CDi Fan Appreciation Thread

[+sixersfan105]

3 hours ago, ScottC2010 said:

All arrived safely and now watching Star Trek 6 and Bryan Adams!

Interestingly there is no MPEG slot cover at the back - it is internal like the 490, so could this is a later unknown version (It says 470/05 which is uk pal designation)?

I burnt the disks using imgburn by simply changing TRACK 01 CDI/2352 to TRACK 01 MODE2/2352

Hmm that's very interesting! Even the later 470/20 revision which came with the DVC preinstalled often - but not always - had the access panel for the DVC. Best guess would be that this player was one of the later 470/05s produced and they used a case from a later 470. Good news is, you know it's in there since the movies work as they should!

 

Glad you know about the trick of changing CDI to MODE2 during the burning process. 
 

As a reminder, always use the front port for controllers and such. The rear port - while identical in shape - will not work for these devices. 
 

What are your first impressions?

[ScottC2010]

39 minutes ago, sixersfan105 said:

Hmm that's very interesting! Even the later 470/20 revision which came with the DVC preinstalled often - but not always - had the access panel for the DVC. Best guess would be that this player was one of the later 470/05s produced and they used a case from a later 470. Good news is, you know it's in there since the movies work as they should!

 

Glad you know about the trick of changing CDI to MODE2 during the burning process. 
 

As a reminder, always use the front port for controllers and such. The rear port - while identical in shape - will not work for these devices. 
 

What are your first impressions?

Have to say i am quite impressed, i enjoyed rise of the robots too! The picture quality is nice and clear as the composite signal seems strong (I have it going through a scart to hdmi converter. The Atlantis game is very fast - makes you wonder what they could do (Especially as the processor is more than twice the speed of amiga 500) - i might ping the developer of dread and see if he can knock up a version of dread for it as he has done this for the Atari ST too. The video quality of the films is surprisingly good - much better than I was lead to believe, overall a great addition to my collection - now to burn, the lost ride, mad dog 1 and 2, mutant rampage, flashback, solar crusade and titanic interactive and of course disk 2 for the star trek 6
I might then look to see if I can create my own video disk (I know it can play video cd as well as cdi video and also photo cd)

[+sixersfan105]

@ScottC2010 glad to hear! Many people have said the same about CD-i players, that the composite image is much clearer than standard-issue video game consoles of its time. I suppose that shouldn't be that surprising, since Philips marketed most CD-i players as hifi equipment rather than video game systems for kids. I personally have a 220/57 player hooked up via S-Video (here in the US two models have S-Video natively, the 910 and some revisions of the 220)...Oh wow, that would be SO COOL to see Dread ported to the CD-i. Let us know how that conversation goes...I agree that the VCD video quality is quite good!

 

I shared your picture of the rear of your player with the Philips CD-i Community Discord channel and one of the most knowledgeable CD-i gurus on there replied that he has, indeed, seen some 470/05 players without an access panel. No real rhyme or reason for it, I suppose. He also asked if you wouldn't mind sharing a picture of the player with the top off so we can see the exact DVC that is used (we know it's a mini/9956 but there are a few revisions of that type) and how it is connected. No pressure, but just passing along the message. Cheers.

[ScottC2010]

4 hours ago, sixersfan105 said:

@ScottC2010 glad to hear! Many people have said the same about CD-i players, that the composite image is much clearer than standard-issue video game consoles of its time. I suppose that shouldn't be that surprising, since Philips marketed most CD-i players as hifi equipment rather than video game systems for kids. I personally have a 220/57 player hooked up via S-Video (here in the US two models have S-Video natively, the 910 and some revisions of the 220)...Oh wow, that would be SO COOL to see Dread ported to the CD-i. Let us know how that conversation goes...I agree that the VCD video quality is quite good!

 

I shared your picture of the rear of your player with the Philips CD-i Community Discord channel and one of the most knowledgeable CD-i gurus on there replied that he has, indeed, seen some 470/05 players without an access panel. No real rhyme or reason for it, I suppose. He also asked if you wouldn't mind sharing a picture of the player with the top off so we can see the exact DVC that is used (we know it's a mini/9956 but there are a few revisions of that type) and how it is connected. No pressure, but just passing along the message. Cheers.

