My DVD player seems to be on the fritz...can you help?

[hopein08]

The last three times I watched a DVD it would suddenly pause and then skip time, at first a few seconds and then as much as half an hour. The first two times I chalked it up the DVD's being rented and having other peoples fingerprints all over them. But I bought "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" last night, brand spankin' new, and the same thing happened! Now, I am most likely totally ignorant (and more than willing to admit that! LOL!) of how a DVD player works, so I was looking for some help. Do you think it can be cleaned? If so, how does one clean a DVD player? Should I just forget the whole dumb thing and buy a new one? Please help! Many, many thanks in advance for reading the post and any help you can offer.

[flvegan]

1. Where is said DVD player?

If it's getting hot, it can react in many strange ways.

Best to not stack a DVD player on top or on the bottom of other 'lectronics.

[hopein08]

3. Said DVD player is on a shelf by itself...

It is next to my CD player and one shelf below my VCR. But it is not directly on top of or below anything else electronic. However, the shelf it is on is only about six inches off the floor and I have a dog whose fur is everywhere so I am kind of thinking that it could be that some fur got into it. But I will definitely check the heat situation. Thanks.

[Reciprocity]

2. You are not alone.

Mine is doing the same thing. At first I thought it was because it got to hot. However it happens now all the time.

[qnr]

4. I have a Philips machine that likes to be physically turned off every

once in a while, instead of just going into standby mode. Don't know if that will help with yours, but often, it does display the same symptoms.

[flowomo]

5. if it has a remote.... mebbe some other device is interferring

[DainBramaged]

6. I'm having same problem on new SONY player

I bought a tiny (6") AC clip on fan from Staples that blows on unit and solved the problem. I may be wrong, but as the laser gets closer to the end of the disc the heat created by the dvd is too great for the player to overcome. I have a 6 yr. old full size Phillips with tiny exhaust fan built in that I have NEVER had the problem with, which reinforced my belief it was a heat problem.

[qnr]

7. Those things are great. I used to use one on my computers in hotter

climes.

[Faygo Kid]

8. On the Fritz? Just take it off him. Presto.

[obxhead]

9. about 9 months ago my Panasonic did the same thing...

I tried everything I could think of and finally came to the violent approach.

After 3 good hard slams on the ground I gave it a whirl. Low and behold it has worked fine ever since.

I had already considered the unit trash before attempting this final remedy though.

[0rganism]

10. Forget it, buy a new one

These things are black boxes that are meant to burn out and be replaced within a year of the manufacturer's warranty expiring. Don't try to push it further than it will go willingly. You might get lucky, or you might just fark your favorite DVD and tack another $20 on to the overall replacement expenses.