Need help to buy DVD player?

If you have an HDTV the Oppo DV-981HD is highly recommended for SD DVD...

www.oppodigital.com

Nearly all of the HD disc players offer SD DVD upconversion to...

I just received my new Oppo DV-970 that I purchased from Amazon. I bought from them because of the free shipping and past experience with them. While it isn't always fast or easy, they do accept returns in case of problems and provide a replacement. My main reason for going with the Oppo was the up-converting feature in hopes of getting a slightly better quality image when using non-HD DVDs with my new Samsung HDTV. It works as advertised.

Toshiba is now offering a $100 rebate on its $399 HD-DVD player--a TRUE HD player for $299!

And there are $19.95 players at your local drug store. (with quality to match their $49.95 TVs - they look like VHS tape.)

Realistically this question can not be answered without basic information. Like...how much can you spend, want to spend, what kind of TV do you have. Are you a renter or a buyer of DVD's???

Toshiba is now offering a $100 rebate on its $399 HD-DVD player--a TRUE HD player for $299

Well hold up there... As a videophile a true HD player would be one that does 1080p for both HD DVD and SD DVD. The HD-A2 you speak of is limited to 1080i for any video disc...

The HD-A20 supports 1080p for both and clocks in at about $450. With the new firmware upgrade the PS3 is a performance bonanza at $600 for the 60GB version and it does 1080p 24 frame for Blu-ray.

You can go for DVD-F87S DVD Player. It has a slim design that makes it a perfect fit for any entertainment system. It is compatible with DVD-Audio, DVD-RAM, DVD-R, and CD-R/RW discs, as well as MP3 and WMA digital audio playback. The five-disc changer allows you to keep up to five discs of any format in your player at the same time. The DVD-F87S uses a 54 MHz/10-bit video digital-to-analog converter, which reduces digital artifacts to give you a better picture. Other features include picture control (brightness, color, contrast, gamma correction, and sharpness), disc program play, and disc random play. You can buy it from Planetonline.com just for $99.57 .

I recently asked Oppo representative the following:
"Do any of your DVD players allow upconversion via component cables?
My HD Sony 40" XBR crt does not have HDMI or DVI inputs. Thanks for any information."

Reply: "The DV-970HD supports component based upconversion, but is restricted to 480p if the source material is CSS-encrypted. Almost all commercially mastered DVDs support CSS-encryption. There are third party firmware which will defeat the CSS compliance, but these firmware are not
supported by OPPO Digital, Inc."
Best Regards,

Customer Service
OPPO Digital, Inc.

What does this mean? Can I buy that unit and couple it with an after-market piece of equipment and note an improvement in video quality of DVDs? Are there other DVD player alternatives that I should consider, which would allow me to use component video inputs?

You can go for DVD-F87S DVD Player.

Another fine player if you don't have a DVI/HDMI input for an unpconverting player.

Beatdrummer, what Oppo was trying to say is that you are stuck at 480p with out the above connections. That is not all bad either since your display has a native 480P mode! If you are over 3 screen hieghts viewing distance an upconverting player is going to have less of an effect anyway.

The only other way is to get a gray market player that unpconverts or buy a $1000+ external scaler but I doubt your viewing distance is 4-5 feet...

Richard - is this true of all upconverting DVD players? What about PS3's Blu-Ray player - will I get 1080i from Blu-Ray discs over Component? I know my Mits CRT does a great job with 480p but I was hoping to be able to get 1080i without having to upgrade my display right now.

Richard or others,
I am currently using a Sony DVP-NS715P dvd player. It says on the front panel: 12 bit 108 Mhz Noise Shaped Video DAC. Would I gain anything by buying the DVD-S87S mentioned previously (using it with the component inputs on the Sony crt 40" XBR)?
Thanks for info,
Bob

Akirby, my PS3 did not come with analog cables for anything but my understanding is it will output 720P and 1080I for anything except SD DVD. Blu-ray, HD DVD and HD video games support legacy displays!

Beatdrummer, that appears to be an older player that does 480p. Looking at this thread it appears you are looking for an upgrade but with your display there is not much you can do for SD DVD; you are already covered.

None of this thead has reflected audio or HD disc and gaming... The Panny would give you DVD Audio...