Sony DVP-NS700H/B 1080p Upscaling DVD Player, Black Reviews

• Why pay for Blu-ray?

  
  By A10AW7H143CP9M on 2008-04-17
  I went to a store to buy a Sony PS3, specifically for the Blu-ray playing capabilities. I wrestled with the high price ($400) for an hour, and ended up buying this Sony up-converting HDMI dvd for $75 instead, hoping that it would look ok. I plugged it in, put on "The Fellowship of The Ring" dvd and was floored by how good it looked. It made the standard definition dvd title look 95% like high definition. Having previously owned the XBox 360 HD-DVD player, I can tell you that the picture on my 52" 1080i Panasonic is identical in clarity and detail. Blu-Ray may be technically better, but for $325 less and an amazingly detailed, crisp picture, this Sony dvd player is a great deal!
  
  

• Your Last DVD player ?

  
  By A1HDQMD058B644 on 2008-05-13
  I recently reviewed the NS57 480p Sony, and its amazing they are nearly identical in function, making them easy to learn and use. All you need to do appreciate 1080p quality is to use the HDMI jack, and leave the rest to the player, automatically. With Blu-Ray now the higher level format, if this DVD player lasts 5 years, this could be the last DVD player you'll ever own as we await more Blu-Ray releases.
  
  The upconversion is excellent; if you've seen Blu Ray quality or an equivalent 1080i to HD broadcast its clear this isn't it, but its far closer to it than than native 480p or 480p unscaled by my 1080p TV. In well made DVDs the difference is unnoticeable unless you have an equivalent HD movie to compare it against or regularly see 1080i and better, broadcasts. You can clear make out every hair on Tom Hanks beard in 'Saving Private Ryan' and about 80% of it with the NS700H.
  
  The only major difference between this Sony and the NS57 are the buttons are laid more to the top of the player, and the extra output jacks. The unit thus, is 1/4" wider in width. Also, in burn-it yourself discs, the 700H will play supported music files as background music for images files found on disk; the NS57 did not.
  
  Pros
  
  Sony has no trouble playing problem disks that plagued my other players. But, it also doesn't play a few disks my other players struggle to play.
  
  Sony menu functions are very well integrated compared to the hodge-podge look of lesser brands making it easier to use this player without reading a manual.
  
  Installation is very easy. The power cable is not removable. Just plug the HDMI jack into your TV and play as always.
  
  The case is all black, with 4 buttons difficult to see against the black case. The DVD tray opens slower, but is quieter when it runs. The ELD display is far clearer and more informative about the status of the disk or the chapter playing.
  
  Images, sharpness and colors are superb on default settings! Sony includes manual or preset image adjustments to maximize its output; aspect ratio can be forced to 16:9 or 4:3 or taken as automatic.
  
  When powered ON, the Sony will resume playback from whence you stopped for up to 6 separate disks.
  
  It has has on/off and volume control for TVs in the DVD remote.
  
  Variable play from 1.4x to 0.5x speed, but with sound.
  
  Sony has sound function that takes the basic output of 2 speakers and tries to emulate surround sound.
  
  Sony will create thumbnails of each DVD chapter independent of the DVD menus. This helps quite a bit in home made DVDs that have no menus.
  
  Cons:
  
  Remote is well laid out, with similar function buttons set near each other but in opposite directions for opposite functions, i.e., rewind left, forward, right. However, like many el-cheapo DVD players, the buttons are too small and one cannot differentiate functions purely by feel. You have to gaze at the buttons to read the function.
  
  All advanced functions are controlled by the remote, so its indispensable.
  
  Although Sony explicitly mentions it has support for copy protection schemes built right into the data [ e.g. the video file or image, not just the disk], I have not yet encountered data that would not play.
  
  

• Upconversion? Can't tell much difference...

  
  By A435VPBF63H95 on 2008-05-22
  I agree with McLendon's review. I was using a perfectly capable Panasonic DVD player/burner outputting at 480p via component cable. After everything I read here and elsewhere, this Sony upconverting DVD player via HDMI was to make a world of difference in picture quality...even approaching HD with standard DVDs.
  
