Car video watch your movie!

Exorbitant in price and limited in availability only a few years ago, car video systems let kids watch recorded movies from the backseat. Now the systems have become more widespread, and some are also quite affordable.

Built-in DVD-based systems are increasingly being offered as $1,200-plus options with new minivans, SUVs, and some cars; their flat-panel screen typically flips open from the ceiling just in front of the backseat.

Similar fold-down roof players can be installed by an electronics dealer, usually for upwards of $1,500. Both kinds can offer an OK picture and very good sound. But there are drawbacks to an aftermarket installation (see CloseUp, opposite page). If you're buying a new vehicle, you might want to spring for a built-in system; if you want a system for your current vehicle, a portable is probably the way to go.

At $300 to $600, portable flat-screen DVD or videotape systems are less expensive than built-ins. And they can be moved from one vehicle to another or--powered by their AC adapter--used as a vacation TV in a cabin or to play tapes or DVDs in a hotel room. A disadvantage: cables to connect that clutter up the vehicle.

Portables come in two types: console players that sit on the middle of the rear seat and "bagged" players that can hang on the back of the front seat. We tested four big-selling players: two consoles and two bagged models. As with roof players, the picture was generally only OK compared with what you'd get on a good TV at home. Sound wasn't great, either. But all the kids who tried the four players on family road trips loved them.

HOW TO CHOOSE

New portable DVD and VHS players are coming on the market all the time. We don't expect prices to go down much anytime soon, so if you're interested, take the plunge now We have one caveat however: If your kids get car sick, a video player probably won't help.