I decided to try the refurbished model because the price was great and I assumed “refurbished” referred to a new item that had been returned and carefully checked to make sure it worked properly. But the first one I received was clearly used (black plastic on both screens completely scratched and faded — looked like it had been used in a hot car and trashed by kids for a year or more). When I tried watching DVDs, it played them fine, but then it would fall open for no reason and the DVD would stop. Turns out the latch on the top was broken (more evidence of significant use/abuse). So that one went back to Amazon. The replacement I received the next day looked new (still had plastic film covering the shiny black plastic) but it would not play 7 of 10 discs we tried. We even tried a brand new DVD and still got a “bad disc” error! So that one is going back to amazon too. Makes me wonder if anyone is checking these things.

I’m giving this two stars because when it does work — the sound and picture is much better than our old player (larger 9″ size is a huge improvement), the controls are intuitive, and the design is good (the mounting straps work much better than the velcro straps from our old system).

For some reason I decided to try one more replacement. Hoping three’s a charm … if not, it’s going back to amazon for a refund and we’ll buy a different brand, or at least a non-refurbished model. Amazon handles returns well (UPS picked up the defective one and gave us a replacement the next day) so for me it’s worth the risk to try this once more!

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 

Was this review helpful to you? 

|

 Comment (1)

Player works good, sound is excellent.Some minor scratches on the outer body, but the product is good. I like it.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 

Was this review helpful to you? 

|

 Comment

We purchased a refurbished model because reading the overall reviews of this player is that they were not that sturdy. Our thought was that if we bought a new one it would potentially not work well and break so we decided to buy the refurbished model and saved nearly $50. The unit worked well on smooth highway roads, but when we hit the rough roads of New York I-86 the system failed to run. The kids were sad that we had 4 hours of travel and that option was gone.

Note the unit still functions, we will try using it again on the return trip.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 

Was this review helpful to you? 

|

 Comment