[ExFordOwner]

I'm looking at different options for a portable DVD in my '02 EX. Yeah the built in version is nice, but we didn't want the leather interior and I couldn't see spending 1500 for something that now costs about $600.

I thought about picking up the AudioVox 1680 but heard that the viewing angle is lousy and that they occasionally skip or lockup. Not good things. It's not worth saving a few bucks if the thing is going to skip on the road.

I am now considering one of the Sharp's with either a 7 or 8 inch 16:9 screen. I've heard that Sharp has the edge in image quality because of their dynamic Gamma adjustment. I don't have a feel for how stable these things are on the road though. I'd love to hear from some of you who use a portable DVD in your Ody.

I know the front tray is a lousy place to put a DVD because of vibration so I'm thinking about getting on of those setups that suspend the DVD between the front head rests.

Any suggestions for player or mounting would be appreciated.

Thanks,


Scott

 

[turnipgreen]

We just bought a Sharp DVL-80U, received it 2 days ago. My wife will be travelling about 15 hours after Christmas, and I can tell you how it does after that. We agonized over it for quite a while, ruled out the Audiovox because of reported problems viewing at an angle. We narrowed it down to a Panasonic DVD-LV70 (they also have a LA95 with a 9 inch screen) and the Sharp. We got differing opinions based on where we read and who we asked. It seemed a tossup, and since the sharp had an 8 inch screen and costs LESS, we opted for it. We are probably going to try it on the tray first, even though it isn't as stable as we might like. It is able to be viewed from the 2nd row pretty well, and the 8 inch screen is great. Sound is OK, not great, but gets the job done. We will be getting headphones before the trip.

Just a note, to work in the car longer than the battery will allow, the sharp doesn't have a car adapter, so you will need to get a power inverter instead (converts a cigarette lighter into an outlet).

We ordered ours online. You may have sources, but if you want any recommendations just let me know. We went through lots of places. We ordered the player from www.bhphotovideo.com and got great service (price was $630 with about $11 for shipping). There were cheaper places, but nobody else had them in stock, and they weren't quite as well founded and reputable.

A place with a hanging bag is http://www.portabledvdstore.com, but we haven't bought off on the $100 for it yet. If you find a better place let me know.

 

[ExFordOwner]

Thanks for the info. Be sure to let me know how the trip went with the DVD. I suspect you may have trouble with it on the tray. You may want to bring along a towel that you could fold up underneath the player if it starts skipping due to vibration. The towel would probably do a decent job of isolating it.

BTW, I really don't think you should need an inverter. I assume the Sharp has some sort of wall transformer for running off A/C. All you need to do is find a suitable car adapter that has the same connector and puts out the necessary voltage/current. You should stay away from an inverter if possible. Most all of them create a square wave 60Hz 120V A/C that is notorious for making noise in audio electronics. It might make your DVD sound terrible while plugged into it. These things often result in an annoying 60Hz buzz.


Scott

 

[portabledvd]

The Suspension Theater at www.thislinkgoesnowhere.com is available only from that website. They are the inventors of the patent pending device and are now selling the suspension platform and the straps (minus the case) for only $79.95 and it is the only product of its kind on the market.

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Jim wrote: The owner of this site hates it when non-Odyssey owners advertise. I thought I'd help you out.

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[This message has been edited by Jim F (edited 12-25-2001).]

 

[turnipgreen]

In our case we have bought a portable dvd case that we are using as a cushion and booster seat for our dvd player on the tray. This should provide some vibration help. Our only question is if the player produces heat, and how much, and if being in the case will cause problems.

We considered the dvd suspension thing mentioned above, and the people at that web site are MOST helpful. We are giving our current setup a try just to see how it goes. We were worried that having the suspension thing hanging between the two front seats might prohibit us from swatting the kids during a long trip though.

As far as we could find, the Sharp doesn't have a compatible car adapter. Panasonic does, but costs more than an inverter. Inverter is larger and probably has some noise problems, but we aren't too picky on audio for our kids animated classics.

 

[turnipgreen]

My wife drove with 2 kids for 15 hours both ways. She didn't run the portable dvd all the time, but it certainly did the job. On a few occasions the kids told her to keep driving rather than stopping because they were in the middle of a show.

An added bonus for my wife was that when she got at the inlaws, who don't have a dvd, she was able to use the portable on their tv, or as a second screen when the little one wanted Barney and the older one wanted something else.

All in all we have no complaints on the Sharp. In fact we have only positives to say.