At many video rental shops, you can now rent DVDs as cheaply as VHS tapes and the selection is exploding. My e-mail also tells me that DVD has made its way deep into our cultural mainstream. Many readers have indicated they want to buy a DVD player, but there's still an element of confusion about what to look for and how much you need to spend to bring home a reliable machine. So here's a quick take on some frequently asked questions, followed by a few good bets on moderately priced players.
Music CDs play on all DVD players.
You can't play movie discs on a conventional CD player. But what you buy is just as important as how much you invest. Stick with major brands. Although the DVD player has become a commodity product, a certain base line of quality still matters. The technology has been hung up on copy-protection issues, though we may see the first discs by next spring.