  During a lengthy head-to-head comparison, I was hard-pressed to tell much difference on my Panasonic 50" 720p plasma. In fact, the most noticeable difference pertained to movies more than, say, ten years old. They actually looked worse! This player magnified the flaws: grain, noise, print dirt and specks were all more prevalent. To me, it made watching these "older" films less enjoyable. Of course, the difference with "newer" films was negligible. Disney's "Cars," for instance, still looked stunning.
  
  Bottom-line, if you need a new player then this will do the trick. If you think, as I did, that this player will suddenly render your standard DVD collection near-HD, then you might be disappointed. I believe it will depend on the performance and age of your previous DVD player. Hope this helps.
  
  

• Excellent DVD Player - But you have to read the manual

  
  By AJ35N26OTXSIG on 2008-05-26
  Just hooked-up this player to my new Sony 40" LCD TV via HDMI cable and the results from standard DVDs is excellent. Not HDTV quality, but very, very close and an improvement from my older Panasonic player. By the way, the complaint about this unit not displaying older 4:3 aspect ratio films, ie older classic movies, is not correct. I just watched a portion of the Wizard of Oz and several other older movies in the correct OAR. The answer is on page 56 of the manual. I am always amazed at how people complain about products without reading the manual. After a 15 second click of several buttons on the remote, the player automatically shows both widescreen and old-style 4:3 format films in the correct aspect ratio.
  
  

• Great little upscalling player for affordable price.

  
  By A1BVN8OVG91D0H on 2008-06-11
  I recently adopted HD technology after purchasing a wonderful Sony lcd. I have about 400 DVD's and not even close to replacing them with blu-ray, so I purchased this great little upscaller. First of all, for Sony this is cheap! I matched it up with my Sony LCD with the HDMI cable and what happened?
  
  I read so many reviews stating it was near HD quality to it did nothing for quality. Well, here is my take... No it's not near HD quaility; however, it significantly improved the picture. More so than an ordinary DVD player paired with an HDtv. Why? because I campared. I plugged in my regular DVD player through component cables since it obviously did not have an HDMI port. HDMI makes a huge difference. The colors are bright, vibrant sharp and clear. I would say it had picture reminecent of the movie theatre except brighter.
  
  If you are not ready to adopt blue-ray yet, get this. It sells for change with free shipping and no tax. If I had to replace my DVD collection, it would cost about 7,000 dollars. Compare that to 70. Granted it's not HD but really, I'm perfectly happy with the picture produced from this dvd upscaler. Also, it's really nice looking. Nearly all black and it's hard to spot the tray slot until it opens. Kind of futuristic looking. Highly recommended.
  
  
• Did upscaling make a difference...?...
  By A3I34IYU3DMH4B on 2008-06-13
  I researched and reviewed over and over contemplating will it make enough of a difference to buy a upscaling dvd player. I bought this sony upscaling dvd player and as soon as i got it i tested several movie's scenes on it against my old dvd player(prolly about 5 years old or so) and yes to my contentment it surely looked better upscaled. Yes some people say dont waste your money on it it didnt do anything, and yes some will not look much if any different if they are older or the filming was done a certain way. im on to blu-rays now but do not intend on repurchasing my already large collection and an upscaling dvd player does make my regular dvds look better, some much better, especially newer ones. i have had this sony make some of my dvds look easily as good as an average (not great) blu-ray movie. I dont know how older dvds are designed and made, but it does vary, some look great, some good, and some not but bottom line if your like me and want the best picture possible for what you have this is indeed a good buy, i am very happy with it just dont expect magic. Also the precision drive to help read scratched up discs works great, i watched a very messed up miss treated dvd the other night and it did not skip a single time. Upscaling Does Improve Picture Quality Hope I have helped.
  
