I am looking for the best sub $100 upconverting dvd player that has HDMI and is black in color. Sorry, can't spring for oppo, since they are silver unless you spend a lot.

Currently I am looking at:
Pansonic S52K - good reviews, around $90.
Samsung H860 - okay reviews, refurbed for about $50.

Are there any other good ones to consider? Thanks!

I had the 860 for about a week and that was enough. Grainy picture and froze occasionally. Picture was worse than my old Pioneer 525 running components.

Also, as Jones says the blue power button is way to bright and does tend to distract you when watching at night.

Bill3508

I would go with the Samsung H860. Got mine as a open-box at CC for 40 bucks.
I have the H860 feeding my 37" LCD for my bedroom hook-up and overall I'm happy with it. I see little difference from 420p and 720p, but the picture is ok. For a sub $100 up-converting dvd player you get what you pay for. :o

I don't like the very bright blue light on the power button, This distracts me from viewing movies in the dark in my bedroom sometimes.

I've had the Panny S52 for about a week now, hooked up to a Sony V2500 via HDMI (at 1080i) and using an optical cable to send digital sound over to my Yamaha receiver. FWIW, all is good so far, and I'm very happy with the upconverted image. My use is almost entirely rented and owned standard DVDs. If you need to play a lot of different formats, there's more info here on AVS if you dig for it.

john a