many others players including:
Prima PDV2050
NuTec NDV2020
Apparently the MT1379 supports Progressive scan in PAL and NTSC.
The DVD drive optical mechanism is a SHINWA Industries China.
Sonwa SDVD300 Splash Screen
Set-Up DVD Menu
MP3 Menu Screen
A complete set of 5.1 channel audio outputs, separate Stereo
L+R, Optical and Coaxial digital and
S-video,
component and Composite video outs.
As you can see a plain and simple layout. Decoder PCB on the
right,
DVD drive centre and a
rather simple power supply. I say simple because they haven't used a switching
transistor in the design
of the switchmode supply nor have they used Australian compliant 240v RF/EMI line
filtering.
The decoder PCB is populated with the MediaTek MT1379GE and MT1336E
combination chipsets.
SHINWA Industries Mechanism
Laser Mechanism close up
Plenty off buttons on the remote. Takes 2 AAA batteries
supplied( non-alkaline off course ).
While its larger than the average remote the buttons are easy to press with your
thumb.
Nowhere is it stated the player does Karaoke but it has 2
front
mounted 3.5mm MIC Sockets with
volume & echo controls. However the MIC inputs are disabled by default and must
be switched on
via the Setup menu, again and again and again (see issues section).
5/1/2006
Yes this DVD player has just bought the farm.
Its time for this player to crossover and pass through those pearly gates that
constitute the great DVD player graveyard,
namely the local rubbish tip or Cash Converters store.
It suffering major digital issues that could be described as colourization or
aliasing.
Basically when attempting to display certain colours they look more like ones used in animation.
Predominantly Blacks, Greys
and Skin tones are effected.
Colour scaling is gone.
The effect resembles colours seen on an animated movies
or cartoons, one colour shade.
Having said this you probably wouldn't notice this issue if all you watched was
Disney animated movies.
However when playing normal movie DVDs the problem is clearly evident.
This effect can also be seen on cheap and expensive Plasma TVs and Digital Set top boxes when using
the analogue connectors
i.e. component, S-video or composite. This due to poor quality
Digital-to-Analogue and Analogue-to-Digital converter
circuits used in these devices.
This will probably be my last update to this page.
24/8/2005
Well, hindsight would be a wonderful ability to have.
Six to 12 months down the track the player has proved to be an average buy,
probably even poor
if you have experienced the issues some have reported.
Let me quote the old cliché "You get what you payed for".
30/8/2004
So far this unit has played everything I've thrown at it.
Its also one the few players under $80 to have the in built display unlike the
cheaper
units which have no display but rely on the OSD ( On Screen Display ) to
convey
time, track, format and system information.
Disc loading and menu responses are quick.
The remote is larger than normal but easy to use for anyone with fat fingers .
Due to the
arched shape underneath you'll find it constantly sliding off the coffee table
if placed
over the edge a bit.
If I have any issues with this player it would be the lack of a longer file
names
in the file menu( for MP3, JPEG, MPG ) and no region setting.
The door tray is of a thin translucent design making it flimsy. Due to its
thinness the recess has no depth
and you must be careful to place the DVD correctly before closing the door or
risk scratches.
Also due to the simple power supply design I recommend powering down via the
power switch
instead of the soft power from the remote when not in use and it will probably
last longer as well.
Having red the warranty card, if the unit does go faulty I would try taking it
back to Coles for a refund
or replacement first, rather than departing with more money to courier to the
authorised service centre.
Can't complain for $69.
Web page created by FuzzyPumper in a real hurry.
Any comments, feedback and questions please email
flatplanetcafe@hotmail.com .
This site last updated 5/1/2006