Looking for Portable DVD Recommendations

[Dagny]

Well, it looks like we will be driving to WDW. Hubby and DD don't want to fly in the midst of all that is going on in the world and both would feel safer driving to Orlando (despite my jumping up and down profusely!). Well, if I am going to have to endure this long trip, I am going to need some type of entertainment! I was thinking of getting a portable DVD player if I can find one that is decent and fairly affordable. Having absolutely no experience with portable DVD's, I was hoping some of you experts could point me in the right direction.

Thanks, as usual, you guys are the best

 

[cat14]

This probably is not what you have in mind, but if you think you might need a laptop in the near future, Dell has some good buys now and you can get one with the DVD player. Then you've got much more than just a portable DVD.

 

[tiberius]

I agree with cat14. I use a laptop with a DVD for work/home use, and allow daughters to watch DVD movies on a long trip. If you would rather get a regular DVD player try looking at Sam's Club or Wal-mart (or their web sites).

 

[Laurajean1014]

About 4 years ago, I bought my family a Sharp DVD portable player from Costco.com! I have never regretted the purchase.

My ds (now 7) uses it for trips longer than 45 minutes. My dh (42) used it recently while he was in the hospital with hip replacement surgery. I even used it on top of Vail Mountain while the family went skiing....

We are planning on buying the Volvo SUV and will not be buying a dvd for the car, because of the portable.

The Sharp has an 8" screen, most are slightly smaller. Panasonic makes an 8" and I believe it was on sale at Best Buy for $499. Do purchase a car adapter battery pack (found at Radio Shack). They are a life saver for those long movies or drives.

My dh has a laptop but my 7yo is not old enough to operate it, besides, my husband does his thing on the computer and my son does his thing on the dvd. I do mine with my eyes closed....

 

[MCazer]

Walmart has a 4" screen DVD player that is $197.

I bought mine at the store to save on s/h. It is great.

We are going to drive to Williamsburg VA from Long Island NY this summer and I wanted to get a DVD player for the car, but instead opted for the vcr in a bag that was/is on sale at Target.

It comes with a 5" screen, the bag and vcr, which I can hook up the portable DVD player to. My kids have mostly vhs tapes, and a few dvd's, so this was perfect for us.

Also, while one person is driving and listening to the radio, the two kids can be watching a video, and the other person in the passenger seat can use the dvd player to watch something else.

I don't know about you, but sometimes, driving quietly down the road singing to music with the "feeling" of being alone is quite nice.

Please realize, that at the moment, I am at home with a 7 yr old and soon to be 5 year old with a husband who is working his 13 straight 12 hour shift. I am a bit frazzled and just the thought of driving and singing to the radio sounds real good right now! LOL

Thanks god for this board to get me through. Plans are already in the works for out Feb 2004 trip and I am planning mode!

Today hit my 11 month window for making ressies!

 

[DianeV]

I have heard good things about the Panasonic models. We just purchased a Mintek with a 5.8" screen through Bestbuy.com - $249.99 plus a $30 mail in rebate and free shipping.

We just got it a coupld days ago and so far so good. I think for how often it will really get used it seems very adequate and its a great price!

 

[Plan Man]

I would buy the portable DVD not the computer. We hav both but it is easier to carry the portable dvd around. Definately get one that has a car lighter adapter. I bought a portable dvd for about $250 5.8" screen with a battery and a car adapter. It works great. I also bought a two pronged adapter so two people can listen to the sound through headphones.

 

[KaitlinsMom]

Don't forget to buy an extra battery - If you can't purchase one at the store, just call the 800 number in the booklet - We bought ours that way - Usually one battery will last about 3 hours - You could always plug it into the cigarette lighter if you have the adapter -

 

[nancyv58]

Just purchased (last week) an audiovox from target for 270.00, absolutely love it!!! Had to make a 950 mile trip to Mass. for a funeral the day after we bought it and my DS used the whole way there and hooked it up to Grampy's tv while we were there and used and we used it in the motel too. I think we will get lots of used out of this purchase. We are leaving today for WDW another 950 miles and I know it will be a great addition to the trip.

 

[Kaa]

I also saw the AudioVox at Target advertised either last week or even this week. It may be worth a trip to check it out before Sunday.

