Can a television convert a regular DVD player to progressive scan?

Yes, it is possible. In fact, some people let their TVs handle the de-interlacing of DVDs rather than the DVD player, because it looks better (TV may have better de-interlacing capabilities than the actual DVD player).


That being said, if the DVD player is old, it's worth spending the money to get a decent new DVD player to compliment the new TV. There are even upconverting DVD players that will rescale DVDs to 720p or 1080i resolutions, and output the signal digitally to the TV (getting rid of the need for digital->analog->digital conversions). This doesn't make DVDs look like hi-def, per se, but it can make them look better, especially combined with the DVI/HDMI digital connection.

Your friend's Mits DLP converts all signals to 720p (progressive). Whether he's better off with his old non-progressive scan DVD player or a new progressive scan player depends in part on which does the better job deinterlacing the 480i signal, the DLP or the new player he gets. I agree with cyberbri that a new progressive scan player will most likely be better than his old player, and an upscaling player, matched with the DLP, should give the best PQ of all. Check out the Panasonic S97 DVD upscaling player (around $300), or even better, the Denon 3910 or Pioneer 59ai (around $1100).