Where can I find a relatively inexpensive (commercial quality -
nothing fancy) trunk mounted DVD player and headrest mounted LCD
monitors that can be set to play a DVD on a loop automatically and can
be set to automatically come on when the vehicle comes on and what
makes and models are available?

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Request for Question Clarification by clouseau-ga on 25 Nov 2003 17:10 PST

Hello nopopo,

Thank you for your question.

I've done some preliminary research for you and I find that trunk
mounted players will do all that you require except automatically
resume play when the ignition is started on the car. It would require
simply hitting PLAY to resume playback at the point you last turned
off your vehicle.

I am told that there is one model of IN DASH mounted DVD in the mid
price ranges that WILL start automatically if the disc was playing
when the car was last turned off. I have not yet verified this, but it
comes form a reasonably reliable source.

If either of the above will suffice for your needs, please let me know
and I can provide either a selection of trunk mounted devices that
will work with a remote to resume play or verify that this particular
in dash unit will do all you desire.

I'll look forward to your clarification.


Regards,

-=clouseau=-

---

Clarification of Question by nopopo-ga on 25 Nov 2003 18:04 PST

I would prefer a device that does not require human interaction to
play or that can be modified to not require human interaction to play.
 I will certainly consider the questions answered with a list of
equipment if leads in this area are exhausted.  Thanks.

---

Clarification of Question by nopopo-ga on 25 Nov 2003 18:39 PST

I would also consider a trunk mounted pc that would only serve the
purpose of playing a dvd on a loop if the price was comparable.

---

Request for Question Clarification by clouseau-ga on 25 Nov 2003 19:19 PST

Thanks for replying.

Personally, I don't think a trunk mounted pc would survive the bumps
and potholes for long and would need to boot each time the power was
restored. Not a good solution.

But I am unsure by your reply if you would consider dash mounted units
or not, even if they were the only devices that would function as you
describe without human intervention. Do let me know if I should pursue
this option or not.

The unit I have found also sells for the mid $400 price range. Trunk
mounted units can be found for less, but *may* not be able to be set
to play without punching the remote. Is this price range acceptable to
you?

So do let me know more precisely what would and would not be
sufficient for an answer.

Regards,

-=clouseau=-

---

Clarification of Question by nopopo-ga on 26 Nov 2003 06:59 PST

I am looking for an overall solution.  That solution may not be
exactly what I had originally envisioned.  I will accept an answer
that does not exactly me my specifications.  Please tell me what you
have, Clouseau.

---

Clarification of Question by nopopo-ga on 26 Nov 2003 07:12 PST

There are trunk mounted pc's that are available.  Generally you can
find them for the public safety sector (police, fire, Emergency
Operations, etc.  Currently there people using regular laptops in
these new hotrod foreign cars to control alarms, stereos, nitrous,
etc.  In fact, I have run into people that say they can control the
vehicle remotely (not drive it, but everything else) through a
wireless LAN.  I still want to hear what you have found.  I might be
able to adapt a dash mounted unit to what do what I want...  Thanks.

---

Request for Question Clarification by clouseau-ga on 28 Nov 2003 12:50 PST

Hi again nopopo,

I did not want you to think I had forgotten you. Obviously, yesterday
was not a good day to reach tech support at various manufacturers. I
have had just a bit more luck today, but what I am finding is not
particularly promising. For example, in speaking with Sony I find that
their pre-sales support knows little about the details of their
products other than what is on a tear sheet of specs and they refer
more in depth questions to dealers who may not know any more. And
dealers seem to have differing opinions on the features you
specifically require. For example, the one model I had found that a
dealer claimed would autostart actually does not now that I have been
able to view the manual and confirm with the manufacturer.

I am wating on a few more call backs and have one or two more avenues
to pursue. I shall be back to post today's findings a little later in
the day.

Regards,

-=clouseau=-

Hello again nopopo,

Thank you for your question.

We have success in locating units that will function as you desire.
But let me recap a bit of my search and strategy in solving your need
for a moment.

I disregarded mobile PC's as a solution as I would have two major
concerns in this application. First, a transport for DVD's
specifically designed for mobile use will more likely have the ability
to play through bumps and road conditions while moving better than one
designed for a PC and second, you would need to reboot the PC when
power is reapplied and then select the software to playback a DVD,
etc., negating the "auto resume" function that appears to be critical
to your needs.

Although virtually every CD player designed for mobile applications
will power up automatically when the ignition key is turned on your
car and then resume play at the point the ignition was turned off
previously, this is not a major design feature for mobile DVD players.
As a matter of fact, it is so unique that most manufacturers have not
been asked or a feature like this nor are their pre-sales or tech
support departments aware if their units function this way or not.
Dealers I contacted seemed to swear to almost any feature I requested
hoping to make a sale, but when I checked further on their
recommendations I found they were in error.

