Samsung DVD-HD950 HD Conversion DVD Player , Black
From Samsung
Samsung's new DVD-HD950 high-def conversion DVD player is the perfect solution for anyone who has upgraded to HDTV and wants to get the most out of their DVD collections, too. Samsung has always been committed to embracing the latest innovations and capabilities in its DVD line, and these new up-conversion players ensure that consumers who have invested in HDTV get the very best in DVD video and audio playback as well.
- Amazon Sales Rank: #45304 in Consumer Electronics
- Brand: Samsung
- Model: HD950
- Dimensions: 2.30" h x 9.90" w x 16.90" l, 4.60 pounds
Samsung's DVD-HD950 single-disc, progressive scan DVD player enhances video performance by increasing the video resolution of ordinary DVD titles and up-converting them to HDTV compliant formats (720p/768p/1080i), enabling you to enjoy an HDTV compliant picture-roughly twice the resolution of progressive scan DVD players.
It's compatible with a wide range of disc formats, including DVD-R/RW, DVD+R/RW, CD-R/RW, VCD, SVCD, and Super Audio CD (SACD), as well as MP3, WMA, and JPEG file formats. Compression rates supported for MP3 are from 128-192 kbps and for WMA from 64-192 kbps. JPEG files can be seen in a slide show with intervals of 6, 12, or 18 seconds between images; and you can zoom in (2x or 4x) on an image or rotate it 90-degrees clockwise.
The bookmark function lets you mark and store up to three scenes at a time for easy recall. Instant replay shows you the previous 10 seconds of the movie again--in case you missed something important. Instant skip jumps ahead 10 seconds--in case you want to miss something. And parental control lets you set a password that must be given before a password-protected disc can be viewed.
The 720p/768p/1080i DVD Players greatly enhance video performance by increasing the video resolution of ordinary DVD titles and up-converting them to HDTV compliant formats. A normal DVD player outputs 480i (interlaced) video. Progressive Scan DVD players can roughly double that resolution by outputting 480p video. the HD players enable you to enjoy an HDTV compliant picture-roughly twice the resolution of progressive scan DVD players. It is not High Definition DVD, so it is not a new format and works with existing discs.
It features the following video and audio connections (which includes HDMI for uncompressed, all-digital audio/video interface between the TV and any HDMI-equipped audio/video component):
- Composite AV Out (RCA): 1
- S-Video Out: 1
- Component Video Out: 1
- HDMI Out: 1 (HDMI to HDMI/DVI)
- Coaxial Digital Audio Out: 1
- Optical Digital Audio Out: 1
SACD (Super Audio CD). Super Audio CD is a high-quality audio disc standard in which music is recorded in the DSD (Direct Stream Digital) format (where conventional CDs are recorded in the PCM format). Using a sampling frequency 64 times higher than PCM and with 1-bit quantization, the DSD format provides both a wide frequency range and a wide dynamic range across the audible frequency range, providing music reproduction that's extremely faithful to the original source.
What's in the Box
Samsung DVD-HD950, remote control, AAA battery, HDMI cable (with DVI connectivity), AV cable, printed instructions
Good Quality DVD Player. No DivX/XviD Support in US Model.
Video via the HDMI is excellent. Audio using the coaxial out is also crisp and clear. Definately an above average player. That said though, I do not see any noticable improvement using either 720p or 1080i settings and HDMI output compared to my other player (Denon DVD-3800) which is using component outs. I observed no difference between the HD950 and the Samsung DVD-HD850. Television used was a Sony HDTV KD-34XS955 34" WEGA. This player was purchased primarily for the HDMI capability and the DivX playback support I had read about in reviews. However, the version of the DVD-HD950 available in the United States does NOT support DivX/XVID playback. The HD950 image on the Samsung website does show the DIVX logo on the player, but the player shipped to me did not have the logo when it arrived. I verified the lack of DivX playback myself with many file types/settings and double checked with Samsung support.
Excellent midrange upconverting HDMI DVD Player
The black thin case is stylish The LCD screen is nice but bright and a fluorescent blue light shines around the power button. It would be nice if the light for the LCD screen could be turned off where you can still see the status of the DVD.
The remote control has many functions and the layout is logical. Each function on its control can be set as a default such as HDMI level, Screen settings, etc. The EZ view feature is nice which allows you to get rid of the black bars on certain DVDs without significant distortion.
Some features of the remote and DVD player are helpful, include the Replay and skip buttons (to speed through scenes or see the last 10 seconds when you dropped your napkin on the floor).
Set up with the HDMI cable was simple. Picture quality and sound are very good. The differences between 720p and 1080i are neglible. A noticeable difference is discernable between 420p and 720p. The default settings for sharpness and brightness make the picture too dull and soft (setting 3); Picture quality is improved when changed to setting 4.
It is not the best but a good value for the price.
Samsung DVD HD950
Appearance: The black version looks a lot better than the silver one-silver version looks cheap-black version looks elegant, blue LED halo around power switch, white backlit display-looks nice and crisp. Features: comes with HDMI to HDMI cable and HDMI to DVI cable-extra value! Plays SACD's-big remote control with lots of functions. DVD player menu allows to set up sharpness, color saturation and brightness output -especially of value for people with LCD or DLP projectors. The picture quality through HDMI is very good, but a bit too soft with the default setting. I ran it on my Panasonic PT AE700u, and personally preferred to set the projector sharpness to a value in between 9-11, rather than kranking up the sharpness of the dvd player. Blacks through the HDMI port are really black, for my taste almost to black, but you can adjust the brightness to your own preference. It also allows you to enhance the black level output through component output. U.S. version plays region 1 dvd's only. I read about a way to make it region free, but that would only allow to play PAL dvd's etc. through component out, not through the HDMI port. Output options are 480i, 480p, 720p and 1080i.
