Panasonic S97 or S97S

verve247 · 12-23-2004, 11:03 AM

Can someone tell me if there is a difference between these 2 DVD players? I'm having trouble in my searches finding any info.

Leon · 12-23-2004, 01:02 PM

I believe the DVD-S97S has a silver chassis.

verve247 · 12-23-2004, 03:32 PM

Are you sure? I have the S97 and it has a silver chassis. Got it from onecall a week ago. Saw this new deal for the S97S (courtesy of G|A deals page) and wanted to know what the difference was. Of course onecall doesn't mention the S97 at all anymore. Now when i compare them spec-wise, I just can't notice a difference. This is strange.

Apex · 12-23-2004, 05:48 PM

S97 = Original name of product

S denotes silver, K denotes black for Panasonic. They never made the K version of the S97, so the full name is DVD-S97S.

verve247 · 12-23-2004, 07:02 PM

Oh I see. I wonder if anyone else will only have DVD-S97 on their packaging.

To those that got in on the deal:
I paid 265 (20 more) than was currently advertised. From my early playings with it, it looks pretty slick. When powered, there is a blue neon bar that appears over the disk slot. It plays back-up dvd copies which are nice. Kinda amusing is that the player will flash a screen saying it knows you are using a back-up copy and you better be using it only for back-up purposes or ELSE (in so many words).

I was only able to watch video by RCA unfortunately. My TV is still in transit. I thought i could use a HDMI-DVI cable to my 20.1" dell, but it needs HDTV capabilties to work. I'll give a thorough review when everything is in place.

verve247 · 01-01-2005, 02:29 PM

This dvd player rocks. I have been using the HDMI port to my Toshiba 46HM94 (Thats 46 inches of widescreen DLP goodness). LOTR ROTK is amazing, especially at 1080i. Though to make that setting, I have to go through several embedded windows. I then watched The Big Lebowski. You can actually notice that this dvd was not good quality and was a little grainy at times. But I watch that movie for the dialogue, not a crystal clear image of THE JESUS.

The dvd player has other nice features too. There is memorized bookmarking (up to 6) which is great for reviewing a scene over and over again. You can also adjust all audio and calibration settings by the dvd player but i prefered to do it through the television. I followed the calibration settings found by a guy at the avsforum . Overall i'm loving my setup.

Apex · 01-01-2005, 02:49 PM

Have you tried 720p?

verve247 · 01-01-2005, 03:34 PM

I have the option to, but haven't tried yet. I may give Big Lebowski another try at 720p and see if it improves. I'm sure that some dvds weren't made for upscaling.

edit-

You can notice the differences between 480p(?) 720p and 1080i. It is very subtle, but the picture does get sharper and the colors look better.

Apex · 01-02-2005, 11:19 PM

720p is native for your TV, so instead of going from 480 to 1080 and back down to 720, it goes directly from 480 to 720.

verve247 · 01-04-2005, 10:43 AM

Though i do see subtle improvements raising the settings to 1080i. The TV seems to handle it.

When i get an hdtv cable or antenna, I'll probably keep that at 720p.

skyscraper · 01-17-2005, 05:32 AM

Hi,
I use the player with my Pana PT-AE700 through a HDMI cable. But there is no way to change these settings you talk about (720p, 1080i etc)

verve247 · 01-18-2005, 11:48 AM

I'll post how when i get home tonight. They dont make it easy to get to, but it is in the manual.

verve247 · 01-19-2005, 07:51 PM

Hey Skyscraper, here's how you do it:
Click Display on the DVD remote, then press enter on Picture Menu , video output mode. Choose a setting that has an asterik. Enjoy.

Quote:

Originally Posted by skyscraper

Hi,
I use the player with my Pana PT-AE700 through a HDMI cable. But there is no way to change these settings you talk about (720p, 1080i etc)

IrishSS · 01-29-2005, 07:40 AM

Is there any place to actually buy the S97 right now, much less get a good deal on it? Everywhere I look it's out of stock or they don't even carry it.

