Toshiba HDXA1 HD-DVD Player

(MPN: HDXA1)

Description: High-definition disc players is great news for owners of HDTVs. With the high-performance HD-XA1, Toshiba adds to the extraordinary picture and sound capabilities of the HD DVD format with this player's refined construction quality, convenience, and cosmetics. For starters, notice the motorized door, which provides an uncluttered look by hiding the disc drawer and function buttons.Regular DVDs can look really good on an HDTV, but DVDs can't deliver true high-definition video, even if you're using an "upconverting" DVD player. As TV screens have grown bigger and better, DVD's limitations have become more noticeable ? especially on the 1080p displays, and on screens sized 50" or larger. HD DVD discs are designed to be viewed on an HDTV. Every aspect of this format has been carefully thought out to maximize your home theater experience.When designing their high-definition players, Toshiba's engineers started with a clean sheet of paper. Because HD DVD discs have smaller data pits and spin at higher speeds than a standard DVD, the drive mechanism must be manufactured to very tight tolerances. And the chassis has to be extra strong and rigid to resist vibrations that could interfere with reading the discs. Toshiba employs a double-chassis construction and large isolating feet to provide a stable foundation for the drive.An HD DVD disc can hold three times as much data as a DVD ? enough for several hours of HD-quality video. Along with much better picture quality, HD DVD's increased disc capacity allows for higher-definition sound, too.To ensure backward-compatibility with your existing DVD and CD collections, the HD-XA1 actually uses a dual-laser mechanism: a blue laser for playing high-definition HD DVD discs, and a conventional red laser for playing DVDs and audio CDs. The HD-XA1 can also improve the look of all your DVDs by upconverting the video signal to better match your HDTV's high-resolution screen.The sleek remote control has backlit keys for use in a darkened home theater. The remote's motion-activated sensor automatically illuminates without having to search for the "light" button in the dark. Minimize

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Date Reviewed: 06/27/2006
tarekgibbs from TX Member Since: Mar 2005 View Member's: Reviews Product Experience: 2 Weeks	check this out.....hd like you never sceen!!! Strengths: color just rips the screen awsome!!!! Weaknesses: get ya popcorn where on in 50 seconds.... Summary: i didn't know which to get the blueray or this until the guy at best buy told me the toshiba hd picture looked awesome compared to the sammy blueray. what!!! how can 1080i look better than 1080p i said? he said believe it!!,,also they were sold out of the toshibas hd but they had a few blueray still laying around...so it wasn't like he was trying to sale me....they were sold-out!also i read on the net that bluerays PQ was not as good as the Toshiba's PQ...anyway he told me to try next door so i went to tweeters next door they had some HDXA1's come in that morning.. took it home and the picture is really clean with my hdmi hooked up, very very high-def the movie Serenity "which im not crazy about" but in hd-dvd looked awesome very very sharp and colorful YO.. Im liken it now!!!" Even my old dvds look close to high def in 1080i mode...i did order the update disc and it seems to have increased the color format or something it just looks a slight tad better than even before.the picture is just beyond the area of detail of hd-cable hd-sat & hd-ota, everything has a texture to it the swet on peoples faces looks so life-like you almost can taste it!! the dusty scenes make your eyes squint everything is just really that sharp it just rips with hd color amazing! and the sound is even better you here no noise nothing just crystal clear effects. the #1 issue is the start up time, 50 seconds man thats long and the remote lights-up when you don't move it once or twice, other than it's all good. The menus are computer like very nice an clean think of "windows menus." the overall look of the unit is very minimalist very retro i also like the flipdown door feature. I was wanting to get a blueray too if sony ever gets its 1080p right!!! but the way things are looking i dont know...this toshiba is really looking surprisingly good...and for less money!!!! now i may not even buy the sony because this looks so good hard to imagen they could do better.... anyway whos going to wait for sony to get it together???? 74% of People (14/19) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you? Report this as inappropriate. There are 1 comment for this review. Read all comments. Post a comment.

Date Reviewed: 10/21/2006
ironskull from NM Member Since: Jan 2004 View Member's: Reviews Product Experience: 1 Week	Unbelievible uncompressed color and sound! Strengths: Like I said, unbelievible uncompressed audio & video. Weaknesses: None worth mentioning. Summary: A couple of weeks ago a Sony rep came to our local electronics store to allow the townsfolk an opportunity to audition his Blu-ray product. A short time prior to this I'd watched a couple of movies on my neighbor's HDXA1. This allowed me a chance to compare the two formats. Since the human eye can process a finite amount of video information, (1080i vs 1080p) I saw no difference in picture quality. Both formats produce uncompressed Dolby and DTS sound, hence no difference. Blu-ray touts higher storage - this is OK if you want additional info as to how the movie was made, etc. Personally, I just want to see the flick in high-def. Also Sony's additional storage translates to higher manufacturing cost which is passed on to the consumer. A chain is only as strong as it's weakest link, i.e, hi-def doesn't play on analog TVs etc. After auditioning both, I bought the Toshiba HDXA1 and using HDMI (Video) to TV, and optical (audio) to receiver, bolted it to the following components: (1) $20,000.00 Mitsubishi 82" LCOS 1080p rated Hi-def TV using HDMI to DVI video cable. (2) $3800.00 Denon 7.1 flagship avr-5800 THX ULTRA rated 170-watt per channel receiver. (3) KEF $5,000.00 (pair) Reference 203 front speakers and Kef rear surround and SB speakers, Kef KHT-9000 F/center and R/center. My theater-designed room is 18'X 22' with a vaulted/popcorn ceiling and Berber carpet for reverberation deduction. The acoustics and equipment allow me a far greater entertainment experience than going to the local theater. Bottom line is, I like quality merchandise, that's why I'd recommend the Toshiba HDXA1 F.W. Brown (fiction writer) 33% of People (2/6) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you? Report this as inappropriate. There are 2 comments for this review. Read all comments. Post a comment. Hello, Ironskull here again with a Post Script. I forgot to ad...

Date Reviewed: 10/30/2006
Swammi from MI Member Since: Oct 2006 View Member's: Reviews	Why you should not buy any current hd dvd player Strengths: Great picture when the disc is done properly...but there are many stinkers like Lethal Weapon, Jarhead ect. Weaknesses: I have tried this player along with the HD-A1 and the RCA....and they all have freeze up problems ect. Summary: These are all Toshiba players based on the same bargain bin outdated pc. Theres not only freeze up during actual playback of brand new hd dvd movies at times, theres lip sync issues, hdmi errors...as well as actual player freeze up. Also...every single one of these players is far too slow loading...as well as general functions...and not one of them remembers were you left off in the movie. The format....when done properly is great....but every single player available has these problems to one extent or the other. Buyer beware IMO. 22% of People (2/9) found this review helpful. Was this review helpful or unhelpful for you? Report this as inappropriate. There are no comments for this review. Post a comment.