I'll get a picture to you shortly - I can see the dvc slightly through air vents.

Just downloaded a few more cd's including burn-cycle, the apprentice and the cranberries.

Is there a good place to get hold of the video cd films? They're quite cheap on ebay (I paid £6.71 for a mint Top Gun) but buying a lot would get expensive

[ScottC2010]

30 minutes ago, ScottC2010 said:

I'll get a picture to you shortly - I can see the dvc slightly through air vents.

Just downloaded a few more cd's including burn-cycle, the apprentice and the cranberries.

Is there a good place to get hold of the video cd films? They're quite cheap on ebay (I paid £6.71 for a mint Top Gun) but buying a lot would get expensive

[+sixersfan105]

39 minutes ago, ScottC2010 said:

Is there a good place to get hold of the video cd films? They're quite cheap on ebay (I paid £6.71 for a mint Top Gun) but buying a lot would get expensive

RetroGames has some video cd films and they're on your side of the pond (some of their games are decently priced, too). If you're at all interested in some American releases, where the Philips-branded video CDs are called "CD-i Movies," let me know, as I have a decent number of spares and could get you a list via PM.

 

15 minutes ago, ScottC2010 said:

Thanks for the pic! I'll share it on the Discord.

[+sixersfan105]

@ScottC2010good choice with the Philips-branded CD-Rs, btw! I have the same  

[ScottC2010]

6 minutes ago, sixersfan105 said:

@ScottC2010good choice with the Philips-branded CD-Rs, btw! I have the same  

Yes, it was ironic I picked the brand and it wasn't intentional  - a good price here for 50 Philips CDR-80 (52x) 50pk Spindle : Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories

[ScottC2010]

11 minutes ago, sixersfan105 said:

RetroGames has some video cd films and they're on your side of the pond (some of their games are decently priced, too). If you're at all interested in some American releases, where the Philips-branded video CDs are called "CD-i Movies," let me know, as I have a decent number of spares and could get you a list via PM.

 

Thanks for the pic! I'll share it on the Discord.

List of vids would be fab!

[ScottC2010]

23 hours ago, ScottC2010 said:

 

This is nice:

Rare - Philips CDI 350 CD-i Portable Video Game Console Interactive Player | eBay

[+sixersfan105]

23 hours ago, ScottC2010 said:

a CD-i guru had the following to say about this picture: "you wouldn't be able to access it [the DVC] from the back anyways because it is locked to the DVC cage." So that explains why there is no back panel access to the DVC. Apparently there are different ways to install the DVC, and Philips opted to "lock in" this one, so no need for a rear access panel.

[ScottC2010]

24 minutes ago, sixersfan105 said:

a CD-i guru had the following to say about this picture: "you wouldn't be able to access it [the DVC] from the back anyways because it is locked to the DVC cage." So that explains why there is no back panel access to the DVC. Apparently there are different ways to install the DVC, and Philips opted to "lock in" this one, so no need for a rear access panel.

Thanks, that's interesting

[ScottC2010]

My CDi seems to have started playing the cd-r again all on it's own! I wonder if it is just that it needed running? I have given it a clean too but when I did that it made no difference initially. Is it known for these machines to 'settle down'?

[ScottC2010]

I have just tried a USA DV and it does not work (Comes up with message that it is for NTSC) - is there a region unlock?

[+sixersfan105]

1 hour ago, ScottC2010 said:

I have just tried a USA DV and it does not work (Comes up with message that it is for NTSC) - is there a region unlock?

By USA DV are you referring to a USA VCD, aka a Philips CD-i Movie? That's very strange, as I've NEVER heard of that issue. There's no region locking that I'm aware of. 

[ScottC2010]

1 hour ago, sixersfan105 said:

By USA DV are you referring to a USA VCD, aka a Philips CD-i Movie? That's very strange, as I've NEVER heard of that issue. There's no region locking that I'm aware of. 

Yes, that's correct (USA VCD/CD-i movie. It was Planes, Trains and Automobiles) - maybe it's just on UK machines? I don't think there's a problem with games/multimedia (BurnCycle and Shark Alert are USA and work) - one for the Discord Guru?