  
• Excellent
  By A1FH9TBAO96PEW on 2008-05-28
  This slim upconverting DVP is a very nice piece of equipment. It produces a beautiful picture from ordinary DVDs. Controls on the "pizza-box" itself are the very simplest, but all you need to show a movie. If you want to play around, or actually study part of a movie--read the titles of books on a shelf, say--the track, motion, angle, step, mode, and other fancy controls are on the remote. The remote can control some non-Sony (BRAVIA) TVs or other units. The NS700H has 5 ways to connect to a TV or AV receiver. Check your TV and receiver and make sure one has available HDMI, or Optical Digital, or at least Component Video interconnects, depending on how old your units are. You'll have to get to the back of your dusty AV and relearn all the plugs and options and cable connections. That's the hardest part of setting up this sweet machine. Or maybe it's time for a new upgrade cycle before the $ sinks out of sight for imported electronics? I had to switch some interconnects around among my pre-existing components, and separately buy the cables to do so since only a lowly Composite cable set is in the box. Plan on juggling the TV, DVP, and any AV receiver controls to get the best enhancement, since their functions may overlap (like sound fields, volume, bit rates).
  
  This single-play DVP, of course, is not a carousel for multi-disk extravaganzas. Nor is it an HD or a Blu-ray player. While it can play most CDs and in-region DVDs, and MP3, JPEG, and some recordable disks, it won't play others, for example, PHOTO CDs, DVD Audio, HD layer on Super Audio CDs, disks from AVCHD DVD cameras, DualDisks, paper labels, or some DRM schemes, among others. Get a peek at the manual if in doubt; the outer box says little about disk compatibility.
  
  
• Some have issues
  By A2WF58BAWLVI95 on 2008-06-18
  For the most part this is a great dvd IF you get one that works. I had two that were play about 90% of the dvd and then lose the picture. Finally gave up and switched to a different player. Had hoped that since this was not a extreme low end player, that this wouldn't happen. Load times for dvd was long. When the dvd played, picture quality was great, upscaling was almost as good as bluray. Menu system is fairly intuitive.
  
  
• Nice concept, woefully lacking in features
  By A11ZU6I3DUAF85 on 2008-05-20
  After much hype about this product, I found it on sale at a B&M store for $80. I was excited about the 1080p upscaling and the HDMI connection. I hooked it up to my Bravia 26" via HDMI expecting a difference in picture quality over my Sony DVP-NS57P player (with component connection). There was no noticeable difference in the quality of these two players. I did notice a bit more artifacts in older movies due to the high resolution upconversion and magnifying the imperfections via HDMI.
  
  But with TV shows on DVD, you must watch them in 16:9 ratio, no option for native 4:3 ratio. Same story for full-screen movies. The older model does have this option. In fact there are only three picture modes in this player as opposed to five in the older model. So any older movies, full-screen movies and TV shows on DVD and standard home movies will be out of proportion. For me, I can get beyond the black bars on the sides on my older stuff.
  I popped in a couple of WS movies and the picture was rather sharp and clear, but no more so than my DVP-NS57P. The manual was no help either. It was poorly written, haphazardly organized, and very evasive and unclear about key points.
  
  Sony makes great products normally (I have two Sony TVs, two standard DVD players and a VCR) but the DVP-NS700HB is a bit of a dog. As upscaling technology develops, Sony will get it right I'm sure. But for now, get the DVP-NS57P for about $40 less and you'll be more than pleased
  
  
• More than just a DVD Player (ultimate music player)
  By A1KBV71PGFFPVV on 2008-07-27
  I had 1080p upscaling on my PS3, but I moved the PS3 to the game area. So I needed a DVD player for
  my 1080p 70" Sony TV. I was quite pleased with the video picture. It is really stunning when you run
  SuperBit DVDs in it.
  
  (A SuperBit DVD doesn't have the same compressed picture as a typical DVD. They eliminated all of the previews and behind the scenes garbage and used the entire DVD's storage for picture and sound.)
  
