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Any point using a DVD lens cleaner?


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Old 18-11-2004, 12:45
Inkblot
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Tried playing a couple of rental DVDs yesterday. One got as far as beginning to load the main menu and gave up, the other got as far as the first couple of minutes of the film and started freezing (the picture froze, the sound carried on, then everything froze).

Does this sound like it's worth using a DVD lens cleaner? Tried various workarounds to try to see if it was the disks that were faulty but couldn't get the first disk to play at all and the second froze up again at a different point. And I've had similar problems with new DVDs fresh from the shop.

So any recommendations? Are the cleaners all much of a muchness - and who sells them (my local high street has a WH Smith and a Woolworths, but not Dixons, Currys or similar).
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Old 18-11-2004, 13:19
Scorpio
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Worth a try for a few quid. I have one which i use on my CD and DVD drives. seems to do the trick!

Rgds,
Scorp
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Old 18-11-2004, 13:37
Brush Master
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Do you smoke in the same room? If so, you will need to clean the lense. Be careful not to scratch it, and note that solvents may not be a good idea netiher (probably a plastic lens).

You don't smoke in the same room & you have a reasonably clean household? Save the money, just open the tray and give it a gently dry blow. Sometimes a speck of dust gathers around the lens.

Finally, for the rented DVD, consider cleaning this one.

However, DVD frozen during replay can also be an indication of a software bug, or incompatibility. Many players can be challanged with complex video sequences, sometimes causing the image to be frozen (my player needs a power-cycle when this happens).

It;s just very hard to tell.
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Old 18-11-2004, 13:46
Inkblot
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Thanks for the advice. No-one smokes here but neither do they do much dusting! Will try to blow the dust away before buying a cleaner.
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Old 18-11-2004, 13:53
eccles
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I don't have a DVD player but my PC has CDRW and CDR devices both of which have suffered from loss of readability in the past. I personally don't like the idea of an abrasive disc rubbing on the lens so in both instances I took the units apart and cleaned the lens with a cotton bud and some methylated spirit. The meths is probably not ideal as it can leave a residue but it worked for me on both occasions. I applied the bud very gently to the lens with a couple of circular wipes (the lens mount is very delicate!) then immediately wiped it dry with a fresh bud to reduce the chance of residue making things worse. It worked for me on both occasions but it's your risk.
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