Akai PDVD172 7 in. Portable DVD Player
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- Number of Discs: 1
- Playable Disk Types: DVD Video VCD DVD-R DVD+RW CD (Audio) CD-R CD-RW Picture CD
- Screen Size: 7 inch
- Playable File Formats: MP3 WMA JPEG
- DVD Type: Portable DVD Player
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Am I Missing Something?
Pros
Region free, universal power supply, built-in 7.5" active matrix display
Cons
Owner's manual leaves a whole lot to be desired!
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
Good little unit to take almost anywhere. Not many bells and whistles, but all the basic functions are there. Manual leaves a whole lot to be desired, though!
I've tended to being hospitalized lately, and during those stays I found myself bored to tears with the crummy offerings on TV. In preparation for my next stay, I went to eBay and purchased a PDVD172 from Gandhi Appliances. The $149 price wasn't bad at all, but the shipping brought to total to over $200.
First of all, I like the fact that now I can take it with me next time I find myself back at the hospital. The '172 has a 7.5" active matrix display which is just about the right size for watching close up with as sharp a picture as one could expect. While it also has what are generously termed stereo speakers built in, I suggest that you use headphones if you want to hear anything even remotely resembling bass.
In addition to playing DVDs from all regions, the '172 is also compatible with VCD, SVCD, MP3, and JPEG. It comes with a remote control that's just slightly larger than a credit card and the usual cables which allow it to be used as part of a home system.
A nice touch is the switching AC power supply which is located in the middle of the cord instead of the usual wall wart configuration. This allows it to be used on any mains from 100 to 240 volts, 50 or 60 Hz which compliments its ability to play both NTSC and PAL, so it's ready for use anywhere in the world. They even include a US to Europlug adapter.
The biggest problem I had turned out actually to be a fault of the owner's manual. The problem was I could not get the built-in display to stop stretching and squashing the picture, and nothing in the book was of any help. There was nothing to be found on any of Akai's websites, either. Cutting to the chase, I had originally given this unit a "D". I finally managed to get tech support on the phone, and after a few false starts, we managed to get the problem sorted out. By setting the video permanently to the widescreen setting, it worked absolutely perfectly on 1.85:1 and 16:9 aspect ratios, although 4:3 still looks a wee bit squashed.
In light of this, I'm raising my rating of the '172 to a "C". It was the owner's manual and not the unit itself which kept it from being any higher.
First of all, I like the fact that now I can take it with me next time I find myself back at the hospital. The '172 has a 7.5" active matrix display which is just about the right size for watching close up with as sharp a picture as one could expect. While it also has what are generously termed stereo speakers built in, I suggest that you use headphones if you want to hear anything even remotely resembling bass.
In addition to playing DVDs from all regions, the '172 is also compatible with VCD, SVCD, MP3, and JPEG. It comes with a remote control that's just slightly larger than a credit card and the usual cables which allow it to be used as part of a home system.
A nice touch is the switching AC power supply which is located in the middle of the cord instead of the usual wall wart configuration. This allows it to be used on any mains from 100 to 240 volts, 50 or 60 Hz which compliments its ability to play both NTSC and PAL, so it's ready for use anywhere in the world. They even include a US to Europlug adapter.
The biggest problem I had turned out actually to be a fault of the owner's manual. The problem was I could not get the built-in display to stop stretching and squashing the picture, and nothing in the book was of any help. There was nothing to be found on any of Akai's websites, either. Cutting to the chase, I had originally given this unit a "D". I finally managed to get tech support on the phone, and after a few false starts, we managed to get the problem sorted out. By setting the video permanently to the widescreen setting, it worked absolutely perfectly on 1.85:1 and 16:9 aspect ratios, although 4:3 still looks a wee bit squashed.
In light of this, I'm raising my rating of the '172 to a "C". It was the owner's manual and not the unit itself which kept it from being any higher.
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