Buying and fitting a DVD player for your car may sound, at the outset, like a ludicrous idea. Sure, with a CD player installed you can enjoy music wherever you go, and if you put the radio on you can listen to the news or talk radio to your hearts' content. But that's just the point - listening does not distract you from watching the road. A DVD player? Well, that's something different altogether. But think about it a different way. Sometimes you have to sit in a non-moving car for a spell, when you are waiting to pick someone up or you are in a complete gridlock. Although in the latter you need to be ready to switch the DVD off once you get moving - and you probably should simply stick with the radio for the purposes of safety, there are reasons why a DVD player can be beneficial as in-car entertainment.
A better use of an in-car DVD player is to have it positioned behind the driver's seat where people - perhaps most usually children - can watch it in comfort, and often this will be a highly beneficial piece of equipment, as any parent can vouch for the fact that all too often children + back seat = fights. As long as the kids can agree on a cartoon or film to watch the DVD player can make the journey a whole lot less irritating for everyone. And of course it doesn't need to be just for kids. If there are grown ups in the back of the car they may well enjoy the trip a whole lot more if they have aeroplane-style entertainment. Hitched up to a TV tuner - though this will require an additional aerial on the car most of the time, it can even pick up television signals, which can mean that if your journey clashes with the playoffs, no-one needs to be in a mood come travelling time.
It does need to be stated, however, that it is a very bad idea to have a DVD player setup in the front of the car if you cannot trust yourself to keep it switched off at all times when the car is moving. In times when there are ever fewer things that you can legally do at the wheel, watching a TV screen is one thing that anyone can agree is hugely irresponsible while in control of a car. It is all but an invitation to crash the car.
The setup of a DVD player in your car does not need to be complicated. It is about as involved as a car stereo - i.e. perfectly simple or horribly complicated, depending on your tastes and opinions, but it can be the perfect answer to squalling kids in the back of the car, or conflicts of interest between needing to get somewhere fast and really wanting to see a game or a season finale. As long as they are handled responsibly, in car DVD players can be a decent addition.