Looking to buy my first HD DVD Player (1 Viewer)

Hi, I'm looking for some advice.

I currently have a Front projection home theater setup. The projector is an Optoma H-56 (720p/1080i resolution) projector thats several years old, matched with a Denon DVD-1600 DVD player (considered very good in its day).

Given that I'm not looking to upgrade the projector in the near time frame, I'm thinking of getting a 720p/1080I HD DVD player. I've seen the prices drop, and a decent Toshiba (HD-A2) can now be gotten for around $250.00.

Is it worth the upgrade. Will the video signal from a 720p player be better than the 480p Denon player I have now (considering that the projector is probably upconverting the signal)?

2nd question. Do these new DVD players do a better job of upconverting the signal for standard def DVDs than my several years old equipment? If so, does the upconverted signal become available over the component video connections or only over the HDMI connections?

3rd Question: I'm also considering replacing my 30 ft long component cables with an HDMI to DVI cable (my project has a DVI-I connection thats a combo analogue/digital connection). Would the video signal be noticeably better if I change to this digital cable type connection?

Thanks in advance for your help

Regards
Bart

1) Yes
2) Upconversion depends on the model, but all are very good to excellent. My A2 is much better than my previous upconversion DVD. No upconversion over compoenent, it requires HDMI, as it does with SD DVD
3) Not a better picture, but it does allow upconversion of SD DVD.

Thanks Jeff - just what I was needing to know.

Okay, so I'm convinced that a new player is in my future. Does anyone know if there are any players on the market that output their upconverted signal as well as their 720p/1080i signal over its component video connections?

Thanks
Bart

No, the number of players that allowed a hack to upconvert over component has pretty much dried up. There have never been any HD DVD players that allowed it, even by a hack.

Bart, you would be best served by adding a HDMI-DVI cable so you can enjoy the excellent up-conversion of SD DVDs on your new HD DVD player.

I assume you know who the best retailer is to obtain your HD DVD player from?

-Robert