  Although Blue-Ray is stunning, I just can't pay $30 for a movie I can get for $10 that looks really good as well. I ran Disney's Cars side to side via BlueRay and 1080p upscale to compare the formats. There was a lot more dimension and better color on the BlueRay, but not anything that justified 3 times the cost. I keep my BlueRay purchases to just the movies that will benefit the most from the format, for example when Ironman comes out, I will spend the extra for that. (sound is entirely different issue that factors into what kind of speakers and receiver you own).
  
  One thing that gets overlooked with this DVD player is the ability to play music. Most folks don't realize that you can drag up to 700MB of MP3s onto a blank CD-Rom (approx. 150 songs) and play them on this DVD player. That is better than any 5 disc CD player. If you use an application like iTunes, you can burn songs on a DVD-Rom (4.2GB of MP3s) that is almost 1,000 songs.
  
  I always like to tell folks you can burn your entire Xmas song collection on one disc and let it play randomly. The same goes for the entire Beatles collection or every Sinatra song on one disc.
  
  It is really simple to do this, you don't need to be a computer geek to figure it out. iTunes makes it super simple (PC or Mac).
  
  Also note, it you are a tech geek and you have .avi files or mpegs on disc, this will play them as well.
  
  If you have home movies on your computer, just burn them to a CD or DVD-Rom and this DVD player will play them. You don't have to convert them or format them to a "DVD Video". Just leave them as mpegs.
  
  This DVD player is one heck of a machine.
  
  
• My Sony DVP-NS700H is great!
  By A1744R4R6N40GK on 2008-05-01
  I bought this player to be compatible with my Bravia TV and AV system. It is simple to setup (I am using HDMI connectivity) and use. It works flawlessly when using the Bravia Theater Sync features.
  
  However, in my opinion, the best feature on this great DVD player is the video up-scaling (digital video upconversion). It looks awesome on my 52" LCD TV. You would have a hard time telling the difference between a good up-converted DVD and an HD satellite channel.
  
  I watched Bullitt (1968) on DVD in my Sony DVP-NS700H player and it even looked good as compared to my old DVD player.
  
  And how can you go wrong with the price!
  
  Get this DVD player it rocks!
  
  
  
• Great Picture
  By A11NRU3W8RS375 on 2008-06-27
  This player has handled every DVD I've thrown at it. Produces an excellent picture. No problems. Does an amazing job of upscaling. Couldn't be happier.
  
  
• Huge step up from NS75 -- yes, I can see the improved quality
  By A2EWIWBG0GHGQS on 2008-08-20
  I had the very good Sony NS75 upconverting player, but when I saw this new NS700 at such a great price (same as the NS75 two years ago), I jumped on it. The old NS75 did only 1080i, while this new player does 1080p. In fact, it's the first HDTV peripheral I've bought that exploits my nearly two-year-old A2000's native 1080p.
  
  Some may say, who can tell the difference between 1080i and 1080p? Well, between this player and my old one, I can. Not only is the progressive scan superior, Sony seems to have really improved upconversion processing in the two years since the NS75. Before, I was aware of the upconversion. Now, the NS700 does such a phenomenal job, it really does feel like watching true hi-def from a DVD.
  
  This player is so good and such a good deal that I feel comfortable putting off a Blu-ray/PS3 player purchase for a while.
  
  
• Sony DVP-NS700H/B Review
  By A1L3NQTU6F3JZ0 on 2008-09-16
  Looking for an inexpensive (and reliable) upconvert DVD player which would give an improvement of the video quality on an HDTV. This model filled all of the items I was seeking.
  
  I am very pleased with this product. While I am still learning about its features and settings, the only minor annoyance I can come up with is the player will not allow me to activate the movie's subtitles without first having defined it in the Setup menu. If I don't perform that and begin the movie, it will display some sort of security violation message if I should select the subtitle button on the remote.
  
