Customer Reviews: Read 100 more reviews...
 You say upconverting, I say upscaling--but DivX settles the matter. April 1, 2008
Samuel Chell (Kenosha,, WI United States)
52 out of 58 found this review helpful
Despite some viewer's claims, this player definitely will not provide an HD-quality, Blu-Ray image, though if you plan to use it with a screen smaller than 40", it should be close enough to satisfy most viewers' requirements (including this one). Adding to the potential confusion is Amazon's current listing of this as the most popular "upconverting DVD player." I was ready to purchase the Samsung (my 2nd) until I entered "upscaling DVD player" into Amazon's search box, and discovered that the favorite player in this price range was the Sony DVP-NS700, which didn't even appear among the "upconverting" players. (Or simply try entering "DVD player.") The Sony is a slightly newer model with marginally shallower dimensions than the Samsung. If you have a Samsung TV set, you may wish to go with the Samsung player for the sake of compatibility; if your set is a Sony, the Sony player's remote will control most new Sony television sets' significant functions without the requirement of entering code numbers.
As for "upconverting" vs. "upscaling," I have yet to discover any difference other than a semantic one. If "upconversion" is as much a function of your HD set's processor as of the DVD player's engineering, "upscaling" may be a more accurate even if less "techno-dazzling" term. Of primary importance is an HDMI connection on the player to assure optimal scanning of the disc by your HD set.
However, the Samsung does offer a feature that, while increasingly rare, is important to some computer users: the capability of playing DivX-encoded discs--which is lacking on the Sony player. If you have such discs or prefer to download and record video files with DivX encoding and then screen them on monitors other than your computer's, then the Samsung is definitely the better bet, whether you call it an upconverter or an upscaler.
HD at a bargain price! May 14, 2008
Ed (Surprise, AZ United States)
32 out of 35 found this review helpful
Hooked this up to a Samsung HL61A750 using HDMI and the 1080p resolution setting. Ran fiber optic to the amp.----The video and sound are fabulous, looks as good to me as Blu-Ray that I have seen in the stores. It appears to me that the problems that have been encountered are due to not taking the time to set up the player correctly. Have played several of my older DVDs, the picture never looked this good. I'm not sure how much the HDMI and the up-conversion contribute to this big improvement to picture quality, but it certainly is big over my older player. Was considering Blu-Ray, but I have a large collection of DVDs and just did not want to start all over again. The Anynet feature will turn on the TV and select the correct input for playing a disc, making an easy switch from TV to dvd or cd. So much for my experience.
 Some improvement but not much April 7, 2008
M. Sun
20 out of 22 found this review helpful
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.
 Samsung has horrible warranty service. May 20, 2008
E. Murphy
16 out of 26 found this review helpful
MY EXPERIENCE OF HORRIBLE WARRANTY SERVICE FROM SAMSUNG: Warning: Product purchased from Samsung and needing warranty service will require many time consuming phone calls. You will be required to call MANY TIMES and be placed on hold for long periods of time. Once it is determined your product is needing service you will need to fax or send your receipt in MULTIPLE TIMES and CALL MULTIPLE TIMES for a return authorization. SAMSUNG WILL NOT FOLLOW UP ON RETURNS AT ALL. Once your request for return is received and is FINALLY authorized you will need to send your product in for service. AFTER YOU SEND YOUR PRODUCT FOR SERVICE, THEY WILL NOT COMMUNICATE WITH YOU. After waiting for SIX WEEKS when promised 10 day turnaround, I called again and waited on hold again and was transfered around again. Finally I was told they could not fix my product and could not replace it so they would refund my purchase price minus tax and shipping. I told them not refunding full purchase price was THEFT, so they reluctantly agreed to refund the tax and shipping too. MY POINT OF ALL THIS IS TO WARN YOU THAT SAMSUNG HAS THE WORST SERVICE OF ANY MANUFACTURER I HAVE EVER DEALT WITH.
DVD refused to work with my Samsung 32" 1080p TV July 21, 2008
R. Walthers (Seattle, WA USA)
15 out of 15 found this review helpful
I had bought a Samsung 32" 1080p TV and decided to get the Samsung upscaling 1080p dvd player, thinking they would talk nice to each other. Boy, was I wrong! Every time I played a dvd, every few minutes the video and audio would cut out, saying that it lost the signal and was searching for it. This happened continually.
First thing I tried switching HDMI cables. I tried 3 different cables, no luck. Next, I sent the dvd player back to Amazon for a different model, same behavior. Finally, since I had a 30-day return, no questions asked, from Best Buy, I had them come get my Samsung TV and exchange it for another of the same model. Still the same behavior.
A sales person at Video Only told me he had a customer who experienced the same abnormality that I did -- Samsung dvd player cutting out when playing through a Samsung TV. He brought back the Samsung and bought a Sony dvd player instead. Perfect picture and no signal problems.
I finally did the same. Bought a Sony DVP-NS700H/S and hooked it up. Worked perfectly with my original HDMI cable. Now I have a Samsung dvd that I may give to my daughter to see if she can get it to work. I love my Samsung TV but I will never buy another Samsung dvd or other component again.
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