 

[shefor24]

How big is the screen on the Audiovox?? Thanks

 

[hookit]

Just purchased a funTV from sam's club for $342.00. It is actually not a TV but a VCR in a portable bag with two 5.6 " monitors. The bag is made to fit between the front seats of a car or van and hold one of the monitors and the VCR. The other monitor can be strapped onto the back of a seat for other passenger viewing. This is ideal for the middle and back seats of a minivan. It can be hooked upto a car lighter or an AC receptical. Hope this helps.

 

[DianeV]

I would definitely recommend checking out the Mintek on Bestbuy.com - its a great deal, the screen is 5.8" and we have used it already a few times at home and it has a nice picture too.

 

[Halle]

My DH got me a Toshiba DVD player for XMAS. It has an 8" screen, the pix is crystal clear. It has two jacks for head phones,and even came with a credit card size remote! He ordered it from Amazon.com and paid $649.00...no tax! I absolutely love it.

 

[Goofyzgurl]

I bought an rca 7 inch and love it. It is a life saver from those "when are we going to get there" blues. We bought ours from Target when there were clearancing them out for $121. Great price and if there had been two in stock I would've bought them both. As is I had to call up to another Target 40 minutes away and pick it up, but I have never regreted it. It's a wonderful purchase for long or short trips. I do need to pick up a an adapter for the cigarette lighter because the three hour battery is not enough time.

 

[mickeysaver]

http://www.walmart.com/catalog/prod...5&cat=3987&type=19&dept=3944&path=0:3944:3987

$197.64 at Walmart 4" color screen DVD player. Comes with remote control and allows for hook-up to your tv as well as being used as a stand alone player. Comes with power cord, rechargable battery, and car lighter hook up cords. It has gotten some good press too. This is in the budget plans for our December trip. With an 8 hour drive, it's worth every penny. Mickey

 

[Kaa]

If I remember correctly, the screen on the AudioVox was around 6 inches.

 

[CTillberg]

I recommend the Audiovox D1730 - it is a 7 inch wide screen and comes with car adapter, ac power adapter, battery that lasts up to 3 hrs. (haven't personally tested that yet- just got it last Friday) and can be plugged into your TV. We plan to use ours for a bedroom DVD player when not in use in the car or airplane. The unit fits perfectly inbetween the front seats of our Subaru on the arm rest so we don't even have to fashion up something to hold it in place. (I don't know how a person would set up a laptop to work in their car so multiple kids can view it.)

Be careful and check to see if car adapter is included with your DVD - almost no manufacturers include them except Audiovox and they charge $40 - $100 to purchase one to work with their unit.

I bought the Audiovox from B&H PhotoVideo (A very well respected New York Photo and small elctronics/video store) online for $370 with shipping included.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bh3.sph/FrameWork.class?FNC=GetItem__Aindex_html___IC=AUD1730___SID=F3CE55CBCB0

(If you get this unit, just be aware that you have to go into the settings under the TV setup and tell it "widescreen" or it won't show your widescreen movies properly on its own screen. After I figured this out, the unit has been working perfectly- Great Picture!)

Please email me if you want more info. I did a lot of camparison shopping before we purchased this unit and I can give more insight into this unit if you want.

Cathy

 

[stephaniebatesjones]

I also just bought the portable dvd player with 4 in. screen from wal-mart for 197.00 plus tax. It is great. This is the everyday price for this dvd player. The only problem I had was finding a store tht had it in stock. They are so popular that they sell out quick. You can get it at the wal-mart web sight though...if you don't mind the s/h cost.

One good thing is that you should be able to plug this portable dvd player up to your hotel tv. Even Disney tvs have jacks that you can plug your camcorder up to. This dvd comes with the works. AV jacks, car adapter, wall adapter, remote control( it's so tiny and cute), and battery .

Good tip....I went to the dollar store and bought some of that stuff that goes on the bottom of the kitchen shelves to keep the dishes from sliding. I cut a piece and put it on the dash board and placed the dvd on top. That stuff is amazing. No matter how the car bumps or turns the dvd does not move. The lining does not stick, so when you are done you can just box it up with the dvd.



hope this helps,

steph

 

[Dagny]

Thanks everyone for the awesome suggestions. I have been scouting the stores for the best deals and trying to do as much research on reliability, etc. before I make my purchase.

We had such problems with our recent DVD player (had to return two different models within 60 days because they broke!!!). I want to be sure we get something that is durable and economic. In fact, I may need to get two DVD players as my kids are so far apart in age (12 & 4), I will never get them to agree on what to watch, LOL.


Only 65 more days.... woo hoo, just can't WAIT for that drive