Not sure why no one has posted anything about this anywhere but HD-DVD players are out
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage....=1134699969167

I even went to the store and saw it on display and they have about 4 or so in stock on the floor. So this is not a paper release although i have yet to see them sell any movies yet for it.

Posted a story on the main page this morning about a guy that bit the bullet and bought one at Best Buy But, they are actually out a bit before they were supposed to be. According to the author of the article when he called around to the BestBuys asking for information, he got the impression they did not know what he was talking about. Then, when he got to the store to pick his up, they were just shoved onto an empty space on the shelf with all the other DVD players.

As you say, who cares, as there is nothing to watch on them yet. It is interesting to note though, that there is little fanfare about the arrival. Nothing in the Sunday paper etc., at least I didn't see anything. Maybe, when there is an official launch, we will see some more activity. Frankly, with the 1080i output and 500 dollar price tag, I don't expect them to fly off the shelves no matter when they come out. Wait till the sales guy in the store starts talking about AACS and HDMI etc., to Joe Six Pack and I think we can expect even less interest. Of course, to be able to appreciate the added detail of 1080p, you are going to need at least a 65 inch screen from what I have been reading. I think we can consider the amount of households with this type setup to be in the very small minority.

Maybe 1080i isn't so dumb after all.

According to the Sunday ads, the Toshiba is supposed to come with 3 HD titles at BestBuy.

Ahh. I did not see that. However, here is a quote from the lad that purchased one on Friday, and peeled open the box, according to him there was no HD content inside:

How Does the Picture Look?

Since the official debut of HD-DVD is Tuesday, May 18, I was unable to score one of the four actual HD-DVD launch titles to test out (see below for links to details on those titles). That test will happen within the next 48 hours. In the meantime I did pop in both “Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith” and Paramount’s upcoming “Aeon Flux” to see how up-converting on the HD-A1 compares to my now old Momitsu. Both units offer a much sharper up-converted 1080i image compared to a 480p resolution coming from Xbox 360 (see below for a digital snapshot of the HD-A1 playing “Revenge of the Sith”). Differences between the Momitsu and Toshiba to my naked eye on a 118” screen were minimal at best. The Toshiba on some scenes is a hair sharper and brighter over the Momitsu but only when scrutinized for imperfections. Anyone who does pick up this player and has never owned a 1080i up-converting DVD player before will be pleasantly surprised at the improvements. The bigger the display device, the more apparent the improvements will be.