  
• Best of breed
  By A6FIAB28IS79 on 2008-04-11
  If all you're looking for is a DVD player, this newly released Sony is simply unbeatable. It replaces the popular, top-rated DVP-NS77, which is still available, but since Sony has lowered the price by about twenty bucks while retaining all of the specs of the NS77, there's little reason to look at another "upconverting," "upscaling" player unless it's a Blue Ray drive. This Sony provides a sharp and steady picture, is exceptionally trim and slim (a tad shallower than the NS77), and offers the user multiple options for adjustments to things like aspect ratio, image sharpness, contrast levels and black ratios, surround sound vs. normal stereo. The darn thing even comes with onboard music for home-made JPEG discs that lack it, and it controls most functions of a Sony TV.
  
  Sony recorders are another story. As one of the Big 4 companies in the distribution of movies and CDs, Sony is notorious for not only issuing the usual legal threats but for engineering their recorders to reject copyrighted material. Those in the market for a DVD recorder might do better to check out the Toshiba DR410, which is priced so attractively it can be forgiven in the event it too balks at recording certain programs due to legal issues.
  
  
• Perfect Step-up machine
  By A203Q3VIFANQJW on 2008-06-11
  To dispell a misconceptions in a previous review: This machine does support 4:3 aspect ratio. You simply need to read the manual and find the right display menu. Also, if you have a wide screen TV, it may be that it is set up wrong.
  
  As for my review, I will start by saying that I am not using an HD TV. I have a regular TV I bought in college and I am forced to use the regular outputs on the machine. That being said, I can tell a difference in picture quality. I know I am not getting the benefit of the upconvert but this machine makes my DVDs look better than my old Toshiba.
  
  As for the gentleman who said that it made his older DVDs look worse, I can only speculate that either the output settings are incorrect or that upconverting old movies that have been transfered to the DVD format might make it easier to see imperfections from the original footage.
  
  PROS: This machine has every hook up you could want on a player - including the digital optical audio output. Many players are ditching this output (including the next model of this player) because they think everyone has the money to drop cash on a HD TV and use the the HDMI cables. This forces you to buy two HDMI cables and route the signal through your reciever to get digital quality audio (this is true for all players. I don't think any of them allow you to use your optical out and HDMI out at the same time even when they do include these connections). Anyway, I have been using an optical out to my reciever for the best audio signal and simply haven't had the money to get an HD TV. This is one of the few players that allows you to have digital quality sound without the HD TV... bravo. Some other players have coaxil digital outputs, but hey, I bought the optical because it was better, faster signal and now most the companies are ditching it. Kind of annoying. Anyway, the versatility of the differnt hook ups allows buyers who are in the middle of converting all of your compenents to make this work with just about any set up. Other machines (including the next generation of this one) requires the buyer to pretty much upgrade your whole system at once in order to benefit from certain features - IE: I can't get digital quality sound unless I go out and buy an HD TV, too.)
  
  Enough about that. This thing also supports DTS and 24-bit sound. I guess what I am saying is that the sound output is awesome on this machine.
  
  As for the upconvert I can only speculate. All I know is that it did make my DVDs look better even at 480p with a tube television.
  
  The machine is thin and sleek. Looks nice and doesn't take up a lot of space.
  
  CONS: The menu interface is the antithesis of intuitive. Sony must've thought that using really tiny graphics that have nothing to do with what is in the submenu was a great way to organize things. You have to read the manual if for no other reason than to reference their graphics index to figure out which menu to select for the feature you want. What was wrong with just using words like - "display" and "audio"?
  
  There are like three different display menus that all have different things in them. (Which is probably why the previous user thought there was no 4:3 support). Why they didn't put these all in one place and create more sub categories I will never know. Some of the set-up menus will not allow you to access them unless you stop the DVD you are watching. Also, the manual assumes a certain level of techinical knowledge which a regular user may not have if they do not keep up with all of the HD TV and digital lingo. Bottom line, the menus are confusing, but if you read the manual, you'll be fine if you have a reasonable amount of technical knowledge.
  
