Down with portable DVD players

I'm not the OP but I agree with her 100%. Yes I am a mom and my "downtime" on a *family* vacation is when the kiddo is asleep.

Yes, but remember that vacationing with one child is much easier than vacationing with two or more. With one child, you and your dh can "switch off" and take turns with the kiddo, so you still get a bit of a break. Unless you're a single parent, of course. Which maybe is your case?:confused3
 
First, I have to say that YES, we use a dvd player for trips, and I would have LOVED to have had one as a kid, since I got carsick reading or doing much of anything while the car was moving (my dd inherited that, poor kid), and "quality time" got old after about, oh, 7 hours out of a 14 hour car ride...

Second, I think it's too bad that this thread has made people (myself included) feel they have to defend their choices by commenting on only using dvd players on long trips, etc... Should it really matter to others what I or any one else does when traveling, as long as it doesn't affect THEIR children or their lives? I just don't get it! We all make choices and do what's best for us, right?

Okay, I'm off my soapbox...
 
Let me first say that this post if not DIRECTED at anyone. I'm not writing it based on any *particular* thread on the subject (though I have seen many), but rather was triggered by some things I saw this weekend.

What I want to say is. I think Portable DVD players and in-car DVD players are such a horrible creation.

They only serve as a way to "shut the kids up", and the undermine the family time that you get to spend together. Mostly they're used in cars, which these days of double-income families, is one of the precious little time that parents get to spend with their kids.

When I was young, my mother was a house-wife, and she spend all day with us ...every day. She never needed to sit us in front of a movie for an hour and half....and we spent our time in the car TALKING. What wonderful memories (even the memories where i was getting in trouble). There's no replacement for that!

I've read about people bringing these devices on their disney trip to use on the airplanes or in the hotel room, and I just dont understand it AT ALL. It's vacation, and its such a great opportunity to spend "down time" with kids....it should be taken advantage of.

Well I completely and emphatically DISAGREE!

I think they are a GREAT creation. Like anything else, they can be overused, but cutting up 8-hour car trips with a bit of audio-visual entertainment is wonderful.

Also, I have a son with a communication disorder. He CAN'T do all the fun things you mentioned in your post. He can however watch the videos, which have helped him learn language by being able to see the visuals and match the words to them.

Now that he's older, he's starting to be able to do those things, so we use the DVD player less and less. But it's not like 3 year olds can pull out a book and start reading for 8 hours like an adult can.

We did a car ride from Minnesota to FLorida when I was in 2nd grade. What do I remember about it? How incredibly B-O-R-I-N-G it was after the 20th license plate game.

Yay, TECHNOLOGY!
 
And IMHO, any post that starts with
translates to "that stroller issue has died down...how else can I ruffle some feathers?"


:lmao: :lmao: :lmao:

Perhaps I should have left out the first line of my post....since no one read it anyway.


I read the first line and gave my thoughts on the issue. That is what I enjoy about the boards, someone airs an idea or thought, we get/give input. At some point you decided to make this ugly. Why?:confused3
 
And IMHO, any post that starts with
translates to "that stroller issue has died down...how else can I ruffle some feathers?"

Hey now!!! Cut me some slack. there's times when I have a lot of down-time at work. :rotfl2:

This is much more interesting than a few dozen repeats of threads on PhotoPass, whether you can use an extra ticket-day to park-hop, and what kind of shoes to bring to WDW. :)
 
Make your choice:

1) My child with autism quietly and happily watches her portable DVD player in a restaurant, airplane etc......

2) My child with autism cries, hits, runs off, kicks, makes loud noises during a meal, plane ride etc......
 


Threads like this seem to be created just to see how much trouble can be stirred up. Especailly when the OP fails to come back and answer any questions that have been asked. :confused3
 
I totally disagree. I just finished hand-crafting harnesses that will allow me to strap a portable dvd player to both my kids, sorta like a feed bag, so they can watch movies from the time they wake up til they go to bed. I'm taking orders - who wants one? :rotfl:

Seriously, though - I believe that ALL portable technology has it's uses, and it's all great when not used to excess. We have a portable DVD, and we only use it for travel, and only if the trip is more than 2 hours. But that's because my kids can handle 2 hours of travel before things get scary. I would never question another parent's choice to use one sooner, more often, or in a restaurant (mall, grocery store, doctor's office waiting room - which, btw, I saw the other day and thought BRILLIANT!!!!).
 
I do think they are overused (just like ANY TV can be overused) - but yes, I've used them - just like I have used other advances in technology that make parenting a bit easier on me from time to time - like my monitor. My kids are past the baby age - but I LOVE the baby monitor to keep an 'ear' on them once they're in their rooms for bedtime. Also, disposable diapers - huge convenience, the best thing in the world??? Likely not - and a lot of people cloth diaper for that reason. But it is a convenience that was available that I chose to use. Just like a DVD player on occasion.

A question for OP - How many kids do you have? I just want to know if you have more than one because your post does sound a lot like those who 'can't understand why kids can't behave in restaurants, because my child is always so well behaved' - and really - this is solely because it is a single child, multiple children are a totally different story. I might be wrong- you might have more than one, but I'd be interested in hearing the number and their ages. It just sounded like that kind of post to me.

My sister's husband is a dis-believer in portable DVD players too, but the funny thing is - they have their TV on in their house all the time. Apparently he's only opposed when it doens't have a plug and a cable box!
 
I can understand your thoughts on DVD players, and I too have great memories in the car with my family. At the same time though, I think portable DVD players are great for traveling families.

