Panasonic DVD-LS90 9 Inch Portable DVD P review:
4 stars (Flawed, but the best high end portable dvd as of Aug '05) - I wanted a 9-10 inch portable dvd. The best values I could find came down to the Pansonic LS90 and the Philips PET1000.



I decided on the Panasonic for several reasons: (1) It had superior audio over the Philips ... I could hear nuances in the Incredibles like phones ringing in the background that I couldn't hear on the Philips. (2) The Panasonic operated more quietly, particularly when skipping through chapters. The Philips emitted a grinding sort of noise as the laser sought chapters. (3) The Panasonic's ability to position it's screen in so many configurations is a big plus when using it on a airplane. (4) The extra battery life on the Panasonic is helpful, even if you need to darken the screen a bit to get that extra time. (5) The Panasonic takes up less room in my briefcase, due to a slimmer profile, and a more space-efficient way in which Panasonic attaches the battery to the unit (as compared to the Philips, which is a bit more bulky).



The Philips has a better picture, hands down. It's considerably clearer than the Panasonic. But that doesn't mean the Panasonic is bad. I'd give the screen on the Panasonic a very good, with the Philips scoring an excellent -- best currently available I might add.



All in all, it was a no brainer for me to trade off some picture quality for the extra advantages the Panasonic held over the Philips.




2 stars (Very Poor Screen Resolution) - This dvd portable functions great. It has everything you need and the swivel screen that allows it to lay flat is awesome. However, do not purchase this dvd portable if you care about how good the picture looks!



The screen resolution is absolutely terrible! Especially in comparison with some cheaper dvd portables from Mintek or Toshiba. I owed this player for a short while because I was led to believe that the screen res was the same as some of the more expensive Panasonic models. It actually says so on the Panasonic website. However, when I took it home and watched something, I was completely dumbfounded by how bad the picture quality was. And I was kicking myself in the pants for not properly checking it out at the store. At least I was able to exchange it.



The most obvious way to see the poor picture quality is to watch any type of animation like Simpsons or Futurama -- you will notice that the picture is very aliased and blocky. You will also notice this whenever you view a dvd menu page with fine graphics.



So be smart about what you buy and don't buy this.
4 stars (Great little DVD player) - I bought this player primarily to watch DVDs while on flights and it certainly does the job well. The picture quality is excellent and the battery charge lasts long enough to view 2 movies. The battery is not a standard battery, however, and you will have to buy another expensive Panasonic battery if you want a spare but I haven't found this necessary yet. I haven't found any negatives at all with this player other than the proprietary battery, and that is a very minor negative considering the length the charge lasts.

Panasonic DVD-LS90 9 Inch Portable DVD P is the Electronics version. The full version can be purchased by clicking on the "CLICK HERE TO ORDER" button below for around  349.99USD.