Rating: 
Summary: Programming is very time consuming
Review: I don't care for the programming procedure on Panasonic. Each entry must be completed from scratch (no memory of recent entries, including today's date), but worst of all is that you can't enter the time directly, nor is a logical selection offered: you have to press the button for each day until you get to the day you want, then press the button until you reach the hour, then press the button until you reach the minute - you get the idea. The same is true for setting the channel.I returned it and found an RCA on sale. I've had Panasonic VCRs before, but I won't forget again.
Rating:
Summary: A disappointment
Review: I found this machine to be very noisy when rewinding and forwarding. Its such a pity because overall this vcr is really good. Unless you don't mind the noisy winding, its a good purchase.
Rating: 
Summary: PLAYBACK NOISY
Review: I found this machine to be very noisy when rewinding and forwarding. Its such a pity because overall this vcr is really good. Unless you don't mind the noisy winding, its a good purchase.
Rating: 
Summary: Really good basic VCR.
Review: I haven't had this VCR very long but I really, really like it. The only "problem" is the rewinding is a little on the noisy side but I couldn't care less. Tapes play fine and I am real impressed with the amount of on screen options this thing has for the money. I also like the easy to read front display. I would recommend this VCR to anyone just looking for a basic VCR.
Rating:
Summary: Noisy
Review: I only used mine five minutes and decided it was too noisy. Traded it in for a different model.
Rating: 
Summary: Piece of Junk
Review: I should have gotten my money back, it doesn't work well at all. PIECE OF JUNK!
Rating:
Summary: Good Solid Unit, W/Some Features Not Found On Other VCR's!
Review: I've owned several different Panasonic Video Cassette Recorders over the years, and I've been pleased with the quality of all of them. This unit, like all the other Panasonic VCR's I've had, includes a feature that I believe is exclusive to Panasonic units [I've never seen it on other brands], and one I like a lot: the SAP/Hi-Fi button! This feature allows you to toggle between the Hi-Fi settings and mono, without having to use the tracking buttons. I find this most useful, to check the quality of a particular tape's hi-fi soundtrack vs. the mono sound on the tape. Another thing I like about Panasonic machines is actually the LACK of a particular feature. And that is: "auto tracking". I don't know about you other video-philes out there, but I can't stand the auto-tracking feature on some of today's VCR recorders! I recently purchased another brand of VCR that had auto-tracking, and found myself making a very quick return to the store for a refund! The auto-tracking is probably OK with some (or most) pre-recorded videos that you might buy. But as for my experience with tapes I've recorded myself (on different machines), the auto-tracking was extremely aggravating at best! It never would "center" the audio track properly, and I'd end up listening to the sizzle of a slightly off-center sound track on every tape! And manually adjusting the tracking didn't help either, because "auto tracking" would take over again in about 1 minute, and adjust it improperly again!! Made me shout: "Give me my Panasonic back!" So I did get another Panasonic. No funky auto-tracking. It's just not needed, especially for your homemade tapes in SLP/EP mode. Much better to manually do the tracking yourself, if needed. So, overall, I'm very happy with Panasonic products. One fairly small complaint about this unit would be that it's too noisy during playback. The machine many times makes a groaning (or whining) type of noise. This can, at times, be quite annoying. However, it doesn't seem to do it all the time. And only on playback of tapes recorded in SP mode (EP playback is quiet, at least on my machine). And during recording mode, these noises are not evident either. Just playing back. Kind of curious. But not enough of a drawback to keep me from purchasing Panasonic machines in the future. BTW...If you're interested, my Panasonic VCR previous to this one [which unfortunately died of old age after several years of excellent operation; no machine is going to last forever] also had this strange "groan" to it during playback. But, after several months, it just suddenly stopped making these noises altogether, for some unknown reason! Hopefully, this current unit will follow along those lines!
Rating:
Summary: never again a Panasonic product for me
Review: On October 12, 2002, we bought a Panasonic PV-V4612S VCR from Circuit City to replace an old VCR. We took the VCR home, hooked it up, and tested it to make sure it worked. We have two VCRs and don't use either one very often, so it wasn't until December that we realized that the new Panasonic VCR would not play or record on older video tapes but instead would spit these tapes out immediately. Our other VCR (and the VCR that the Panasonic was purchased to replace) never had this problem.
I called Panasonic's 800 number and discussed the problem with a Panasonic representative because I thought maybe the VCR was supposed to reject older tapes for some reason unknown to me. The Panasonic representative assured me that the VCR was not supposed to reject older tapes and told me to take it to an authorized Panasonic service center, which in this case was Consumer Electronic Service. I dropped off the VCR at Consumer Electronic Service. However, Consumer Electronic Service (CES) told me there was nothing wrong with the VCR. I brought in one of our older tapes and showed them that the VCR rejected the tape. The CES representative told me that it worked fine with his sample tapes (which appeared to be brand new) and that there wasn't a problem if there was only one tape that the VCR wouldn't work with. I told him it was many tapes, that our other VCRs had no problem with these tapes, and offered to bring in more tapes to show him the problem. He refused, insisting that if he could get the VCR to work with his sample tapes that there was no problem with the VCR. I appealed to Panasonic, but this time a different Panasonic representative told me that Panasonic would have to accept the service center's diagnosis. They said that I could not get a refund or exchange the VCR for a new one. The only option Panasonic now offered was for me to return the VCR to Panasonic in exchange for a "reconditionedÂE(i.e., used) machine. Of course, by the time I got the used VCR back, the product would be out of warranty.
I am amazed that Panasonic and their certified service provider both refuse to admit that the inability of a VCR to play some videotapes is a defect. I am also very disappointed that the only option offered by Panasonic was to exchange this VCR for another, used VCR which might have had the same problem, at which point the product would have been out of warranty. I am sure that most consumers expect to be able to play their entire video tape collection on a VCR that they purchase. Because this VCR could not play the majority of our videotapes, I believe that this problem certainly does constitute a breach of warranty and consumers who purchase such a machine should have the option of returning the VCR to the manufacturer for a refund. It certainly seems that here, Panasonic used its certified service provider to create the illusion of independent evaluation while actually the certified service provider must be collaborating with Panasonic to declare defective merchandise "non-defective,ÂEthereby sticking the consumer with merchandise that does not work for its intended purpose. I will not be doing business with either Panasonic or Consumer Electronic Service of Cary in the future.
Rating: 
Summary: GREAT basic Hi-fi VCR.....but.....
Review: Programming the timer record function for this model is somewhat time consuming and a little tedious. Operates very quietly in play mode but in rewind mode you could wake the neighbors! Has very good picture quality even when recorded in the SLP mode. You could spend more money and get considerably less machine for it, so all in all, a good buy with some moderate inconveniences.
Rating:
Summary: horrible!
Review: The VCR does have alot of features but what good is it if the picture and audio are horrible? I bought this VCR about a year ago and have yet to enjoy a tape. Recording quality and playback both have problems with constant "snow" in the picture and static in the audio. I'd recommend steering clear of this product!
|
