if you want to watch DVDs on a HDTV then you should really use an upscaling DVD player, sorry to correct the previous answers but component cables are probably the worst thing to use, the HDTV shows a bad picture because its showing more information than your old tv would have, because the TV is designed to show more information that your old tele. basically the new tv is looking to shows for example 10 blocks if information per Cm2 but the dvd player because it isnt HD can only give 4 blocks of info per cm2, the the tv has to guess what those other blocks contain which means the picture is bad, if you use a DVD upscaler it can improve this problem but the best option is to switch to a blue ray player and then you will get the full benefit of the set. for the meantime if you upgrade the cables your using, a good quality SCART is the best for a normal player, this will help slightly.