Review on Sony BDP-S1700 Multi Region Blu-ray DVD, Region Free Player 110-240V with HDMI Cable & Dynastar Plug Adapter Package - Smart/Region Free Playback by Payton Stovall

With an extensive library of regular DVDs, converting to Blu-ray would not only be financially impossible, but almost impossible as some titles simply weren't released in that format. So the Sony BDP-S6700 turned out to be the perfect choice for me when I first ventured into the Blu-ray universe and bought my first set of Blu-ray discs. The S6700 plays Blu-ray discs excellently. However, when I use it to watch a normal 4:3 DVD (like a classic TV programme), the S6700 overrides the 'normal' setting from the 'widescreen' setting on my TV; it puts the TV in "Full" mode, which stretches and distorts the 4:3 picture to fill the 16:9 aspect ratio on the TV screen. My TV is also from Sony, I didn't expect any compatibility problems in this regard. When I use my old normal DVD player for classic DVDs (with 4:3 picture), the "normal" option is available and everything is fine. I suspect that the disappearance of the "normal" setting is related to the HDMI connection; My old DVD player has 3 cables to connect to the TV (RCA connectors: composite video - yellow - and stereo audio - red and white -). Since the S6700 only has one HDMI port, the problem of playing classic DVDs on it remains unsolved. To be perfectly clear, let me add that my only set of Blu-ray discs is a classic 4:3 photo TV show; The S6700 forces the TV's default "widescreen" setting to "full screen" and yet the picture comes out perfectly with a 4:3 aspect ratio! (without stretching and deformation). The problem is when I play a normal 4:3 DVD on the S6700. I could add a little nitpick to the menu and home buttons on the remote, but that might just be due to my lack of knowledge of the Blu-ray player. So the S6700 isn't forcing my old DVD player to graze just yet. A bit disappointing.