Philips DVP642 DivX-Certified Progressive-Scan DVD Player
Plays Many Disks and Files, but question on large displays
The Philips DVP642 DVD player has become incredibly popular.  I eyed the player for quite a while, before ordering.   <br /> <br />I've used the player over a month now, and I have the following reactions: <br /> <br />The player looks very nice in my A/V rack.  I like that it is pretty wide, yet slim.   <br /> <br />The best part of this player is that it plays just about anything I throw at it.  My computer's burned DVD+R, +RW, -R, and even computer burned dual-layer disks all play.  Furthermore, almost all the divx and xvid files I've attempted to play, work perfect too!   <br /> <br />The picture quality is fantastic when connected to my smallish CRT standard-definition TVs.  However, the main home for this player is my DLP large-screen television.  The picture quality is not too shabby actually.  I'm quite happy with it.  However, if you do have a large high-definition display you might consider one of the new up-converting DVD players.  The picture quality gain is minimal, but a slight edge is there.   <br /> <br />Furthermore, with this player, I find it is usually best to leave its output interlaced and let my TV do the upscaling rather than use this player in progressive scan mode.  The scaling chip in this player obviously can't be very expensive, so it will not do as good as a job as the scaler in many televisions. <br /> <br />Overall, I am happy with this player.  It does a lot, for the price.  The ability to play DVDs, computer burned DVD disks, and disks with divx/xvid files is a great convenience.  The picture quality is decent.  The remote control lacks any sense, but that is not a big deal.  I plan to use it, for at least a while, or until it breaks.  Then I will consider an up-converting player, or maybe the high-definition players (blu-ray or HD DVD) will have come down in price by then.