Home > Consumer Reviews > Toshiba HD-A20 1080p HD DVD Player

I got this player couple of days ago, and I am very happy with the purchase. Picture is better than my HD cable, even regular (up converted) dvd's look very good, (that's on a 1080i plasma).

Prior to buying this unit, I had heard that it takes a long time to start up. I haven't found that to be the case. After powering the unit on, it takes about 45 seconds before it is ready to play a disc. The video quality is really superb and I like the fact that it upscales standard DVD discs to HD (and they look pretty awesome when upscaled).

I also like the fact that it has an ethernet port and can be connected directly to the internet for firmware upgrades, so bugs (if any are found) can be corrected and new features enabled. Connecting it to the net also enables some of the enhanced features of some HD-DVD discs.

Prior to buying the A-20, I had every intention of buying a blu-ray player, but a friend convinced me to get this unit and I'm glad he did. I have had the player for a little over a month and have yet to find one thing I don't like about it.

I have had this player for a week now connected to my Toshiba 65-hm167 on 1080p and couldn't be happier with the quality of the picture. The blacks are astounding even when upconverting from a sd-dvd without drowning the picture in black like I have seen in older players that upconverted.

All around I couldn't be happier with it. My only concern, and any comments or help from others who own the player would be very helpful. I am not sure if it did it the first three times I used the player, but lately it takes a long time to initially boot up and allow me to play a movie, or eject the tray. Is this common among the model, or is there something wrong with mine.

If it is my unit I will exchange, if not, is is a mild concern that does not take away from the great price, and phenominal pciture.

Great HD-DvD plauer

I have owned this HD DVD player since the day it was released in Canada (so approx. 6 months), I can honestly say that this player is the best bang for the buck in the high definition marketplace. I chose to write this review just as the third generation HD DVD players are starting to hit the market (already available in most regions of the USA when this article was being written, with Canada soon to follow). When this player hit the market, there were a handful of technical websites to complain that this player was riddled with "issues", this coming from most reviewers who probably spent an hour, maybe two with this unit. I have generally learned not to put much credit in these type of reviews, especially when they are easily "bought" by competing manufacturers.

After months of usage, I can easily say that this is a strong contender for your hard earned home theater dollars, why? Well, after a few firmware updates from Toshiba to "enhance" the player such as adding 1080p/24 capabilities and this player having a strong track record for playing back HD DVDs and DVDs without little to no hick-ups, I have been more than happy with my choice. This unit even handles most if not all of the scratched-all-to-heck HD DVDs that arrive from zip.ca (Canada's answer to Netflix) on a regular basis. Now seeing as how most of the reviews of this player cover all of the technical aspects, etc. I don't feel it necessary to add to that. I will say that you might just want to consider this player if you are in the market for the new HD A30, seeing as how you might just save yourself a few dollars as electronics retialers drop prices to to accomodate the new model arrivals.

I dont know what some other folks are complaining about. You must not have your TV or DVD player properly setup. I am using a Toshiba 57HM167 1080p DLP HDTV with this A20. It looks absolutely amazing! First movies purchased were Phantom of the Opera and Blades of Glory. Both have amazing color and stunning crisp detail. I am more than satisfied. Everything was easy to set up. The firmware upgrade was easy, just make sure you know if you use a static of DHCP connection type on your router, modem or gateway. It does take about 30 seconds for an initial boot up which is not terrible. Considering about how much we all payed for this player everyone should be happy about upgrading to HD because with the price of Blu-Ray player, it would be like going out to buy another TV. Toshiba has excellent customer service, I have used their products many times in the past. Overall, I am more than happy.