Panasonic DVD-A120 DVD Player

Other products by Panasonic

Product Details

Product Manual [1.68mb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 3.9 x 17 x 10.6 inches ; 7 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 11 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B00000JMUG
• Item model number: DVDA120
• Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (86 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #116,347 in Electronics (See Bestsellers in Electronics)
• Discontinued by manufacturer: Yes
• Date first available at Amazon.com: September 4, 1973

Product Description

Amazon.com Review

Ready to take the plunge into the digital world of DVD? If you're on a budget, a good choice is the Panasonic DVDA120. This moderate-priced digital video player delivers a clean, crisp picture and crystal-clear digital sound, making it the perfect starting point for your home-theater setup.

With over 500 lines of resolution, you'll immediately recognize the difference in video quality offered by DVD. If your TV is capable of S-Video input, you'll want to use that connection to experience the highest video quality.

In addition to DVD video, the DVDA120 will play your music CDs and CD-video (CD-V) format. While CD-V format has not proven especially popular in the United States, there are thousands of movie titles available in Asia on this pre-DVD format. The CD-V feature will enable you to play some fairly rare imported films.

For the full home-theater experience, check out the latest DVD video titles, which are often presented in the amazing multisound Digital Dolby (AC3) and DTS digital-audio formats. Connecting this unit to a full set of surround-sound speakers gives you the best audio quality. Since this DVD player does not come with a built-in Dolby Digital decoder, you will need a separate AC3 receiver to experience every earth-shattering rumble and action-packed explosion thrown at you in the latest Hollywood blockbuster. However, this model is equipped with a special surround-sound mode that satisfies those of us who don't yet own a Dolby Digital receiver or five speakers and a subwoofer. With just two speakers, this virtual surround sound mode offers expanded sound quality that is noticeably better than standard stereo sound.

The sound and video quality is also improved by this unit's design, which contains separate paths for audio and video output and input. As a result, this configuration helps eliminate the cross-talk interference that can impact both the video and audio during DVD playback.

Pros:

• Great picture quality at a reasonable price
• Virtual surround-sound support for those who lack a full home-theater setup
• Compatible with CD-videos and audio CDs

Cons:

• Dolby Digital decoder not included
• Lacks some advanced features of higher-priced models

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

94 of 96 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Nice player, but failure-prone, November 30, 1999

By A Customer

I purchased one of these about 6 months ago. I was initially very pleased with it, but it now tracks really poorly, leading to annoying pixelation, even on brand-new disks. I wouldn't recommend it given the failures mentioned in other reviews.

114 of 121 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars World's 1st Disposable DVD player!, December 5, 1999

By	Jenny Wade (NYC) - See all my reviews

All the good reviews are right - the picture is great the sound is great, etc. I enjoyed mine immensely - until it turned into a giant paperweight, with the pixelation/lock-up problems mentioned in numerous reviews. I would not recommend this nor will I ever buy ANY product made by Panasonic ever again, due to their total lack of customer support. Buy a Sony, a Pioneer or a Toshiba - anything's better than Panasonic.

PS: For all of those who wrote positive reviews, I am sorry in advance for when your machines fail...

31 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars BAD CHIPS IN PANASONIC DVD players!, December 23, 1999

By	Michael Lewis (Connecticut) - See all my reviews

It seems there is a trend here. I also loved my Panasonic player until it melted down - just like the others in these reviews.

The repair guy says he can order a new board (as the chips aren't replaceable) for $150 - total repair price over $200.

I bought it exactly 13 months ago - so much for a one year warranty. Panasonic won't admit to any problem with these chips and won't repair it under warranty.

If this many machines are going bad with exactly the same symptons (pixelization, sound cutting in and out, then locking up), shoudn't Panasonic step up and recall them or at least honor the warranty one month over the date?

I am buying a Sony and will never buy Panasonic again.