A DVD Player We Actually Like

I bought this portable DVD player in November 2006 for my kids. They have used it in the house while plugged in and in the car on road trips.

FEATURES

According to the manufacturer, this portable player plays DVDs, CDs, CD-R/RWs, MP3 and picture CD. We have only used it for DVDs. I wouldn't let my kids use it to play CDs as it is much more fragile and more expensive than a CD player.

The nicest feature of this DVD player is the adjustable screen. The screen is on an arm rather than a hinge so it can be moved up and down for better angles than if were just on a hinge. However, the thing to know is that the arm allows the screen to move up and down. It doesn't pivot from side to side so to get the best picture, you still have to pretty much view it from the front for the best picture. The way the arm allows the screen to tilt is the one feature I found that I liked and distinguished this player from other DVD players.

The screen itself is also pretty good. It uses LCD technology. I find that they screen gives a good picture even when viewing at a partial angle. Viewing the picture from off to the side doesn't work at all. For example, if my two kids put the DVD player between them, they can both watch easily even if neither one is facing it dead on. The picture isn't as sharp as some other tvs we have, but for the time we use this product, the picture is more than adequate. The screen is also larger than some other portable DVD players.

The sound on this DVD player is pretty good and you can get the volume pretty loud as well. The speakers are built-in and project from the front of the DVD player.

The DVD player comes with two headphone jacks which is important for me because I have two kids old enough to watch the DVD player. It is nice in the car when they use the headphone jacks and they seem to like it as well.

This DVD player is very light weight. It is easy to carry around. We had another DVD player I bought over a year ago that was much heavier and clunkier. This one is easy to slip into a backpack.

The manufacturer claims you get up to 3 hours of battery life. I found that we get about 2 to 2 and a half hours. Generally, we have enough time to watch one movie all the way through. Don't plan on watching a second movie though.

This DVD player came with a remote that we promptly lost and never used. The remote feature is pointless in any case. The screen is small enough that you really have to be on top of the DVD player to enjoy it. So, you wouldn't likely have to use the remote because you are probably never going to be more than an arm's length away. When my kids use it, they generally hold it right in front of them. The remote is handy to access some DVD features but that can be done with the buttons on the unit.

The buttons on the player are intuitive and easy to use. My kids figured them out in no time.

WARRANTY

There is a manufacturer warranty on parts for one year and labor for 90 days. My credit card has a better warranty than the one provided by the manufacturer.

PRICE

I bought this DVD player on sale at Best Buy for approximately $140.00

FINAL RECOMMENDATION

I really like this DVD player. It is great for toting around, the picture is pretty good, it is easy to operate and the price was reasonable. All in all, a great purchase.