Just bought a Samsung 30 HDTV Widescreen(TX-R3079WH) and a Samsung DVD recorder/VHS combo(DVD 325). Hooking it up - wow just one cable - HDMI - and you have to use it to get the pure digital and 1080 resolution. Great, except it won't play DVD movies - it says 'Can't Play Disk HDCP'  It will play VHS tapes, but with no sound - so much for the HDMI 7 channel sound.

Been all through the manual, apparently to use the HDMI both devices have to be HDCP compliant - they both are supposed to be. I have read of many others having the same problem, they return it or live with using the component inputs.

HDCP is a copy protection scheme. It looks like copy protection has gone too far, I can't even play movies on it. I don't see why they would sell something that only makes people angry because it doesn't work?

That's odd. I have a Samsung "upconverting" DVD player that has a DVI output, I have it connected to the DVI imput of my RCA tv, I've never had any kind off error before no matter what I put in it.

I thought the DVI and HDMI were bacially the same except that the HDMI carried audio as well.

Tag for later.

It looks like copy protection has gone too far

Like DVD's have!  With the newer Sony DVD players we have, they won't play most of the DVD's we've bought from Best Buy, Circuit City, and Wal-Mart.  Saturday I had about four hours free between customers so I decided to watch Doctor Zhivago again for the first time in over 40 years.  The Sony DVD would play the first disc, but when I switched to the second, I got the infamous "can not play due to area limitations" message.  That's very frustrating.  Two hours into the move, and I can't watch the rest of it!

I don't understand why people allow themselves to be treated this way.  I returned the DVD this morning with an explanation of why, but most people I know that have DVD's that they can't play just don't watch them.  They allow themselves to get screwed over.  Are you going to try to return the TV after they did this to you?z

Quoted: I thought the DVI and HDMI were bacially the same except that the HDMI carried audio as well.

There's one huge difference, HDMI includes "High-Definition Content Protection."  You are not allowed to use the new HD-DVD and Blu-ray Disc players at full resolution with a standard display unless you use HDMI and have a display that uses HDMI.  It was designed to screw-over the people who own the new TV's so that they have to buy yet another new TV in order to view the newer higher-resolution DVD's.  The DMCA makes it a crime to convert the encrypted HDMI output to a standard DVI or other standard output so that you can view it on a standard display that doesn't have an HDMI input.z

After talking to a few people and messing around I think the DVD/VCR is bad. It won't pick up a signal from the cable box, but the TV will display the DVD/VCR menu, and the TV works fine with the cable box. So the DVD/VCR is going back and I'll see if another one works.