Buying a DVD player can be a daunting task, given the number of brands and models available. But not all DVD players are created equal! Say you don't want to jump right into the Blu-Ray bandwagon just yet! Understand- able, since the technology is still emerging in India, media is expensive and availability is limited. But you do want a DVD player to complement that new LCD or plasma TV you just bought. In that case, you'll want it to look a little snazzy, be capable of upscaling DVD movies up to full HD (1080p) and capable of DivX/Xvid playback. Suddenly the choice boils down to just one DVD player; the new Samsung DVD-F1080. It'll instantly capture your gaze, thanks to its unique design, small size and touch sensitive buttons.

Even though it's small (not much larger in diameter than a DVD and about 1.5” thick), it doesn't have a pop-up lid-no, that would make it look cheap! The motorized DVD tray is very much there. What's missing is a display which normally shows time elapsed, track info etc. You won't miss it much though, because the on-screen display compensates. This player supports DVD, DVD-R/RW and can also play VCDs, MP3s, WMAs, JPEGs and MPEG-4 formats. It has built-in Dolby Digital surround sound processing and for connectivity it has Component, Composite and HDMI video out.

It comes bundled with HDMI and component cables using which you can connect it to any high-def TV. We tested it out with a lowly CRT TV and a full HD Samsung 46-inch LCD TV from the brand new L6 range. There's very little to fault with this player; it displayed bright and vivid images, and the sound quality was clear and crisp too. Using HDMI, we could upscale all the way up to 1080p (1920 x 1080 pixels, progressive scan). Possibly, the only thing we could have asked for was a USB port. Playing media like DivX files, music and photos (all of which it is capable of) is much easier with a USB drive rather than having to go through the trouble of writing them to DVD first. That's little niggle aside, it's a great DVD player and available now (with HDMI cable bundled) for under 6k.

Samsung DVD- F1080 Rs 5,900	Performance Coolness
Pros Compact size, Full HD Cons No USB support Sold by Samsung India Tel: 1800 110 011	Specs HDMI , Full HD up scaling, MP3, DivX, JPEG, WMA supported, 1x HDMI port, 1 X Coaxial, 1 x component, 1 X composite, Touch Panel control buttons, Dolby Digital, Anynet ready Verdict