Coby DVD7377 w/DivX Support; A Good Portable.

1. In addition to store-bought DVDs, this player reads DVD-RW (+RW) disks, costing around 50 cents each (or cheaper). That’s over 4GB of movies, pictures or music for around 50cents. Compare that with the cost of a single 1GB SD card or USB stick ($17+ at Wal-Mart). In my view, any DVD player that doesn’t read this inexpensive media is a waste of money. I like this player because it gives me the options of many different media for my files. I pre-record movies/shows on DVD-RW disks and keep them handy for when I travel (then erase them and use them again). I am also satisfied with the resolution of the screen (standard for this price-range). And the battery gave me over 3 hours of viewing time with old Humphrey Bogart movies on DVD. I regularly have access to power when I travel, so battery time (though decent) isn’t an over-riding issue with me.

2. The player’s slideshow features are basic, but functional. Most of the photos simply fade-in from black; or, fade-out from black. That appears to be the player’s preferred method of photo display. But, just when you start getting bored a few diagonal wipes come through; then – a few vertical wipes. Every now and then a photo will fade into the next one. But, that’s about it for the slideshow feature-set. No fancy spin-ins, or pixelates (or the likes). You can, however, turn on the zoom function while inside the slideshow. With the zoom on, each photo will display normally, and then automatically zoom in (x2/x3/x4). Just a little something extra to spice up the slideshow.

3. The SD card reader (on back of unit) works flawlessly. I’ve used SD cards to watch several episodes of Bonanza, encoded with the DivX portable setting (424MB/hour). Unfortunately, the USB reader is a little less reliable. The player seems to freeze-up occasionally when reading video from a USB stick. Pictures and MP3 files played OK. But, I have yet to watch more than 30 minutes of video from a USB stick without the player freezing up or dumping the video and returning to the menu. I’m guessing it’s the reader, since the unit plays flawless video from all other input sources, including DVD-RW disks.

4. For me, the USB reader’s “video” problems don’t sink the value of this player. The protruding USB stick added too much to the little player’s footprint, anyway. The SD card is a much better solution. The tiny card fits snug inside the player’s body allowing the player to keep its small desktop footprint. Over 4 ½ hours of “DivX Portable” video can fit on one 2GB SD card. And the standard cards (which this player supports) are getting cheaper as manufacturers roll out the new SD-HC card.

5. Overall, this is a solid player for its price-range. Media options abound. A mix of cheap, re-writable DVDs, SD cards and USB sticks will support hours upon hours of affordable entertainment on-the-go. If you’re a contractor bouncing from hotel to hotel this is a good alternative to the hotels’ premium entertainment package. Bring your own pictures, music and movies.