Is a DVD player in the car a must for you?

[Shellydon]

Yes I've noticed those who are so against DVD players have stacks of other options.

 

My three kids are all buckled into huge carseats -they can't move to reach anything or pick up dropped items and there is no way I'm reaching back to pick up their dropped again coloured pencil for the millionth time.

 

We can't do audiobooks - we don't have a CD player in the car only a tape deck and I have never come across an audiobook on cassette for years now. We can't make our own -we don't have any stereo system or simliar recording device in our home.

 

I can't read in the car - it makes me sick. None of my kids can read so looking at picture books only lasts a few minutes (and they destroy the books by dropping them on the floor).

 

We don't own MP3 players or Ipods or iphones or ipads or any hand held game -they are too expensive in Aus and they are not things I would give to my young children -plus we are trying to avoid them in general.

 

We live in a country area -there is no radio signal.

 

My kids don't respond to singing in the car unless it's a kids song cassette all of which we have listened to a million times before because we can't find anymore cassette tapes to update.

 

At one stage in our life we literally didn't even have scenery to look at. We lived in the centre of Australia and often made the 23 hour trip to the nearest major city. Until you got within an hour of the city limit there was nothing but red dirt. Not a single tree, not a single hill, not a blade of grass, not even a bird. Even my DH and I detested those trips - they were the most boring on earth. There wasn't even any place to stop off and recharge - just a tiny single gas station about every 5-6 hours. Even the road didn't change - it was basically a straight line for 23 hours from A-B.

 

I challenge anyone to drive that trip and not head straight into the nearest Target when they got to the city and buy a portable :lol:

 

So yes we have a DVD player (one screen tied to each headrest).

 

And I love it and the kids love it and it has saved my sanity a million, billion times.

 

TV is always a hot topic - for some reason people like to look down on others who let their kids watch it as "not being good parents".

 

Whatever :tongue_smilie:

 

 

Really - how many of your kids would be happy to look at this for 23 hours straight - and yes we still have the same car only now there are 3 carseats crammed in the back

 

 

 

This is us. All of the kids are in carseats and will be until age 12 ish. Movement is very limited. You can't hear an audiobook over the road noise and 2 year olds don't usually like audiobooks. We don't own Ipods or any other handheld item. One child can read in the car, the other gets sick, two don't yet know how to read and I am unable to read to them since they are in the back and I am in the front. We do a lot of games and they look at scenery, but a DVD is lifesaver 10 hours in to a 30 hour trip.

[Aubrey]

I've never had one in the car, & I'd be inclined to think it would take away from the togetherness of longer trips. So far, I've never wanted one, but we don't use the one at the house a ton, either. I guess I think things like that engender a lot of whining instead of happy, quiet kids. When they learn to entertain themselves, you get happy, quiet kids. Ime.

[JenneinCA]

We just got home from 14 hours in a car driving from Phoenix, AZ to San Jose, CA. It is long and boring. The 'scenery' is desert and it is endless. There is nothing to look at for miles and miles and miles. The only excitement is the 'Next Rest Stop 48' miles sign.

 

We do not have a dvd player in the car. We instead had two ipads, a ipod touch and a couple of ds systems. And ten hours into the trip even with all that we were still bored. We have tried that drive without the electronics. It felt like forever.

 

This time the trip was better than last year because of the electronics. No 'Are we there yet?', no 'How much longer?'. It was much much calmer for the driver and everyone else.

 

We did listen to music. We did talk. But there is only so much I want to talk about with the kids listening. And during the foggy drive up I5 this morning, my husband wasn't much for conversation. He was busy paying attention to the road.

 

The electronics work for us. I am happy we brought them.

[Heidi]

We take a lot of trips. We had a dvd player for about 2 years. It broke and we didn't replace it. The kids do just fine w/o it. They look at books, sing, talk to eachother, play games, color... much better than watching hours of movies imo.

[LMA]

My kids do not watch much tv and they may watch 1 DVD a week. We have a built-in DVD player in our Suburban, which is the car we take on long trips. The player has worked well for us on those trips. So I would say get one if it would work for your family on trips. Do what is best for your family trips. As my husband pointed out, we watch a lot of movies on plane trips, so why should a car trip be different?

