Koss DVP2161 Compact DVD with MP3/CD Player
Ideal for plugging into a television, computer, or car screen, the compact DVP2161 offers full-featured DVD and CD playback from a device about the size of a softcover book. While not quite portable in the traditional sense–the unit has no screen and requires AC power–the DVP2161 is much easier to move around, set-up, and use than a traditional component DVD player.
Price: $34.99
Sony DCR-IP1 MicroMV Handycam Camcorder w/10x Optical Zoom
A next-generation digital Handycam Camcorder, the DCR-IP1 is packed with convenient, advanced features, like a 1/5.0″ 1 Megapixel (Gross) Advanced HAD CCD Imager. This HAD (Hole Accumulation Diode) CCD imager with 690K (effective) pixels provides excellent detail and clarity, with exceptional digital video performance (520 lines of horizontal resolution). Realize great looking still images utilizing 1000K (effective) pixels. The 1 Megapixel technology enhances your digital videos and digital still photography performance.
Price: $759.99
Audiovox D1708 Portable DVD Player
Take a mini home entertainment center with you wherever you go with the Audiovox D1708 portable DVD player. The D1708 features a 7-inch TFT active matrix widescreen display with aspect ratio control so you can choose 16:9 for widescreen movies, standard 4:3, or a switchable option. It plays back DVD, CD, and MP3-formatted discs for a variety of options. DVD features include multiple angles, multilingual subtitles, parental controls, and slow motion.
The D1708 comes with built-in stereo speakers with simulated surround sound, and also features two headphone jacks so two people can watch movies in privacy. It also features a digital output so you can connect to a home theater system and enjoy Dolby Digital and DTS audio when you’re at home. The included rechargeable NiMH battery has up to three hours battery life so you can watch even the longest movies and not worry about losing power.
Price: $149.99
As the 2005 theatrical release of Serenity made clear, Firefly was a science fiction concept that deserved a second chance. Devoted fans (or “Browncoats”) knew it all along, and with this well-packaged DVD set, those who missed the show’s original broadcasts can see what they missed. Creator Joss Whedon’s ambitious science-fiction Western (Whedon’s third series after Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel) was canceled after only 11 of these 14 episodes had aired on the Fox network, but history has proven that its demise was woefully premature. Whedon’s generic hybrid got off to a shaky start when network executives demanded an action-packed one-hour premiere (”The Train Job”); in hindsight the intended two-hour pilot (also titled “Serenity,” and oddly enough, the final episode aired) provides a better introduction to the show’s concept and splendid ensemble cast. Obsessive fans can debate the quirky logic of combining spaceships with direct parallels to frontier America (it’s 500 years in the future, and embattled humankind has expanded into the galaxy, where undeveloped “outer rim” planets struggle with the equivalent of Old West accommodations), but Whedon and his gifted co-writers and directors make it work, at least well enough to fashion a credible context from the incongruous culture-clashing of past, present, and future technologies, along with a polyglot language (the result of two dominant superpowers) that combines English with an abundance of Chinese slang.
Price: $34.99
Update, 3/2/06: Now only $19.86
Symphonic SD200E DVD/CD Player
Price: $28.99
Panasonic DVD-F87S 5-Disc Progressive Scan DVD Player
The Panasonic DVD-F87S five-disc DVD changer offers progressive-scan playback, Dolby Digital and DTS Surround Sound compatibility, and a slim design that makes it a perfect fit for any entertainment system. Other features include compatibility with DVD-Audio, DVD-RAM, DVD-R, and CD-R/RW discs, as well as MP3 and WMA digital audio playback. This model also comes with a black finish.
The five-disc changer allows you to keep up to five discs of any format in your player at the same time. A front-loading rotary carousel lets you change any of the four not-playing discs without disturbing what you’re watching or listening to. The Audio/JPEG onscreen navigation menu enables you to quickly search for MP3 and WMA audio files or view JPEG images recorded onto CD-R and CD-RW discs via an onscreen menu. This feature also works with CD-R discs that feature multisession recordings.
Price: $109.99
OPPO OPDV971H Digital HD-Ready Up-Converting DVD Player
Improve the picture quality of DVD movies shown on your high-definition television with the versatile OPPO Digital OPDV971H DVD player, which provides 480p/540p/576p/720p/1080i resolutions and can upconvert 480i video from DVDs to the high definition 720p/1080i formats. Featuring a slim and elegant design, it featurs a sleek, silver design that will fit in nicely the rest of your home theater’s components. In addition to standard DVD move and CD audio discs, it’s also compatible with DVD-R/RW, DVD+R/RW, (S)VCD, HDCD, and CD-R/RW discs as well as WMA and JPEG digital content. It also plays DivX 5, DivX 4, DivX 3, and DivX VOD video content (in compliance with DivX Certified technical requirements).
Price: $199.99
