Toshiba HD-A2 DVD Player

HD is the way to go

Strengths: The price is exelent, it works as promise, the PQ is great, and the sound is a WOW factor.

Weakness: I wish it has analog 7.1 conectios, but for the price I can't complaint too much.

If your are like me, and can wait too much, then go for it> The way I see it is this, for $ 247 you can experienced HD movies right now and not wait another year or so for this war to end, and maybe you can help end it sooner. If Blue-Ray wins (I don't think they will) you can still play regular DVD in a exellent up-convertion unit better that most I see in stores, and save a punch of money, that...

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Toshiba HD-A2 HD DVD Player

Strengths: Value for the money, sleek look, simplicity of installation, excellent backward compatibility.

Weakness: None so far as far as the player goes, but the jury is still out on how "compelling" is the need to upgrade to the High Definition DVD experience.

This is a solid choice for anyone who wants to upgrade to High Definition DVD viewing. This is the cheapest entry point, without any obvious sacrifices in quality and features. Toshiba's brand name is great, the player is easy to install and use, the electronics run seamlessly (fast response, good quality) on a decent range of DVD's. I connected it to a Toshiba LCD TV using an HDMI connection. I...

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Great entry level 2nd generation HD-DVD player

Strengths: Faster bootup time than 1st Generaton Toshiba HD-DVD players Fantastic HD-DVD high def output (though not much HD sources to compare) Relatively low price of entry for new technology

Weakness: Limited studio support for HD-DVD format (this is not fault of player, but should be a purchasing consideration) Does not support dual format (HD-DVD and BLU-RAY) since LG just announced a product

I bought the HD-A2 since there is a Toshiba mail-in promo for 3 free DVDs and a lot of people have praised picture quality of HD-DVD movie titles. I also purchased a Sony PS3 to handle blu-ray discs so I can enjoy both formats. I have a 73 inch Mitsibishi Rear Projection TV professionally ISF calibrated and the HD-DVD output at 1080i looks awesome with the few discs I have tried through the...

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I must have gotten a lemon

Strengths: Value, design

Weakness: Slow boot, won't resume a film at a midpoint, seems to demand discs with perfect surfaces

This thing worked great for a handful of HD DVD films a friend loaned to me, but playing anything from Blockbuster is a crapshoot as fully 70% of the rental discs will not play. Either the machine denies that the disc is of DVD format, or it insists that there is no disc in its' mouth at all. It seems to barf on the slightest imperfection on the surface of the disc. I will take the issue up with...

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HD-A2

Strengths: I first tried out a standard DVD with this player and it looked great. Made my old player look like a joke. Then I watched an HD-DVD. Wow. The image was clearer than I could've imagined.

Weakness: Bootup time is still a bit much, improved or not. The hybrid HD-DVD/Blu-Ray disc incompatibility makes me feel a little uneasy, but maybe a firmware update will save the day? (Wishful thinking.)

I'd agree that the player isn't worth $500, even as good as it is. Thanks to Page's significant discount and Toshiba's 3-DVD giveaway promotion, I'm happily watching crystal clear HD-DVD movies sooner than I thought possible. And to think some guys are paying a grand for their Blu-Ray players... For anyone who just can't wait to get their HD-DVD fix, I highly recommend the HD-A2.

HD-A2... Much Better After Firmware Update Version...

Strengths: Extremely high quality audio and video even with standard DVDs. It makes standard DVDs look almost as good as true HD-DVDs. Toshiba's customer service for HD-DVD players is EXCELLENT!

Weakness: A bit slow during startup. Otherwise runs great!

When I first used this HD-DVD player is was very quirky. It would lockup during playback, freeze during DVD pause, sometimes be completely unresponsive, and be generally very slow... It was VERY frustrating! I almost returned the unit for a refund. I contacted Toshiba's customer service and got through to a real person right away. Customer service told me that Toshiba was coming out a firmware...

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Toshiba HD-A2

Strengths: Beautiful 1080i output. Upconverts regular DVD's.

Weakness: No hdmi cable included. No analog 5.1 output.

With new technology dropping in price nearly every week, this Toshiba HD-A2 finally fell into my target range and I bought it. To sweeten the pot, there is a mail-in form for 3 free hd-dvd's with this purchase. I was dismayed that the only cable included in the box is a component video cable (other than the power cable). Fortunately, I had an hdmi cable laying around and used it to connect...

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What's important? Picture Quality!!

Strengths: Picture Quality - HD and very importantly Upconverting

Weakness: Format Support - Movie Studios.

After researching and testing both options, I have concluded that HD-DVD has superior picture quality. Not only with HD but hands down with up-converting which is very important right now as not everyone can afford a new library of dvd's, and not all DVD's are in HD. Also this makes up for the unfortunate point of less HD-DVD support by movie studios. Blu-Ray has a harsher picture and you will...

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HD-A2 new player, less features

Strengths: Built-in Dolby True-HD 5.1, great picture quality, ease of use, best upscale player for standard DVD

Weakness: Built-in Dolby True-HD 5.1 through HDMI ONLY, no 5.1 analog output, still no DTS-HD decoding, still no 1080p support, no new features really. not worth $500

As i have no real regret about buying the HD-A2, i'm still upset with the value that we the consumer are getting on these first gen HD players. first they toyed with the release date of this player, i went into best buy numerous times to pick one up as they had the tag on the shelf like a month before the player would actually arrive at stores. nice. The first dissapointment was when i opened the...

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WOW, what a great HD value TODAY! Not in two years...

Strengths: Affordable price, HD-DVD playback, Excellent HD upscale of standard DVDs

Weakness: Doesn't auto restart DVDs when turn machine on, must start from the beginning.

This machine does TODAY what BluRay will do in a couple of years, it gives you GREAT HD viewing at an affordable cost. BluRay may give us that in a couple of years if prices come down, but this TOSHIBA HD-A2 player does that NOW. Great upscaling of regular DVDs to HD quality as well, and for that reason alone it's worth the money. So if you want a great upscale DVD player, and want to also watch...

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