Philips DVP720SA

Author's product rating:   

Picture Playback	Excellent
Sound Level	Excellent
Range of Features	Excellent
Durability	Excellent
Value for Money	Excellent

Advantages:	Looks nice, fairly priced and great audio/visual
Disadvantages:	None as of yet

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

--Introduction--

There is at last another addition to the Philips electrical family in our household. I am very pleased to say that this DVD player is a gift to me and now sits proudly in the seclusion of my own bedroom. I have been waiting for a while for my very own DVD player because there often isn't a solid two or so hours free time on the main living room television. It means that I hardly ever get to watch DVD's which can be very annoying. This DVD player is fairly up-market, a decision we made so that it would have a longevity and wouldn't need replacing for a number of years yet. This was purchased in store at Comet for £125 and it can be found at amazon.co.uk for £119.99.

--Picture Playback--

The televison that the DVD player is wired up to, is around five years old but the quality is excellent. The pictures are very crisp and sharp, as well as very clear. I have had experience with other players, where when the picture is of a dark scene you can hardly make out any of the actors or the subject of the shot. With this player you can pick everything out very clearly, without losing the atmospheric effects. As far as I am concerned the picture is excellent and it would be very difficult to beat it. It has a built in 54 bit video converter which is very good.

--Sound Quality--

The sound is pretty much in accordance with the visuals produced by this DVD player. It is very clear so that you can make out what is being said and the background noises going on. It also really makes you feel a part of the movie or programme that you are watching. This player offers 24 bit audio sampling, which is again very good as most DVD players go. The quality of the television that use with player may have an effect on the sound so be sure that you use a 'newish' television to get the best results.

--Playback Formats--

This DVD player can play the following types of recored media : CD, VCD, CDr. SaCD, MP3, re-written DVD's and CD's and JPEG's.

--Aesthetics--

As far as I am concerned this an absolutely smashing looking piece of kit. It comes in a very shiny silver, more reflective of light that most of the other modern DVD players. It is very thin and sleek which gives it that ultra modern look and feel. The buttons along the front are well laid out and are also a very silvery colour. The digital display is very good and it also looks good from a distance. I think that the picture at the bottom of the page will prove my point that this is a wonderful DVD player

--Ease of Use--

I have always found that all of the Philips electrical products that I have come into contact with are easy to operate. They are very much made with novice user in mind. The setup and layout is very basic and everything is clearly marked and to most the basic operations should be fairly obvious. I haven't at any point had to refer to the instruction manual, but if you need to refer to the 'Instruction Manual' headed section for how good that is. If you bought this for your grandparents at Christmas, I think that if you spent five minutes showing them how to operate it they would be fine.

--Ease of Installation--

The installation is in a word, easy. You cannot fail to set it up unless your are plain stupid. There are two simple steps to installing the player. The first is to unravell the power lead and plug it into the nearest socket. The next step is to insert one end of the SCART lead into the DVD player and the other end into the back or side of the television. Then you simply need to turn the power on and it should install itself automatically with the television. Pop a DVD into the machine and then press play. The image and sound should appear on channel 0 or one of the external channels that modern televisions tend to have.

--Remote Control--

The remote control that comes with this machine is fairly standard to most of the Philips range. It is fairly small but it has all of the relevant buttons on it. It takes two of the AA size batteries to operate. The only thing that really needs to be said here is, that it isn't very strong or sturdy so don't go dropping it on the floor or throwing it at the wall.

--Instruction Manual--

Again, as I tend to find with Philips, things are kept very simple. The guidelines are neatly set out and clearly titled. The contents is very concise and allows you find what you are looking for with relative ease. The font is very clear and readable but it isn't necessarily the largest of sizes. The manual isn't the thickest because there is only so much that you can write about how to use a DVD player. I think that any user with any problems will easily be able to fix it very quickly and with ease.

--Durability--

As I mentioned before, we purchased this player with its longevity of use at the forefront of our minds. We regard all Philips products to be very strong and well built and have known them to last for a long while. The construction is very strong and steady so ti should take a light bump or two without any problems. It will also be technologically up-to-date for a good few years to come, although it doesn't have a DVD recoreder.

--Conclusion--

I would certainly urge anybody who is looking for a new DVD player to have a look at this one. I'm not saying that you should buy it, but definetly consider amongst the others that you have taken a fancy to. It is fairly priced and it is a well known and respected manufacturer of electrical products around the world. The picture and sound produced are particularly good and only the very fussiest of fussy people may feel slightly disappointed. It also looks ace, wherever you are thinking of putting it. This would make a pretty cood Christmas gift so bear that in mind as well.