Last Updated on May 25, 2023 by Waino Miller
You Can Watch Movies Where and When It Fits Your Schedule
For kids, a road trip can be an exciting idea. That is until they realize that it could mean endless hours in a car with nothing much to do. As a parent, you can make it better by giving them the opportunity to watch their favorite movies while on the ride. This idea has never been easier than it is now. This year, there are many different options for you to consider.
The best portable DVD players are designed to let you take your entertainment with you wherever you are. You can take it to the airport, on a bus, in your car, and more. This means no more boredom for you or your child. You simply need to pick the one that can most meet your needs.
Our 3 Top Picks
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DBPOWER 11.5
Brand DBPOWER
Color Black
Screen Size 9.5 Inches
Item Weight 1.94 pounds
Can Connect Two Players
Ideal for Vehicles
ieGeek 11.5″
Brand IeGeek
Color Blue
Screen Size 9.5 Inches
Display Type LCD
Item Weight 2.83 pounds
Easy Buttons on Player
COOAU 17.9”
Brand COOAU
Color Black
Good Screen
Easy Operation
Item Weight 5.27 Pounds
Battery Life
Our Top Picks for Best Portable DVD Players
1. SUNPIN Portable DVD Player 12.5″ for Car and Kids
The SUNPIN portable DVD player is ideal for kids and vehicles. It features a 10.1-inch swivel screen and can be enjoyed using clear sounding stereo speakers or earphones. It can also support sync with TV, USB, and SD cards.
It can also play videos in a variety of formats. The long battery life lasts for up to 5 hours during video playing. If it runs low, you can use it with AC or car chargers. With this DVD player, you also have an anti-shock function that will prevent skips if you happen to hit bumps in the road. You simply mount it to the headrest and enjoy your movies.
Conclusion: We really like the HD screen with built-in eye protection. The battery life is also impressive, considering you can power it in other ways if you need to. The downside is that of all the formats it can play, Blu-Ray is not one of them. We have also written a complete guide about the VHS to DVD converters.
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2. DBPOWER 11.5″ Portable DVD Player
This DBPOWER DVD player comes with a 2500mAh rechargeable battery that can play for up to 5 hours. It can also be powered off by your car charger or AC power adapter. It supports multiple formats both DVD and SD files, except Blu-Ray.
Some of its best features include a 9-in swivel screen that has up to 270 degrees of rotation. It can also flip to 180 degrees. This means it can work on the back of any headrest with ease. You can hook it to your television or connect two players using an AV cable.
Conclusion: This DVD player seems like a great option for most. It is backed by a company that is willing to help you with issues and promises many viewing pleasures. However, if your child is too young to use a remote or you lose it, the play/pause button is only available on the remote. This could be inconvenient.
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3. ieGeek 11.5″ Portable DVD Players
The ieGeek player has a compact design and a few fun color options. It is great for car rides because of its 5-hour battery, AC adaptor, and car chargers. It can go as long as you do.
It has two high-power speakers built-in. This enables it to play sounds clearly. If it isn’t loud enough, you can simply put on headphones. It plays multiple DVD formats and can use an SD card. The screen has eye protection to ensure that even after long use, eyes will never feel tired. It measures 15.1 x 8.5 x 3 inches and weighs 1.34-pounds
Conclusion: This DVD player checks off a lot of boxes for many people. It is great for use with kids because it is simple to use. However, they have to be able to hold it since you cannot connect it to the backrest. For some kids, this could be a problem.
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4. HD JUNTUNKOR 12.5″ Portable DVD Players
The DVD player by HD JUNTUNKOR has an LCD screen with exceptional picture quality in a 10.1-inch screen. The screen itself is a 1024*600 swivel screen. This means you get up to 270-degrees of rotation and 180-degree flip. It has a 5-hour battery that can be recharged using car chargers or AC power.
It comes with a bag that allows it to be connected to the headrest. When watching/using, you do not have to take it out of the bag. It has a feature that allows it to begin where you left off at the end of your last ride and supports a variety of video formats. A 30-day refund and 1-year warranty are included.
Conclusion: This seems like a great DVD player for its intended purpose. We like that it can mount easily to a headrest using a bag. This is made even better by the fact that it weighs around 3-pounds, which can be heavy for little kids.
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5. 17.5″ Portable DVD Player with 15.6″ Large HD Screen
Bigger really can be better with this impressive DVD player by BOIFUN. It has a very large 1280*800 HD swivel screen and a 6-hour battery life. It can also be put into a position that enhances your viewing pleasure. Overall, this DVD player weighs around 5 pounds. Its size is 19 x 12 x 3.1 inches.
It can use multiple formats including VOB, AVI, CD, and DVD, as well as others. When riding in a car, it will not skip if you hit a bump or a pothole. There are buttons on the device that will make it easy for even younger kids to control.
Conclusion: The sound quality issue for this DVD player is that it may not be loud enough to hear without speakers in a vehicle. Headphones should be able to solve this problem, but it is something to consider. In all other ways, it is a great unit that has a very large, high-quality screen that should be a good choice for most people.
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6. COOAU 17.9” Portable DVD Players with 15.6″ Large Swivel Screen
The COOAU DVD player has a 15.6″ screen size that can swivel where you need it the most. It has a 6-hour battery life and is available in black, blue, or red. Holding true to their reputation of creating quality, portable DVD players, this widescreen unit plays almost all DVD disk formats or SD cards up to 32G.
