Customer Reviews

Philips DCP851 8.5-Inch Portable DVD Player with Ipod Dock

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I bought this item almost out of spite. Apple under its brand name sells an outrageously expensive ($49), proprietary A/V cable for the iPOD touch in order to output video to an external (larger) display. I would like to have such an accessory cable for my iPOD touch, but not at such a lofty price.

The Philips DCP851 (and slightly larger DCP951) provides this capability, via a simple A/V jack on the side of the case, and it works GREAT! Philips just saved Apple iPOD touch users 50 bucks!

So why not just buy the cable? Because, this product provides the added functionality of an extremely compact, portable DVD player with built-in 8.5" LCD due to its tablet style display. The DVD player itself is built-in underneath the display. There is a pull out "tilt" stand to hold the screen upright on a flat surface, or you can just watch a video holding it in your lap.

You can also use the display to watch and listen to full length movies downloaded and stored in the iPOD's internal flash memory with the latter docked in the popout-hideawy docking port. Slick!

The DCP851 is a multimedia product when docked with an iPOD device. It plays videos stored in the iPOD and a DVD from its optical drive, or from an external A/V source. It plays music just like an MP3, but does not require headphones. It also can display photo album library slideshows as well.

The picture quality of the TFT LCD is certainly not perfect, no where near "HDTV" in quality, but still adequate under most (indoor) ambient lighting conditions. The resolution is as good as standard analog TV.

The audio output (volume) of the built-in, mini stereo speakers is understandably a bit weak, but there are a pair of headphone jacks for listening to the audio. The nice thing about that is TWO people sitting side by side can both enjoy this product at the same time while waiting someplace like a coffee shop, in an airport or while traveling together. For travelers this is basically a self contained, portable entertainment system easy to take with you wherever you go. However, on battery power you'll have about 2.5 hours before a recharge is necessary.

The DCP851 comes with everything you need except an iPOD and a couple of your favorite DVD movies. It has an AC wall plug adapter and a 12Vdc in-car adapter for recharging at home, in the office or on the road. It also has a right/left audio and composite video, TV cable to output your media content and videos externally, or conversely to input an external A/V signal to the DCP851's built-in display and speakers.

As first reviewer, I'm giving this a GOOD review and recommend it to iPOD users looking for an all-in-one accessories solution and a portable DVD player to boot.

The player comes with a neoprene sleeve, a car lighter adapter, a regular plug for the wall, and cords to attach it to your television or VHS/DVD/Stereo/Video Game player.(Basically an AV jack.)

There is a little stand for the DVD Player that almost looks like you will be ejecting the battery so a lot of people miss it. (I've seen complaints in other reviews for this item that said it doesn't have a stand. But it does.)

It plays my DVD's from Britain, Asia, and the U.S. switching easily between the screen formats without distortion. The picture is very clear as well and looks great.

I also put in an SD card from my sister's camera. If you have taken photos and are going through the slide show, be aware that if the photos are vertical, you can turn them but the picture will be cropped and the full photo does not show. Also, it did play some of the MVI videos from the SD card but not all of them for some reason.

It comes with various holders for various iPods. I have a 1G iPod Touch and it works great in the dock. When I bought it I didn't realize that the same dock holds the remote too so if you're traveling with it just pop your remote into the dock and close it and you can carry it along without worrying about losing it. You could do the same with your iPod if you wanted to but it can carry only one or the other -- not both at the same time.

The player allows you to play the youtube features and any videos, music, or photos from your iPod. You just work your iPod from the dock or use the remote and it comes up on the screen.

The plastic isn't super high quality but I think they built it that way to make it lighter.

The one thing I wish it had is a USB port. But otherwise it does the job and does it well.

Pros:
* SD Media slot
* Handy to dock an IPod to

Cons:
* Flimsy plastic construction
* Picture quality is poor with narrow viewing angle
* Battery life is very short compared to other players
* Power button is in a place where it can accidentally be turned on/off and there's no lock to keep that from happening.
* Buttons aren't very responsive so you often have to push a button 2 or 3 times to get it to work.
* If you turn it off or switch modes it doesn't remember where you were in the movie. For some dvds this means you have to go through the annoying process of waiting through the preview trailers again.
* My unit had a dead pixel on the screen.

