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Original poster

Who knows about in car DVD players? Help/advice please

19 replies

Aero · 22/05/2006 17:48

Not that we can afford one right now, but would like one for August hols. We borrowed one from a friend for a long journey over the weekend and in theory it was great, but in reality it was a total disaster. Now I can cope with the bulky player and all the wires, but the thing that made it such a disaster was that the plug bit didn't seem to be compatable with our cig lighter thingy, so that if we touched it at all, or went over even the slightest bump, it just cut out and we got horribly fed up of starting over and over again and forwarding to where we'd got to each time, so in the end we gave up.

I wondered if this was a common problem as I just assumed the plug thing was universal.

Do I need to search for one which will fit, or is there any other way of getting these things to play with a decent battery/charge without the need for a plug.

Would appreciate if anyone knows, or has any recommendations. The one we borrowed was a Goodmans which was very cumbersome as well as not suitable for 'plugging' in, so won't be going for that type.

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Original poster

Aero · 22/05/2006 18:15

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Pixiefish · 22/05/2006 18:31

We bought one recently from Halfords and it's fab. Unfortunately they've sold out now BUT there are similar ones.

The one we bought runs on a battery for a couple of hours and then runs from the cigarette lighter ad we had no probs at all with it. it has a remote control so can be operated from the front and it has a cradle/strap type thing that ties it to the headrest but it slides in and out of it so you can easily remove just the unit when you leave the car

FeelingOld · 22/05/2006 18:44

We have one too, our is a venturer and we bought it from woolies about 2 years ago, not problems with cigarette lighter attachment (that's the only wire that comes from it unless you use the earphones) Got the case, headphones, charger, remote, straps, battery etc with it. It does keep the kids quiet on long journeys.

Original poster

Aero · 22/05/2006 18:50

Should it sort of 'clip' or 'click' into the cig lighter. The goodmans one just sort of balanced in ours and wouldn't 'catch' in any way, so wasn't sure if it was a fault with our lighter or a badly designed plug. Seems to be ok in friends car though.

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KBear · 22/05/2006 19:13

Ours is a Matsui - new from ebay this year for £100 with twin screens. No probs connecting to cig lighter, also runs on batteries. Could your lighter be broken?

Aero - see you reminded me about the books, I never got back to you, I'm sorry, but i only had two and they were puppies and tractor, both of which you already had!

KBear · 22/05/2006 19:13

meant - seeing you reminded me....

Original poster

Aero · 22/05/2006 20:10

Ooooh - haven't got Tractor yet Kbear - happy to buy it from you.

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KBear · 22/05/2006 20:44

I'll sort it out for you. Send me your address. [email protected]

Original poster

Aero · 22/05/2006 22:10

Anyone else know whether cig lighter plug things are universal? Don't think ours is broken kb - heats up the lighter thing anyway.

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sammac · 23/05/2006 20:49

Aero, just seen this as have not been online much.

Ours is a Philips one and when you plug it in it feels "tight", like it's beengrabbed by the lighter. Don't know much about lighters(or cars for that matter) but I would have thought it was a bog standard feature. Could you phone a vauxhall garage and ask them?

Original poster

Aero · 24/05/2006 12:32

Thanks sammac - good plan. Will do that before I spend any money on one - not that we have any to spare atm!

So - where you been then. Time to sort your msn out methinks!

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scotlou · 24/05/2006 12:41

We bought 2 Goodmans ones a week ago - they do fit in the cigarette lighter socket - but it is a tight fit! Think they are great actually - although a bit of a faf strapping them to the headrests at first. Hat a 2 hour car journet last week and no squabbling kids / "are we there yet"s!

Original poster

Aero · 24/05/2006 13:57

That's good to know scotlou. It was very loose in our lighter socket, so I guess the thing wuld be to take the car down to Halfords and ask there about fitting. Def needs to be snug or not worth buying.

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jmb1964 · 26/05/2006 15:49

I have just been out and bought TWO Hitachi DVD players from Halfords (£99 each - ) to use in the car. Seems there are fewer wires this way, and it might just prevent too much squabbling between all 4 children about what they're going to watch. I'm doing a 200 mile drive on my own with them tonight and back again on Sunday, so will report back after the weekend...

Original poster

Aero · 26/05/2006 18:40

I've just found a car plug thingy from another device and decided to try it out in out socket - fits fine and is 'grabbed' nicely, so they must be available in different sizes/fittings. Just a matter of finding the right one.

Don't reckon I could stretch to two though - they'll just have to settle for what I choose for them - lol. Hopefully can get one with two screens so they can at least all see it.

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Original poster

Aero · 26/05/2006 18:41

oops - our socket.

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sammac · 26/05/2006 21:47

Some of them only have one earpiece socket- make sure you check. Don't know if any have 3 for your lot!

Original poster

Aero · 26/05/2006 23:44

Not too bothered about having to listen to it sammac (just posted you a wee card), just as long as it'll work without hassle. That long journey through France is looming.

ps - ahem, MSN. Need I say more?

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Jodee · 27/05/2006 00:03

Ours is a Technosonic (?), got it in Boots about a year ago, had no problems at all with plugging in, just assumed it would fit! We've actually got a connection in the boot of the estate so the wires don't run from the front. Finally got around to getting a headset for ds, so DH can enjoy the radio.

DS hated the dvd being strapped to the headrest, he always found it awkward to get the disks in and out when it was vertical, we had to keep on turning around to sort it out, so it now rests on his knee and he can change the disks himself without a problem.

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