  This is a small complaint, but neither the remote nor the buttons on the machine itself have a backlight. If you're like me, you watch your movies in the dark. On the machine, they didn't even paint the button icons on there. They are engraved in the button and left black. Even in a dimmly lit room I have to get a few inches from the machine to tell which button is which. Eventually, I'll memorize them... A small gripe for a great player.
  
  Sometimes the remote is a little touchy. You really have to tap the buttons.
  
  My rating would be a 4.5 out of 5 but I gave it a 5 to counter act the people who gave this bad reviews because they didn't read the manual carefully enough to set up their machine correctly.
  
  The bottom line for me is that this was a perfect machine for my situation. I can't afford to drop $3000 on a new HD TV and a reciever that will accept HDMI to get all the features I want. I wanted to continue getting digital quality sound (via optical connection), replace my dead DVD player, and future proof my video capabilities by getting an upconverting player. This machine hit a home run on those particular points so I am willing to accept the other small issues.
  
  
• Best of the Pure DVD Players
  By AATS9Q7VJ4PFI on 2008-06-23
  I have gone through several DVD players and determined that Sony is consistently the best brand in terms of quality. I recently purchased they Sony DVP-NS700 as a last minute replacement for my Toshiba dual VHS/DVD player. Unfortunately the Toshiba developed the same malady as my previous Toshiba, which was the same affliction as my initial Philips Magnavox. The problem with these previous players was that they sometimes struggled with some DVDs. Random chapters would freeze or become choppy sometimes loosing the soundtrack all together. For a while I blamed this peculiarity on blemished DVD surfaces or laser-reader head needing cleaning. The truth of the matter was that the laser-reader units in other brands were just not up to tolerances in Sony products. For DVDs failing to operate correctly on other machines I would often retry them on my old reliable Sony player. Sure enough, in most cases, the DVDs would play perfectly.
  
  Our upstairs Toshiba experienced the above-mentioned glitches on a regular enough basis that my son was concerned that his long planned DVD movie get-together would be ruined. In searching for a replacement I stumbled onto the DVD-only machines. Slim, lightweight, and affordable I was able to buy the DVP-NS700 to supplement the living room's sometimes ailing system. Instead of a 100 percent replacement I simply put the new machine on top After I hooked up the player I tried some of the known troubled DVDs on the machine as a test. All played without issue.
  
  The only regret I have about installing the new player is that my two-year old Panasonic HD television does not have a dedicated HD cable hookup. As such I was forced to use the standard three-wire component cables to connect the player to the television. Despite this challenge the picture is the clearest I have ever seen from a DVD player.
  
  
  
• Your TV may already upscale
  By A2MNKN8R4EOSLK on 2008-07-06
  I bought this player to replace an older progressive scan DVD (Sony DVP-NS41P) attached to a fairly new Sony HD LCD (46V2500) hoping the NS700 would improve DVD playback. It didn't. The TV upscales every input to the highest that input will allow (ie: HMDI scales to 1080p, component to 1080i, etc). I was hoping the player would scale better than the TV, but that wasn't the case. For some reason we ended up with two copies of Spiderman 2, so I played one on the progessive scan DVD & one on the upscaling DVD (at the same time)and flipped between them to compare. The picture looked pretty much the same (maybe a little worse, if anything). Even after fiddling with the TV inputs, it only ever looked the same. If you already have a good upscaling TV, just stick with that.
  
  
• SONY DVP-NS700H/B 1080p upscaling DVD player
  By A1NIY1LEWACTSD on 2008-07-27
  Sony DVP-NS700H/B 1080p Upscaling DVD Player, Black
  
  Although I don't consider myself a Hi-Tek geek who knows all the intricate details of DVD players, I am somewhat computer literate and know the difference between performance of electronic equipment good or bad. With that caveat, I can only describe my new purchase of a Sony DVD player (listed above) as a very satisfying experience in all respects.
  From its sleek appearance to its ease of setup to its admirable performance, it's been flawless. Compared with the several past generational DVD players owned, this one is far and beyond superior in every way. Coupled with my new 32in. VIZIO plasma TV the viewing experience is nothing short of awesome. Sure, there are some programming delays, if 30 seconds counts for a delay and the little blue pilot light shines brightly and the remote probably could be more user friendly, but those just constitute griping. The picture and sound quality just blew me away and I may never attend another movie theater again (an exaggeration).
  One of my favorite films which I've watched several times on my old-fashioned equipment, 2001 A Space Odyssey, came alive anew on my new rig.
  Considering the nominal cost of the player (purchased with a gift certificate and shipped at no cost) this acquisition was most satisfying.
  
