As a frequent traveler, I wanted a portable DVD player I could take with me because some hotels just do not provide such entertainment accomodations as having a DVD player. I also wanted something with a relatively large enough screen without sacrificing too much money, and this portable player met my requirements.

I love the picture quality on the LCD as well. It was just like watching out of your regular DVD player. The audio was also excellent and I didn't have any problems whatsoever. It was just so easy to use. Just put in a disc, hit play, and enjoy!

DISSATISFIED WITH THE AUDIO GAIN? I HAVE A SOLUTION! (Rating: 3.00)
Review : I recently purchased two of these units for a long flight to New Zealand from L.A. Like many other reviewers here, I was "wow'd" by the great display. I thought that the combination of this unit and Sony's NC-20 Noise Cancelling Headphones (the over-the-ear model, not the ear-bud type) would be an unbeatable combination.

WRONG.

When we set these up on the plane, the weak audio gain from the headphone jack was immediately apparent. At full volume, even with the NC-20's, movie dialog was virtually inaudible. "Unbelievable", I thought. "How could Sony screw up like this?" We had to re-pack the units away and make do with the in-flight movies (which we had already all seen).

When we returned, I read thru the reviews here and found that many expressed the same disappointment.

One of the units was a birthday present for the teenager, so it was an unfortunate keeper, but the other was returned for credit. It had also developed the anomaly of freezing up the video about half way thru a movie. I wasn't sorry to see it go, and lamented the purchase price of the remaining unit as wasted money.

Then, I happened upon a fix in a catalog from Cyberguys.com. I found this product by UpBeat Audio called a "Boostaroo", a small, 2-AA battery powered portable amplifier, specifically designed to boost headphone audio (it even has three headphone jacks). Upon receipt of the Boostaroo, I plugged it in with some trepidation, expecting my NC-20's to sound like an AM radio.

VOILA! The headphones lit up like I've never heard them before. The audio quality of the Boostaroo is amazing. I just wish I had this little darling on that long flight back.

I am in concurrence with all of the other points made here about the FX-700's drawbacks, especially the lack of foresight to design FF function keys on the unit.

However, with the Boostaroo, I no longer feel like I'm out hundreds of dollars for a dud. And, the display on the -700 really is top notch. Hopefully Sony will fix all of the inadequacies of this model in their next generation unit.

Quality Product (Rating: 5.00)
Review : I bought this unit 3 weeks ago from Best Buy. I had previously purchased a Mintek 1710 (7 inch screen) from Best Buy in August 2002. The Mintek had a sharp picture but its build quality and its battery were exceedingly poor. I had two Mintek's go bad on me until Best Buy simply asked me to apply my initial investment towards any new DVD player.

Next, I acquired a Toshiba SD-P2500 with an 8.9 inch sceen. This unit has fine build quality and the sound is superb. However, after 2 days of fiddling with its controls, I could never get a good picture in lowlight scenes. The blacks were too milky. I watched the DVD of TWISTER and was really disappointed with the experience. Finally, I took it back to Best Buy and got the Sony.

The Sony is a beautiful unit with a 7 inch screen. It lacks the progressive scan feature (no use on the built-in screen) of the Toshiba and the component video outputs - it does have an S video out. The sound from the tiny speakers is nearly as good as the Toshiba. However, this unit has the finest build quality (quite unlike the Mintek which would get dented with the slightest bump) of all the portable DVD players that I have seen. It is made in Korea and not China (not sure if that has anything to do with it).

The picture quality is simply superb with deep blacks. It has two buttons right on the LCD that allow you to adjust the brightness and contrast - very convenient. I also love the tiny blue LCD display that gives you information on the track number etc. So far the battery appears to perform well. It has only one headphone out unlike the Toshiba (which had two) but this can be rectified with a $5 split cord from Radio Shack if you need it. I have had no problems with DVD's slipping in my car over road bumps. The manual is well written as you might expect from Sony.

I must confess that I miss the 8.9 inch screen of the Toshiba and also the ability of the Mintek to play PAL DVD's. (Neither the Toshiba or the Sony will play PAL DVD's).

Finally, I would highly recommend that one get a product replacement plan with these players. Although, I am so far very happy with the Sony, I just have a feeling that portable DVD players are still not quite robust enough for the use that our children subject them to in the course of travel.

boostaroo does fix volume problem (Rating: 4.00)
Review : as noted in other reviews, maximum volume is not loud enough when using this player on an airplane with inexpensive noise-cancelling headphones. Based on a prior review and recommendation, I bought the Boostaroo amplifier from cyberguys.com for about $30 including shipping. While I haven't used the amplifier in the air yet, it clearly does amplify volume with no discernable loss of sound quality. This product makes a major disappointment in the sony dvd player disappear.

Thank you "electronics fan" for the tip.

AUTO / AIRLINE POWER ADAPTOR FOR DVP-FX700 (Rating: 3.00)
Review : In response to a question posed by a few other people for the Sony DVP-FX700, a great auto/airline adaptor is the Targus Mobile Power Inverter (90 Watts, Targus Model PAPWR005U), available right here on Amazon.

It has a removable tip on the 12V car plug which converts the input to the plug necessary for a 75W airline business class seat voltage outlet.

The AC adaptor of the -700 plugs directly into the Targus unit.

I successfully used the Targus unit to run/charge the -700 in business class on Qantas, and also used it to re-charge a Sony VAIO notebook battery.