It includes several reading technologies that are ideal for travel situations. For instance, it has break-point, anti-shock, and pre-reading to ensure that your DVD always plays the way you want it to, smoothly and uninterrupted. You can also sync it with another screen to double viewing pleasure.
Conclusion: We like the size of this DVD player. The screen size and quality are impressive in every way. However, we do think that the instructions for use should be clearer. No instructions can make it difficult to use all its features.
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7. ieGeek 12.5″
This ieGeek portable player can last throughout an entire 5-hour long car ride on one battery charge. Basically, it means your child can watch two movies and some of another depending on the movie’s length. A road trip longer than 5 hours? No problem. A long car charging cord or an AC power adapter can get you back to watching quickly.
This player can play many movie formats and may be synced to another screen. It can be folded, flipped, and tied to your seat’s headrest. With this player, even subtitles can be read clearly if you have them turned on.
Conclusion: One key takeaway from this DVD player is that headphones could be helpful. The play volume is a little low when you are in a moving vehicle. In all other ways, it is a viable option for most because it does allow you to watch virtually anything.
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8. MYDASH 12.5″ Portable DVD CD Player
MYDASH is a 12.5-inch HD DVD player that works with most multimedia formats. It can be on a child’s lap or mounted on the back of a headrest. You can play movies on disk, USB, or SD cards. There is also AV in and out ports so that two players can be connected. An audio jack makes it good for quiet listening.
It has break-point memory functions. This means that when you reach your destination and turn off your vehicle, you will not lose your place in the movie. It will resume play as soon as you turn it back on. This unit is covered by a 3-year warranty.
Conclusion: This seems like a solid-performing DVD player. It has better sound quality than some and good picture quality. It has the standard 5-hour battery, which is nice. The downside is that some video formats may be dark and settings may not get rid of all the darkness.
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9. SUNPIN Portable DVD Player 17.9″ with Large HD Swivel Screen
The SUNPIN DVD player offers several features that people can love. It has a 6-hour battery and a large HD screen. The screen resolution is 1280*800. It can connect with other screens or just play the movie on its large screen.
Like others, this DVD player does offer multi-format playing. It does not work with Blu-Ray, but it does have an anti-shock feature that prevents it from skipping. It also has slow-motion playback, repeat, zoom, and more.
Conclusion: Some people would like to see a battery indicator and/or better sound. However, those same people say that they love everything about this DVD player, especially the size. In general, we say that it is a good option for most people who aren’t looking for perfection.
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10. SUNPIN 11″ Portable DVD Player
One of the first things people notice about this DVD player is the color options that are available for it. These choices include blue, green, purple, and red, which makes it great for kids that have a favorite color or parents who like things to match.
Beyond the fun colors, it has a very good LCD screen and can play for 5-6 hours on a single charge. It has dual headphone ports and speakers so that two kids can watch the same screen. You get two headrest mounting cases so that kids do not have to hold it.
Conclusion: We love that this DVD player has two ports for headphones to connect to. This makes it great for families that have two kids. When in the bag, it can be virtually impossible to use the remote to control it. This is a problem for some, but others don’t mind the inconvenience.
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11. WONNIE 17.9’’ Large Portable DVD/CD Player
When you want to enjoy your movies to the fullest, you may want to consider a portable DVD player that is 17.9 inches. It is an HD 1280*800 screen that is easy to position. It has an outstanding battery life of up to 7-hours.
This DVD player can play a large range of multimedia, even JPG, TXT, and more off your USB, SD, and MMC cards. It has a powerful speaker. You can also hook it to another screen using an AV output cable.
Conclusion: This high-definition DVD player is large enough to see easily. It also has a battery life that can go up to 7-hours on a single charge. It is easy to position and can be attached to a headrest. The downside is that there are some who feel that the sound quality could be better. This could be countered by headphones, but may not make it the ideal solution for some viewers.
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12. Jekero 16.9″ Portable DVD Player
This portable DVD player by APEMAN is smaller than some DVD players. This does not mean that it lacks quality. It has a 16.9-inch swivel screen and a battery that can last up to 5 hours.
This DVD player is very easy to operate. It can play various movies and media types. You can even use this DVD player to play games. It is equipped with a game USB, which allows you to add joysticks. This can increase the fun for your child on long road trips.
Conclusion: Most people who want a small, personal DVD player will be happy with this one. It is compact and small enough to be used virtually anywhere. The downside is that it does play movies at a low volume. It could be fine for some people, but bothersome for others.
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Final Thoughts
Choosing a portable DVD player is not a choice that you should make lightly. We like the ones that offer protection against bumps and knocks that may happen when playing a movie in a vehicle. We are also fond of movie screens that have protection for children’s eyes.
All the video players that we have on our list come with a remote control to help you control it. However, not all of them can provide an exceptional experience when using it. For this reason, we recommend that you choose a player that can be easily used with buttons on the DVD player.
You also need to really consider the size of the screen that you want. Some of these DVD players have a very small screen. Others can be up to 17-inch players. The problem is that with increased size, you may have more weight. The weight of the unit isn’t a big problem if it attaches to the back of your vehicle’s headrest. Not all of them do this and you have to decide if you want the extra weight sitting on your lap. Even more important, can your child hold it on theirs?
We hope that our best portable DVD players list is one that helps you in making the right choice for your family. We know it is sometimes a tough choice, but we hope you find the best one, even if it isn’t one of the ones that we recommend.