  
• Outstanding Sony product
  By A3P1508PZ0UADD on 2008-08-01
  The usualy Sony quality is evident. Upscaling is the way to go if you have a library of DVDs and don't want to have to spend a furtune to upgrade to Blu-ray. Excellent value and with the HDMI connection (cord not included, so buy one online) it plugs directly into a HDTV.
  
  
• Great player for the money. Sony is the best!
  By A1UFTCH4ITP03H on 2008-08-08
  Quality always seems to follow Sony products. Sony seems to remember the most important facit of sales that so many other companies, large and small, forget or just plain ignore; quality sells!
  
  A side note about Sony electronics which makes life easy for the electronically impaired. The dvd player has a feature Sony calls Sony Link. The bottom line about this feature is that once connected to a Sony TV, all you need do to play a DVD is turn on the dvd player and put a DVD in the dvd player. The TV turns itself on and the DVD begins to play. When the dvd player is turned off, the TV automatically switches to a cable signal and broadcasts television. Sony makes life easy and delivers it with quality.
  
  
  
• no divix but oh well. no usb, oh well.
  By ADSCTL7UIRPXQ on 2008-08-26
  yeah this DVD player is pretty sweet. i do like the way the samsungs are laid out, they are a bit more user friendly but ive found they can be a bit glitchy. sony products seem to be built better.
  
  my only real requirements for an upscaling dvd player was optical outputs and this one had it. as the other players played divix, there was no optical output to be found. besides my xbox plays divix, so for me, i didnt care.
  
  the features on the front on the dvd player were only open.power and play. no FFW or RWD but no biggie, the remote is big and the buttons are well spaced.
  
  this DVD player is slow loading but has very detailed user settings which are cool once you get the hang of it.
  
  i do hate that you cant change most of the user settings adjustments if theres a DVD in the tray which can be bothersome but once youve set everything up youre good to go anyway.
  
  this isnt the prettiest dvd player but im sure its the best cause sony builds sturdy stuff. this is a DVD player for the audiophile and clarity obsessed because it really is clear! i upgraded from a 1080i output dvd player to this one and did notice a difference, its more crisp and colorful. for the people that say upgrading to 1080p doesnt make a difference just dont know what they are talking about.
  
  for 80 bucks, its worth the upgrade for anyone looking for a clearer picture or anyone with a HDTV.
  
  
• Awesome picture quality & sleek looks
  By A33HIV8RXRDM88 on 2008-11-20
  I bought this Sony upscaling DVD player four months ago and have used it quite a lot in this time. First, it totally outscores all other DVD players in ine aspect for sure and that is the upscaling property & picture quality. It's not as high as Blu-Ray, but it surely reaches 1080p HD quality. I was about to buy a "Samsung 1080P8 upconverting player", since it was showing as bestselling on Amazon. the after reading one review I searched for "upscaling" player and found this one.
  
  It's black sleek looks suit my Samsung LN46A750 and a sleek mounting balck stand. It is not noisy when DVD is inside and can remember the playback time of 6 DVDs. There are a variety of audio & video options to play with. The buttons on the player are a hard to see, but then I mostly use remote, which is very sleek and easy-to-use as well.
  
  Overall, it is a good buy at this price till Blu-Ray prices take a dive.
  
