Customer Reviews

Philips DCP750/37 7" Portable DVD Player with iPod docking

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(24)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

This is a great little device. It is solidly built, has good audio and video, and easy controls. I use it all over the house these days to watch movies or listening to my Ipod while running on the treadmill, doing dishes, folding laundry, or playing on my computer.

Audio: speakers can play much louder and better than you'd expect from a unit this size. I was afraid it would have a small tinny sound I wouldn't be able to hear when making any noise myself. It has a lot of power and sounds very good.

Video: 7" is a good screen size. Picture is wonderful even on lowest brightness setting. No problems with motion artifacts. Subtitles on DVDs are clear and readable.

External Hookups: Has 2 headphone plugins. Comes with AV cable to output to a TV or take input from any device.

Controls: Buttons are sturdy and straightforward. Thankfully everything is done with separate buttons rather than being hidden in a painful menu system like so many other products. You can switch aspect ratio, audio-video source and control all aspects of DVD playing from buttons right on front center of device. Remote has similar excellent controls are nicely labeled. Remote comes with battery.

Build Quality: Very sturdy. One of the reasons I move it around a lot is because I can - it is strong enough to handle it. When the lid is closed it fits nicely in the hand and keeps playing then you just pop it open again where you want. Controls on side for brightness and volume are recessed so they don't stick out. All edges are bevelled or rounded so it's smooth and easy to carry.

Random Things: It's nice that it comes with the AV cable to output to a TV or take input from another device. Also comes with a car lighter adapter. Stated battery life of 2.5 hours is only for playing DVDs. It will play Ipod video for 5+ hours.

Complaint: internal battery only charges when device is switched to Off. To be perfect it should recharge anytime it's on AC power.

Overall: This thing is a great device for extending your Ipod listening/watching away from headphones-only. It's light, strong, and has good video and audio output.

Battery life is about 2.5 hours. Initial charge required is 8 hours. Recharges in 6 hours. Must be turned off to recharge. Battery is built into unit.

I am considering buying this and it took me forever to find the above info, so I just thought I'd share.

As person who travels a lot, I'm always looking for something to pass the time in airports, trains, cars, etc. And I saw this for sale at Circuit City I had to go check it out. This is a nice little unit. It plays DVDs, Ipod video, inputs from a secure digital card, and plays dvix .avi files. WOW and for a price of $139.00 I picked one up. My previous DVD player was a Toshiba, and the sound was poor, this one has great sound, I can actually hear it without having headphones in. And the color is crisp, and clean. I like it! I can't believe the deal for the price. Most other DVD players without having access to Ipod video, is around $200.

I really enjoy the many features of this product (picture quality, sound, ease of use). HOWEVER, please note that the Ipod feature is limited to 5th generation Ipods. As of this writing, the new generation of Ipods are not compatible with the Philips DCP 750/37. I have confirmed this information with both Philips and Apple customer support. In short, unless there is a firmware update, the Philips DCP 750/37's Ipod feature won't work with 6th generation Ipods. It would be very helpful if Amazon would put a highly visible disclaimer on its product description stating as much. If you have a older Ipod, you will probably enjoy all the many features this product offers.

The first one I received was defective. The LCD would flicker on and off. I contacted Amazon.com via online and they had me print out a returning label. Paste it on the packaging it came with and within a very short period of time (probably 2 or 3 days) I got my new replacement! -- They must have a fast receiving line!!! It got here faster than when I originally ordered it. LOL! This was my first experience replacing a defective unit from Amazon.com -- so I was very happy on the outcome. Great service!!

Now about the unit itself. It is quite nice. It plays all the video formats very well. I am also loving the fact that I can dock my video iPod (which is also black) and I can now view my iPod music videos in a larger scale. Plus I think it plays back DVDs that normally skip or stutter on my home "Philips" DVD Player. I can't explain it. On my home "Philips" DVD player the same DVDs stutter, but this portable unit plays them without a glitch all the way through. My home unit is the DV-260 model (probably over a year old) with the latest firmware -- I think?

