Customer Reviews

Coby TF-DVD8503 8.5-Inch Widescreen TFT Portable DVD/CD/MP3 Player with Swivel Screen, Black

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

When the dvd player arrived I was really impressed with all of its features: 1. car mount for the headrest, 2. remote control, 3. swivel and 4. car charger.

Major Advantages: 1. extremely functional; 2. battery last for over 2 hours and if the battery runs low, you can always plug it into the the car charger; 3. the screen is large enough to view across the room; 4. you can use the remote from nearly 8 feet away and 5. most of all it works!! :>

Disadvantages: 1. you can not control the volume with the remote and 2. for the price, the material of the dvd player does not appear to be of quality (it feels like plastic).

All in all it is a great product and so far so good. My 2 year old received it for Christmas and he never leaves home without it!

I bought this DVD Player for my 4-year old to watch in the car. When we got it, I was impressed by all it had to offer. However, when it started playing, the slightest jolt would cause it to say that the cover was open or cause the movie to re-load. Needless to say this didn't go over well with my daughter. I ended up sending it back because of the poor quality.

I've tried several portable DVD players and this was the best. It ran smoothly right out of the box, playing older DVD's , newer DVD's, CD-RW disks of music and video files, everything I played in it worked perfectly. The built in screen is clear enough and big enough to display all aspect ratios crisply, the built in stereo speakers are more than adequate to produce the full range of audio, and the unit comes with all the cables you will need for hookup to a stereo receiver and/or to a TV or monitor if you want. I used this unit both ways, as a portable player using its built-in screen and features, and also hooked it up to my 20 inch television and technics stereo. The image was excellent on the television and the sound was very deep and full through the stereo receiver. The remote is very slender and feels a little too light, but it worked as it should as long as I aimed it directly at the front of the unit. I was about eleven feet away and it worked fine. Still, I would treat the remote carefully, don't accidentally sit on it or leave it to get stuck between the sofa cushions. I say this because the buttons on the DVD player itself are a little awkward to use. The are under the built in screen and not positioned very well. The buttons on the unit do work, I've tested them all, and they function as they are supposed to, but it's much easier to control it with the remote, so you want to make sure you don't damage the remote. The built in 360 degree swivel screen is great. It functions well no matter how far you have it turned. Though the screen is large enough to watch comfortably from about ten feet away, you will do better sitting about eight feet or less from it. All in all, I have not been able to find anything negative about this unit, except as I mentioned with regard to the buttons on the unit itself. I highly recommend this portable DVD player.

- Mike S.

This DVD player is very nice. It has so many options and you can even put a rating limit. I didn't know that a few days ago. lol. Its just cool 'cause I'm still learning stuff about it. The swivle screen and two headphone inputs are good for watching movies with friends. I'd recommend this type of DVD player to anyone looking to buy one. :)

Not only a great price, but it made a six hour flight go by quickly.I love that it has close caption. It is very easy to use and has a nice picture. I did read other reviews before purchasing, but ( knock wood ) I have had no problems and feel it was a positive purchase.

Let me start by saying I knew nothing about DVD players when I started looking to purchase one for a long trip I was making with my two year old son. I read review after review and finally bought this one. I was nervous becasue some of the reviews weren't great and others where very satified. I didn't want to spend a fortune, and wasn't looking for a ton of bells and whistles. I just wanted something to play my son's DVD's so that we could have a peaceful drive. This player works great, it never skipped or froze up once. The screen quality is great, and the battery life is good. It came with a wall charger, car charger, jacks to connect it to the TV, a great headrest mount (so they can't kick it from their carseat), two pair of headphones, and a nice remote. The only thing I will say is that I thought the volume could go a little bit higher. I did purchase a case for it from Wal-Mart because it didn't come with one. The unit itself is made of plastic but it seems to be pretty durable, and it keeps it light weight. Overall, I am very happy with my purchase, I highly recommend!!

Pros:
Comes loaded with extra accessories for car, two headphones and AV cables.

Cons:
Flimsy, cheap plastic casing that has that terrible squeaky plastic feel to it
Overall poor design, and the screen has so much give that pressing the buttons (which are on the screen) will push the screen all the way back

Not worth the money, trust me. My old portable DVD player was cheaper and not even a brand name and it was much nicer than this. Keep shopping.

We have used this player a few times now including on an air plane and also in the car. We bought it for my 2 year old daughter and it has kept her entertained. The volume turns up really loud which is nice if you don't want to use the headphones. The controls are easy to use. The only complaint I have is that when you put the player in the sleeve to attach it to the headrest - the sensor for the remote is blocked so you have to hold the remote at a weird angle or do everything manually. So far though this has been a great buy. Hopefully it will last for a while.

I have this player for a month now. And now it is my 2 year old's favorite toy (atleast keeps her busy in house so we can watch our TV).

Positives:
The screen quality is good
The design is attractive
Plays for over 3hours on one charge
Plugs into the TV and works like a regular DVD player.
Comes with 2 headphones, car headrest holder, car power adaptor.

No negatives yet, hope it lasts for over a year to get money's worth.


Edit: June 11
The thing broke just after the day I wrote the review above :-(
I don't see the picture while I hear the motor inside rotating.

I recently purchased COBY TF-DVD 8503 portable DVD player from Amazon. I had it freight forwarded through ARAMEX to my overseas address. I opened the package and tried to play some DVDs on it after charging it. I was greatly disappointed that for every DVD I tried, I hear first a loud hissing sound as the DVD spins, I get a message on the screen that it is " Loading", and then the DVD stops spinning and I get a message of No Disc. I tried different DVDs and got the same message. I even tried DVDs that were opened from their brand new package, and same thing " No Disc" message. I tried brand new region 1 DVDs that work in the US only, I tried all region DVDs and I tried copied DVDs and still the same..." NO Disc" message.

I was very upset and very disappointed since I bought it as a gift to my 5 year old to watch DVD while we embark on a car trip next week....and it turned out to be a malfunctioning DVD player!

The catalogue indicates that "Wrong Disc" or "No Disc" message appears if the DVD player detects a problem or a damaged disc.....HOWEVER, none of the DVDs I tried to play were damaged nor scratched..and as I mentioned earlier some were brand new and never played before.

I sent an e-mail to Coby tech support and it took them 4 days to reply. They simply stated that from my description it seems the DVD player is defective and should be sent back to the retailer I bought it from...My question is this....don't they have quality control measures to test DVD players before shipping them out??

Anyway, I contacted Amazon.com customer service and they were GREAT. They answer the e-mails withing 12 hours. they refunded me for the purchase price, and they refunded me the cost of shipping the DVD player from Saudi Arabia back to their returns department in the US! Amazon is the best retailer to buy from.

With regards the DVD player itself, it is heavy, comes with 2 huge headphones, a cassette adapter (am not sure what it is for) and the plastic of the player is black and looks cheap. I do not advise you spend a dollar on this poor quality DVD player... I ended up buying Sony FX850 DVD player.....I love it...it has the best screen resolution and a long battery life...and it has an 8.5 inch screen size....it is worth the money.


My final advice.....DO NOT WATSE YOUR MONEY ON THIS COBY DVD PLAYER