The Sony DVP-FX730 Portable DVD Player: takes a lickin' and keeps on tickin'

Author's Rating:

Pros: Lightweight, LONG battery life, Withstands the Terrible Two's

Cons: Screen not too big, Resolution is not the best

The Bottom Line: 
The Sony DVP-FX730 is an extremely durable DVD player that with a decent picture and excellent sound. Great for entertaining kids in the car.

Author's Review
It is very hard to find a good portable DVD player, especially when you have young children. One of the best decisions I have made was in listening to the salesman at Best Buy five years ago. He explained to me that most portable DVD players will not last for long, as the technology inside is very sensitive, and that buying the store's 2 year "repair or replace" extended warranty would be a good idea with any portable DVD player. After returning our fourth DVD player under the warranty, we finally ended up with a terrific portable DVD player: the Sony DVP-FX730 7 in. Portable DVD Player.

What's in the box
In addition to the actual DVD player (and battery, of course), the Sony DVP-FX730 comes with an A/C adapter, a car charger, A/V cables to hook it up to a television set, and a slender remote control.

Some Basics About the Sony DVP-FX730
This is a compact machine, measuring a little less than 8" wide, 6" high (when fully opened for viewing) and an inch and a half thick when closed. The machine has a sleek black appearance, with a textured exterior that makes a snazzy clicking sound when you tap on it and seems to be immune to fingerprint stains.

Based on my experience with other portable DVD players, the Sony DVP-FX730 has the best battery ever. It doesn't stick out of the machine awkwardly and is very lightweight, considering that the whole machine weighs less than two pounds with the battery installed.

In addition to basic menu functions, (up, down, left, right, enter, etc.), the machine has plus and minus buttons for the volume (much better than a turn knob, if you ask me) on the front. Along the side of the DVP-FX730 there is a slider switch for the power, two jacks for headphones, audio and video 'out' jacks and a charging jack. The coolest thing, though, is the 'Hold' slider. By sliding the switch to 'Hold,' it basically disables the other buttons. What this means in my house is that I can get the disc playing, set the volume where I want it, and then freeze things so that no one accidentally bumps the wrong button or cranks up the volume--at least, not until the kids figure out how the 'Hold' works.

While I have never bothered with them, the Sony DVP-FX730 Portable DVD Player also plays CD's and MP3's.

Performance of the Sony DVP-FX730
Before I get into the reasons I love this player, I should discuss the minor things I dislike about it. For one thing, the screen size is relatively small. I think it's great for one person or two miniature people to watch together, but for my three kids sitting in the back seat of the car, it would sure be nice to have an extra couple inches of screen space. Luckily for me, my kids aren't at the point to realize this and complain.

The other thing that bugs me is that the screen resolution isn't that great. The pixels are wide enough that you can see the individual little squares that make up the videos you watch if you are used to a better picture. Again, I have little kids, so this doesn't bother them. If you are looking for a portable DVD player for a more sophisticated viewer who is used to HD, they will think the picture here is crappy.

Having gotten those niggles out of the way, I do need to point out that the color resolution is great. Aside from the little pixels, I get the same picture quality as I do on my regular television set. The sound also gets quite loud. I'm not sure exactly how many volume levels it has, but I know we've gotten it up to 12 and my ears were hurting. We usually put it on 6 or 7 and the kids can hear it just fine.

Another wonderful factor is the issue of durability. I already mentioned that the textured exterior doesn't get smudged with fingerprints (although the inside can), which keeps it's slick appearance intact. I have not yet mentioned the challenge this portable DVD player has faced that our previous models have not faced: my 22 month old son, Destructo Boy.

My son yanks this thing out of its charger, puts DVD's in and just keeps hitting buttons, making the poor player have to change course countless times. Then, he will often take it to another room or up or down stairs, with a few inevitable drops. After all that abuse, our DVP-FX730 still looks like new and works excellently! Even if this thing blows up next week, I am now a permanent convert to Sony for portable DVD players.

Last but not least, the biggest WOW factor for me with the Sony DVP-FX730 is the battery. The instruction manual claims that if you leave the machine in its original settings you should be able to get up to five hours of viewing in between charges. In our case, I have to disagree with this statement. On our road trip last summer, we were able to get through 3+ kid DVD's between charges, which amounts to six hours of play time. I am continuously amazed by the amount of time I can go between charges with this thing, and am looking forward to having it actually make it through our five hour flights next summer.

Final Recommendation
As I said from the get-go, it is really hard to find a portable DVD that works well and lasts. The Sony DVP-FX730 has withstood the most abuse of all our machines, and is still going strong after eight months (a record for us). If the intended end-user is an adult, you may want to get a Sony with a larger screen, but if you are looking for something to entertain your kids on car rides, the Sony DVP-FX730 is what you need.