[Matryoshka]

Heck, no - I specifically asked for one without a DVD player (which wasn't so easy because almost all the ones to be had had already had one installed).

 

Haven't missed it once - and we've done multiple long trips in the car, like up and down the east coast when they were still only 4 and 6 years old.

 

We also drove all up and down the West coast, from San Francisco to San Diego and back, in a rented car with no player when the twins were 2 - never felt the slightest need for one.

Edited November 28, 2011 by matroyshka

[theYoungerMrsWarde]

We have a portable dvd player that fits on the back of the front seat headrest. We just got back from driving from past Sacramento CA to Phoenix AZ with a 5yo and a 2.5 year old. VERY worth it to us.

[ereks mom]

Is a DVD player in the car a must for you?

 

For us....absolutely not. I hate them in vehicles. I think most kids watch too much tv at home as it is....now they gotta watch it in the car?? No thanks. This is my opinion, of course.

 

:iagree:

[GingerPoppy]

I'm not picking on you, this is all in good humor, but that just made me giggle. At some point in a 2000+ mile trip you're done with conversation, you've talked about all you care to talk about with your spawn at the moment, you're going to scream if you have to sing or hear "Do a deer, a female deer..." one more time, and you're all about to have meltdowns, even the adults. At that time a movie is a welcome diversion.

 

I'm not talking about piddly little 4-5 hour trips. I'm talking multiple 12-18 hour days in a row on the road. I get the feeling that MY idea of a long drive is different from other people's ideas of what constitutes a long drive with young children. As I stated in a previous post, we've done such trips without any electronic entertainment. It's not an absolute must. But we've also taken trips with a DVD player a couple of times as well and yep, sure was nice to have once you reach your breaking point!

 

Somehow it's possible to do all of those warm, fuzzy, nice family things together in the vehicle despite a viewing of "Finding Nemo."

 

You're right. We definitely don't make trips that long by car. I'm pretty sure I'd make an exception for that kind of thing. :)

 

For normal, daily traveling and short trips, though, I'm happy not to have it. I think if I did, I'd prefer a portable one so it could join us only on the mammoth vacations.

[GingerPoppy]

We got a portable one for car trips over 5hrs. There's only so much Ohio freeway I can take with the ABC game and Guess-A-State on a 2 day trip from MN to DC.

 

I feel no guilt or shame. Our family time has not suffered. Our trips are memorable and filled with license plate games, books on tape, chatting, reading and yes!-gasp!-a favorite movie or two. :)

Well, that's reasonable. But we have acquaintances that click it on for trips to the grocery store or school. :scared:

[kokotg]

While I'm not at all surprised at how, erm....secure in their own opinions, people are on this thread ;), I do think it's a little funny how several people have said they don't want a DVD player in the car because their kids already watch enough TV at home. I'm much more inclined to put strict limits on screen time at home--where the kids can read, run around, play with toys, etc.--than on a 20 hour car trip with such limited options.

[Jenny in Florida]

While I'm not at all surprised at how, erm....secure in their own opinions, people are on this thread ;), I do think it's a little funny how several people have said they don't want a DVD player in the car because their kids already watch enough TV at home. I'm much more inclined to put strict limits on screen time at home--where the kids can read, run around, play with toys, etc.--than on a 20 hour car trip with such limited options.

 

For us, it isn't "because" the kids watch TV at home. It's just one part of the equation.

 

Since we're booky/talky/music people, a car trip doesn't limit our options much, anyway. My son really looks forward to road trips when we can listen to audiobooks, talk without interruption, sing along with soundtracks, pull in at rest stops to run around with the dog and buy the next Coke from a vending machine, look out the window at the scenery, count the miles to our destination, etc. For us, being in the car together can be quality time.

 

Of course, for my daughter, it's mostly time to catch up on her sleep. She's not a great traveller. She's happy as long as we let her choose the next soundtrack.

 

Neither of them has ever expressed any interest in a DVD player in the car. I think they both think it's a little bizarre.

