[gpo]

New to this forum, but we are buying a Traverse at the end of this month, so doing some research. Here is our situation. My family consists of me, my wife and two daughters 9 and 5 years old. We have decided to buy an LT1. My wife wants to get a DVD player for the Traverse. I was talking to a dealer and we could add a flip down model or two headrest players. Cost I believe would be around $1400 for the flip down and $1800 for the headrest.

That got me thinking about spending that amount of money for a DVD player that is stuck in the car. Would there be a better use of the money and still solve our issues. It got me thinking of buying an IPad instead.

So here are the facts.

The wife and I both have iphones(which we love, so do the girls as they could play games on it all day long.)
The girls each have a Nintendo DS(The 9 year old has a DSi and the 5 year old has the hand-me-down original model)
We have two portable DVD players
At most we would take one 25 hour round trip vacation and probably another 10-12 hour round trip vacation in one year.
It would be my wife's car and she is a stay-at-home-mom who puts about 10K in miles on a car in a year.
We have a laptop and a netbook for computing at the house.
We are not having any more children.

My wife wants a DVD player in the Traverse because she wants to make it easier to put in DVDs and not have to pass players back and forth. My thought is we would spent that amount of money for something we may use 50 hours a year. Where with an IPad we could use it tons of other places. I do know that with an IPad one of the children would have to hold it to watch shows or movies. Plus sharing might be a little tough, but if we went with an IPad I might go with the second row bench seating instead of the captain's chair which would save money. I have read that you can use your netflix account on your IPad, so actually there would be plenty of content. See we are getting a Blu-ray player for the house soon and any new DVDs would be purchased in that format. I am thinking over time what the girls can watch in the Traverse may grow stale. We do have plenty of DVDs, but new ones would be in that format.

I know an IPad would not totally replace a computer for the home, but I see this as a choice between the DVD for the car and an IPad. I think the IPad would be a bit cheaper.

The wife did not totally buy into this line of thinking when I presented the choice to her.

 

[chevy454]

An alternative would be to look in the Audio/Video forum here, as there is a great write-up about a nice aftermarket flip-down DVD, that cost <$200, iirc. Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but from GM, they don't have a stand alone flip down, so you'd need the Bose/DVD head unit as well, and I'm guessing they have to run the wires/harness up through headliner as well...so you could get an aftermarket flip down that is a stand alone unit, and save a lot of time/money. The head rest DVD's are stand alone, but man are they pricey...

 

[Tiestosteele]

It sounds to me like someone just wants an Ipad! :thumb:

My experience (as I have both an Ipad and dvd in traverse), is that putting a disc into the headrest is much easier then getting a movie onto the Ipad as there is no disc slot. Plus with the headrest one you can watch two different movies at the same time, so each kid can watch what they want. Downside they have to wear headphones.

I know you said something about netflix on your Ipad, not sure how that works. My suggestion is that you get the 3g model, otherwise your ipad will only go online when you are in a wifi area.... so in your car you cant get online to get any movies.

I LOVE my Ipad, however I dont know how practical it would be as a dvd player for the car, someone will get tired of holding it! The Ipad would be cheaper and have more uses, especially if you only go on a couple of road trips a year. The dvd player would be easier to use for the kids.

my opinion anyway

 

[rbarrios]

Off the top of my head...
Those screens in the headrest-- those are asking for trouble- thugs can break into the car (Locks, windows, door damage). Depending on how bad your location is.
( I have a friend who had these in his Suburban (Aftermarket). they went to an event- came out- the Suburban was gone.
They found it the next day- all the DVD stuff was gone- including seats- stereo- and related gear- along with the rims.
He had the stuff replaced.
Few months later- came back to his car- the stereo- and DVD headrest stuff- was once again gone. More damage.

Your daughter is 9. Pretty soon- watching a movie will be the least of her worries. Shes going to be texting and calling all her friends on the phone.
the 5 yr old...will still want to watch movies.

You say you already have portable DVD players... just use those.
Then you can hide them in the rear storage compartment.

 

[gpo]

I went to a car audio/video store at lunch. Boy that brings back some memories. I used to have a sweet setup in my old S10 pickup back in the early 90's.

They have a Jensen JMV 111 for like $799(including 2 wireless headphones) and probably $200 installation. Of course I came back to the office and looked online and found them much cheaper. Did not think to ask if they would just do the install. I imagine they would.

Maybe if I could get an overhead one installed for like $600-$700 I could justify the cost, but with as few trips we will be making it is hard considering we already have some portable ones. My better half really doesn't want to have to deal with the portable ones on a trip. Although the kids are getting bigger and more able to manage the machines themselves. The ironic thing about the whole situation is that about 3 to 4 years ago my wife said she would never have one of those in the car.

Well, this is really the only decision left on buying the Traverse. We have agreed on everything else. Well, execpt the fact that the Accord my wife currently drives could last like another 3 to 4 years given her annual miles as it only has 105K on it now. But who am I to argue it is only money.

