WTF? Cheap ass !#@@$#%^^!!!!

[Worf101]

Can someone ANYONE explain to me why they do this? I just built a decent "entry level" Home Theatre hookup for some friends. Now, the one thing they wanted was a bigger TV and Neflix streaming capabilities. In the end I got em the following:

Onkyo 607 AV Receiver - $200.00 Demo Used.
Vizio 42-inch LCD - $550 new off of Craigslist
LG BD670 Blu-Ray with WiFi built in $150 Vann's
CD Player - Donated from me
Klipsch mains - donated from me.

Total with cables $1,000 delivered and set up.

Now, the reason for my expletive laden intro is. When I opened the box to the LG Blu-Ray my eyes were greated with player, manual, remote, batteries AND THE SAME RED, WHITE AND YELLOW CONNECTORS THEY'VE BEEN USING SINCE FOREVER!!!

This make absolutely no friggin' sense to me at all. It's a BLU-RAY PLAYER people buy them to see HI-DEF playback. Why include a 40 year old set of Composite Cables at all? No coaxial, no component and lord knows, NO HDMI just a set of cables I have 20 some odd pairs of from over the years. If I hadn't been so pissed off at this "gift" I'd a laughed. Instead I just threw them in the garbage. What a waste of resources.

Worf

[Hyfi]

They do it because not everyone has the correct TV or AV Receiver to accept HDMI until they upgrade.

OR

They want you to at least be able to hook the thing up and use it if you forgot to purchase the HDMI cable.

I do agree that like OPPO, every new BR machine should come with an HDMI cable, no matter how cheesy it is.

On the other hand, Rotel will still put a set of $1.69 Black and Reds in the box of a $700 CD Player. Go figure! I say why bother since 99% of people who will buy a $700 CDP will most likely use reasonably decent set of ICs. If they actually use the B&Rs, they should have the unit removed from their home by the Audiophile Police.

[audio amateur]

Usually you wouldn't buy a BR player if you don't have an HDTV already, so no, it doesn't make any sense at all. Weird...

[Hyfi]

Usually you wouldn't buy a BR player if you don't have an HDTV already, so no, it doesn't make any sense at all. Weird...

Although I did have an HDTV, I bought a BR player knowing that my AV Receiver had no HDMI. (I have upgraded that since then)

It's called an Upgrade Path. You get the best of each pc you can afford knowing that you can later upgrade the more costly pcs.

A BR Player can now cost less than $100 and still make older DVDs look better even if you don't have the $1000 HD TV or HDMI receiver to accompany it.

[audio amateur]

A BR Player can now cost less than $100 and still make older DVDs look better even if you don't have the $1000 HD TV or HDMI receiver to accompany it.

Okay, but if that person bought the BR player to improve the PQ of his DVDs in the meantime, would he really be using those yellow composite cables? Seeing as he is that picky about PQ, i doubt it....

[GMichael]

My PS3 and HD-DVD both came the same way. Maybe Monster is paying them not to include HDMI cables.

[recoveryone]

I feel ya Worf, and this type of thinking is why the average Joe is still behind the HDTV curve. And will fight you if you tell him his NEW LCD/PLASMA, Blu Ray player are not showing in HD. And will insist on you coming over to watch the big game or new Blu Ray release. You just sit there biting your lip wishing you were at home really watching it in all it's HD glory.


I have a neighbor thats just has no clue, he owns a 55" Mts DLP 1080p, I even gave him a starter HT setup a few years ago and he still had the TV wired via RF cable and some mini DVD play hooked up via the single yellow RCA. I gave him my old Elite DVD player and at least hook it up components and did the same for his TV

Another buddy has a 85" Mts (its like being at the Drive In) and I had to check him also, has no HT sound for it.

My brother in Law is just plane cheap just pick up a 73" Mts and is debating if he should upgrade his Direct TV package to HD and is still using some no name speaker setup that is just an embarrassment to HT.

[dingus]

they have to get rid of these cables some how...

[E-Stat]

...AND THE SAME RED, WHITE AND YELLOW CONNECTORS THEY'VE BEEN USING SINCE FOREVER!!!

Or both - since those cables cost about a buck. I think the higher liklihood is that most folks already have them. Starting off by crippling the quality is not the way to convince folks they made a good purchase decision.

rw

[Woochifer]

I think there's some kind of unwritten agreement between the retailers and manufacturers so that the stores can pad their margins by selling a $100 HDMI cable to go with that $80 BD player. Toshiba and Sony are the only manufacturers that I can recall supplying HDMI cables with their players at some point.

Another reason could be the phaseout of analog component video outputs. I recall some disc players including the component video cables. But, now with most new BD players not including the connectors, the only analog video connection available is the dowdy old composite video output. Sad but true, this remains the lowest common denominator, as a sizable number of household are still using analog TVs.

[BadAssJazz]

... AND THE SAME RED, WHITE AND YELLOW CONNECTORS THEY'VE BEEN USING SINCE FOREVER!!!

You mean those AREN'T trash bag ties??? Damn it, I've been using them wrong all along!

[Mygaffer]

They are looking to save money and since player performance is way more important to consumers than what cable comes in the box that is one place they add a little extra margin. Not really a big deal, the box should have stated what it came with.

[filecat13]

In a few cases--and this needs to be checked case by case--a player's, receiver's, and/or pre/pro's on screen display only shows up with a lower-rez analog connection. Sometimes the manual states the necessity of hooking up both a composite or S-video connector and a component or HDMI connector. This is becoming less common, but I still find it necessary with some recent gear. So in that case, at least it has some utility to get those legacy cables.

Nonetheless, my guess is it's the cheapest way to say, "Hey, we gave you a way to hook it up" from the manufacturer, then steer you toward making a pricey HDMI cable purchase. If the retailer is aware of this, it's all gravy.

Each of my Oppo players, including the upscaling DVD players, came with an HDMI cable in the box, as well as the old red/black/yellow cable.

[bleachershane]

On the competitive market they are trying to make as many cuts as possible to get their product price lower and competing with everyone elses...

[SlumpBuster]

The $25 HDTV wall mount I bought from Parts Express came with a free three foot HDMI. I used it, too.

[FrichKazzone]

Usually you wouldn't buy a BR player if you don't have an HDTV already