Because of all these problems I've had with mine I'm returning it and getting the Sony DVP-FX820/P 8-Inch Portable DVD Player

I searched for several months and looked at a variety of different options before finally purchasing a portable dvd player. This works great with my ipod nano (a little small for watching videos, but great for storing videos that I then watch on this dvd player). Also, I've taken it with me on several business trips where I've hooked it up to hotel room televisions to watch videos off of my ipod or DVD's.
I agree with some of the other reviews that the screen quality is less than some similar players and the battery life is less than stellar, but I have yet to find a portable dvd player that had everything I wanted for anywhere close to a reasonable price. I simply picked the one that I felt best met my own needs. The biggest drawback that I hadn't considered before buying is that there is no car-mounting kit. I'm trying to find one that will work, so that my son can watch in the car. I'll update my review if I find one - if anybody else has ideas, please post.

This is a player that has so much going for it except for one thing. The one thing that the video player really needs - the screen. The screen on this player is not just second-rate, it is third-rate compared to those in its price class. That said it is the fact that this player has so many other really good features that I still give the player a positive review.

First comes the iPod dock. This is fantastic feature that allows us to play movies on the road. The nice touch is that the iPod will tuck inside the unit offering protection. When you do not have an iPod in there the remote tucks away. That is a really nice feature.

Second is the SD/MMC slot. We use this more than anything. I took many of my kids' DVDs and transcoded them to DivX form and no more scratched discs. This is the best feature with one minor problem. You have to constantly switch the source - I wish if you had no DVD or iPod, but did have a memory card it would auto-switch to that media.

Last thing is the flat format instead of the clam shell. I prefer the clam shell because the car mounts work better and protects the screen. Using the flat format has already caused me to have a scratched screen.

Overall it is a good product that could have been so much better - the screen is just so bad I dropped its rating. With a good screen it would have been 4 or 4.5 stars in my opinion.

I received this product as a father's day gift and love it. It's a very functional dvd player, but it's best feature is how much it expands the capability of my iPod classic. I use it as a dock to listen to music on a radio, which is enhanced by the larger display and remote control. I've read that the video docking cable sold by Apple for $50 won't play some iPods on standard televisions. I have had no such problems with this product. I can play movies downloaded from itunes on a standard television without any special cables with quality about as good as a standard dvd.

The drawbacks are minimal, really. It comes with a car charger but no way to mount it. The battery life is very short, so you'll have to find other ways to keep your kids entertained on trips longer than 2.5 hours. It won't charge your iPod unless it's plugged into an AC power source, which really isn't a drawback, but you have to make sure you power off the iPod or it will continue to run and drain the battery. The remote is great, but there is no power button on it, so you actually have to get up and turn off the device when you're done with it. The screen quality is very good, but seems to have fairly limited viewing angle.

If you have an iPod, I definitely recommend this product.

i just bought my Ipod Classic 160 a couple of months ago, which I, despite its shortcomings, absolutely love. when it comes to the assesories, I had collected every possible imagenable thing for my IPod. the only thing missing was a Larger screen to watch it on. This is where this player came in the picture.
this unit provides a solution for the deliberate shortcoming that Apple somehow incorporated in the latest version of their Video Player, that it can not be connected to an external video source (unless you buy Apple's AV Wire). I had one of those wires from prior unit, but as said, It does not work with this newer unit (Classic 160).
but the primary reason was not that I needed a wire, rather that I wanted something where I could watch my movies on a larger screen WHILE on the Move. the whole purpose of an IPod is so one can enjoy the entertainment while on the road, cuz if you are home next to your TV or Computer, you don't Need you IPOD, rather use a standard stereo or TV, so the purpose of the Wire is sort of .... what should I say ..... useless.
the cosmetic status of the player, thou not outstanding, is pretty desent. a screen cover could be appreciated while transporting or storing, (the accompanied pouch does not protect against physical impacts). the body, as being thin plastic, is fragil, and have to be handled with care.
the plus about this player, as compared to others in ths same size and price class is that not only can U use it for your IPOD, it also has the standard DVD (obviously) and the SD Expansion slot, which can come handy somethimes when I don't have a blank dvd at hand and want to watch come of my videos on the move. Just copy crom computer to SD Card, currently available in 8gb capacity for less than $50.
there is one drawback with the unit that I would like to point out, the Power Consumption. about 1 movie playback on batery before recharge required. I could wish that had been a bit more. other than that, an outstanding unit.

