<![CDATA[I’m looking forward to getting back to my HD-DVD]]>The night before I left to see my mom I got a new HD-DVD player. The Toshiba one. My review matches almost exactly the review that was in the Washington Post. This is a toy that only the early-adopter types should get. Although, damn, does it have a nice picture!

I don't mind the qualms about the remote (it is damn big) and the slow startup times, though. I really don't care about those two things. I only use DVD's for movies, so never fast-forward or reverse or things like that.

It's expensive, though. $500. And hard to find in stores.

I think most people will wait to get one with their video game console. Xbox 360 will have a HD player available around the end of the year and PlayStation 3 will have a BlueRay player built in if you spend the $599 for their package that comes with it and HDMI (which gives you better quality on an HDTV).

These are pricy toys, but only really necessary if you buy an HD Screen. Average prices on those are around $3,000.

So far I'm happy about my purchase and Maryam says she's been watching regular DVD movies on it and happy too (unlike the cheaper players we tried last week it doesn't skip or freeze on dirty rental disks).

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