Toshiba XDE-E500 ...My First Look

[jagabo]

Well! I guess I just have one of those TVs without a 4/3 setting. Going thru the HDMI at 1080i setting the only changes I can make on the TV is Standard and wide.

What's the difference between standard and wide? It's not 4:3 vs 16:9?

Guess I'll have to wait for the XD-E500s to show up at a brick and mortar near me so if it works like the 5960 I can just return it.

From the reader reviews at Amazon.com it looks like the E5500 has the same problem.

[cal_tony]

Jagabo,

With my TV, having a 4/3 video inserted in the 5960 and having it set to a 16/9 TV receiver, I get a standard 1080 pic that fills the screen. My TV remote has a format button to change the appearance of whatever its receiving. so when I press this the only other format it will convert it to is 'wide expand'. It kind of seems like a wide zoom.

Press the 5960 'upscale' button so it gives a 480p image still thru the HDMI and everything is fine. I once again have all six settings on my TV remote.
and I do get a 4/3 pic thru HDMI. It's just not upscaled.

Maybe this problem is only related to the way the 5960 works. With the XD-e500 pressing the format button on my TV may give me a 4/3 1080 pic. I don't know. Posts on the Amazon site re. the XD indicated this was also a problem on some TVs and there was no workaround.

With my Tosh. HDDVD A3, it also has the ability of the TV set to change the
format of the pic. But even though settings on the TV remote are the same the picture at 1080 standard is 4/3 and the other setting 'wide expand' is just the normal fill up the screen pic.

Having done all of this, I'm still not sure how the XD will work re. 4/3 or 16/9. I will just have to get one and try it out.

The one thing I am sure of though is that the 5960 will not give me an upscaled 4/3 pic no matter what settings I use on my TV or on the 5960.

Tony

[RabidDog]

ALL hi-def should be widescreen.. that's what your TV thinks, so offers no options when it receives a Hidef signal over HDMI. SD can be either Ws or PB, so you get the options (AFAIK)?

[cal_tony]

Rabid dog,

Not so fast. When the PS3 or the Toshiba HDDVD A3 player sends a 4/3 thru the HDMI, my TV sees it for what it is. 4/3. And plays it that way. It's the 5960 and it seems like the XD-E500 that just don't send the right info to the TV.
With all that stuff about device and TV handshaking thru HDMI, maybe they're just not into handshaking

Tony

[ejai]

Rabid dog,

Not so fast. When the PS3 or the Toshiba HDDVD A3 player sends a 4/3 thru the HDMI, my TV sees it for what it is. 4/3. And plays it that way. It's the 5960 and it seems like the XD-E500 that just don't send the right info to the TV.
With all that stuff about device and TV handshaking thru HDMI, maybe they're just not into handshaking

Tony

I agree. The issue is with the XD-E500, Toshiba should of never released this device without resolving this issue first. I hope they are working on a firmware update to fix this problem.

It otherwise puts an enormous blemish on a device that has excellent possibilities.