Best Portable DVD Players for Kids

Our portable DVD player has been invaluable at times for entertaining my kids (two boys aged 6 and 2) in a number of settings. We've used ours while travelling in the car or on an airplane, when at friend's houses, on vacation, grandmas house or any situation where they needed to be entertained or occupied but you can't be as hands on with them.

The best portable DVD players for kids depend on what you will use it the most for. If you're travelling in the car, there are ones which come with car mounting systems (these can also be bought separately). Also, there are dual screen portable DVD players which are great if you have more than one child. Perhaps you will be using it as well as your kids and quality of sound and picture are important to you.

Other things to consider include:

Do you want a remote control? - This can be good for older kids and parents to use to skip sections, pause, stop etc.

Size of screen- generally portable dvd players have screens of between 7 and 10 inches. Although there is one DVD player featured below with a screen of 13.3 inches. 7 inch screens are obviously cheaper but your kids may prefer a bigger screen to watch movies. A bigger screen size will make it easier for more than one child to watch a DVD too.

Battery life - the battery life on many portable DVD players tends to be short so it may be worth bearing in mind spending extra on a DVD player with a longer battery life, especially for use on planes etc. Or look for a DVD player with a car power adaptor so you can power it in the car.

Swivel Screen - Some swivel screens can be good for younger kids as if you can turn the screen up to 180 degrees this can stop the kids touching the buttons! You can also turn the screen to ensure you get the maximum viewing experience when watching.

USB port - Do you require a USB port so you can play movies from a USB drive as well as a DVD? Or maybe you want to display photos that you have on your USB drive on your DVD player to show relatives and friends.

What formats does the DVD player support? - Is it important that the DVD you are buying can play mutli region DVDs? You may also prefer your DVD player to play other formats. Many movies that you download from the Internet are in DivX format so it may be worth checking that the DVD player supports this format too.

Stereo Sound / Headphone port - You may prefer a DVD player with built in stereo sound so more than one child can watch the DVD or for a young child who won't wear headphones. On the other hand, you may prefer there to be a headphone port so that you can block out the noise from others in the vicinity.

Check out the selection of best portable dvd players for kids below and summaries of what they offer.

Image courtesy of dan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

If you're buying a portable dvd player for kids specifically for use in the car, a DVD player travel case may come in handy.

They make great travel bags for a dvd player and accessories but also turn into a in car mounting system.

This is great if you have more than one child as you can put the mounting system between the two front car seats, so two children can watch the DVD player at once.

A travel case is also good if you intend to take your DVD player on a plane. It will make sure it's protected a little, which can be good if you have to put it in the overhead locker.

Budget options are good choices if you want something to occupy your kids inexpensively on a few trips a year. You may have to compromise on features such a shorter battery life but many come with in car chargers so they're still great for the car and you should be able to watch at least one movie or DVD on a plane.

There are quite a few budget options of portable DVD players and here is one more.

It's well worth reading reviews when buying a cheaper option to see what kinds of features you are compromising on.

Some cheaper options may compromise on picture quality but quite often this is not something kids will notice anyway.

If you're reading this article the likelihood is that you have decided to get a portable DVD player rather than using a tablet, ipad, iphone, laptop or other device to play movies for your kids. But if you haven't made up your mind on whether to get a DVD player or tablet here are some considerations.

Price - Portable DVD players tend to be cheaper than buying a tablet / laptop if you haven't already got one.

Screen size - Generally you can get a bigger screen size on a portable DVD player for less money so this may be a factor.

Sharing - If you give your child your tablet / laptop to watch a movie then it means you won't be able to use it for your entertainment needs. I took my Kindle fire on a plane for my own 2 year old to watch some cartoons. I left the dvd player at home this time as I thought my Kindle would be fine for a short flight. However, it meant I couldn't use it to read my book while he was being entertained!

Younger kids - When my 2 year old used my Kindle fire to watch some cartoons, he kept touching the screen and stopping the movies from playing which was a pain. A touch screen tablet or laptop will be tempting for younger children to touch. A DVD player means there is less chance of them stopping the movie or messing with any buttons or a laptop keyboard. If you are getting a DVD player for a younger child, look for one with a swivel screen so you can turn the screen away from the DVD controls.

Just for the car - Some people get portable DVD players just for use in the car. After all do you want you're kids hands all over your laptop / tablet? Obviously if you do this make sure that you keep it out of view when it's not in use.

Downloading movies - A tablet can't play a DVD and you will need to download the movie on it you wish to play before you travel. To stream movies on a tablet / laptop you will need a wifi connection. However, most laptops will play a DVD. Obviously a DVD player will require you to take the movies you wish to play so you may have to take a case full of DVDs with you on your travels.

As already mentioned if you get swivel screens which swivel up to 180 degrees can be good as you can turn the screen away from the buttons so younger children can't touch them.

You can also adjust swivel screens to maximize your viewing experience which can be handy if the light is reflecting of your screen or you move position where you are sitting.

So, if you have 2 kids, its worth thinking about getting a DVD player with 2 screens. Again these are great for entertaining two kids in the car as they have their own personal screen to watch the DVD.

Check out a few options below

Sony is a reputable brand and they make a range of suitable portable DVD players that would be great for entertaining kids.