What’s Hot: HD Upconversion

In the wake of the HDTV revolution, the CE consumer is quickly realizing that unlocking the true potential of HD technology requires state-of-the-art peripherals, especially in the area of video hardware. Yet with a sizeable segment of HDTV owners still on the fence about the future of high-definition DVD formats, the options aren’t always clear.

One solution is the growing market for upconversion technology, and a company quickly making a name for itself in this space is Oppo. With its recent launch of the DV-981HD (pictured), Oppo is raising the bar by offering HD upconversion output at resolutions of 720p, 1080i and full 1080p. The new DV-981HD, which went on the market in December 2006, and carries a MSRP of $229, outputs audio in stereo or in 5.1 channel surround, either via HDMI, or through the included 5.1 analog outputs. Supported audio formats include DVD-Audio, Super Audio CD; audio CDs; HDCD; WMA; Kodak picture CDs; and all versions of DivX including DivX6, Xvid, .SRT, .SMI, .IDX, and .SUB file formats.