The latest scaler from Anchor Bay is now shipping at $799. I know, I know, the price seems a little high, but a quality scaler can improve your HDTVs picture dramatically by taking in all of your sources random resolution and presenting your the TV one, properly scaled image. Plus, the EDGE’s six HDMI inputs and four RCA-type inputs gives you some room to grow your AV marriage-ending equipment collection.

AnchorBayTech via CEPro

Oppo has always been a driving force in the upscalling DVD scene. The company was one of the first, and the AV crowd still looks upon with respect, so when the BDP-83 dropped at the DVDO booth, they took notice. Rightfully so too as the BDP-83 is sporting the same killer video processor as the DVDO EDGE. No word on price or availability, but you can assume that the player supports BD Live, thanks to the rear-panel Ethernet jack along with 7.1 analog out for legacy audio. Plus, the front logo markings revel that it also supports SACDs with HDCD support. Hopefully, more info will drop soon — like the price — as the BDP-83 might just be the first must-have Blu-ray player.

Pics of remote and back panel after the jump.

DVDO has been around a while, pimping AV scalers to the affulent around us. Previously, those scalers, or upconverters, used third-party processing to accieve the amazingly, upgraded picture. Those models cost up to $3,499 though. So when the $799 Edge dropped last week, the first thing that came to mind is what the hell did they exclude. It turns out that besides component and RS-232 outputs, not much was left out thanks to an in-house made processor. What used to cost a great deal of money per chip tp buy, can now be made by the company at low cost. The booth guys said that the processing is the same and we shouldn’t notice any difference at. The Edge is aiming at the Best Buy / Circuit City crowd and the company is even hoping to drop the price if the accountants allow later on.

DVDO has a rich heritage of fine upscalers and the companies latest is hopefully isn’t different. The EDGE takes video via six HDMI 1.3a ports, two component, one composite, or S-Vid inputs and does some internal scaling wizardry, only to send the now 1080p image over two of HDMI 1.3a outputs. If you have scoffed at scalers in the past, these are the real deal my friend. I have spent a good amount of time with DVDO’s previous generation and can tell you that they can make a huge difference in terms of picture quality. The MSRP for the latest is $799, which clocks in a lot cheaper than the current models. (iScan VP50 Pro MSRP is $3,499) We’ll spend sometime time with the EDGE next week at CEDIA and see if this inexpensive scaler will still make a difference or is just an over-priced HDMI switcher.

AnchorBay via CEPro