The Best In-Dash Car DVD Head Units come with a variety of features that many OEM and even aftermarket CD receivers do not. The quickest and easiest way to gain multimedia playback, including DVD and video inputs for adding devices such as game consoles and tablets, is to add a Top Rated In-Dash DVD Player to your car.
Browse through CarAudioNow’s Best Pick Car DVD Head Units of 2015 and add a whole new level of entertainment to your car’s stereo. All of our picks are rated based on sound and video quality, looks, design and value for your money.
And if you’re looking for a multimedia/DVD head unit that has GPS Navigation built-in, check out our Best In-Dash GPS Navigation Units!
# 1. Pioneer AVH-X5600BHS (CarAudioNow’s Best In-Dash Car DVD Receiver)
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$399.99BUY NOW
Quick Review
Pioneer’s AVH-X5600BHS is a feature packed unit, offering all the options you want in a multimedia receiver on a widescreen 7″ motorized touchscreen display. Take your DVDs/CDs and digital media players (iPods & iPhones) and put them to use with the X5600BHS’s many device supporting features, including: built-in Bluetooth for handsfree calls and audio steaming, MirrorLink system for Android sync and Advanced App Mode for controlling compatible iPhone apps right on the receiver. The AVH-X5600BHS will make any car stereo into a full media hub.
# 2. Kenwood Excelon DDX790
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Price Not FoundBUY NOW
Quick Review
Enrich your in-car audio and video experience with the Kenwood Excelon DDX790. The DDX790 is a multimedia receiver with a variety of tools and features, including: user-friendly iPod controls, hands-free calling and audio streaming with its built-in Bluetooth and music and video app access through your iPhone. All the features and tools are conveniently organized onto an oversized 6.95″ touchscreen, making source-switching and music selecting incredibly easy.
# 3. JVC KW-NSX700
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$428.99BUY NOW
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Smartphone compatibility is a must for all in-dash receivers, which is why the JVC KW-NSX700 was designed around the smartphone, offering a full list of features and compatibility for the ever growing list of phones. Its MirrorLink allows you to control most Android features, like scrolling through contacts and music or selecting apps while it’s iPhone App Control gives Apple users full control of their phones and apps as well. Combined with it’s built-in Bluetooth features, you’ll never have to touch your phone while your in the car again.
# 4. Alpine IVE-W530
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$450.00
BUY NOW
Quick Review
If you’re an Alpine fan looking for the best multimedia receiver for your car, here’s the right selection for you. The Alpine IVE-W530 has plenty of options that will turn your car stereo into an entertainment hub. Built-in Bluetooth for hands free phone calls and audio streaming, App Mode for app control with your smartphone, and other media expansion options through its USB connectivity or auxiliary inputs. For those who don’t need built-in navigation, the IVE-W530 has everything you need and more.
# 5. Kenwood DDX371
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$240.41BUY NOW
Quick Review
Sleek design, endless tools and features, and a great price; that’s what you get when you purchase Kenwood’s DDX371 DVD receiver. Give yourself full control of your iPhone with Kenwood’s App Control and built-in Bluetooth for hands-free calling, music streaming and app control for compatible apps. Use it’s DVD/CD slot to watch your favorite movies on a brilliant 6.1″ touchscreen display. And if you want an easy solution to navigation without paying for a navigation unit, just download Garmin’s impressive Street Pilot app for your smartphone and sync it with the DDX371 and gain full navigation features.
# 6. Pioneer AVH-X4600BT
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$325.00BUY NOW
Quick Review
Raise the bar (and expectations) for your in-car audio and video experience with the Pioneer AVH-X4600BT. A beautiful 7″ touchscreen display combined with useful tools and features like built-in Bluetooth for hands-free calling and audio streaming, MirrorLink for Android compatibility and control, App Mode for compatible iPhone apps and controls, and video playback for viewing of all your favorite videos; the X4600BT will make any drive an enjoyable one.
# 7. Sony XAV-712HD
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$748.00BUY NOW
$849.99BUY NOW
Quick Review
Convenience is what Sony’s XAV-712HD in-dash DVD receiver brings to your traveling experience. Upgrade to the 712HD and enjoy full smartphone compatibility with its built-in Bluetooth and MirrorLink with iPhone and Android controls. Expand your audio and video capability with a front-panel USB connection and bring your audio/video files to life from a number of compatible devices. Or, if you decide to keep it simple, switch to HD radio for local music with crisp and clear sound.
