Panasonic DVD-LS86 8.5-Inch Portable DVD Player Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I picked this up after briefly reviewing the competition's specs. When you are shopping for a portable DVD player, the features you essentially want to pay attention to are screen size, picture quality, and battery life. If you are burning your own DVDs or playing certain styles of downloaded content you'll also want to pay attention to the format capabilities.
I finally decided on this device because it advertised 13 hour battery life and I was flying to Europe (a 9 hour flight from WA State). I was also going to be tossing it in a backpack and going. The folding design seemed like a logical choice to protect the screen with the applicable rough use.
Here's what I found, hope it helps you make an informed decision!
Pros:
- Design is elegant and fairly durable.
- Sound quality was surprisingly great.
- Controls were pretty intuitive.
- A/V cable was included accessory.
- Saves your place and starts up right from where you left off.
Cons:
- Though I didn't expect the full 13hrs battery life, it's more like 5-6 with a reasonable backlight level. Less without headphones.
- Picture quality is not comparable to competing devices like Sony DVP-FX930 9-Inch Portable DVD Player, Black.
- The buttons are awkwardly placed and easy to accidentally press when lifting or resituating the device.
Preference:
- I don't really think a remote is necessary for this style of electronic but some may find the lack of remote a drawback.
- The folding design can be a bit bulky for coach seating on a plane. It would have been nice if the screen could flip all the way over into a tablet design like this device does: Sony DVPFX810 8-Inch Portable DVD Player, Black
About Traveling with Portable DVD Players:
If you are traveling internationally and plan on buying DVDs when you arrive instead of bringing them with you... you'll want to remember that this device only plays Region 1 DVDs. DVDs from Europe are Region 2. Mexico, Central and South America, Australia and New Zeland are Region 4. Russia, much of Asia, and South Africa are region 5. In all, this means that you can only play DVDs from the region you buy the device from. There are some ways around this to my understanding but as a matter of convenience you may just want to purchase a player from the region you'll use content from. You can find more about DVD regions at:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/help/customer/display.html?nodeId=3193231
Looking back on this purchase, I'll probably opt for my iPhone/iPod or one of the following devices in the future...
Sony DVPFX810 8-Inch Portable DVD Player, Black
Sony DVP-FX930 9-Inch Portable DVD Player, Black
And Panasonic also offers a portable Blu Ray Disc Player for those of you who have gone Blu. Battery life is a bit limited and to be honest when I saw it I was thinking that Blu Ray wasn't really meant for a screen this small. That being said, it works in a pinch if your library is now primarily BRD...
Panasonic DMP-B15 Portable Bluray Player
This review was made August 2009 so check for newer options if you're reading this in the future =).
Hope this helps!

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Enjoy your video library on the go with the Panasonic DVD-LS86 portable DVD player featuring an 8.5-inch widescreen pivoting display. With the 13-hour rechargeable battery, it's the perfect companion for long trips by giving you a full 13 hours of playback.


Comfortable Viewing from Any Angle and In Any LightingThe large 8.5" widescreen display pivots for free-style viewing so you can adjust the position for optimum comfort and image quality. You can also adjust the screen brightness to get the best view of your DVDs in all kinds of light conditions. You get beautiful images while watching movies on a dimly lit airplane, or when you're relaxing in the sun at a resort or other outdoor spot.

Play Many Different Movie and Music Formats When you're in the mood for a movie, this versatile player can play back many different types of prerecorded DVDs, including DVD-RAM/-R/-RW1 and DVD+R/+RW1 discs. If you want to give your eyes a rest and listen to some tunes instead, our portable DVD player handles lots of the most popular audio formats around, including CDs, MP3s, CD-R/RW discs and WMA files.

Have a 13-Hour Movie Marathon on a Single Charge The DVD-LS86 comes with a built-in rechargeable battery that gives you a full 13 hours of playback without having to worry about running out of power on long trips. That's long enough to watch up to six DVD movies5 on a single charge while flying from New York to L.A. and back, so leave the AC adaptor at home and forget about recharging at your hotel.

Key Features
Built-in Stereo Speakers
DivX Playback
Built-in Dolby Digital Recorder and DTS Decoder
Cinema Mode
Dual Headphone Jacks

What's in the Box Portable DVD player, AC adapter, rechargeable battery, DC (car power) adapter, operating instructions



Specifications

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