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Toshiba HD-A3
$300.00
Released October, 2007
The Pros:Does a good job upconverting standard DVDs. Inexpensive HD-DVD player. Excelent Video quality in 1080i, even on large 1080p monitors.
The Cons:No 1080p/24fps support. Not many improvements over HD-A2. Fan is noisy.
The Toshiba HD-A3 (MSRP $300) is the entry-level model of Toshiba's third-generation of HD DVD players. It is very similar to its predecessor, the Toshiba HD-A2, and does not offer any significant improvements to this player other the improved form factor of the player.
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There are two noticeable changes: Dolby TrueHD and DTS-MA(core) are still passed over HDMI, but they are now downrezzed to Dolby Digital 5.1 (640Mbs) instead of the HD-A2's DTS 5.1 (1.5Mbs). This supports non-HDMI non-DTS AV receivers, but users with DTS support may want the HD-A2. Also, the HD-A2's S-video port has been removed. It support 1080i output over HDMI and component, but does not support the newer 1080p/24fps video format. See the Toshiba HD-A30 and HD-A35 for this feature.
User Reviews (12)
Pros & Cons
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6
Does a good job upconverting standard DVDs
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5
Inexpensive HD-DVD player
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2
Excelent Video quality in 1080i, even on large 1080p monitors.
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1
1/2 as thick as predecessor
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1
Price compatible with basic upconverting DVD players @ $150 including two free movies
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1
Great value at closeout prices!
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4
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2
Not many improvements over HD-A2
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2
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1
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1
HD-DVD format is obsolete
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1
VERY SLOW startup and disk load times.
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0
The blue power LED is way too bright. Distracting in a dark room. The "dimmer" feature dims the display but not this LED.
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Comments (4)
fultod:
#toshiba_hd_a3 I bought it. Good picture quality, didn't find out it was 1080i only, until I got home a tried it(Toshiba website has a 1080P sticker on it's webpage) no markings on the box either. Tried a few dvd's and some would not even play even after updating the firmware. Started playing HD DVD's and noticed the movies would freeze or skip at around the 1:16 to 1:30 mark on most. Did some reading on other forums and found that this is a common problem that can either be resolved by exchanging the player or the movies. It sounds like the technology in the hardware and movies are not making ends meet. Also boot up and ejecting takes forever. In all I was not able to feel like I was getting a reliable product, it's still bleeding edge, all you have to do is look on the Toshiba website http://www.tacp.toshiba.com/hddvd/ go to support and then FAQ's.
I returned it as it seems to be unreliable.
Dec 31, 07
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Erik:
#toshiba_hd_a3 Great points, CaveWyatt. This is pretty much the cheapest HD-DVD player on the market, and if it does do a good job of upconverting standard DVDs, like you said, then why not buy this over the Oppo? At least you can play the High-def formats at your leisure.
Look at the external links on this page for a great deal on the HD-A3 at Amazon. $199 + 10 free HD-DVDs
Nov 22, 07
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CaveWyatt:
#toshiba_hd_a3 "that much money"? This player is about as much as a good upconverting DVD player (I'm an Oppo fan) with the bonus of free HD-DVD's (ten, for me). It does a very good job of upconverting and I needed an upconverter anyway for my new 61" 1080p TV. Regular DVD's look sharp and clean. This one fits the bill for what I need and I get the HD benefit, basically for free. I don't see any downside here. The player can certainly stand on it's own merits. Please keep in mind that you are watching an entry level model and you will, I think, be very happy with the results. Be sure to perform firmware updates for best results.
Nov 22, 07
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