Do standard DVDs really look OK on HDTV?

Standard DVDs look very good on HDTV. You will get a bigger picture because the widescreen movies will fit the screen better (though many will not completely fill the screen if they are presented in "OAR" (original aspect ratio) if the movie was wider than the 16:9 ratio of HDTV). Reviews on the new high definition DVD are mixed, with some reviewers saying the the new discs are only marginally better than the standard, especially on a high quality standard player. Other reviews have praised the HD-DVD format, with some movies looking "spectacular". I have seen one of the better movies (for picture quality) on HD-DVD, and it is much better than anything else I've seen, even better than broadcast HDTV. I would agree that the picture was spectacular. If there is a movie you like that has particularly good scenic or pictorial value, I would wait for that to come out in high definition. The problem right now is that it is not clear which of the two competing formats will succeed. Blu Ray has been off to a rocky start, with more expensive players and poorer picture quality. This is bound to change, however, and there will be players available that will play both formats.

Your current DVDs will look good on an HDTV but even better if you use an upconverting DVD player (different than just a progressive scan player) with a digital connection (HDMI).

I use an upconverting DVD player on my 40" Samsung LCD HDTV and the picture is very good. It's not at good at HDTV but really not that bad. At this point, I don't see the need to "upgrade" to Blue-ray or HD-DVD, especially since there's a format war in progress and the price of even the entry level players are pretty expensive (around $500).

they look great