We frequently travel to visit my mother who is 5 hours away. In that time, we may play games, talk, eat, listen to books on CDs, or watch movies. In the reality of our family of 5, we get on eachother's nerves after a certain point. All the family bonding turns into name-calling and space invasions. This is where the DVD player or CD player comes in handy. Everyone is more apt to stop focusing on the cramped quarters when they are enjoying a movie or a book on a CD. For my family, DVD players have made long trips more enjoyable for us all. Family conversatons are fabulous and are probably what we all shoot for, but after they that have expired or lost their meaning due to cramped quarters and an over-tired crowd, they can be paused with a good movie/book for a while.

Airplanes are not always the easiest place for conversations. Sometimes families are split up or children are excited, and DVD players are probably used by many families for the consideration of other passengers and not just as pacifiers for their children.

Everything has to be done in moderation - DVD players included.
 
I agree with Jeremy, and I have three children. We also don't have any playstation, Wii or Xbox games. We have the means and connections to get such things, but chose not to. We purposely chose not to put a DVD player in our car, nor do we have a portable one. This was a choice our family made, and I am not judging what your family does. I also do not have an autistic child, or one with special needs so I won't pretend to know what challenges that involves.
Believe me when I say I know what long car rides with three children are like. I check out books on tape from the library and the whole family (husband too) enjoy listening together. That is what we do for boredom when the games, books, etc. run out. The nice part is we are enjoying the story together and then talk about it later, or not. My children are now all over the age of 8, so obviously this works better if they are at least 5 yrs old or up.
I think it is good for children to have times in their life when they need to entertain themselves, or feel bored. There are times as an adult when they will need to know how to cope with those situations, and that is what they learn from long car rides. Technology is good, but it can also be a crutch.
 
In defense of the OP I have to agree with a lot of what they say. When I traveled as a kid we always traveled by car because we couldn't afford to fly a family of 5 anywhere. We had games, books and the scenery to keep us entertained and we managed just fine.

My DS is only 4 and although we are trying to teach him to read can't read on his own yet. Last fall we did buy a used mini-van that has a built in DVD player. However, DS has only used it once! It is only to be used on LONG car rides. And for those of you who use them that way as well that's fine.

However, I see people like my cousin who as soon as the kids get into their Odyssey DEMAND the DVD player be turned on and get their way, I get annoyed. I see tons of people just driving around town using them. When we drive around town I ask DS what he sees out the window and try to keep him engaged that way or we sing, etc...

I won't bring a portable DVD player on a plane trip either. We bought DS a Leapster so that he's actually learning something while keeping himself entertained. I'm also one of those parents that only allows DS 1-hr of TV time a day. I find other things for him/us to do. Plus he's involved in several extracurricular activities that keep us too busy to watch TV.
 
I think it is good for children to have times in their life when they need to entertain themselves, or feel bored. There are times as an adult when they will need to know how to cope with those situations, and that is what they learn from long car rides. Technology is good, but it can also be a crutch.


Yea, you learn something when you have to entertain yourself, the parent learns too!!! Even when you have two children in the back seat fighting....that fighting is teaching the children how to interact with each other even when frustrated, angry, bored, etc. This is a skill that is INVALUABLE in marriage, and when you have kids of your own.

Simply quelling arguments and boredom is not a the best thing to do. Especially when it's movies which generally involve no thought or creativity. When children watch a movie that has been seen a dozen times before, I dont think they are getting ANYTHING out of it....it seems to just become a "zone out".
 
A question for OP - How many kids do you have? I just want to know if you have more than one because your post does sound a lot like those who 'can't understand why kids can't behave in restaurants, because my child is always so well behaved' - and really - this is solely because it is a single child, multiple children are a totally different story. I might be wrong- you might have more than one, but I'd be interested in hearing the number and their ages. It just sounded like that kind of post to me.



No wait a minute. :) Lots of parents manage to make multiple children behave in restuarants, my own included. My brother and I were less than 2 years apart and squabbling was a part of life but we did NOT cut up in restaurants. Okay, we did ONCE. Suddenly we were in the car with mom, dad got their orders to go, we went home and had peanut butter and did not get taken out for 6 months. We never did *that* again, lemme tell you.

Point being, "oh we have more than one" does not excuse poor behavior in public. Even when there were three of us no nonsense was allowed where it would bug other people.
 
We had games, books and the scenery to keep us entertained and we managed just fine.

Wow, scenery to keep you entertained! Such a forgotten thing.

As a child, my most imaginative moments were staring out the window on long car drives. I would create all kinds of things in my mind about what I was looking at....wonder why certain things were built the way they were, etc etc etc.
 
Ilike. I check out books on tape from the library and the whole family (husband too) enjoy listening together..

Aren't they awesome? :) My dad, my son and I drove from California to Memphis last summer and over the two weeks we were traveling we listened to the entire chronicles of Narnia and "Have Spacesuit, Will Travel." I wish they'd been more common when I was a kid- our biggest complaint in the car was that mom made us stop reading when the light started to fade.
 
Simply quelling arguments and boredom is not a the best thing to do. Especially when it's movies which generally involve no thought or creativity. When children watch a movie that has been seen a dozen times before, I dont think they are getting ANYTHING out of it....it seems to just become a "zone out".


Okay there is one point I should have made before...the kids watch movies they have never seen before in the car. They also don't just watch movies, they enjoy several of the Nat Geo shows, a little learning while we travel. :thumbsup2
 
Well I have and use it all. A Leapster, Nintendo DS, PSP, and a DVD player and I'm not ashamed to admit it. I love my son and every minute I spend with him that's why I attempt to make them as stress free for him and everyone else around him as possible. I think if you don't want to use them for your child and that works for your family go for it just don't tell me what should work for my family until you've walked a mile in our shoes. Vacations are suppossed to be fun for the entire family.
 

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