My DVD player started crapping out on me and now my big 'ole TV is starting to go to waste!

verve247 · 01-29-2005, 12:11 PM

I got mine at onecall.com I can't really comment further because I haven't followed the dvd player market since. Maybe you can convince Apex to inquire about a deal/price break?

IrishSS · 01-29-2005, 12:55 PM

OneCall has it for $269.99 but they want $20 S&H, tax (Im in WV) and they don't have it in stock... I'd pay the $269 if I wasn't going to get raped on S&H. Hard to believe nobody else has it for sale, much less in stock...

verve247 · 01-30-2005, 07:45 PM

Looks like your not the only person having a hard time getting this player. A review from Amazon by : Floyd C. Ohara "pinoy2":

Quote:

How could people review this product when you can't find it anywhere. Amazon have not carried this model, so what gives. Where did all these reviewers get there product from!

IrishSS · 02-01-2005, 01:58 PM

Vanns apparently got it in stock today. They are selling it for $269.99. Think I'll pick one up.

verve247 · 02-01-2005, 08:36 PM

good luck on that.

IrishSS · 02-02-2005, 08:30 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by verve247

good luck on that.

Is there meaning/sarcasam behind that? All the reviews I could find on Vanns were good...

verve247 · 02-03-2005, 12:29 AM

No . Sorry. RE-reading it, it sounds bad. I meant good luck on finally finding a site that sells the player. Tell us how it turns out.

IrishSS · 02-03-2005, 04:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by verve247

No . Sorry. RE-reading it, it sounds bad. I meant good luck on finally finding a site that sells the player. Tell us how it turns out.

Well, it shipped yesterday and I should have it by Tuesday of next week. $269 and no tax or S&H seemed like a pretty good deal to me... especially since they had it in stock!

iramarine · 02-06-2005, 02:07 PM

Fry's has it, but it is WAY overpriced at $399.

12-23-2004, 11:03 AM	#1
verve247 Commander Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: San Francisco Posts: 1,486	Panasonic S97 or S97S Can someone tell me if there is a difference between these 2 DVD players? I'm having trouble in my searches finding any info. __________________ Vegetarian - Old indian word meaning poor hunter.

12-23-2004, 05:48 PM	#4
Apex Can you hear me now? Join Date: Dec 1999 Location: Here Posts: 5,506	S97 = Original name of product S denotes silver, K denotes black for Panasonic. They never made the K version of the S97, so the full name is DVD-S97S. __________________ The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance - it is the illusion of knowledge. Daniel J. Boorstin (1914 - )

01-01-2005, 03:34 PM	#8
verve247 Commander Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: San Francisco Posts: 1,486	I have the option to, but haven't tried yet. I may give Big Lebowski another try at 720p and see if it improves. I'm sure that some dvds weren't made for upscaling. edit- You can notice the differences between 480p(?) 720p and 1080i. It is very subtle, but the picture does get sharper and the colors look better. Last edited by verve247 : 01-01-2005 at 10:32 PM.

01-29-2005, 07:40 AM	#14
IrishSS Rear Admiral Lower Half Join Date: Jul 2000 Location: NoVa Posts: 2,644	Is there any place to actually buy the S97 right now, much less get a good deal on it? Everywhere I look it's out of stock or they don't even carry it. My DVD player started crapping out on me and now my big 'ole TV is starting to go to waste! __________________ Spigs, you MFR#1N!

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12-23-2004, 01:02 PM	#2
Leon Administrator Join Date: Dec 1999 Location: San Diego, CA Posts: 3,219	I believe the DVD-S97S has a silver chassis.

12-23-2004, 03:32 PM	#3
verve247 Commander Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: San Francisco Posts: 1,486	Are you sure? I have the S97 and it has a silver chassis. Got it from onecall a week ago. Saw this new deal for the S97S (courtesy of G\|A deals page) and wanted to know what the difference was. Of course onecall doesn't mention the S97 at all anymore. Now when i compare them spec-wise, I just can't notice a difference. This is strange.

