When I was 12, I got one big gift for Christmas. It was not my first choice, a sun conure with a lifespan of around thirty years. It was instead a Panasonic DVD-LA95 portable DVD player. And while it hasn’t made it to 30 yet, it is still kicking.
The LA95 was and is a beautiful machine. It sports a 9-inch LCD screen — which was huge back then — and a wonderful multidirectional button that glows blue. Today, you can find it on eBay and Craigslist for around $80. Back in 2003 when it was state of the art, it cost about an order of magnitude more.
Tucker BoweWhen it was still new (and I was about 20 years younger), I put it through its paces primarily with The Lord of the Rings. I must have watched the extended cuts of each movie on that player 20 times each, while huddled in the back of a closet. You know, for ambiance. But I was never far from an AC adapter (or cigarette-lighter charger for long car rides) because it could barely struggle through 3 hours of play on a charge.
You might think that laptops with disc drives and then smartphones and streaming would have killed the whole category. Not so! You can still buy them. That said, they’re made by brands you’ve likely never heard of (like DBPOWER or Sylvania). Their prices are mercifully lower than top-tier 2003 Panasonic — closer to the $100 range. And, at this point, they might even put my LA95 to shame.
Tucker BoweI found old faithful the other day in the closet of my childhood bedroom, bubble-wrapped in its original packaging — which I had used as a carrying case to keep it safe when it was new. I even kept the retail slickers on it. Why? I cannot tell you.