I recently experimented playing a DVD from my Xbox 360 (which is currently hooked up to one of the HDMI ports on the TV) and on our regular DVD player (which is currently using S-Video for it’s video input). Video quality difference is definitely noticable between the 360 and the DVD player. I’m guessing it has to do with one video input being HDMI while the other is S-Video (HDMI being better quality, of course), yes? Fortunately my DVD player supports HDMI (even though it’s just a regular DVD player, not HD DVD or Blue-ray).
So, my question: Do I just need to buy a generic HDMI cable and just plug in my DVD player to another HDMI slot to get the better quality signal? Or is the difference in quality due to the difference in the hardware (DVD player vs the 360)?
I expect you are getting 480p out of the Xbox Being that there is a noticeable difference between xbox and dvd player, then I expect you may be getting 480i out of the dvd player. Check to see if there’s “progressive” and/or “16:9” options in the dvd player’s resolution setup.
Of course, difference between analog and digital video will also have some affect on image quality.
But, ultimately (as Septimus said), unless your DVD player upscales, you’re only gonna get 480p max out of it.
$5 to $100, depending on brand and where you get it (tip: not Best Buy, unless you know somebody who works there and can get you $100 cables for $5 on employee discount).
However, since you’re got your Xbox 360 hooked up to HDMI, you’ve already got an upscaling DVD player. With an HDMI or VGA connection, the 360 will upconvert all DVDs to 1080p. Getting an HDMI cable for your DVD player would be redudant.
I’m not the only one who uses the DVD player. I live at home, so I think it’d be best that I get a HDMI cable since my dad doesn’t know how to use my 360 (and I don’t feel like teaching him how to when I can just get a cheap HDMI cable instead).