I started calling manufacturers. Since a particular in dash Sony unit
was recommended as having this feature of "auto resume", I called them
to verify. Sony refers all of their pre-sales questions on mobile
products to Crutchfield. Here I spoke with folks eager to help, but
unaware of any units with auto-resume and even went as far as to read
a half dozen user's manuals for me looking for this feature with no
luck. But, they did refer me to another manufacturer called Fahrenheit
and it turns out they have two options for you.

What you need is a mobile player with two specific features: Repeat
and Auto-Resume. This way your selected disc will play over and over
ad infinitum and will resume play at the point power was turned off
when power is reapplied. Repeat more accurately describes your need
rather than "loop" as loop will play back from point A to point B and
repeat that segment, but Repeat will play back the entire disc
continuously. And while most units have a Resume function, it requires
human intervention and the push of a button on the front panel or
remote. The following two units differ in that regard.

I called Fahrenheit and the phone was answered Power Acoustik,
evidently the parent company. I spoke with Ray in tech support who
understood accurately my description of your needs and said that the
models PADVD 11ON and PADVD 2030 would resume playback where it was
left off upon resuming power through the ignition switch:

http://www.poweracoustik.com/products/dvdplayers/index.html

PADVD-110N, PADVD-120T (with TV Tuner) In-Dash DVD, MP3, CD, CDR, CDRW Player


Vacuum Loader for Multiple Angle Mounting

Last position Memory

Dolby Pro-Logic/DTS Compatible

Front Panel A/V RCA Inputs

Audio/Video Output

Remote Control

Extra Remote Eye

OSD On Screen Display

Digital Anti-Shock

NTSC/PAL switchable 

ISO/DIN

Floor & Under-dash Mounting Brackets

*************************************************************
 
PADVD-2030T, PADVD-1020T (without Display) DVD, MP3, CD, CDR, CDRW Player

Dolby Pro-Logic/DTS Compatible

Front Panel A/V RCA Inputs

12 Volt Output Trigger For System Power-Up 

Audio/Video Output

Remote Control

Extra Remote Eye

OSD On Screen Display

Digital Anti-Shock

NTSC/PAL switchable 

Floor & Under-dash 
Mounting Brackets

Dimensions: 9? x 6.5? 2.6? 


As you can see, a simple web search will not uncover this feature and
without confirmation from the manufacturer, it would be very difficult
to discover which units have this ability. A nice feature of these
particular units are their multiple mounting options. You can reach
the company here:

Power Acoustik Electronics
1550 S. Maple Ave. Montebello, CA 90640 USA

Phone: 323-722-3333
Fax: 323-722-1122

International Sales: 
 alex@poweracoustik.com
 
USA dealer contact: 
 don@poweracoustik.com
 
Tech service: 
 karl@poweracoustik.com
 
All other inquiries: 
 info@poweracoustik.com

If you care to call, I used their 800# at 800-832-4647 and spoke with
Ray at extension 248.
 
I wanted to check pricing to be sure these units were affordable for
you and a simple search for PADVD-2030T brought up a number of hits
for online retailers. Buy.com, for example, sells this unit:

http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=90124578&loc=111

Power Acoustik PADVD-2030T DVD Player with Tuner-New!

  Item#: ENNTMJ

  Our Price: $149.99

  List Price:  $269.99
  You Save: $120.00
 
They also sell the PADVD-110N for $249.99 discounted. You will find
many other places to buy these units including Crutchfields, Sound
Domain and many others. Simply see these search results for a number
of vendors:

://www.google.com/search?q=PADVD-2030T

I also called manufacturers such as Panasonic, though their least
expensive unit listed online was $430. I needed to satisfy my
curiosity at this point on the availability of "auto resume" on their
units. Their support line did not know of these features, but promised
to research and call me back today or tomorrow morning (Saturday). I
have a case number with them and if they supply and information of
interest, I shall post again as a clarification for you.

As you can imagine, this was the difficult part of the equation to
locate. There are many choices for aftermarket headrest monitors and I
will provide some solutions for you for these. In general, they appear
as universal headrest monitors and "exact replacement" headrest to
match the interior of the vehicle you are mounting these systems in.
From your question, I made two assumptions:

1. You are using these (or wish to) for advertising in vehicles and
therefore matching the leather or seat color exactly would not be
critical for you and...

