Customer Reviews

Sony DVPFX705 Portable DVD Player

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Sony DVD player gave a great picture, but I have to admit along with the other reviews the volume is too low. I used it on a recent trip. My brother and I both brought our DVD players. His was a $150.00 low end name brand. We shared each others players. His volume was twice as loud as the Sony, but the picture was half as good.

We purchased this DVD player to take on a recent trip (for use on airplane). It performed beautifully and the screen resolution is very clear. The sound level is quite adequate even on a plane (we didn't even use the headphones we bought, just kept the volume fairly low so we didn't disturb others). Can't comment on battery life because we only used it for 2 hours each way. Overall we are very happy with this purchase and plan to recommend it to our friends.

I've compared several portable DVD players and have owned three. I have yet to see a better picture quality that on this unit, it is crisp with vivid colors. It also has an S-video out which is very useful for playing on larger TVs. Finally, the fit and finish of this unit is top-notch, it looks and feels like a high quality player compared to other brands. If you are looking for a top quality portable DVD player, this is it.

However, for the price, this unit surprisingly lacks two very basic features that can make playing DVDs annoying. First, there is no way to fast forward or rewind without the remote. Secondly, the unit does not "remember" where your movie left off if it is turned off or paused for too long. So suppose you are in the middle of watching a movie, and then turn the unit off. When you turn the unit back on, you will have to restart the movie from the beginning and skip to your scene. If you don't have your remote, skipping to your scene can only be done by skipping to the closest chapter of the movie. At this price, it is almost inexcusable that this unit does not have these basic features. Units at less than half the price often have these features available. What happened?

This is a good player, but has limitations that may not be present on all portables. Toyota is said to have once dispatched an army of observers to America with the sole purpose of watching Americans in their cars. From this exercise came such ergonomic innovations as . . . the cup holder. A similar exercise might improve the design of portable DVD players. Manufacturers would quickly learn that the little players are often watched in ways that inhibit the use of a remote. I typically watch mine in bed or lying on the couch with the player sitting on my tummy. In this position it is awkward if not impossible to get the remote into a position where the player will register its signal and I can still see the buttons on the remote. The ideal player would allow me to do anything I want to do without the remote, using the buttons on the machine itself, which are just a fingertip away. But many portable players are designed like "mainframes," with the remote needed to do important things, like navigate a menu, or skip a chapter, or fast forward. This Sony player includes menu navigation and chapter skip on the "front panel" controls, but not fast forward or fast reverse. The absence of these can be very annoying when trying to get back to a specific point on a reinserted disc, something you have to do often because, even when plugged into a wall outlet, the machine automatically shuts down when left to itself, and in doing so forgets where it was on the disk. Not even the "Hold" switch prevents this. A portable player should be able to do everything important without the remote (and, at least if left on while plugged into a wall socket, should be able to remember where it was on a disk when play was last stopped). I'm not sure how many players (if any) have these characteristics.

For some strange reason, there is no way to fast forward without using the remote, and why would anyone want to carry along a remote to use the player while traveling on a plane or train?

The picture and sound are great. I took it on a road trip recently and was pleased. The remote works wonderfully. I did notice one glitch though, and that was maybe in the third or fourth episode the words coming out of the actors mouths were delayed. So I hit the next button bakwards or forwards then went back to the episode and it would play correctly.
It was weird it happened a couple of times but all in all I am pleased.

I researched portable players a long time before choosing this unit.

While some say the sound volume is not loud, I would disagree. Screen quality is good.

I like that the battery clips on. If running off A/C or in the car, you can remove it.

Battery life better than expected.

The only quirk is no volume control on the remote. You'll get used to it.

A very good choice and worth the $.

You would think for this much money and a remote control that the volume would be better controled than just a little wheel on the side of this thing. Other than that its ok I guess.