- Blu-ray Disc playback dual screen for sharp images in full HD 1080p
- 22.9 cm (9") high density (800x480 pixels) LCD display
- Single cable connection for quick installation in the car
- Expand movie enjoyment with dual TFT LCD screens
- Hi-Speed USB 2.0 Link plays video/music from USB flash drive
I love that the children can now watch all of the blu-ray movies we've bought on road trips, whereas before we had to stick to only DVD's. (You may be wondering what kind of a parent I am, but in my defense, my children are only 4 and 6 so their DVD collection is pretty recent and blu-rays are a little more durable than regular DVD's so why not?) And like I said, they look very nice now. On our older one, it was painful for us parents to watch anything on them when we traveled. These look fabulous and even have HDMI outputs so we can hook it up to a larger tv when we travel and there is no DVD player, or blu ray player, available.
Also there's an elaborate (for a portable DVD player) menu that will allow you to access different types of media or games. We probably won't be using it for this though.
Other people have mentioned the case and, yes, it's nice. It's like other Phillips cases: cheap material but made to fit the specific system. There's even a pocket for the remote in the dividers that hold the cables.
So, I like it and they're great. Here is my beef with them:
1)They p[lay off of the same movie and I really like it when they can play two. But, that involves way more money so it's something I can get over
2)This is the really big issue for me: only one wall a/c charger was included and each screen is powered separately. That means I had to go through our old Phillips players and had to pull out another charger. Why would they only send one? It makes no sense! The car charger is split into two cables so that shouldn't be a problem.
3) we've only used these a handful of times but as far as I can tell, when the power goes off, it does not resume play where it left off. it starts over from the beginning. this is pertinent if you're using it in the car and have to stop for gas and turn it all off.
So, except for the fact that only one wall-charger was included, the other two are pretty obvious imperfections for entry price points. But, since we use our DVD players for occasional sleepovers, we need two wall chargers and that is seriously annoying for me.
**update 7-31-12**They just all of a sudden stopped working on our last road trip last month. a very long road trip. a road trip where watching movies in the car would have been extremely helpful. I've heard of Phillips systems doing this, but our previous Phillips DVD players never gave us an issue and we logged many more hours on those. These probably didn't get used for more than 12 hours. I can hear aggressive spinning noises that stop and restart for a period of time and then it tells me that there is no DVD in the player.
Buy Philips PB9011/37 9-Inch 1080p Portable Blu-Ray DVD Player Now
These days, if you drive kids on long trips, a DVD player can verge on essential equipment. In my opinion, portable DVD players are better than built-ins because (1) I can take them out when I park, (2) I can often use them to watch DVDs at my destination, (3) they're inexpensive enough that even if i need to replace one, I can buy several for the cost of a built-in, and most importantly, (4) I can take it out for SHORTER trips, so that my kids don't beg me to watch Bolt during trips to the store.Summary: The Philips PB 9011/37 is a nice player, compatible with Blue-Ray, standard DVDs, and with USB input. It has a second screen that you can mount, so that both headrests can show the same movie. It will play to a TV through HDMI out, and the remote control is nice. My only major gripe is that it doesn't have a battery, so it won't play when unplugged.
What's Good:
In my opinion, the primary benefit of this is that it's Blue-Ray compatible. Unless your kids are videophiles, they probably won't feel strongly about the increased picture quality, but if you have a Blue Ray collection that you want to be able to watch on the road, you need a Blue-Ray compatible player. That said, the picture is great.
The main unit is nice and thin. Instead of having a clamshell lid like most players, it's a tablet-style unit that splits slightly open to admit a DVD or Blue-Ray disk. It mounts well to the headrest with a nice, simple strap.
It is very nice to have two units in the car -with only one unit, you need to fuss with trying to set the unit up on the center console or hang it between the front headrests somehow, and even then, nobody has a good viewing angle. (On the other hand, if your family doesn't like watching the same stuff, you might be better off getting two less expensive units and some headphones so that everyone can watch their own thing.)
I like that the unit has USB input and HDMI output. When you get to your hotel or wherever, you can plug this into an HDMI compatible TV. (Note that an HDMI cable is NOT included -we ended up ordering the AmazonBasics 2 meter cable, which works great.)
What Could Be Better:
As I've said, my biggest complaint is that there is no battery in the main unit. When my car power is off, so is the show. I appreciate that that choice made the unit lighter and thinner, but it can be a lifesaver to let the kids keep watching their show on the shuttle bus to the plane, or on the plane itself. With the 9011, you need to be someplace that can power the car or wall charger, or you're out of luck.
