Experience Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1 surround sound from your favorite DVDs with a compatible surround receiver. A virtual surround-sound processor will create similar effects to a four-speaker sound setup through your TV's stereo speakers.

Playback options include a built-in screen saver, two-step zoom, chapter/track programmable memory, frame-by-frame advance, support for multiple captions and angles, slow- and fast-motion forward, and parental locking.

The AD-1500 is compatible with NTSC and PAL televisions and discs (as long as the discs are Region 1), and it includes a remote control for convenient operation from the comfort of your couch.

Apex's warranty for the AD-1500 covers labor for 90 days and parts for one year.

(...)The quality of the parts is less than any other electronics component I have ever owned and they obviously have quality control issues.

Functionality is near perfect. It played DVDs wonderfully ... with one slight exception -- I played Little Mermaid with the Spanish language track and English subtitles on. At ends of three of the over 20 chapters, the transition was not smooth but jumped slightly as if a couple of frames were dropped. Other than that, DVD playback was great.

VCD playback was good. I honestly could not tell any major quality difference between the VCD movie and the DVD movie; the DVD looked only a little brighter and sharper. Having never played a VCD before, I was shocked to learn that almost all the DVD functionality was gone. I could play, stop, rewind, fast-forward and goto a specific time in the VCD - no chapters, menus, etc. I understand this may have as much to do with the individual VCD as with the VCD format and the DVD player. Still, I just can't wait to start capturing home videos into my PC and burning my own VCDs now that I can play them.

Audio CD and MP3 CD playback was awesome. I have burned just over 100 of my favorite songs to a single CD-R and it played them with no problems. There are some neat features here as well. (...)!

In summary, I would say that this player has awesome features at an amazingly low price, but at this price, something had to be compromised. That compromise was quality of parts and assembly. I am left with the impression that I need to "be careful with it and not hurt it". I could never let the kids use it by themselves. I really like it and certainly do not regret buying it ... as long as it keeps working.


Possibly the best of the low cost players!   November 23, 2001
 78 out of 82 found this review helpful

This low cost dvd player does just about everything you could want a player to do. It will play dvd, cd, cd-r, cd-rw, vcd, svcd and mp3. How many other machines will do that for less than $100? The picture quality is great and the sound is good. It even comes with parent lock. People I know with this player love it, and people who don't have it wish they had waited and saved some money.


Lack of quality control at Apex   March 5, 2002
 67 out of 69 found this review helpful

I bought a few of these units a month ago and NONE of them worked from the start. Some would continuously close and open the DVD tray when plugged in asking for a disc; the rest would not even open the tray - all you could hear was constant clicking until they were unplugged. I got tired of going back and forth exchanging the unit. Besides, the guys at CC told me that most of the AD-1500 players come back to them sooner or later.

It is such a waste to produce something that no one at the factory has time to power up and check. It would not take more than 15 seconds to do, save shipping costs across the world, and maybe it would even get them a few loyal customers in the long-run.

I would be very reluctant to buy an Apex DVD now no matter what advanced or other great `hackable' features it might offer on paper. This unit sounds too good to be true, so when you buy it, make sure the store is close by, so you can easily return or exchange it...


Great, basic machine   December 7, 2001
 52 out of 52 found this review helpful

I just purchased this player as a first time DVD user, and I am more than pleased. The picture is perfect and the sound is amazing. For those who said that the video didn't play well, I am wondering if they tried hooking it in through a VCR, as that will mess up the picture (either no picture, or a picture that fades in and out). THIS IS EASILY REMEDIED.

If you have an older TV, one with only a cable input and no video input jacks, you have to buy an RF Modulator (which the directions could have more clearly explained in my opinion), for about $30 at any (local store), in order to properly split the connection. This allows me full function of my two VCRs and my cable box along with the DVD player.

The machine is easy to hook up, is lightweight and attractive, and works very well. The directions are a little unclear, but it is a great "starter" machine, especially for the money.