Deal Hot Stuff

Decent Upconverting Player
It’s a decent upconverting DVD player. I got this product for free after purchasing the Samsung LNT5265. I really can’t tell the difference in picture quality between 480, 720, 1080i, and 1080p. They all seem pretty sharp to me. I use an HMDI cable. I love the Anynet feature on this device compatible with my Samsung LCD TV. My only real complaint is the slow reponse on the remote to the tv.

I cannot play an HD DVD on this with the new HDTV
I have the HDTV 32 inch and cannot play an HD Movie on this with both samsung. I guess and am not sure but at this point think you have to have a HDTV that goes as high as 1080p or is it the dvd player and if I had a HDTV would this work with a say 40″ HDTV that has 1080P? Confused as I thought this would play my HD DVD? Guess NOT? Does your HDTV have to also have 1080P for this to upconvert to play a HD DVD? Help anyone?

Would have more stars if I knew the answers

SD DVD’s do look good!

Some improvement but not much
Got this DVD player through the deal along with my 56″ DLP. Hooked up the player with component cable first and it’ll allow you to force output up to 1080i. After switching back and forth between 480p, 720, and 1080i, I can only tell the difference between 480p and 720p, but not 720p and 1080i. Then I replaced the component cable with HDMI, forced the output to 1080p, color seems to have more depth but resolution looks the same as using component cable. Remote control reaction is pretty slow compares to the other 7 year old Toshiba DVD player I have. Load time is a little bit longer I guess it’s because the player supports more format than just regular DVD.

Overall it does ok job on “upscaling” but don’t expect magic.

Meets my expectations
I’ve had the Samsung DVD-1080P8 for 1-2 weeks and it has been great so far. Connection was a breeze with an HDMI cable. The picture quality is outstanding (viewing on a Samsung 4061f). The Anynet feature has worked like a charm and I’ve had no problem using my TV remote to function the DVD player. This seems a perfect option for those who may not wish to jump right into a pricier Blu-ray.

Be aware of the semantic games
Amazon’s current listing of this as the most popular “upconverting” DVD player is slightly deceiving. I was ready to purchase the Samsung until I entered “upscaling” DVD player into Amazon’s search box, and discovered that the favorite player in this price range is the Sony DVP-NS77 with HDMI output. When I saw the two at Sears, they produced comparable pictures to my eyes (ignore Amazon’s listed dimensions– the Sony is slimmer than even the Samsung), but brand name and the assurance of compatible remotes justified the slight premium of the Sony’s price in my case. The player’s remote switch, moreover, controlled the major functions of my Sony TV. Whether you call it “upscaling” or “upconverting,” what’s of greatest importance to most new owners of HDTV sets is an HDMI connection. (Sony has a similar, lower-priced HDMI model on the way: DVP-NS700. Whether it’s lacking a feature or is simply Sony’s answer to Samsung’s price point is difficult to say based on the released description.)

[Later: Amazon has just dropped the price on the popular Sony DV-NS77 (the silver model only), making it a virtual steal. I’m sorry now that I gifted my daughter a Phillips upconverting model.]