I know this isn’t specifically a Mac/Apple question but I don’t know who else to ask so I’m hoping fellow TidBits members can help. I haven’t had a DVD player for years, thought I was done w/them. Lately I’ve found that many older movies & taped concerts aren’t available via streaming, the only way to watch them is to buy the DVD.
I’m considering buying a DVD player so I can watch old movies/concerts but it’s been so long since I’ve used a DVD player, I don’t know anything about them anymore.
Don’t need anything sophisticated, as long as it can plug into my iMac and/or my TV, I’m good.
Any suggestions as to what to look for? Brands, features, anything?
Thanks very much for any guidance.
These days, I don’t think any standalone players are any good. The entire market has been in a massive race to the bottom.
Given that a Blu-Ray movie player is not much more expensive than a DVD player, I’d get one of those, so you can watch HD content. And maybe consider a 4K UHD player, if you have a 4K TV and think you might buy a 4K movie. (But 4K players cost more than “standard” Blu-Ray players and you may not want to spend the extra money for it.)
My standalone players are made by Sony, and they work well for playing discs, but don’t try using them for anything else. (They all have Internet connectivity and claim to be able to run streaming apps, but they are not even close to powerful enough to do that well.)
If you want to use your computer instead of a standalone player, you should be able to buy and use any USB DVD drive. macOS includes DVD player software, and I’ve never had a problem using it for playing video DVDs (both homemade ones and commercial ones).
If you buy a USB Blu-Ray drive, you can use it, but Apple doesn’t include any Blu-Ray video playback software. So you will only be able to play DVDs unless you get third-party Blu-Ray player software. Since I have no personal experience with this, I won’t recommend any products.
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I’d have to check to see if the movies/concerts I want are available in Blu-Ray. Unfortunately, much of the older video material that was originally available in VHS then DVD was never put into streaming format so you can’t watch it using Amazon Prime, Netflix, etc.; only way to watch is to purchase the DVD or Blu-Ray, as you suggest. I’ve never used Blu-Ray so I haven’t paid attention to what’s in that format.
I only want the DVD player for playing discs, don’t see using it for anything else. My first choice would be something I could plug into my TV, which is not 4K; using my computer would be a back up option.
There are some older movies and concerts that I hate to think I’ll never be able to see again. Guess I’m getting nostalgic as I get older. I still have a DVD of an old Who concert from 1989 that I have no way to watch. 
Thanks for your input.
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I’ve been using this Desobry $35 player with my TV for several months. Works just fine, and is far better than the Craig model I have in the spare bedroom.
I would buy a Blu-Ray player so that you have the option to watch Blu-Ray discs (tip: your public library might loan Blu-Rays as well as provide free access to streaming video). Also, many Blu-Ray players can upscale DVD video so that it looks better on present-day screens.
ETA: note there is a difference between 4K Blu-Ray players and Blu-Ray players. If you don’t think you will ever want 4K playback capability, a non-4K player costs significantly less than a 4K player.
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Thanks very much; I’ll take a look at it.
Thanks very much. I didn’t know anything about Blu-Ray so didn’t realize Blu-Ray players could play DVDs. I thought Blu-Ray players were for Blu-Ray discs only. Not really interested in 4K; don’t have it now & my TVs are only a couple years old, don’t plan on a new TV for quite a while.
I use a Bluray player/writer with my M2 Macbook Air. It plays CDs, DVDs and Bluray disks but I mainly use it for critical backups with blank 50Gb Bluray disks. For example 20 years of emails archived with Mail Steward easily fits on these disks.
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Although some of the first-generation drives/players may have been that way, every player I’ve seen is backward compatible with all prior disc formats.
So a Blu-Ray player can play DVDs and audio CDs. And a 4K Blu-Ray player can play all of the above.
One additional format (which you probably won’t run across if you’re not in an Asian country) is the Video CD (VCD). These are effectively data CD-ROMs containing MPEG files, but some DVD players may be able to play them. If you don’t have any of these discs, you can safely ignore the format.
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Here’s a link to Verbatim’s product page for what I think drive is:
Do you know if it supports the CD+G format? This is an audio CD with graphics stored in the sub-codes and is used for karaoke discs. Being able to read/write these (specifically the R through W subcode channels) is necessary in order to burn/backup karaoke discs without losing the graphics.
This is normally something mentioned on the product’s specification sheet, but Verbatim’s web site doesn’t include a format list, nor do they make the manual available for download.
I have two of these - one for my Mac Mini, and one for an M2 Macbook Air - and they work fine for CDs and DVDs.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00L1FLU5C?ref_=ppx_hzsearch_conn_dt_b_fed_asin_title_3
I’m still a physical media fan.
I have an LG GP65NB60 USB drive for when I want to read DVDs on my Mac; it sells for under $30, takes up less space than a paperback book, and plays DVD movies normally in the Apple DVD player app.
For the living room, my inclination would absolutely be to buy a simple Bluray player over a DVD player.
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I, too, prefer to own physical media. I guess I’ve turned in to a Luddite, but with material disappearing from streaming services and the end of the formerly grand Netflex lending library that had many obscure titles, I’d just rather buy it. Used discs (CD, DVD, BluRay, UHD, all of them) aren’t even very expensive.
That said, I’d suggest a UHD player. I realize you may only have DVDs you want to play now, but you may eventually want something in UHD, say a nice Criterion Collection remaster or similar, so why limit yourself?
Kevin
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That’s exactly why I’d like to have a DVD player. Not only are many older movies/concerts not available in streaming format, others seem to appear/disappear from streaming services. Costs for purchasing DVDs are much lower than they used to be so I don’t mind buying them.
I used to have a decent sized library of DVDs but when I divorced many years ago, the DVDs were left behind. Streaming was becoming very popular at the time so I never bought a DVD player or replaced the movies/concerts. Now I regret that I didn’t pay more attention to that. But there was no way to know how streaming services would play out. 
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I took a look at the LG, no mention of the type of cable it came with or even if it came w/a cable; wanted to know if it used USB-A or USB-C. Contacted LG support via chat, was told it had a USB cable. Asked if it was USB-A or USB-C, the guy kept insisting it was a USB cable; didn’t seem to understand there were different types of USB connections. 
See above: “USB 3.2 Gen 1 with USB-c connection” (LG DVD player/writer)
Sorry, I was responding to Incompatible’s comment on the drive he/she mentioned: LG GP65NB60 USB drive, which didn’t list the specs. Saw the photo you posted previously w/specs but thought that was a different DVD player. Very sorry for any confusion I caused.
Mine came with a USB-C cable
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Mine has mini-USB on the device side, and includes a short USB-A-to-mini-USB cable. I’ve had it for a while, so newer ones might include different cables.
If I used it more often, I might be inclined to buy a USB-C to mini-USB cable. (I should probably keep one of those around; they’re kind of hard to find.)
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