You can tell the year of production by the Serial number - found here on the Forum:

 1****** - 1984
 2****** - 1985
 3****** - 1986
04****** - 1987
05****** - 1988
06****** - 1989
07****** - 1990
08****** - 1991
09****** - 1992/1993
10****** - 1994/1995
11****** - 1996
12****** - 1997
13****** - 1998/1999
14****** - 2000
15****** - 2001
16****** - 2002
17****** - 2003/2004
18****** - 2005
19****** - 2006
20****** - 2007
21****** - 2008/2009
22****** - 2010

As far as I remember only the MX5500 was two-way (maybe not all models....).
I am sure somebody will know and help out.

Ralf

PS: The Beolink 5000 Looks nice, but imho not as handy as Beolink 1000/Beo 4.

Hi,

Thanks, that is most helpful!

I agree the Beo 4 is the best there is...but since this would be a secondary telly, the Beolink 5000 would be just fine for it, as the current one uses a Beolink 1000 (and I am not a big fan of that model).

The year of manufacture doesn't tell everything, as the decisive factor is the software version. I think 2-way was dropped in 2.x, although the hardware was still there; so you will want a set with s/w 1.x (which is shown on the type sticker). These sets will be quite old, so it might not be that easy to find a unit that still has a decent picture.

Hi again,

Thanks, that is also quite helpful. Now off to see if I can find a machine that matches all those requirements (and persuade the people at home that we do need another one...)

The safest bet, of course, is to try it with your BL5000 before agreeing to carry the TV set out of the seller's place - I believe most sellers will be quite helpful 😁