DVD Drive vs DVD Player: Same image quality?

[Shamozzle]

With regard to LCD TVs and digital signals, I was wondering if the TV image quality is the same when comparing a stand-alone DVD player vs a PC DVD Drive.

Obviously the data path between the player and the TV is more direct than that from a PC and seems to imply less data bottlenecks or corruption, but with today's high-powered computers and video cards is that an issue?

Are there any HD-DVD drives for the PC yet?

Thanks, all.

[Kinthalis]

If your PC has a decent video card that handles de-interlacing/color well, you'll get a superior image out of the PC.

[Absolute]

Essentially, yes. All other things being equal (TV, cable quality, etc.), the image quality of a standalone DVD player will be the same as a DVD rendered by a computer. Especially for HD-DVD and Blu-Ray, most standalone DVD players these days actually are just a computer in a glossy case, with a remote-control receiver bolted to the front.