Samsung DVD-HD931 HDTV Converter Progressive-Scan DVD Player Review

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(More customer reviews)Hopefully you're reading this review to try and find out whether the HD quality DVI output is really that good.
If you're in a hurry, I'll summarize by saying that it really is the best quality video output that you can get today from a DVD player. But it would not make sense to leave it at that, especially when the other DVD players cost at least a 100 bucks less. I for one decided to do a test. I compared this Samsung HD931 player against a Sony DVP-NS725P (in my opinion, one of the best less-expensive, non-DVI output players). I chose the Sony because it's one of the few progressive scan players that have a 12-bit 108MHz Video DAC (Digital to Analog converter) - most others have a 10-bit 54MHz Video DAC. As I write this review, the Samsung cost around $229 while the Sony cost around $129.
So how did these 2 players compare? First off, I chose the best video output from each player. Obviously for the Samsung HD931, this is the DVI output (and I ran it at 720p as well as 1080i). As for the Sony NS725P, it was the component output running at 480p. Also, I tested with many DVD movies, not just one. And finally, my TV is a 50" Samsung DLP HDTV - great TV, but with such large and high clarity TVs you tend to notice any artifact, noise, etc. So the input to this TV is important (that's what got me started on this quest for a good DVD player in the first place!). The bottom line is this: With most DVDs (such as 'Finding Nemo', 'Indiana Jones', etc.), I noticed a difference - the Samsung HD931 produced a picture that was better than the Sony NS725P. But how much better exactly? Well, I wish I had a tool for measuring that, but I don't. So with my human perception I'd say that on a scale of 1 to 10 (10 being the best), the Samsung HD931 scored a 9 while the Sony NS725P scored a close 8. When the DVD movie was of low quality (such as a backup of a movie), the score was even at around 7 each. In other words, there seemed to be no difference in the case of low quality DVDs (surprising, I'd have thought the Samsung would have done better here).
I don't want to make this review too big, so I'll summarize the pros and cons of this Samsung HD931 player.
Pros:
1) Definitely high quality DVI output - I used the DVI cable that came with the box. No noise problems, no setup problems, nothing. You do have to remember to select 480p or 720p or 1080i. I seemed to get the best picture with 720p, but 1080i seemed almost the same really.
2) DVI cable was included - I'm mentioning this again because it is a big deal, given how expensive these cables can be. However, I noticed that some boxes at Best Buy said 'DVI cable included', while some did NOT. So, do all HD931 boxes include the cable? I don't know.
Cons:
1) The price - it really has to come down.
2) The remote. Others have said it too - it really has very small range. If you're more than 6 feet way, you'll have problems. Also, there's only one Fast Fordward (>>) button that doubles as chapter forward as well as fast forward. If you press it once, it goes to the next chapter. If you press and hold, it'll fast forward. Same thing for Rewind (search backwards). Not a good design.
3) The blue lights - Yes, that's plural. There are 2 big, annoying ones. When the unit is in standby, the round knob all the way in the left lights up. This is the smaller of the 2 lights. When you power up, the big round knob all the way to the right (jog dial) lights up. This one is more annoying since it's big and very bright. You can only make the display dim, but not either of these 2 lights.
4) Audio output not that great - I hooked up the optical digital out to my Denon Receiver. The bass was sub-par. The surround sound channels seemed weaker too. When I hooked up the Sony player (NS725P) with the exact same receiver settings, the sound was awesome. Of course, the Sony player is noted for it's high quality sound output. So maybe that's more of a statement for the Sony player than for this Samsung player.
5) Lack of special features - E.g. The Sony player can remember the location of the last 5 DVD movies you've played. This Samsung player didn't seem to always remember even the most recent one I was playing. Also, you cannot make any picture adjustments (noise filtering, film mode, cinema mode, etc.) All these and more were available with the Sony NS725P that cost much less.
To summarize (again) - this Samsung HD931 is capable of producing one of the best quality pictures using the DVI output. But for all the lack of features described above, I would not recommend buying it. Especially if the price stays so much higher than the other players which certainly do a good job with Video as well (not as good, but close enough). I ended up returning the Samsung HD931 and keeping the Sony DVP-NS725P. I plan to buy a good quality VCR with the $100 I saved.

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Samsung's DVD-HD931 aims to redefine DVD picture quality, using high technology to upconvert DVD-Video images to resolutions better suited for today's high-definition displays (720p/1080i). Even if you're planning to upgrade your television at a later date, this player will work with your current set and all commercial DVD-Video media, as well as your homemade MP3/WMA music CDs, Picture CDs, and CDs filled with JPEG image files.
Standard DVD players output 480i (interlaced) video. Progressive-scan players roughly double that resolution by outputting 480p (progressive scan) video. Progressive scanning, referred to as 480p for the number of horizontal lines that compose the video image, creates a picture using twice the scan lines of a conventional DVD picture, providing higher resolution and sharper images while eliminating nearly all motion artifacts. The DVD-HD931's 480p output can be sent via a dedicated DVI (digital visual interface) output or the more traditional component-video outputs.
The DVD-HD931 also performs 3:2 pulldown. DVD mastering introduces a common distortion when adjusting 24-frames-per-second movies to 30 fps video; 3:2 pulldown digitally corrects this distortion, removing the redundant information to display a film-frame-accurate picture. Faroudja's de-interlacing technology (DCDi) is built into the device, performing directional interpolation--detecting the angle of a pixel's outer tilt--on each pixel. Video signals are de-interlaced according to that angle, thereby correcting image vibration, stair-stepping, cut-off, and other common video-processing artifacts.
Two sets of left/right analog-audio outputs channel audio to Dolby Pro Logic receivers and stereo televisions. Both Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1-channel surround-sound signals can be routed through the player's digital-audio outputs (one each of RCA coaxial and Toslink optical) for direct connection to a full-featured audio/video receiver. If you don't have a surround receiver or six-channel speaker setup, you can still make every movie night the ultimate experience: the unit's 3-D Sound function simulates surround sound through two speakers (even the stereo speakers on a TV).
Other features include EZ View letter box eliminator (which adapts widescreen images for 4:3 aspect-ratio TV sets), motion zoom (which magnifies selected screen areas by 2x or 4x), instant replay/skip (which initiates a 10-second jump backward or forward), and bookmarking (which lets you mark sections of a disc for rapid access).
Three keys to high-quality pictures

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