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DVD Player Buyers Guide
Introduction
The VCR ("Video Cassette Recorder") and VHS ("Video Home System") were good servants in their time, but have all but been replaced by DVD ("Digital Versatile Disk") technology. DVD media is available in various formats, including the recordable DVD+/-R and rewritable DVD+/-RW formats and the proprietary DVD-RAM format. You should also be aware of regional coding when it comes to DVD media; some distributors embed a geographical code in their DVD disks - Europe is Region 2 - and if the code of the disk and the player do not match the content cannot be viewed. Many DVD players, nowadays, are multi-region by default or can be "unlocked" to make them so, but this is still something to bear in mind. Your choice of DVD player essentially boils down to the type(s) of media that you want to watch and how and where you want to watch it.
DVD Players
Above and beyond basic compatibility, if you`re looking for a DVD player for your home, you`ll be interested in its connectivity to your TV and other components of your home entertainment system. DVD players are available with SCART, composite video, component video and S-video connections and coaxial and optical outputs for audio. The latest DVD players also have an HDMI ("High Definition Multimedia Interface") connection, which allows the transfer of uncompressed digital video and audio data via a single cable. These DVD players do need to be connected to a DVI ("Digital Video Interface") or HDMI socket on an HD Ready or Full HD TV, but are capable of "upscaling" standard DVD output to an approximation of HD; this is not true HD, as provided by Blu-ray, but nevertheless produces high quality pictures.
Of course, you may be looking for a portable DVD player, which you can use not only in your home, but also in your car and just about anywhere else. Travelling by car, bus, train or plane can be tiresome, especially for families with young children, so a portable DVD player plus a selection of favourite films, cartoons, etc can be an excellent way of keeping youngsters entertained. Portable DVD players are available in tablet or clamshell - where the two halves of the player fold together via a hinge - design, but in either case have a screen built in and are capable of operating on their own rechargeable batteries or the 12-volt supply from a standard cigarette lighter.
The screen sizes of a portable DVD player typically ranges from 9 to 12 inches, measured diagonally, so there should be no problem in two children sharing a screen; two pairs of earphones or headphones, or a headphone splitter cable will usually be necessary, however, because of extraneous noise.
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