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High-Definition DVD Player Reviews

Toshiba HD-A1 High-Definition DVD Player

Toshiba’s HD-A1 officially went on sale in the US on April 18th, 2006.

Here is a summary of reviews that appeared shortly after its release.

In general, reviewers noted that the picture and audio quality was as good as expected, but that it would be mainly "early adopters" and home theater enthusiasts who would probably want to pay the high price of the players, with a slow boot-up speed a particular problem.

HD Beat:

Bottom line is that HD-DVD is great, but will you notice? If you can't tell the difference between DVD's and HBO HD than you might be just as well off with a upconverting DVD player. If you never noticed HBO-HD's cropped movies, non-dynamic sound and compression artifacts you may be better off sticking with HBO-HD. If you do notice these annoyances you won't be disappointed with HD-DVD or Blu-Ray. The only way I will return it, is if the studios don't deliver with the titles.

DVD Town:

It would be irresponsible of me right now to make a blanket recommendation for either HD-DVD or Blu-ray (or to recommend high definition in general, for that matter), given the format war going on and the hardware expense. What I can say for sure, though, is that for the most part, the Toshiba HD-A1 HD-DVD player works as advertised: It offers a superbly detailed picture; along with a two-hour-plus movie, it accommodates multiple audio tracks and bonus items on a single disc; and as of this writing, it is priced far less than the anticipated cost of its competition. Now, if the machine weren't so slow and noisy and the remote so unfriendly, it might have been nearly perfect.

PC World (reviewing the HD-XA1):

Overall the HD-XA1 is a little disappointing, especially because of the speed. The player has a hefty price tag--it is currently available in Japan for about $847 and will be launched this month in the U.S. for $800--and the slow boot-up is a surprise. But make no mistake, the picture quality is great and these speed problems don't affect enjoyment or operation while movies are being watched.

CNET:

The Toshiba HD-A1 is an affordable first-generation HD-DVD player that produces a stunning high-def image--but only home-theater enthusiasts are likely to endure its long list of early-adopter caveats.

Los Angeles Times (no longer online):

Should you care? Probably not. Because unless you already have a state-of-the-art high-definition television at least 40 inches in size, you won't notice much of a difference.

Here's my advice: If you've got a spare $500, use it toward an upgrade to a bigger set instead. In the time it takes to save up another $500, the price of HD disc players will probably drop and a pending format war may well be decided.

High-Def DVD Digest:

It looks great, but is it great enough?...Certainly, it delivers on the bottom line -- it matches and, at times, exceeded the HD I've seen. But will it be enough to blow people away after all the hype? Purely on video quality, I hate to say probably not. Unless you are only used to standard DVD on a 32-inch or less TV, and see HD-DVD on a big screen, you may wonder what all the fuss is about. But if you have a dedicated home theater that can take full advantage of HD-DVD's capabilities, you certainly will be getting the best pre-recorded consumer video money can buy.

[May 2006 update: Consumer Reports said: "images from high-definition movie DVDs were notably superior to those of standard DVDs."]

* Get the Latest Price on the Toshiba HD-A1 High-Definition DVD Player.

April 21st, 2006