2. Cost was a consideration and therefore the generic headrest LCD
monitors would be a better fit for you needs.


Now, even these come several ways. Those that have a universal swivel
mount, those that require cutting your existing headrests for
installation of a monitor or those already built into a headrest.

Sports Imports Ltd shows a selection at reasonable prices on this page:
http://www.sportsimportsltd.com/moblcdmon.html

For example, there is a unit for as low as $124.95 at the top of the page:

7.2" TFT LCD Monitor w/Universal Headrest Bracket & Remote

Regular price: $249.95
Sale price:  (You save: 50%)

Follow the link to this page and you will see a rather ingenious
mounting system that attaches to the vertical extension bars on an
existing headrest:
http://www.sportsimportsltd.com/7tftlcdmowhe.html

7.2" TFT LCD Monitor w/Universal Headrest Bracket & Remote

Features 


7.2" Color LCD Monitor 
No Radiation 
Fashion Design 
PAL & NTSC Systems 
High Resolution 
Low Power Consumption 
Remote Control 
A/V Input 
Built-in Speaker 
Brightness, Color, Contrast, and Volume Controls 
Convenient Mounting Kit adjustable for all Headrests that go up and down 

No need to cut the headrest as the LCD mounts on the outside 
Great for Leased Cars or for moving from vehicle to vehicle 
All you need is a 12V DVD Player and or TVTuner and or VHS, Wireless
Headphones, and a 12V source to enjoy Mobile Video at its finest

This appears to me to be an elegant solution as it does not modify the
vehicle, has a built in speaker and can easily be moved from vehicle
to vehicle if the need ever arises. And it is priced VERY reasonably!!
For comparison, headset matched systems range from about $500-1500.

Do look at their other options and models on the above mentioned page.

See this example of a built-in monitor at $499 discounted price from
Home Theater Plus:
http://www.hometheaterplus.com/vihevilcdmo.html
  

Audio In Motion offers a selection of monitors including models you
can build into your existing headrests. For example:
http://www.audioinmotion.com/item.jhtml;$sessionid$EU5CYWIAAAL4VTZENUGZPQWPERWRJPX0?UCIDs=414580%7C1263604&PRID=974153

BOSS BV-56M 
Weight: 4.0 lbs
List Price:  $269.00 
Sale Price:  $159.95 

  
 
 
Headrest and Visor Monitors : BOSS BV-56M 
Weight: 4.0 lbs
List Price:  $269.00 
Sale Price:  $159.95 
  
 
5.6 Inch TFT/LCD Monitor with UP/Down Tilt Adjustment, Headrest
Mounting Kit and Pedestal Mounting Base for Stand Alone Installation
on Gooseneck, Dashboard or Console.


TFT/LCD High Resolution Color Monitor
Wide Angle Off Axis Visibility
Up/Down Tilt Adjustment
Resolution: 1152 x 234 (Pixels)
Front Panel Controls (Power, Brightness and Contrast)
One Video Input (RCA Connector)
Easy Installation with Adjustable Mounting Bracket
Headrest Mounting Kit Included
Color: Black
Dimensions - Headrest Mounting Kit: 6 7/8" x 5 1/2"
Mounting Depth: 1 3/8"

You will find more options like this here:
http://www.audioinmotion.com/category.html?UCIDs=1263604

However, these generally do not include a speaker and then require
wiring into the existing audio system in the vehicle.

There are MANY choices for headset monitors and I am sure that you
will be able to find one that matches the quality you desire in a
price range comfortable for you. The trickier part of your question,
of course, is the player with auto-resume.

Here are a few more links to headset monitors for you to browse:

Nordale Services
http://nservices.com/mobilemonitors.htm

Mobile Video 4 Less
http://www.mobilevideo4less.com/headrest.html

Mobile Excitement
http://www.mobileexcitement.com/headrest_mon.htm

and Crutchfield
http://www.crutchfield.com/cgi-bin/S-rxjVc7ZVcod/ProdGroup.asp?c=3&s=0&cc=01&g=39200


Search Strategy:

mobile dvd player +"auto start" OR "auto resume"
mobile dvd player "trunk mounted"
PADVD-2030T
headrest lcd monitor

I trust my research has provided you with workable options for a
mobile DVD player that will repeat a DVD endlessly and resume play at
the last point viewed when the vehicle is restarted. If a link above
should fail to work or anything require further explanation or
research, please do post a Request for Clarification prior to rating
the answer and closing the question and I will be pleased to assist
further.

Regards,

-=clouseau=-

Closeau provided a very informative answer.  Thanks.

My pleasure, nopopo. Thank you for the rating and tip!

-=clouseau=-