  
• Good DVD Player
  By A76PFU342ASBU on 2008-05-26
  This is a good DVD player, and I would definitely recommend it. I'm not a fanatic about picture quality, though I must admit DVDs look better with this player and HDMI than they did on the old DVD player and component out. This player is a replacement for an older Sony, which simply wore out. My annoyance at the old one wearing out was quickly overcome by my amazement that it hadn't happened sooner, given how old it was and how much it got used. Sony definitely knows how to make 'em last.
  
  
• Very satisfied
  By A1MVJJ8JKWFC7M on 2008-11-04
  Reasonable Price, very compact, wonderful picture quality, would recommend to those looking for a very good up scaling DVD player.
  
  I am very happy with this purchase. I was on the fence about making the jump to Blue-ray but based on the high reviews and the fact that this player is 1/4 of the price I give this one a shot.
  
  It may not be blue-ray quality, but this DVD player was a major improvement over my 5 year old Sony progressive scan player. The picture is noticeably more clear and the sound quality is much improved. I'm no audio/video expert, but I can say that this player produces noticeably better picture and sound from the Standard Definition DVD's in my library.
  
  
  
• Make sure you get an HDMI connection
  By A2C1X5FQC2GU42 on 2008-05-14
  Just like the other reviewers, I cannot rave enough about this DVD player. However, I do want to add one thing that other reviewers have not mentioned yet. I first hooked up component cables to this and put on Lord of the Rings to see if this "upscaling" really worked - all the shots of landscapes would really put this thing to the test. I was slightly disappointed in that I was looking for more clarity. I flipped through the manual to see that to really realize the DVD player's full upscaling capabilities, you need an HDMI connection. After I switched, Lord of the Rings looks absolutely stunning. This DVD player does exactly what it was meant for (and looks good in black)!
  
  
• Wow!
  By A1VK0NXSULHYXE on 2008-05-20
  First let me start off by telling you all that I gave this DVD player 4 stars instead of 5 stars because it didn't come with an HDMI cord. The only reason that a person would but this DVD player is because they have an HDTV so why supply the old red,white, and yellow cord it's just stupid is what it is!
  
  The dvd player itself is light weigth. I would not put anything on top of it. It is easy to hook up as long as you have an HDMI cord handy. The loading process is faster then most upgrading dvd players.
  
  I wasn't sure about buying a BluRay just yet. I looked around and read a reviewer who reviewed this dvd player. He had bought this to go with his Samsung LNT40fx HDTV. I bought the same TV so I ordered this dvd player.
  
  I almost fell out of my bed when Romeo Must Die came on. The picture looked like an HD movie! This dvd player made that movie look one hundred times better. I'm not playing around here people.
  
  I paid $79.99 for mines and it was worth every penny. I have over two hundred dvd's and I did not want to part with them. They costed me too much money. Now I don't have to. I am very happy with this dvd player. Buy it you will not regret it!
  
  
  
• Excellent -- it just works
  By A3PP5KX6VUELQE on 2008-06-13
  Works great!
  
  One note of caution: it comes with only analog video cable(s), probably because some buyers may not have a TV with HDMI.
  
  To use the HDMI digital HD upscaling, you need to buy an HDMI cable. I bought the Velocity cable on Amazon for $10.
  
  
• Nice DVD player replacement, lacking features though
  By A3G1ZZNNW3GW5V on 2008-07-13
  Don't get me wrong, I love what it does to my DVDs but, common, cheap boxes are doing DivX since forever! No Divx/mpeg, no USB/Flashcard input, etc - shame on you Sony! Thanks for JPEG but hello, I take video with my camera too!!!
  Too bad can't get rid of my old box yet :(
  
  p.s. Can I download a newer firmware and upgrade it? Oh, forgot you don't have any means to comm with this box.
  
  
• upconvertng DVD player to go with a new samsung lcd hdtv
  By A3RCEA77XEANC8 on 2008-08-17
  I borrow DVD'a from the local library and when they work they look really good. But the player rejects alot of them if they've been around a long time, so it's fussy. It's ok- I accept it. Relatively new DVD's really look terrific.
  
  

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