Portable DVD player under $200 (1 Viewer)

[Robert Spalding]

walmart.com has the Initial (formerly Shinco) portable on sale for 197. 4.7" screen. Apperently has gotten good reviews. Can't be made region free as far as I can tell from the Shinco hacking pages.

 

[Len Simons]

I actually saw this on display last week in Wal-Mart. It looked like at least 27 of its 157 pixels were "dead".
I mean it really looked a lot like a postage stamp that had been badly cancelled by the post office. $199 is WAY too much for this item.
For just over $300, one can get a 7" Mintek at Best Buy. By no means what one could call a great display, but certainly watchable.
Or, for about $399, a savvy shopper could find a Panasonic 5" display that is truly worth watching.
My point is, if you want something to see a movie on during a plane flight, but can't afford to buy a quality 7" or larger display, by all means rent a unit at the airport. Or read a book. But don't throw away $200 on a substandard P.O.S. that will give you an eye-strain headache and most likely fall apart before you reach your destination. $200 is still a lot of scratch; you can get a pretty decent home DVD player, with progressive scan and maybe even DVD Audio for $200.

Not everything that is low-priced is a good deal.

Okay. I'll climb down off my soapbox now.

Len