Audiovox D1708PK 7-Inch Ultra Slim Line Portable DVD Player with Bonus Pack
Important design flaw in the battery system
For starters, there was a problem with the battery on this unit when I received it. The indicator wouldn't stay solid, and would instead flash; I spoke to Audiovox, they said it was a problem with the charging system, and it would need to be returned. No big deal, defective units happen. And though it was a pain, my review isn't based on that. <br /> <br />The bigger issues were with the design of the product itself, along with its accessories. This is simply not a well-designed product. <br /> <br />The number one issue is with the design of the battery/adapter interface. On most portable DVD players, like most laptops, the battery connects to the unit, and the unit then has a place to plug in the adapter. On such units, the battery has to be connected to the unit to charge, but more importantly, the unit can seamlessly switch between battery and wall power. That is, if you have the unit plugged in with the battery attached, and the adapter loses power, you can continue watching your DVD using the battery. This is important on, for example, a train, where the outlet power will occasionally cut out. With this unit, however, the unit has a single power input plug, and the battery has both an input slot and a mini power cord. To watch the unit using the battery, you plug the battery's cord into the unit; to watch the unit using the battery, you plug the adapter cord into the unit; and to charge the battery, you plug the adapter cord into the battery. However, with this setup, the unit can't switch between the battery and the adapter; if you lose adapter power, the entire unit shuts down and must be restarted. <br /> <br />This is a minor issue, but is intensely frustrating nonetheless. What makes it more annoying is that this is the only unit I know of that is designed in such a way; both cheaper and more expensive units manage to integrate the battery and the unit into the same power system, so that a loss of power won't completely disrupt the operation of the unit.<br /> <br />Beyond that, the carrying case that comes with the unit are helpful if you plan to use it in a car, but fairly useless otherwise. It's very large, designed to hold both pairs of headphones and all the various cords that come with the unit. It's too large to carry around conveniently, and takes up a great deal of space in an overnight bag. <br /> <br />Overall, the defect in my individual unit notwithstanding, this model is merely okay. The battery design flaw strikes me as simply inexcusable, and the accessories are less than helpful. This unit is not inexpensive enough to justify its flaws; when I returned my unit to Amazon, I opted to purchase a different model rather than exchange it for the same model.