ok, so I know NOTHING about these DVD upconverters, but my husband has been wanting one. In researching them, I have learned that they do all sorts of things from the computer, but he only wants one to enrich the picture when watching DVD's. Any other features of the player is irrelevant to him. We have a Sony plasma television (it has an 'HDMI' log on it and i've heard him say its a 1080). Soooooooooooo, my questions are this:

1. Is an upconverter REALLY going to be an improvement over our regular DVD player?
2. Do I really need to spend a lot of money since we'll only be using it for better picture quality when viewing DVD's--I am looking at the Philips DVP5982/37 --- it sells for 60.00 at best buy
3. any other advice?

Please help, as I need it! Thanks!

1. Is an upconverter REALLY going to be an improvement over our regular DVD player?

Probably not a "night and day" improvement. Is he really fanatical about his DVDs? That helps. Upcoverters giving you more settings to fiddle with. Men like that stuff.

2. Do I really need to spend a lot of money since we'll only be using it for better picture quality when viewing DVD's--I am looking at the Philips DVP5982/37 --- it sells for 60.00 at best buy

I'm not familiar with that model, so can't say. There is a thread on it here: http://avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=819468

3. any other advice?

If you want a dramatic improvement, you have to go to the new HD-DVD and Blu-Ray players, but they are more expensive and there are not as many titles available yet.

-Bill

What about this one?

(Sorry first post and can use live URL's)

DVP-NS77H/B (Black)
http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10551&storeId=10151&langId=-1&productId=8198552921665179497

DVP-NS77H/S (Silver)

http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10551&storeId=10151&langId=-1&productId=8198552921665179498

I have a Sony KDS-60A3000 TV and bought the black one. The picture is very good and you can integrate it with the TV Remote. Also has HDMI. Got it at Sears for $89.00 but you can probably find it cheaper if you look around.

Hope this helps. :)

I have noticed only a small difference in picture when upconverting. However, I feel like it's the only way I can "stand" to watch DVDs :P

Really, I would have to say the best option is buy the ABSOLUTE cheapest HD-DVD player because not only do they upscale VERY well, but they also play High Definition movies as well (HD movies are 1080p compared to DVDs which are 480i/p). You can find HD-DVD players on the cheap end from $99 to $199 if you shop around. You also get at least 5 free movies when you get a player.. pretty sweet deal.

If you just want to go budget, I got a RCA upscaling DVD player w/ HDMI for $70 from Walmart. Been very happy with the results. :)

I'm not one of those who pushes Sony because they're Sony, but I own a DVP-NS75H and love it to death. The other ones that Dohara73 mentioned are the successor of this model. My friend owns the 77H and it is a stellar performer as well plus converts to 1080p instead of just up to 1080i like mine. It doesn't matter to me anyway because my display is only 1080i. A bit of warning though. It will show an improvement in picture quality, but it won't be big. Your TV already converts everything to 1080p resolution already. My friend's 50 inch Samsung plasma looks better with the DVD doing the upconverting, but it's not earth shattering by any means. It depends on how much of a geek your hubby is. If he is a huge nerd, he will notice the difference in picture quality and be happy. If he's not geeky about stuff like that and wants night and day improvement, a HD-DVD player is better choice however more costly in the short and long run.

With all that being said, the Sony 77H is an excellent choice. Make sure you buy it somewhere where you can take it back if the improvements are not justifiable.

ok, so I know NOTHING about these DVD upconverters, but my husband has been wanting one. In researching them, I have learned that they do all sorts of things from the computer, but he only wants one to enrich the picture when watching DVD's. Any other features of the player is irrelevant to him. We have a Sony plasma television (it has an 'HDMI' log on it and i've heard him say its a 1080). Soooooooooooo, my questions are this:

1. Is an upconverter REALLY going to be an improvement over our regular DVD player?
2. Do I really need to spend a lot of money since we'll only be using it for better picture quality when viewing DVD's--I am looking at the Philips DVP5982/37 --- it sells for 60.00 at best buy
3. any other advice?

Please help, as I need it! Thanks!

A lot depends on the scaler in your tv. If the tv has a better scaler than the DVD player you will not notice any improvement in picture quality. If the scaler in the player is better, you will notice some improvement but probably not anything dramatic. Sorry, I know this will probably confuse you even more but that's how it works.

I have the first generation Samsung DLP, 50", with DVI. I recently pruchased the Sony NS77H and it really improved the PQ on DVDs. I am only at 720p, but the difference is very noticable.