I've found how to check the amount of persistent storage of the hd dvd player, perhaps someone else may like this:
- Start player without disc
> press [setup] on the remote controller
> navigate in the menu to general and press [right arrow]
> navigate to maintenance and press [ok]
> navigate to persistent storage and press [ok]
> now press setup again and voila the persistent storage management menu displays
> you can press [right arrow] to check the storage capacity
The HD-A1 shows 130MB
greets

Checking amount persistent storage
Kamen
rtaiss