Conclusion: I think this unit is right for some people. If you have a Blue-Ray collection you want to watch on the road, have two or more kids sufficiently close in taste that they will watch the same thing, and don't have a need to watch this without a power source, then it's a great choice and highly recommended. If not, I'd recommend looking into getting units with battery power, and possibly into getting two less expensive units rather than one dual player.
Read Best Reviews of Philips PB9011/37 9-Inch 1080p Portable Blu-Ray DVD Player Here
I know this is a weird thing to lead off with, but I was really surprised that this dual-screen Blu-ray player comes with a travel case. I've owned more portable DVD players than I can count and every time I get a new one it seems like it's a big hassle to find a case that works. The case they included with this player is amazing. Everything fits perfectly. I can't believe what a difference it makes when the case is specifically designed for the player. It's big though. These 9" screens are big, so the case needs to be big too.But enough about the case...
The product description for this item is surprising to me. I'm surprised they call it a "Portable DVD Player", because that's too modest. Sure, this plays DVDs, but it's a Blu-ray player. The ability to play Blu-ray discs on the road is a huge step up.
I've owned this product's predecessor, the Philips PD7012/37 7-Inch LCD Dual Screen Portable DVD Player, Black, for about a year now and I'm thrilled to get this new and improved version. The new 9" 1080p display is a big improvement. And of course the ability to play Blu-ray movies on the road is fantastic too. The other new enhancement is that it includes a remote.
What's included:
* Two 9" displays (one master unit with the player and one slave unit with a display only).
* Patch cord to connect the two units.
* Hanging straps to attach the displays to the car seat in front.
* 12v power cord (cigarette lighter plug)
* 110v power cord (residential power outlet)
* Remote control.
* Carrying case (pure awesomeness!)
The master unit includes inputs for alternate sources, for gaming systems, etc. There is even an HDMI input for high-def input sources.
The picture quality is great. The audio is decent, but it's better if you have a way to play it back through another source, like your car stereo.
I've had a love/hate relationship with Philips. They don't seem to make any average products, just stellar ones or complete eWaste. I've been very happy with our older 7" DVD player and now I'm even happier with this new 9" Blu-ray.
Want Philips PB9011/37 9-Inch 1080p Portable Blu-Ray DVD Player Discount?
The Philips PB9011 portable Blu-Ray DVD Player is a pretty good option for the back seat of a car, but it doesn't offer much more than less expensive players unless you are committed to Blu-Ray discs.Pros:
They generally do what they are supposed. They provide an ok movie watching experience for the back seat.
9" screens are on the bigger side for portable players intended for the car.
The carrying case fits everything perfectly and easily. No jamming stuff into place or having to figure out what should go where. It really is well done. With kids, it is important that things can easily be put away properly.
As the name says, it plays Blu-Ray discs. In reality, the quality on this player doesn't allow Blu-Rays do much more than a DVD, but if you already have a Blu-Ray disc, you can still play it in the car with the PB9011. In the past, we had to limit ourselves to DVD's just in case we wanted to watch the movie in the car at some point. Nice!
Cons:
You can only watch one movie at a time. The second screen is only a slave to the primary. The other (much less expensive) portable DVD players that we have can work as a pair or independently.
The volume control is a physical dial on the side of the player, so it can't be controlled by remote and it requires a little more fidgeting than a digital volume control.
The sound is ok but not great. It sounds much more like mono than stereo and doesn't get very loud without deteriorating.
The screen washes out in sunlight. In the back seat of a car, it is tough to control going into and out of sunlight. These screens don't do well with that.
The cables are quite a mess in the back of the car, but that is hard to avoid with a pair of portable screens.
The remote control feels flimsy. We'll see how it holds up.
The screens don't tilt on their backings like our other players do. If the angle is off for the person watching the movie, you have to play with how it is strapped to the headrest instead of just tilting it up or down.
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I imagine most people will buy this, throw in a few blu-rays/dvds and be satisifed... I bought it because it was the only decent player that had dual screens plus the usb drive functionality. I have a lot of movies backed up to a usb hard drive. Why lug around a bunch of discs?The only file format that I have been able to get this thing to play is AVI files... Apparently it only supports AVI and DIVX. And, after a lame conversation with Phillips "support", I found out that it only supports movies with a resolution of 800x480 MAX -> hardly HIGH DEFINITION.
If you're looking to keep your kids quite on a long drive and you got a bunch of discs to play, go with the cheaper one that doesn't have the USB capability.
The only really good thing about this is that my child doesn't really care about getting a 1080p picture.
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