Length:: 9:09 Mins

There are many reasons why you would want an DVD player that includes an iPod dock. Ohilips have combined them (and a flash memory card reader) and created the DCP851. The video will explain the features, but here is a summary of important facts

What it WILL do-

- Play DVDs from all regions
- Work with you iPod Touch, iPhone, and Video iPod
- Can be used as a digital picture frame - when used with an iPod or memory card
- Can be used as an external speaker to play playlists
- Will receive a signal with anything that has a RCA output (VCRs, Video game consoles, and etc)
- Can cross-dock - you can send a signal from the Philips to a larger screen ( a great way to dock your iPod directly to your television!)

What it will NOT do-

- With the exception of YouTube - it will not play streaming content from your iPod Touch or iPhone. This includes the SlingPlayer app and MLB - my guess is that Apple is to blame for this limitation.
- Will not have a battery that lasts greater than 2.5 hours
- Does not include a mounting kit

Other notes-

- Picture quality is average a best.
- Comes with a car charger
- Comes with a pretty nifty remote
- Not the easiest to see at an angle or if in a high light setting

Final Verdict - I REALLY wished that this would work with streaming content from my iPod, but as a whole I am satisfied with the device. Finally, I purchased a remanufactured device through Amazon from New Harbor. They did a great job in answering my questions on the capabilities of the player. Buy with confidence.

4 Stars (would be 5 if it played streaming content)

Overall this device works great. I bought it for long trips and camping. The max volume needs to be higher. The screen images need to be brighter. I found that I have to press firmly on the buttons to get them to work. The remote control works better. I don't like that there is no flip open cover to protect the screen or that the stand in the back is offset to one side . The slide out cartridge for the ipod and remote sometimes sticks and seems to be poorly designed. Other than that, the price was decent. I guess you get what you pay for. I would recommend this to someone who just wants something to watch movies on in a quiet setting without spending a whole lot of money

I brought this refurbished from Philips direct for a good price. It comes with all the accessories like av cable, car and wall charger, and a few brackets to fit the ipod nano (3rd gen), touch, ipod 5th gen and ipod classic. I tried using a ipod 5th gen and videos come out as good as you put in, that means 320x240 is the best resolution, maybe you can get better resolution off from an ipod touch. However, I like the integration to the ipod where you can look can use the remote control to access the ipod's mp3's, photos, and videos.

Speaking of screen resolution, the screen's resolution is 480x234 which is mediocre by today's standards. So if you look at any dvd, ipod or divx video the display is all pixelated as a result. The sony fx820 has a resolution of 800x480 and it makes a big difference.

Another thing that I didn't like about this player is that unlike the the philips standalone dvp59xx divx players, it does not have support for xvid codec. It specifically says that it supports divx 4 and 5 codec and there's no firmware update that will allow you to change that. I found a free software that allows you to convert your existing xvid, avis, and dvd's to divx avi files that will play on this player called xvid4psp. Fortunately, the player also supports sdhc so you can cram a couple of divx avi's into it without problems.

I was looking to buying a carrying bag which allows to mount on back of the car's front row seat so that the kids in the back can watch movies. But Philips do not sell such a bag, nor does other manufacturers. With the use of a regular bag and some duct tape, I was able to mount it.

Despite my retractions, this philips dcp851 is a good dvd player, but it certainly has room for improvement.