Outstanding Performance
Once you get everything hooked up and boot up a game or DVD, the results are spectacular. On games the colors will really pop out at you and you’ll notice details that you didn’t even know were there when playing on a standard TV. Everything is sharper and cleaner and simply much better looking. The difference between 480i, which is what standard TVs use, and 480p, 720p, and 1080i is really something you have to see for yourself to believe. When you watch a DVD with your progressive scan DVD player (since the Xbox only plays DVDs in 480i), movies will look so sharp and realistic you’ll swear you can reach out and touch them. The VD-Z3 produces a sharp, clear, perfect image no matter what you have hooked into it. Simply gorgeous. And if everything isn’t perfect, there is also a brightness adjustment screw you can play with in order to get the best image possible. They really did think of everything.Slight PS2 and GC Difficulties
A great feature of the VD-Z3 is that you can use it with anything that supports progressive scan, but it doesn’t have any sort of 480i easy view mode like the X2VGA+. This means that setting up your GC or PS2 requires a lot of switching back and forth between a TV and monitor and is generally more trouble than it is worth. Progressive scan DVD players will all work perfectly with it, of course, but using a GameCube or PS2 requires a bit more effort. Unlike the Xbox where almost every title runs in at least 480p, only a handful of PS2 and GC games run in modes higher than the standard 480i. If you do have a progressive or HDTV compatible game, you then have to perform some button presses and other things in order to activate the progressive modes for the system or manually set progressive mode in PS2 games which has to be done in 480i (you’ll have to find the specifics of this stuff out somewhere else) which is a far cry from how easy it is to enjoy these modes on the Xbox. The main thing I’m trying to get at is that Sony and Nintendo missed the boat in this generation when it comes to taking advantage of HDTV. Their loss, our gain.Bottom Line
Overall, the VDigi VD-Z3 adapter is highly recommended and is a great solution for those of you out there that want HDTV quality visuals but can’t actually afford an HDTV. You’ll be amazed by how great things can look once you see them on your monitor running in high definition. The best part about the VD-Z3 is that it is compatible with not only the Xbox, but anything else that uses component video outputs. That means you can use your progressive scan DVD player, digital cable box, and the handful of GC and PS2 games that take advantage of HD. Not only that, but since the VD-Z3 does use component inputs, all of the next generation game systems should be compatible with it as well. This won’t just improve your gaming in the present, it is an investment in having great looking games in the future as well. The VD-Z3 is simply a great product that is highly recommended for anyone that wants to get the most out of their game systems, DVD movies, and digital cable. HDTVs are expensive. The VD-Z3 with a monitor you’ve already got is cheap. Seems like an obvious choice for gamers on a budget because the VD-Z3 really delivers. For $59.90, this is a great buy.Buy the VD-Z3 at the official VDigi website.