This unit also plays very well when sending the signal to a screen projector of even 100x100 feet. The quality transfer is superb. I definitely would recommend this unit to photo/video montage services. Plus with the laser lens being so robust with all kinds of discs. It might never skip or stutter even if the discs are a bit scratchy or dusty.

The only quirks I got about this unit is that when I am viewing a Divx film. The digital counter is on by default. I have to always turn off the digital counter on the screen with the remote control. It doesn't do this with the iPod Video nor with DVDs (I haven't tried it yet with the SD Card or other formats yet). But with the Divx formats, I have to always turn off the digital counter with the remote control.

The other issue is that the battery drains pretty quickly. I think it allows you to playback only one DVD movie and after that you probably got a few more minutes until the unit shuts off by itself. I wish the battery would last a bit longer. I mean at least to playback 2 or 3 films at the very least.

I was very happy to have found this model. I was almost getting the newest one they only advertise at philips.com -- I don't know why they don't advertise this one. I love the iPod docking station. Maybe it got rejected because the battery doesn't last that long? Maybe the newest models without the iPod docking station lasts a bit longer, I don't know? But what I do know, is that I am fairly happy with this unit and also quite impressed with amazon.com's customer service. Thank you for replacing this unit so quickly!

I simply NEVER write reviews, but I want to say that I started out a little concerned, the manual said 2.5 hours per charge..OH NO, I need this for a 5 hour cross country flight...WELL, it turns out the 2.5 hours is when spining the DVD motor, I ran my IPOD videos for almost 6 HOURS straight on one charge...SWEET!!

Also, this plays DIVX, which was just the icing on the cake, I love it!

The only concern I have is the self contained battery, but at this price who cares.

I've only had this Portable DVD player a few day's now. This is my first Portable so I can't compare it to others.

What I like:

The size, shape and the fact that it can use SD/MMC cards. It can also play DivX on a memory card. This player also plays other types of video but it doesn't play wmv files. I like that this unit has a place to store the remote. The built in speakers are better than expected and have good volume for the size. It came with a DC adapter.

What I don't like:

My player has a white glow across the bottom of the display. The power light starts flashing after (sometimes about 65 minutes, other times about 95 minutes) of play on battery power but I get almost 2.5 hours before it turns itself off, I assume the flashing is a low battery warning but the manual doesn't say. It doesn't have RESUME feature so I can continue watching a movie if I get interrupted and have to turn the unit off, My home players has RESUME. The remote is unusable in it's holder, It would have been easy to have a second IR sensor in the holder. Because of that, If I play a movie that starts with the subtitles turned on (Like "The Postman"), I have to pop out the remote to turn off subtitles, not a real problem but annoying. It doesn't have a user changeable battery so I opted for the 3 year extended warranty (yep, I purchased somewhere else because amazon's max was 2 years + 1 year MFG warranty which is about the average life expectancy of Lithium batteries) plus the fact that my other Philips DVD player lasted about 2.5 years.

Over all:

There weren't a lot of choices of Portable DVD players the has a SD slot and some day I may have an Ipod. Only 2.5 hours of play on battery is not that good but I guess I'll live with it.

Overall it works and performs excellent when compared to similar items from a price standpoint and technical features. Battery life is acceptible.
A real good buy.It comes with accessories, too, that you do not need to buy extra.

This player brings my iPod video to life. I got tired of headphones and the small screen for viewing my podcasts. This player brings my video podcasts to life and plays DVDs pretty well, especially self-burned DVDs. Highly recommended.

Broke in less than six months with only moderate use. Screen output is bad. Power LED not working. Perhaps a voltage issue? dunno.

After calling Philips and being assured that a 4gb sdhc card would work with the unit it turns out that it doesn't. Waste of $$ there due to Philips inability to properly support their product or document the specification.

The swivel screen is great though because you can turn it around and lay it flat so your toddler can't mash all the buttons while watching in the car during that long car trip. Yet you can keep the remote and still control it.

The truth is that I'll buy another one of these if I can't identify a better one with a swivel screen and flash card support. Longer battery life would also be great.