Price Paid:  $199.00 from onecall

Summary:
Over the past year this has given me no trouble. The chomabug i have not had issues with. No svcd sucks but soon to have dvd burner in the future so no matter. Have never played mp3s on it. Dvd audio sounds awsome although when i forget to change to 5.1 out and get mad that a new dvd a sounds bad at first listen is a bummer. However when i remember and give it the real juice and hear it how it is supposed to be . how nice it is.

Strengths:
sound, picture and knock on wood error free playback.

Weaknesses:
switching audio outputs for dvd audio.

Similar Products Used:
none

Price Paid:  $250.00 from Etronics

Summary:
I'm reading many favorable reviews, but let me offer up this warning: the chroma bug mentioned in a previous review is not something that can be ignored once you've noticed it. If you have a progressive scan display, for example I have a 37" Panasonic Plasma @ 853x480 res., this problem will be noticeable and irritating to the point of distraction. I first noticed the bug while watching FLCL. FLCL is a beautiful disc, and the Toshiba serves up wonderfully saturated colors and an otherwise gorgeous picture. But notice once, notice always...during particular scenes (read the following articles for details and pictures: http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volume_8_2/dvd-benchmark-special-report-chroma-bug-4-2001.html) horizontal lines appear. For example, in FLCL episode 1, the lines are most obvious when the disc is loaded and the production company logo appears and during the final bridge scene. In FLCL episode 2, the lines can be seen approx. 15 seconds into the episode as the scene cuts to a white background with gray feathers falling. There are numerous other instances which are far more distracting because of their brevity ("did you see that? did it do it again?!"). I point these examples out as these were the images I used to diagnose the problem. Read about this problem before buying. There are plenty of other players available that have solved this problem. NOTE: I cannot speak of the 2003 model, and am not aware of any Toshiba fixes. Regarding other players: I popped FLCL into my girlfriends Wal-Mart panasonic player, for which she had previously received much grief, and whallah! no chroma bug. Admittedly, the colors were not as vivid, and the picture not as pretty, but the fly in the ointment properly removed.

Strengths:
Beautiful picture. Color saturation.

Weaknesses:
Chroma bug is absolutely, completely unacceptable.

Price Paid:  $199.00 from TWEETERS

Summary:
NO PROBLEMS.VERY-VERY PLEASED WITH VIDEO QUALITY.EXCEPTIONAL AUDIOPHILE SOUND QUALITY.TO PROVE THIS,I SYNCHRONIZED AND COMPARED HIGH END ORIGINAL 2 TRACK TAPES IN MY COLLECTION WITH HDCD NEW RELEASES OF THESE MASTER TAPES AND THE HDCD'S SOUND CLEARER,TRANSPARENT HIGH END AND SOLID CRISP BASS.EVEN MY OLDER CD'S SOUND BETTER ON THIS TRANSPORT.FULLY RECOMMEND!!

Strengths:
VIDEO AND AUDIO PERFORMANCE

Weaknesses:
TRANSPORT NOISY IN OPENING AND CLOSING

Similar Products Used:
SONY 5 DISC PLAYER AND TOP-OF-THE-LINE SONY SINGLE DISC AUDIOPHILE PLAYER

Price Paid:  $450.00 from Audio 5.1

Summary:
A rather mixed review of this unit follows; I have had the Toshiba for a year and a half and, being as I am quite busy with work and the rearing of a child, don't have much opportunity to sit down to watch movies. The unit was purchased for just that reason, and I am happy to say that when the machine is working, I fully enjoy the quality of sound and picture. So, herein lies the problem - the unit doesn't seem to want to work for more than 5 or 6 playings at a time. It has already been in for service (just beat the end of the warranty period)and after I picked up the unit, it only played a few more movies, before locking up again! The problem is that the drawer won't open once the DVD is in, and the unit says to put in a disc! Argh; if only I could get the drawer open again! Needless to say, I can't rank this unit too high, as the frustration factor has truly reduced my pleasure factor with this unit!

Strengths:
An excellent picture, and sound to match - well, at least with regards to DVD Video.

Weaknesses:
CD quality isn't as good as my Arcam 8SE; quite a difference in price, however! Technical problems with the unit haven't allowed me the time to experience all of it's features!

Similar Products Used:
This is my first DVD player; I may be in the market for another one, soon.

Price Paid:  $190.00 from Ebay

Summary:
I held out for a long time before buying a dvd player, because I wanted the most features for the money. I'd say this unit definitely wins that title. Will play most any disc you throw in it. I've played CDR mp3's, CDRW's, CDR Video CD's - all played fine. Haven't tried DVDR yet, but I've read it will play certain types. DVD picture and sound quality are very good. DVD-A sounds good (better than cd anyway), but lack of bass management is annoying. Having to go into the setup menu to switch to 6 ch analog out for DVDA is annoying, but I only own 1 DVDA disc right now, so not a big deal for me. MP3 sound quality varies by song and bitrate, but is decent. I did hear an odd sort of background noise on many of the MP3's I listened to. Not sure what that was. I would say cd sound quality is not as good as my old Denon cd player, but its not bad, and is probably as good as any average stand alone cd player. HDCD decoder is a nice feature as more and more HDCD's are being produced. I'm giving a value rating of 5, because there is no other player at this time for the money I paid that can touch it. My dream unit is the Denon 4800, but its still way too expensive. The Toshiba originally retailed for $399 - I paid about $190 (incl.ship). I'm giving an overall rating of 4, because for their original asking price, I would expect a little better MP3 and cd playback quality.

Strengths:
Good picture and 5.1/DTS sound quality. DVDA and HDCD are nice 'high end' features. Plays a wide range of discs.

Weaknesses:
MP3 playback had an odd background noise on many songs (at least w/the one cdr I tried out).

Similar Products Used:
None.