 

[Melmo]

If you are planning to use Netflix to watch movies on your iPad, you will have to have WiFi access wherever you are driving. You can't download the movies from Netflix, they are streaming. So you would need to look into how much it would cost to get something like AT&Ts USB Connect to give you on the go wireless. I think it is about $60 a month minimum, but I could be wrong. I'm not sure if iPads are bluetooth compatible or not, but if so, you could also try running it off your bluetooth enabled iPhone/Blackberry/etc. However, it might be slow, we have a new laptop that is Bluetooth compatible and we took it to my husband's grandparents house and tried to run it off his Blackberry (Verizon) and it worked, but was REALLY slow, and this was just for accessing pics on Shutterfly, not streaming a movie.

 

[Superboy95]

Not sure how tech savvy you are, but if you're able to get movies onto your iPhone or iPod or other mp3/video player that has a video out, you can easily hook it up to most portable DVD players. I got tired of having to carry around all those DVDs and I was able to get them onto my old 5G iPod. Bought an A/V cable that has a 3.5mm tip and viola! I can control what's on the DVD from the front seat while the kids watch from the back. Mine are younger, so it saves a lot of effort in fast forwarding the scary parts, etc.

In my book, it was just too much to have a permanent player stuck in the car - I'd rather spend those $$$ on gadgets for me :angel:

 

[Tiestosteele]

Off the top of my head...
Those screens in the headrest-- those are asking for trouble- thugs can break into the car (Locks, windows, door damage). Depending on how bad your location is.
( I have a friend who had these in his Suburban (Aftermarket). they went to an event- came out- the Suburban was gone.
They found it the next day- all the DVD stuff was gone- including seats- stereo- and related gear- along with the rims.
He had the stuff replaced.
Few months later- came back to his car- the stereo- and DVD headrest stuff- was once again gone. More damage.

Thats a pretty broad statement saying your car will be broken into! Your friend lives in the hood and needs to move! I would leave my car unlocked and not worry about the dvd players being stolen ( I dont of course! but I wouldnt be too worried if I did).

 

[quantum]

I don't think its the neighbourhood you live in that people are concerned about. Its the traveling and being on vacation that is sometimes not safe. They target the out of state vehicles.

We went to Washington DC back in the day, and they broke into our E350 passanger van which was parked right in front of the Capitol Building. When we came back the horn and lights were flashing and no one saw anything, not even the hotdog vendor selling hotdogs not even 50 feet away. They stole a video camera that was tucked under a seat, nothing else was in there. I don't know how no one noticed a person peering in, smashing a window, and then taking off with a video camera.

I leave my Traverse unlocked in my driveway all the time, sometimes even forget to close the garage door before going to bed. Nothing has ever gone missing. (I do try to remember to lock and close every night)

Its when you're out of town, that's when I get worried.

 

[rbarrios]

wow- you guys must live in some safe places...

I never leave my car open.
City I live in is OK. But theres quite a bit of neighboring cities that arent so great- and I live very close to the freeway... so many times they steal and make fast getaways...
But theres always the story in the paper were teens from another neighborhood- make their rounds going street by street checking to see what cars are locked or not.
---------
side story
Heck- one day- I heard a car door- and loud giggling.... thought that was odd- I looked out the window- and there I see some FAT teen girl running down the street waving my US AIR FORCE flag that I had on my porch.
Pissed me off-- and I didnt know what else was taken (from the cars) in the driveway/garage.
Theres a car on the corner waiting- she hops in-
I go out- and hop in my car- and drive down several blocks- where I encounted the same car now at a corner house.
I make a turn- and end up following them- while I got the plates. they took off (it was occupied 5x) once they knew I was behind them.
I ended up calling the cops- to let them know these fools were in the neighborhood- in case someone else had been ripped off.
Once Home- nothing else was taken. But the fat chick--- was nice enough to trample (steamroller) the newly planted flower garden.
For being a teenage girl- she sure had big feet.
PD called me back a week later- to say they had gone to the registered vehicles address- 2 cities away... and the owner of the car denied driving the car..
I told the officer- just scare the heck out of the teens- nip em in the bud before they start doing worse.

 

[Tiestosteele]

wow- you guys must live in some safe places...

