Blu-ray may be the buzz word at the moment, but there are so few titles available that it's worth waiting a little longer. Yet, with the help of one of these players you may not even need to.
From budget to the high end, here is a selection of devices that will suit every pocket. All of them will increase DVD resolution to at least 1080i, and some to 1080p. Images aren't as impressive as true HD content but they come close. Of course, to take advantage of this you will need a TV with a HDMI input -- a component input won't do.
The star here is the Editors' Choice-winning Denon DVD-1930 which offers a solid build and audiophile performance. If you're looking at buying an upscaling player look to the ones which feature Faroudja processing -- such as the Denon and the Marantz 6001 and 7001. This is a dedicated processor which gives excellent pictures for the price, and is preferable to the no-name or software upscalers found on other models. But all of these players, in their own way, are capable of enhancing the quality of your DVDs when playing them on a big screen. One of them -- the Samsung DVD-1080P7 -- hasn't been reviewed yet, but it's at an intriguing price point.
Of course, Blu-ray players like the Sony BDP-S1E will upscale DVDs, but this model doesn't feature the Faroudja chipset. Even the PlayStation 3 will upscale, and while it makes PS2 games look fantastic, the DVD upscaler is currently awful. Apparently, Sony is undertaking to improve the quality by up to 40 per cent. Even still, we're sure it won't come close to the fantastic results offered by the best here.
Denon DVD-1930 
The Denon DVD-1930 is one of the best DVD players we've yet seen, with excellent features like HD upscaling and SACD playback -- proof that it pays to spend more on a good unit.
Harman Kardon DVD 37
The Harman Kardon DVD 37 is a very good upscaling DVD player, if not as successful as a music player.
Marantz DV6001
The Marantz DV6001 is one of the best DVD players available at this price -- it boasts both CD and DVD upscaling and comes in an attractively slim package to boot.
Marantz DV7001
The Marantz DV7001 is a well-built, upscaling DVD player which will appeal to music and movie lovers alike.
Samsung DVD-1080P7
This DVD player upconverts signals to 1080p output, making it ideal for those who want to play their old DVD library on a new full HD screen.
Like this article? Click below to send it to your mobile for free!
Stu
29/06/2007 08:08 PM
The PS3 up-scaler is awful? You're the first person I've heard say that.
Report offensive content