 

I should mention, maybe, since there seem to be some hurt feelings, that I'm not "against" DVD players in cars for other people. Well, except for the fact that I do think those bright, flickering screens that can be seen from outside the vehicle are a road hazard. I know I have great trouble NOT watching the screen in another car, even when I can't make out what's playing. The light just draws my eye. (I have the same trouble with those flashing lights they put on school busses.) The question was, "Is a DVD player in the car a must for you?" In our case, I have to answer "no." Not only is is not something I must have, as someone else said, it's something any vehicle I purchase must NOT have. It's not something that is necessary or appropriate for my family.

 

But, aside from the distraction for other drivers thing, I have no negative feelings about people who do want one. It's just not something I understand.

Edited November 29, 2011 by Jenny in Florida

[jplain]

(I haven't read whole thread.)

 

For car trips longer than 2 hours one-way, we use this dual-screen portable DVD player that straps to the front seat headrests. My kids love it. I'm guessing there must be a newer version, because I was able to buy directly from Amazon several months ago.

 

I play the audio either through my car stereo (if it is a movie that amuses me, like Finding Nemo), or I have the audio come from speakers in each screen.

 

If desired, the two screens can be separated, and each can play a different DVD. I've used one to entertain myself while I'm cleaning the kitchen, and I've also used it for a yoga DVD when I was traveling.

 

The one thing to consider with the one I have is that it doesn't have a rechargeable battery, so it needs to be plugged into either the wall or a car outlet. I could buy an external battery pack if I wanted to use it on a plane, but they're kind of expensive.

 

I like having the portable kind rather than the built-in, because it means we don't use it casually. In reality, it doesn't even see that much use on long car trip. The kids might watch one movie during a 6 hour drive, but after that they ask for music or an audiobook or a potty break or food or a nap. :)

Edited November 29, 2011 by jplain

[littlebug42]

We had a portable DVD player for our car that only got used on long car trips. We now have one built into our van. It is never used on a daily basis, only on car trips. My kids still read, do puzzles and other things but also watch movies. I am a terrible road trip traveller and get very cranky. I honestly don't want everyone's company ad nauseum. Dh drives and likes to listen to podcasts that make me want to bang my head against a wall so I cannot imagine how the children feel about it. They travel very well in part due to the DVD player.

[BarbecueMom]

Well, that's reasonable. But we have acquaintances that click it on for trips to the grocery store or school. :scared:

 

And this would be us, trying to keep the kids awake until we got home if we had to be out too close to nap time. We didn't have a DVD player until we got the van 3 months ago, but DS3 used to fall asleep in the car then wake up in a night terror. I'd rather they watch a quick 15-minute WordWorld episode and sleep when they get home than fall asleep for ten minutes and spend the next hour screaming, flailing, drooling, and bashing their heads into the wall (DS would push himself under a nightstand and beat his head on the wall in a night terror).

 

ETA: I noticed a lot of people mention singing. If I sing, at home or in the car, my kids start screaming at me to stop. They do it to DH too. They just hate the sound of someone singing, and I was the same way growing up. My dad would sing in the car and I'd go from asking him nicely to stop to crying when he'd just stare through me and keep singing. I was an instrumental music major, and I still prefer music that is lyric-free.

Edited November 29, 2011 by BarbecueMom

[NoPlaceLikeHome]

No, it is not a must since there is STOW audio books and other great stories on audio:D

[Dayle in Guatemala]

Never. It's when we have amazing conversations and I'm not willing to give that up.

[elfgivas]

no, it isn't. actually its the opposite for us, its a "must not have". we spend a ton of time in the car, both daily (about two hours each day minimum), and on holidays, where we often drive 300 miles a day. we sing, we play games, we listen to audio books. for us, it is treasured family time, and that would go away with a dvd player.......

 

fwiw,

ann

[DarlaS]

But, aside from the distraction for other drivers thing, I have no negative feelings about people who do want one. It's just not something I understand.

 

My teens could not care less about watching movies either. In fact, all of my kids are good travelers--even when they were young.

 

If it wasn't already in my car, I certainly would not have sought one out--or bought a portable (I do have a laptop though and my car has an outlet.) It's just another option. No big deal. It's very unlikely my next car will have one, but there were times I have been glad it was there.

 

Once was when we were making a 4 hr trip home with three of us not feeling so well. (One of them was me. I had passed out at the hotel the night before.) They were distracted, and I could just relax. This was two years ago, and my youngest two were 6 & 9.