I never leave my car open.
City I live in is OK. But theres quite a bit of neighboring cities that arent so great- and I live very close to the freeway... so many times they steal and make fast getaways...
But theres always the story in the paper were teens from another neighborhood- make their rounds going street by street checking to see what cars are locked or not.
---------
side story
Heck- one day- I heard a car door- and loud giggling.... thought that was odd- I looked out the window- and there I see some FAT teen girl running down the street waving my US AIR FORCE flag that I had on my porch.
Pissed me off-- and I didnt know what else was taken (from the cars) in the driveway/garage.
Theres a car on the corner waiting- she hops in-
I go out- and hop in my car- and drive down several blocks- where I encounted the same car now at a corner house.
I make a turn- and end up following them- while I got the plates. they took off (it was occupied 5x) once they knew I was behind them.
I ended up calling the cops- to let them know these fools were in the neighborhood- in case someone else had been ripped off.
Once Home- nothing else was taken. But the fat chick--- was nice enough to trample (steamroller) the newly planted flower garden.
For being a teenage girl- she sure had big feet.
PD called me back a week later- to say they had gone to the registered vehicles address- 2 cities away... and the owner of the car denied driving the car..
I told the officer- just scare the heck out of the teens- nip em in the bud before they start doing worse.

I was laughing reading this, you called her fat like 5 times! :happy:

Like I said I wouldn't leave my car unlocked on purpose, but if I was in bed and remembered I didn't lock my door I wouldn't get up to lock it. I do however have a house alarm and set that every night, but that just makes the wife feel better.

 

[marjamr]

If you are planning to use Netflix to watch movies on your iPad, you will have to have WiFi access wherever you are driving. You can't download the movies from Netflix, they are streaming. So you would need to look into how much it would cost to get something like AT&Ts USB Connect to give you on the go wireless. I think it is about $60 a month minimum, but I could be wrong. I'm not sure if iPads are bluetooth compatible or not, but if so, you could also try running it off your bluetooth enabled iPhone/Blackberry/etc. However, it might be slow, we have a new laptop that is Bluetooth compatible and we took it to my husband's grandparents house and tried to run it off his Blackberry (Verizon) and it worked, but was REALLY slow, and this was just for accessing pics on Shutterfly, not streaming a movie.

With the iPad wi-fi/3G you can buy 3G service from AT&T for $15.00 a month for 250 MB or $30.00 a month for unlimited data. You can cancel the 3G service anytime and buy it again one mponth at a time anytime you need it. You can buy and cancel it right from your iPad. I didn't know about the Netflix app but that sounds very interesting.

 

[littlebadboy]

Walmart has less costing DVD players that you strap around the headrest less than $200. We got ours on sale at $80. Good thing about it is that you can take it off to bring it with you or hide it from those prying eyes. We only bring when we do long trips to entertain the kids and are very pleased with it.

 

[travey]

welcome aboard GPO.

I have a 9 yr old and 7 year old and contemplated the same thing. I heard the drop down dvd players in the roof block seeing out the back window when they are in use. The dual headrest intrigued me until I heard $1800.00 and considered them a invitation to theft given that they would be in plain view. The single player with one holding it on an angle so they could both watch lasted 10 mins before the fighting started. :banghead: I then opted for two dvd players that strap to the back of the front seat with headphones (they don't like the headphones but they have live with it). This is what has worked for me so far plus they remain portable and hideable (just make sure they are exactly the same to save you the headache of the kids deciding which one is better). hno:

What is truly suprising to me is I didn't have even half of the stuff they have for these longer trips, DVD player, nintendos, MP3 players ect.... and they are still bored within 10 mns of leavign the **** driveway.

I am considering valium ..............but I have to drive!

GOOD LUCK!

 

[Superboy95]

What is truly suprising to me is I didn't have even half of the stuff they have for these longer trips, DVD player, nintendos, MP3 players ect.... and they are still bored within 10 mns of leavign the **** driveway.

I have the same problem with mine, but then again when we were their age, we weren't strapped down in seat belts or car seats - easy to get bored when you're that young and you can barely move.

 

[Narg]

I have the same problem with mine, but then again when we were their age, we weren't strapped down in seat belts or car seats - easy to get bored when you're that young and you can barely move.

GREEN ONE!!!! *SMACK* :thumb:

 

[cncbuss]

We definitely did not even consider giving the dealership that kind of money for a DVD player for the kids. Instead, we bought a set of dual DVD players which we strap to the back of the head rests. Cost less than $200 an we get the portability of installing them in the truck when we want then or taking them them out and using them wherever we go.

 

[rostrow416]

ipad or tablet with those mounts that lock onto the headrest post. i got 2 refurbished 1st gen ipads for 600 instead of the headrest dvd set up. the way i see it - the headrest dvds are 800 for just monitors with video inputs or 1400 for dual dvd, ipads and 2 mounts cost 800 and can easily be removed and used for stuff other than just movies.

 

[littlebadboy]

My headrest strap-on Philips dual screen dvd players cost us less than a $100 at a Target sale last year. The kids and wife love it. I used the screen of a broken generic dual screen dvd player to hook up on an old PS2 for the teenager in the 3rd row to keep him busy on long trips too. The family is happy with this set-up and easy on my pocket!

Maybe I should take pictures soon.

 

[MizTiger]

I've never tried out the iPad trick inside the car. I know there are components out there to do so, I just don't know if that would be more of a hassle from a wire standpoint as well as viewing point.