12-23-2004, 07:02 PM	#5
verve247 Commander Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: San Francisco Posts: 1,486	Oh I see. I wonder if anyone else will only have DVD-S97 on their packaging. To those that got in on the deal: I paid 265 (20 more) than was currently advertised. From my early playings with it, it looks pretty slick. When powered, there is a blue neon bar that appears over the disk slot. It plays back-up dvd copies which are nice. Kinda amusing is that the player will flash a screen saying it knows you are using a back-up copy and you better be using it only for back-up purposes or ELSE (in so many words). I was only able to watch video by RCA unfortunately. My TV is still in transit. I thought i could use a HDMI-DVI cable to my 20.1" dell, but it needs HDTV capabilties to work. I'll give a thorough review when everything is in place.

01-01-2005, 02:29 PM	#6
verve247 Commander Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: San Francisco Posts: 1,486	This dvd player rocks. I have been using the HDMI port to my Toshiba 46HM94 (Thats 46 inches of widescreen DLP goodness). LOTR ROTK is amazing, especially at 1080i. Though to make that setting, I have to go through several embedded windows. I then watched The Big Lebowski. You can actually notice that this dvd was not good quality and was a little grainy at times. But I watch that movie for the dialogue, not a crystal clear image of THE JESUS. The dvd player has other nice features too. There is memorized bookmarking (up to 6) which is great for reviewing a scene over and over again. You can also adjust all audio and calibration settings by the dvd player but i prefered to do it through the television. I followed the calibration settings found by a guy at the avsforum . Overall i'm loving my setup.

01-01-2005, 02:49 PM	#7
Apex Can you hear me now? Join Date: Dec 1999 Location: Here Posts: 5,506	Have you tried 720p?

01-02-2005, 11:19 PM	#9
Apex Can you hear me now? Join Date: Dec 1999 Location: Here Posts: 5,506	720p is native for your TV, so instead of going from 480 to 1080 and back down to 720, it goes directly from 480 to 720.

01-04-2005, 10:43 AM	#10
verve247 Commander Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: San Francisco Posts: 1,486	Though i do see subtle improvements raising the settings to 1080i. The TV seems to handle it. When i get an hdtv cable or antenna, I'll probably keep that at 720p.

01-17-2005, 05:32 AM	#11
skyscraper Plebe Join Date: Jan 2005 Posts: 1	Hi, I use the player with my Pana PT-AE700 through a HDMI cable. But there is no way to change these settings you talk about (720p, 1080i etc)

01-18-2005, 11:48 AM	#12
verve247 Commander Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: San Francisco Posts: 1,486	I'll post how when i get home tonight. They dont make it easy to get to, but it is in the manual.

01-29-2005, 12:11 PM	#15
verve247 Commander Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: San Francisco Posts: 1,486	I got mine at onecall.com I can't really comment further because I haven't followed the dvd player market since. Maybe you can convince Apex to inquire about a deal/price break?

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01-29-2005, 12:55 PM	#16
IrishSS Rear Admiral Lower Half Join Date: Jul 2000 Location: NoVa Posts: 2,644	OneCall has it for $269.99 but they want $20 S&H, tax (Im in WV) and they don't have it in stock... I'd pay the $269 if I wasn't going to get raped on S&H. Hard to believe nobody else has it for sale, much less in stock...

02-01-2005, 01:58 PM	#18
IrishSS Rear Admiral Lower Half Join Date: Jul 2000 Location: NoVa Posts: 2,644	Vanns apparently got it in stock today. They are selling it for $269.99. Think I'll pick one up.

02-01-2005, 08:36 PM	#19
verve247 Commander Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: San Francisco Posts: 1,486	good luck on that.

02-03-2005, 12:29 AM	#21
verve247 Commander Join Date: Apr 2001 Location: San Francisco Posts: 1,486	No . Sorry. RE-reading it, it sounds bad. I meant good luck on finally finding a site that sells the player. Tell us how it turns out.

02-06-2005, 02:07 PM	#23
iramarine Lieutenant Junior Grade Join Date: Sep 2004 Posts: 74	Fry's has it, but it is WAY overpriced at $399.