Nirvana: Portable DVD player
 

Well, OK, not quite, but as close as I expect to get in the near future. After trying out then returning a Panasonic DVD-LA95 portable DVD player earlier this year, I've been on a hunt for a suitable replacement. I was unhappy with the blockiness and pixelization on the Panasonic, even though (with taxes) I paid over $1800 for it.

I found salvation in a Toshiba SD-P2000. Why? In a word, the screen. It's 8.9" as opposed to the Panasonic's 9", though it seems narrower yet taller. For all intents and purposes though the screens are about the same size.

But the resolution! It's just stunning. It's like comparing regular TV with digital HDTV. Looking at text (i.e. movie credits) immediately shows a profound difference in screen quality. On the Panasonic most text is distorted and barely readable (think dot matrix printer) while the text on the Toshiba is sharp and well defined (now think laser printer.) Actual pictures (i.e. the movie) shows an equally impressive improvement. Enough that I'm finally satisfied with the screen on a portable DVD player.

The unit is not otherwise perfect though. When looking at it in stores, I was impressed that it had a small, low profile, much like the Panasonic. But I didn't realize the battery was not attached. Once you add the 3.5 hour battery (which on first test gave over 3.75 hours service) adds 2cm in height/thickness, and a significant amount of weight. (The Panasonic had a 2.5 hour batter built in, thus maintained a light weight and very low profile.) I'll soon also be picking up a 5.5 hour battery, which should give me a total run time approaching 10 hours.

Another power related issue is that the batteries only charge when the unit is turned off. Not a huge issue, but a bit of a dissapointment. It's nice to be able to recharge your battery (after a long, non-emPower flight) and still be able to use the player. But with two batteries I should be OK.

But so far those are my only complaints. Things I like are an on-screen "remote control" so if you lose the real remote (or don't wish to cart it around) you still have access to all the features. It has 2 headphone jacks, so if I wish to share it with a seat mate, I can. (I'll pick up an adapter later today to allow the 2-pin airline headphones to work with a regular stereo mini-jack.)

There are some sound enhancement features built it, and it had decoders for most of the current audio formats, such as Dolby ProLogic and DTS. Controls are easy to understand and use, and positive. (The Panasonic had some clever control features, but they were rather obsure.) It has all the usual outputs, including component video, but can also be used as a display for another device, as it has an AV IN jack.

Perhaps the best feature is the price. I paid USD654 including all taxes and a bogus "web page shipping charge" even though I picked the item up from a retail store. (The store's shelf list price was USD$799.99 while the web page showed $597.77.) Landed in Canada, my total cost should be less than CAD$1100. That compares favourably with the best price I could so far find in Canada, of CAD$1300+taxes, for a total of $1488. There's some question however whether I'll get the US warranty, or the more generous Canadian warranty. But for a $400+ savings, I'll deal with it.

In the meantime, Step 9 of my 12-step program (available in the Strategies for 2002) is now officially complete.

[This message has been edited by Ken hAAmer (edited 11-08-2002).]

And in case you're wondering, I did consider purchasing extra batteries for my laptop so I could watch movies. But it just didn't pan out.

When brand new, my ultra-high capacity battery only lasted 80 minutes, and then only with CPU speed and screen brightness at a minumum, all extra hardware either turned off (i.e. com port) or removed (PCMCIA cards) and volume as low as possible to hear in the headset. After a few months, that battery life became ~60 minutes, and after 1½ years is <45 minutes.

So to get the same run time as my new DVD player, I'd have had to buy 3 new Ultra-capacity batteries (list price USD$279 each) and not only carry them, but justify them every time I went through airport security. I'd have paid 3 times the price for the same run time, and almost the same weight and even more awkward stoage. Once I purchase an additional 5.5 hour battery (USD$179.99) I'll have 9-10 hours run time, and carry only the DVD player and a single spare battery.

To do the same on my laptop, I'd need about 7 IBM batteries, with one installed in the computer and 6 to be carried. The cost would be almost USD$2000, and the weight and inconvenience would be much greater than that of the DVD player and a single spare battery (costing <$800.)

Then of course there's the issue of how well the laptop sits on the tray table, particularly in an economy seat and worse on something like a CRJ or Dash-8, not to mention the problems of the person in front of you reclining their seat.

So all in all, while the lap top "looked good on paper" the DVD carries the day.

But Ken, aren't you carrying your laptop anyway?

Uh, yes....?

Not sure what you're getting at.