DVD Players Reviews

Many reviewers have relaxed their coverage of standard DVD players in favor of high-definition Blu-ray players. You might consider a high-def player if you own an HDTV. Several experts, however, caution that there's no reason to rush out to purchase a Blu-ray player, which are significantly more expensive than most standard DVD players, when the technology is still in the maturing stage. Reviewers say that interested buyers may be able to get better and more advanced players if they're willing to wait a bit longer, and prices are likely to drop in the near future as well. If you're interested in a high-def player, see our companion report on Blu-ray players .

Among those still reviewing standard-definition DVD players, no one reviews more models or stays more current than Consumer Reports. That said, we do wish that the discussion of individual players was more detailed. CNet.com does not review nearly as many standard DVD players, but the discussions are far more informative. Secrets of Home Theater and High Fidelity is ideal for readers wanting to dig into the numbers behind DVD player performance, but these reports might be too technical for some. On the other hand, the editors are not bashful about saying which DVD players are great and which are not. Videophile magazines like Home Theater and Ultimate AV review some standard-definition DVD players, but concentrate more on high-definition and luxury DVD players.

Even if you don't buy a high-definition Blu-ray player, reviews say you can still get a great DVD picture on an HDTV by using an upconverting (sometimes called upscaling) standard-definition DVD player. These models process the resolution of a standard DVD disc (about 720 x 480 pixels) to fit the available pixels on your TV. While it's not really a high-def image, experts do say that if you own an HDTV, an upconverting standard DVD player can make the most of regular DVDs. If you don't own an HDTV, you really don't need an upconverting DVD player, but this feature is now almost a given, even among budget DVD players.

One example is the Helios (formerly NeoDigits) X5000 (*est. $380 direct from manufacturer). At first glance, the Helios X5000 is a compelling product. What sets it apart is its streaming and Internet capabilities. It can connect to a PC via Wi-Fi or Ethernet and stream content to your TV. For HDTV owners, it can scale DVDs and streaming video to up to 1080p resolution (if your TV supports that resolution), and if the streaming video is HD, it can be played at its native definition. (The Helios X5000 can't play high-definition Blu-ray or HD DVDs, however.) It can also connect directly to the Internet (there's a built-in browser) and stream online TV and other video, Internet radio, podcasts and more.

Unfortunately, several reviews say the Helios X5000 doesn't function well as a DVD player, and both Audioholics.com and About.com note that it was unable to pass many of the benchmark tests on the Silicon Optix HQV test disc (one of the standard test discs used by professional reviewers). Audioholics.com's Tom Andry notes that test results were disappointing at best. In real-world viewing, Andry says that the image is actually "stunningly vivid and detailed" when still, but that resolution drops noticeably when images are in motion. He concludes that this issue is a byproduct of the X5000's poor deinterlacing performance. But even that wasn't the deal breaker, according to Andry: He observed numerous crashes, DVD menus that failed to operate properly and occasional dropped video frames. Andry and several other reviewers also report problems with the X5000's Internet features.  ... Continued

Our Consensus Report shows how many times products are top-ranked by reviewers included in our
All The Reviews Reviewed chart.

Although we found few reviews for the latest standard DVD players, the Philips DVP3140/37 seems to stand out in reviews as a great low-cost pick. Among upconverting DVD players, the OPPO DV-980H and OPPO DV-981HD have received excellent reviews, and experts say they perform comparably with higher-end DVD players and - unlike most rivals - come standard with an HDMI cable. The Pioneer DV-400V is also a well-reviewed upconverting DVD player, but it's been supplanted by the newer DV-410V, which is very similar but hasn't received as many reviews of its own yet. The Philips DVP5960/37 is an inexpensive upconverting DVD player that might not satisfy videophiles, but provides pretty solid image quality for non-picky viewers.