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I can safely say that I have bought less than a dozen VHS tapes for my own viewing. Once I was able to afford my own ‘things,’ I went out and bought a Pioneer LaserDisc player. I was enthralled by the large shiny discs and knew that LaserDisc was the ultimate in home viewing experience. 1997 delivered a huge blow to us Laser aficionados in the form of DVD. A little 5” disc was promising to be superior with its compressed digital video and native Dolby Digital support. Many of my peers vowed to forever hate the little newcomer and hold steadfast to our 12” gold platters. Then, just two weeks before the arrival of this new format, my Pioneer CLD-D704 shredded its motor and I needed a new LD player. The only replacement I could find was a Pioneer DVL-700, a LaserDisc/DVD combo player. I had no choice but to purchase this unit and enter into the DVD era. After all, how could you possibly own a DVD player and not buy a DVD or two?

My purchase landed me a reviewing position here at DVDTown and then as one of the first reviewers for DVDFile.com. I became an early adopter and a LaserDisc lover that was not afraid to speak out on the benefits of the new digital format. I found myself championing the new technology and slowly saying goodbye to a format that had kept me entertained for quite a few years. Now DVD is the old man and after nearly a decade there are not one, but two newcomers who want to relegate him to the annals of home video history - Toshiba with the HD-DVD format and Sony with the Blu-Ray format. As was the case with LaserDisc, there is controversy as to whether or not embrace the new technologies, not just because of the uncertainty to abandon the old, but now a decision must be made as to which one of the new should be accepted. In the desire to present full coverage to the masses on these new formats, I volunteered to tackle both formats.

Samsung BDP-1000 Blu-Ray First Impressions

John J. Puccio, my friend and colleague here at DVDTown.com, has done a wonderful job of covering the two Toshiba HD-DVD players. I personally own the cheaper Toshiba HD-A1. There is no need to go into any first impressions of the HD-DVD format and I’ll back John’s words on his views towards the format. James Plath has a full article coming on the Samsung BDP-1000, but I will offer up some brief first impressions to wet your appetite until Jim completes his review. So I will apologize for not going deeply into either player, but within the next few days both players will be covered completely and you will be able to learn a great deal about either of them in their respective reviews.