Edited May 20, 2022 by ScottC2010
More info added

[+sixersfan105]

52 minutes ago, ScottC2010 said:

Yes, that's correct (USA VCD/CD-i movie. It was Planes, Trains and Automobiles) - maybe it's just on UK machines? I don't think there's a problem with games/multimedia (BurnCycle and Shark Alert are USA and work) - one for the Discord Guru?

Got it. I have confirmed that VCDs have no region locking, and CD-i software is all region-free, too. That said, it sounds like your player does not like that the Planes, Trains and Automobiles VCD is encoded in NTSC format? You are welcome to join the discord server here and ask any q's of those folks.

[ScottC2010]

5 minutes ago, sixersfan105 said:

Got it. I have confirmed that VCDs have no region locking, and CD-i software is all region-free, too. That said, it sounds like your player does not like that the Planes, Trains and Automobiles VCD is encoded in NTSC format? You are welcome to join the discord server here and ask any q's of those folks.

Thanks - i'll try discord, in the meantime I did find this old info which suggests they are not 100% region free:

Interactive Dreams: CD-i is not 100% PAL/NTSC region-free, but some players are more compatible with both (archive.org)

 

I'll send a screen shot of my message i get on screen when i get home later from my Steak Night at the local pub!

[ScottC2010]

3 minutes ago, ScottC2010 said:

Thanks - i'll try discord, in the meantime I did find this old info which suggests they are not 100% region free:

Interactive Dreams: CD-i is not 100% PAL/NTSC region-free, but some players are more compatible with both (archive.org)

 

I'll send a screen shot of my message i get on screen when i get home later from my Steak Night at the local pub!

Just got time before I go

[+sixersfan105]

@ScottC2010 very interesting! So sounds like VCDs/movies could be hit or miss depending on the individual disc and/or player. Good to know!

[ScottC2010]

I've also emailed the Dread creator and also sent him some cd-i dev links as well as other info such as games like Atlantis (As the cd-i processor is basically a modded 68000 i would think this would be a good possibility)

I'll let you know what he says - it would be great to find some developers to max out the cd-i

Looking at how smooth Atlantis is i would think it's capable of more - imagine the Jaguar game Aliens vs Predator or something like Witchaven!

I would love a good racer too like mario kart, wipeout or colin mccrea!

[+sixersfan105]

16 minutes ago, ScottC2010 said:

I've also emailed the Dread creator and also sent him some cd-i dev links as well as other info such as games like Atlantis (As the cd-i processor is basically a modded 68000 i would think this would be a good possibility)

I'll let you know what he says - it would be great to find some developers to max out the cd-i

Looking at how smooth Atlantis is i would think it's capable of more - imagine the Jaguar game Aliens vs Predator or something like Witchaven!

I would love a good racer too like mario kart, wipeout or colin mccrea!

Awesome! Definitely keep us posted. I agree that the processor should be capable. A racer would be swell, no doubt! Video Speedway, Accelerator and Micro Machines are the only CD-i driving-type games that I can think of off the top of my head.

[ScottC2010]

3 hours ago, sixersfan105 said:

Awesome! Definitely keep us posted. I agree that the processor should be capable. A racer would be swell, no doubt! Video Speedway, Accelerator and Micro Machines are the only CD-i driving-type games that I can think of off the top of my head.

What is also interest was I forgot how wonderfully presented some of the 90's cdroms were, such as the titanic, 2 unlimited, cranberries - we seem to have gone backwards instead of forwards for example you click on the video tape in 2 unlimited to bring up the videos and then there's other sections like the behind the scenes, so much more elegant (and faster) then todays internet of 'do you want cookies', do you want notifications and pop up ads and videos, terrible loading times even with 3000mhz processers and gigabytes of memory; modern web developers could learn a lot from cd-i - they managed to do this with 15mhz 1mb ram and 150kb/s!

[+sixersfan105]

@ScottC2010 amen, brother!

[ScottC2010]

Have you played Atlantis? I get to where there is an entrance that looks like it's electrified but I can't get through - I can't find any switches - do you know what I need to do? (I only have the remote which is 2 buttons so if it needs 'button 3' to open then i'm stuffed i guess)

I'll have to find a proper controller plus the 2 player adapter (I think there is a new better one available)

2 player Rise of the Robots awaits!