The Cheap Portable DVD Player and Getting the Most For Your Money

We all know that the old saying is still as true as its ever been. You get what you pay for. There is a direct relationship between a products quality, options and function and its price. Personally, I've never purchased a product where this was not the case. Nonetheless, within every price range, even the bottom range, there are products that surpass their competitors in that range. Successful bargain hunters know how to find the best value for their money by locating those products that represent the best in their price range.  A portable DVD player is no different in this respect. There are certainly some extremely inexpensive portable DVD players to be had and some of them are a total waste of money. But fear not, because there are also some outstanding players in the lowest price range. If cost is your chief driver, you may not get the best portable DVD player available, but that doesn’t mean you have to throw away your money on a piece of junk. Use these guidelines to find them.The major thing you’ll give up at lower cost is screen size. Cheap portable DVD players in the $100 range are most often in the 7 to 8 inch range. Speaking for myself, I don't find this to be a problem. After all, portable means you can take it with you, and presumably that it will travel well. Typically, you will find yourself using the player in fairly tight quarters, like in a car or an airplane seat. Given how close you will be to the screen, you'll find that a 5 to 7 inch screen is quite adequate.  Don’t automatically disregard unusual brand names. My very first portable DVD was a Mintek that I purchased years ago when portable DVD players were relatively new. At the time every one of the name brand players were priced way out of my budget. That machine ran with no problems for years and years, even despite some pretty unforgiving treatment from the family. Since that time, I’ve had other portable DVD players that cost hundreds more and failed to perform as well as that first machine. Customer reviews on retail sites are usually a great tool. On the whole, actual owners furnish fairly truthful criticism concerning the products they purchase. If the DVD player is a good one, you'll be able to tell immediately by what actual owners have to say. Equally, if there are problems with a specific model, like unpredictable batteries (something that is quite widespread at the bottom of the price range), you'll see that too. The primary areas of concentration for deciphering end user reviews should be picture quality, sound quality and battery operation (including recharge time and run time). Understand however that a certain number of consumers do have unrealistic expectations. A particular model doesn't need to be eliminated from consideration due to one poor review. As an alternative, allow the majority speak for the product. Even lower priced portable DVD players should have all or most of the these essential features. Having these properties increases the value of the device and will add significantly to overall satisfaction with your ultimate selection. Pay attention to the file format capabilities of the players you select from. Many very low priced units today are extremely versatile in their ability to process and display| all types of file formats including DVD, MP3, DVD+R/RW, CD,CD-R/RW, and JPEG. Look for A/V output jacks for connection to a home theater or simply a bigger television. Having these outputs will permit your portable to act as a backup to your primary DVD player in case that ever breaks down. A/V input jacks conversely can convert your portable DVD player into a video game monitor by simply connecting any common game console. Children will like that on a prolonged car trip. Speaking of children and road trips, if you intend to have back seat passengers use the device in your car, make sure you find one with multiple headphone jacks. In addition, verify that your cheap portable DVD player comes not only with the obligatory AC power cable, but also has a DC car charger. Anti-skip circuitry is yet another fantastic feature which is now available on numerous inexpensive machines today and is almost a necessity for enjoying your DVDs on the go.