Best Car Stereos & Head Units: What To Look For
Every car requires a unique combination of car stereo components to sound great. A car stereo may sound excellent in one car, but sound terrible in another. Additionally, the limitations in size and wiring configuration make selecting the best car stereo even more difficult for you.
The best car stereos will give you the features you love while conforming to the environment of your car and create an excellent reproduction of the music that you love. With the right car stereo, you’ll be able to custom tailor frequencies to your car, integrate your favorite music/media device, connect to your smartphone via bluetooth and much more.
At CarAudioNow, we use multiple key criteria when rating products in our top lists, including our Best In-Dash DVD Players. Below is a list of criteria that we take into consideration while choosing the best car stereos for your vehicle.
Power Ratings
Power ratings are extremely important feature to consider while choosing a car stereo. Without an external amplifier, the power output of the car stereo is what dictates the power of your speakers and ultimately the power of sound. There are typically two power output ratings that are given with car stereos:
Max Power Output: Max power rating is the maximum amount of power that the car stereo can emit for short periods of time. It is the maximum amount of power that will be sent to your speakers (without an external amplifier)
RMS (Continuous) Power Output: RMS power rating is the amount of power that the car stereo can emit at a constant or continuous rate. This is the most important power output rating.
Along with power handling and output, the level of control of the output sound’s shape is also very important. This control is typically made through a built-in equalizer (EQ). It will allow you to tailor the shape of sound, raising or lowering the level of certain frequencies in order to best optimize the output sound for the environment of your car. The higher the number of bands that the car stereo’s equalizer has, the more you will be able to customize the frequencies and shape of your music and sound.
Display
Display features play a huge role in how stylish and user-friendly car stereos are. High end car stereos will have a high LED pixel count, and give customizable features like color and brightness in order to match the color of your interior.
Playback
Playback can be defined as the methods that your car stereo is capable of playing back audio. CD, DVD, MP3, HD Radio, Pandora, Auxiliary (Aux) Ports, Bluetooth; these are all examples of playback types that the best car stereos will typically have.
You will want to make sure that the playback methods that you intend on using is consistent with the playback features of the car stereo, otherwise you may be stuck with a head unit that doesn’t play your music in the format that you have it. Here is a breakdown of the most popular playback features in the best car stereos:
HD Radio: HD Radio is the same radio stations that you listen to, but with a higher audio quality and more metadata than tradition radio. Metadata includes titles, artists, albums and more.
CD Player: CD players will play your favorite CDs in multiple formats, including CD,CD-R/RW, MP3, AAC, WAV and WMA.
Auxiliary (Aux) Port: Auxiliary ports allow you to connect any music device that you may have using a headphone connector. Typically, the best car stereos will have an auxiliary port on the front of the unit.
Bluetooth: Bluetooth music allows you to connect to your music on a smartphone or other bluetooth enabled device, playing all of your music wirelessly from your device via a Bluetooth connection.
USB Port: A USB port will allow you to connect your music devices via a USB connection. It will allow you to listen to your favorite music from your device, while charging it for endless listen time.
XM Radio: XM radio is satellite radio such as SiriusXM, that allows you to connect and listen to thousands of channels of radio via a satellite connection. This increases the coverage of radio that you have, however requires a paid subscription.
Smartphone Integration
All of the best car stereos allow you to fully integrate with your smartphone, enabling the best features such as Pandora and Spotify while allowing you to answer phone calls without touching your smartphone. With recent legislation prohibiting you from using your phones while driving, it is becoming increasingly important for the best car stereos to fully integrate with your smartphone. Additionally, they will come with microphones with noise-canceling technology that will hone in on your voice and eliminate road noise.
Expandability
Expandability is what allows you to connect external components to your car stereo. The best car stereos will have at least three 4volt RCA outputs (Front, Rear, Subwoofer), Audio/Video (AV) input/outputs, rear view camera inputs (with compatible displays) and a microphone input.
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