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Despite what sales clerks and manufacturers might say, standard-definition DVD players are alive and well, offering a real value for home entertainment. Blu-ray may be the shiny new technology, but consumers are quite happy with current DVD player resolution, even on HDTVs, which means that it’s too early to give up on DVD as a format.

DVD Players and HDTV
Should you get a Blu-ray or a standard DVD player? If you’re on a budget, replacing or upgrading with a new standard DVD player is the best value, and some consumers don’t see a lot of difference between a standard DVD player and Blu-ray.

The size of your screen is one consideration. If you’ve got a 1080p screen that’s 42” or larger, you’ll notice the increased picture quality of a Blu-ray DVD player. At sizes between 40” and 32”, the difference becomes subjective and depends on your eye. At sizes below 26” and on lower-resolution 720p HDTVs, you likely won’t see any difference at all.

Another reason to consider a standard DVD player is content. While new releases are available on Blu-ray discs, older movies aren’t, and may not be for some time. Fans of Star Wars and The Godfather will need to rely on a standard DVD player until Blu-ray discs are released.

Progressive Scan
A new DVD player should offer progressive scan. This feature enhances the picture by displaying every line of a single frame instead of every other line, which is commonly known as interlacing. A DVD player with progressive scan will give you a crisper image and more readable text because you’re seeing all the information in each frame, not just half of it. The difference is noticeable on most HDTVs.