If you're braving a car trip or airplane ride with young children this holiday season, then undoubtedly someone has told you to get a portable DVD player. Plugging your kids in in front of a movie isn't always the most desirable thing to do, but on a flight from Las Vegas to Austin to visit with aunts and uncles, it can kill a couple of hours like nothing else. So before our trip to Texas this past Thanksgiving, we bit the bullet and bought this portable DVD player; the Panasonic DVD-LS82. Put simply, I love it, but my full review is after the jump.
The Panasonic DVD-LS82 performs all the basic tasks you want it to very well. It plays DVDs, CDs, CDs full of MP3 files (as well as tons of other formats) with ease. I used it to play DVDs I authored myself on my computer as well as regularly purchased DVDs and everything worked well. All of the buttons are right on the player and so easy to understand even my three year old was able to play, pause, stop and adjust the volume on her own. The battery life was also excellent. According to Panasonic it will last for 12 hours - enough to leave the charger at home. While I wouldn't suggest doing that, it did hold up for a good couple of hours on the plane without any problems.
What drew me to this player though is it's ability to multi-task. It comes with a head rest mount for your car, so while it works well on planes (and in houses of aunts and uncles who might not have a television in the family room) you can also hook it up for long car trips. The player comes with two individual headphone jacks, as well as a car/cigarette lighter type power adapter. It also has audio/video in and out, which can let you use the player as a DVD player for a bigger TV, or use it to watch home movies off of your video camera while you're away from home. And luckily for me it's the same width and length as my camera bag, fitting perfectly at the top. All around, this player has worked well for me, and might very well be a lifesaver for you too during this holiday travel season.
$218.32 (currently) from Amazon.com
