I finally got the 3 dual format HD-DVDs I got for free during the recent Amazon sale with the player (The Departed, The Fountain, Letters from Iwo Jima) and with each one, the disc did not play when I first put it into the player. It would load for a bit, then I would get a number message that I regretfully did not write down, but I believe it was something like 4086 4250 (the 4's are correct at least). I would then take the disc out of the machine, wipe the SD side with my tee-shirt, put it back in the machine and voila, it plays. Is this normal and while playback after the wipe of the discs is not affected, does anyone know why this happens?

I was getting the same thing with at least two different copies of The Departed. I never tried the shirt-wipe technique...wish I had. Does it play every time now or do you have to wipe it every so often?

You were able to make the HD DVD side play correctly by wiping the SD DVD side with your shirt? (You didn't wipe the HD DVD side?)

I've heard of three main problems that have been encountered...

1. The HD DVD disc is simply defective.

2. The HD DVD player needs a firmware update.

3. The HD DVD disc manufacturing process can inadvertently leave a residual chemical film on the disc that can interfere with playback. If the disc is cleaned, the film is removed and can be played correctly.

It sounds like maybe you encountered #3, but I don't know how cleaning the SD side would have fixed it.

^ I have the most recent firmware. And I meant I wiped what would be the SD top side, I wiped the side the HD content is read off of (the non-labeled side). So I guess I wiped the HD Side.

MisterHowie...I only played it once so far as I got it today and it played fine straight through.

nearly identical situation(amazon deal, only the A2 with iwo jima, the fountain, and 300). first watched 300 without a problem but the fountain gave me the same issue with the numbers 4086 4203 coming up on the player's display but no picture. read around a bit and learned that opening and closing the player 3,4,5 times might make it work and sure enough on the 4th or 5th time it worked. of course this still seems strange- I might just return the fountain to see if a new copy would have this problem. also emailed toshiba - their response was:
Try resetting your unit by unplugging it from the electrical outlet for at least three minutes. If you continue having difficulty, I recommend contacting our Customer Solutions Department at 1-800-631-3811. They are available Mon-Fri, 8AM to 7PM Central time. Please have your model and serial number available if you call.

Shirt wipes? And people wonder why combos are hated