Nice clear picture,Sage/Faroudja chip

none...none...none

This player keeps impressing me every time I watch a movie on my toshiba 56h80 screen. Colors/textures jump off the screen and it looks truly 3d at times.

If you have a HD set and want a well priced player then this is the one to audition...

Have a look here for a Benchmark (not done by Panasonic)
http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volume_8_3/dvd-benchmark-progressive-shootout-2-8-2001.html

I wonder if some of the reviewers have actually purchased the Panasonic-RP56.

I won't bother commenting on the 3:2 pulldown article as its a no issue because most if not all players are doing the same thing especially in this price range.

Similar Products Used:

Pioneer 525

A steal for a Sage equiped player!

Bare bones, flickering images.

The RP56 is a bargain for a Sage chipset player. The picture from the player is very good, sharp and detailed. It does have a few quirks thoughs: where other players show the chroma bug, the RP56 pulsates. In some dark scenes it gets light/dark bands scrolling through parts of the picture.
It does not have a lot of features either, this baby is pretty bare bones. You are paying for the chipset and little else.
It seems to handle MP3's pretty well, though there is no on screen display of song lists, or random play of MP3's

Similar Products Used:

Sony 530D. Toshiba SD4700

Progressive scan chipset (supposedly). Much friendlier UI than the Sony I had.

Occasional jittery, weird, scrolling, pulsating "scan line" effect.

I think I know what Jim is talking about. I noticed it the other night watching the Superbit version of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. There's a weird jitter/shimmer/scan line effect that reveals itself every once in a while. It even affected the subtitle text. Lasted only a split second, but it looked like every other scan line was black in the affected portion of the picture. Definitely something weird going on here. Any ideas?

Similar Products Used:

Sony DVP-S360

Excellent Picture & Superb Sound

No screen saver...but no big deal.

Finally replaced my Sony lip syncin' DVD 550 with the Panny RP56k. I do not have a HDTV so I cannot take advantage of the progressive scan. None the less this unit has a fabulous picture and wonderful sound. Colors are great and imaging is top notch. "The Fifth Element" SUPERBIT DVD was the first DVD I tried on this machine and WOW!!!! Unbelievable sound and picture. Can't wait to use the Progressive scan when I eventually get an HDTV. I would recommend this unit to anyone with or without an HDTV. I love this machine!!!

Similar Products Used:

Sony 550d