Philips DVP642 DivX-Certified Progressive-Scan DVD Player
The best price, Excellent Performance, and cool looking
This was by far the best electronic purchase I have made in a while.  I originally got this player because it was on sale, and I have had good luck with Philips in the past. I hoped that this would be a good middle of the road model. This player blew me away with its performance.  Although the new upconversion models are out now, if you have a standard definition television, why waste the money on one.  If you have a High definition television that can handle progressive scan, the 480p progressive scan quality is excellent, and had to seperate from higher definitions.  Other available features on this model include the DivX capability for MP4 and other video files. This player doesn't flinch at all playing these files, a claim which some other divx player try to make. I have files from 6-7 years ago it plays.  Also, this model has digital audio out as well as Optical audio out.  The replacement model which philips put out for this model does not have the optical audio out, which is a huge deal if you want true DTS sound.  This player delivers.  It also has its own equilizer/sound settings for rock, concert hall, theatre etc, something i had not seen before on a player, although my last player is now 5 years old.   <br /> <br />So If you want to make a solid purchase, this is the machine. If you prefer to buy your items at a retailer (not online), you may have to look around to find this player, many places have clearence it out in favor of the new models coming out. So don't be fooled into those new models, this one has more to offer. Thank goodness for amazon.com though, you can get this item offline, which if you need a player and can't find this one at the store, thank goodness for amazon. I have purchased many items from amazon, even electronics, with confidence.