CNET had the chance to test one of the very first HD DVD players!
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"The Toshiba HD-A1 ($500) is the less expensive of the two nearly identical first-gen HD-DVD players. Priced lower than the first DVD players to hit store shelves in 1997, the Toshiba HD-A1 delivers the goods, offering a stunning, truly high-def picture and impressive better-than-DVD surround sound. But with only a handful of HD titles available and a long list of caveats, there's ample reason to stay firmly planted on the sidelines of this format war for the foreseeable future.."



Link: CNET