Canon Puts Efficiency On Press
Entered CNET Catalog: 04/17/2004
SKU: 0022265980231
Manufacturer: Toshiba
Manufacturer description
The ergonomically designed SD-P1400 features a 7" widescreen TFT LCD. The player is conveniently slim and features a redesigned battery pack. Additional features include multi-disc compatibility and a JPEG Viewer, several zoom modes and 3-D virtual surround sound. For added portability, this full-featured model includes a 3.5-hour rechargeable Lithium Ion battery and comes complete with a DC car cord.Product summary
The good: Inexpensive; decent battery life; car power adapter included; dual headphone jacks.
The bad: Somewhat heavy; mediocre picture quality; flimsy DVD flap; bottom gets hot.
The bottom line: It's fairly cheap, but the Toshiba SD-P1400 DVD portable suffers from lackluster picture quality and a less than sturdy build.
Editors' review
- Editors' Choice: No
- Reviewed on: 07/27/2004
The SD-P1400 is nearly twice as heavy as Panasonic's competing entry-level model, the DVD-LS50. Despite their similar dimensions (the Toshiba measures 7.87 by 6.42 by 1.14 inches with battery attached; the Panasonic measures 7.5 by 6.5 by 1.2 inches), the Toshiba, at 3.24 pounds, weighs nearly twice as much. Its battery pack clips to the rear, extending the player's depth by more than an inch.
Compared to other budget models from Audiovox, Mintek, and Polaroid, the sleek SD-P1400 cuts a dashing figure. The screen doesn't fold like the Panasonic's, but it does swing out on an arm above the disc door. Unfortunately, that door and its hinge seem susceptible to breakage, especially if you have kids who treat electronic products like toys. The door rises only about 60 degrees, making disc swapping awkward. You also have to make sure the DVD clicks securely in place.
If the door and the hinge hold up, the SD-P1400 will work fine for pacifying children. Twin headphone jacks and nearly 3.5 hours of battery life can keep two of your offspring quietly ensconced in the backseat during a long drive. We also like the clean, well-spaced, easy-to-read button array.
Adults, however, are apt to discover numerous annoyances. For one thing, the bottom warms rather quickly and eventually gets hot to the touch. For some reason, discs default to subtitle mode after power-up, and turning the subtitles off is confusing (the subtitle on/off switch is an icon in the Display menu, not a choice in the Subtitle Language menu under Setup). Additionally, to proportionately magnify a nonanamorphic film such as Titanic so that it fills the screen, you need to use the credit card-size remote. The Enhanced mode merely stretches the image across the wide-screen display.
We compared this model's picture to the Panasonic DVD-LS50's and found that the Toshiba's didn't have the same brightness or depth of blacks and actually looked a bit soft. The Avia test disc bore this out; the Toshiba delivered no more than 250 lines of resolution. Unlike the smooth Panasonic picture, the Toshiba's showed individual pixels, often creating a mosaic-like moiré effect when a tight pattern such as a shingled roof or a herringbone suit was onscreen. As on the Panasonic, greens seemed a bit weak and lime colored.
On a more positive note, twin speakers mounted on the base on either side of the display provide sound with the lid up or down--perfect for CD listening without headphones. Toshiba's 3D-audio mode (one of the unit's four unnecessarily cryptic Enhanced Sound Modes settings) effectively widens the stereo effect, especially through headphones, but it also buries the dialogue in the mix. Switch to dialogue mode, and center-channel conversations get a boost, but you lose the faux surround effect. Normal mode offers a dull compromise between the two, and DRC (Dynamic Range Control) is a late-night mode that quiets audio peaks.
The SD-P1400 can play DVD-R discs but isn't rated to play DVD+Rs, DVD+RWs, or DVD-RWs. It also handles home-burned CDs embedded with MP3, WMA, and JPEG files (a JPEG viewer is onboard for images). A line of minijacks along the right side breaks out into A/V, S-Video, and optical digital audio connections for your receiver or TV. Unlike Panasonic, which doesn't include an S-Video cable, Toshiba provides all the necessary connectors aside from optical. The company also throws in a car power adapter.
In sum, the price is certainly right if all you want to do is keep the kids occupied. But performance glitches keep us from recommending this model to more-finicky adults.
User opinions
Select a User Opinion to view: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11out of 11 user reviews
Unreliable performance
Pros: Decent battery life
Cons: Finicky disc recognition
out of 11 user reviews
terrible product
Pros: picture quality (when there is one). 3D headphone sound
Cons: screen blanks out. turns blue. buttons don't always work
out of 11 user reviews
Perhaps some improvements made since this review
Pros: Much better picture quality than cheaper competitors (i.e. Mintek, Insignia) Most functions accessible from unit and do not require remote Media compatibility
Cons: Small sound from small speakers
out of 11 user reviews
Looks nice but that's about it
Pros: Nice sleek look, decent picture and audio.
Cons: The unit I had was a Christmas present and lasted about 2 hours before it was packed up and headed back to the store. The units door where you load the cd's is flimsy at best and opens only about 45 degrees so loading and unloading discs is an adventure
out of 11 user reviews
Great price, few drawbacks
Pros: slim, fairly cheap, comes with accessories, ok battery life, better than Polaroid 0700 model
Cons: get unusally hot on all models, a little flimsly- but it's made out of plastic, thats what you get,
out of 11 user reviews
Great, easy to understand playback.
Pros: Consistent color across entire screen, easy to understand playback, impressive audio, dual headphone inputs, thin, capable remote.
Cons: Viewing angle somewhat small, thin lines only viewable from a small viewing area.
out of 11 user reviews
Perfect picture, and usual top notch toshiba quality
Pros: great picture quality, tons of included extras very good 3D sound. Exellent modern design
Cons: none
out of 11 user reviews
Screen died after 3 weeks
Pros: Good picture, good sound through headphones.
Cons: Screen died after 3 weeks. Returned it for a new unit, and now, after 3 months, this one's motor is broken (it won't spin anymore).
out of 11 user reviews
Screen died after 2 days
Pros: All the pro's mentioned above in other articles are correct. Great picture, size, features, etc. Also, one article listed as a "con" that the device didn't remember where you were after being powered off. Not true -- this one did.
Cons: Screen died after 2 days. Audio works, but no video. Very bummed, because love the unit otherwise. Will return to Best Buy ($250 -- $50 less than Amazon!), and try another unit.
out of 11 user reviews
Great Product @ Great Price= Great Value!
Pros: I have tried different brands, and unlike cheaper brand players it has yet to freeze in the middle of a movie and the display is of much higher quality. The colors are more vivid (no green/blue cast), it has better viewing angles, and there are no pixel
Cons: Not as cheap as smaller, lesser known brands (you get what you pay for though). Only real gripe is that when you power the unit off, it does not remember where you left off when you return to play the movie again; however, this should not deter you becau
out of 11 user reviews
Compatible with All Media - Top Notch
Pros: Played DVD+R, DVD-R, DVD+RW, JPEG on CD, and MP3 on CD first try. Compact durable design with 7" screen. Great cabling for output to TV. Zoom, slow, repeat loop. Great active matrix display.
Cons: None that I can see.
