Hitachi PDV 313

Author's product rating:   

Picture Playback	Excellent
Sound Level	Satisfactory
Ease of Use	Simple
Durability	Good
Value for Money	Good

Advantages:	Compact, Excellent Display, Easy to Use
Disadvantages:	Speaker volume lacking slightly

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

I recieved this machine as a present.

I use it as often as I can when away from home, in preference to a TV.

Priced at around £100. I have found this machine to be delightful, I love it!

The PDV 313 is compact, lightweight and doesn't take up much
room.

I watch it fom the dasboard in a truck, so for caravan or motorhome use, it's well suited for this purpose and it won't take
up loads of space

I find the screen resolution is very good and picture quality is equally pleasing.

I have noticed that on some DVD's, the sound volume can be lacking occasionally, although this is as much to do with the DVD you are playing as the DVD player.

This can be overcome by using headphones, for which the PDV313 supplies two headphone Jacks.

The battery pack is 7.2 volt / 3800mAh, I don't use it much, but when I have, it has coped easily with watching a DVD.I would estimate that the battery pack would last easily the length of a film, plus all the bonus bits, extras,etc. It is certainly well up to the task. The battery can be recharged via an AC mains adapter or via a 12 volt DC car adapter. Alternatively, you can forget the battery and use the power adapter(s) directly.

The quality of the PDV 313 is also good, it's nice and sturdy and has a quality feel to it. It's a stylish silver and grey colour and has the demeanor of a small laptop computer. Quoted weight is slightly over 2 kilogrammes, if you use an accessory bag, you are looking at 2.5 kgs, which might be a bit excessive for holidays abroad and luggage allowance, but to pop into your car,caravan or RV, you will easily find space for it. This machine will pop into a briefcase or travel bag easily

The controls are fairly straight -forward to use, either from the control panel buttons on the machine, or via the neat remote control. It takes a little time to aquaint yorself with the operation of the controls. Probably most people would master the controls, within 30 minutes quite easily.

I have used my DVD player mainly for watching DVD's, but it will also play CD's if needed and it coped with a home recorded holiday DVD very well, including menu navigation.
The sales blurb says that this machine will handle CD/DVD/VCD/MP3-CD.

So far my PDV 313 has been very reliable, For my needs, I can't fault it. More adventurous users may want more features, but for someone who wants a machine that is easy to set up, quick to use and gives you a lot of pleasure. I would definitely recommend this machine.