Rating: 
Summary: Excellent out of the box-- no manual needed
Review: If you have ever connected a VCR or DVD then this unit will offer no problems in setup; in fact, I did not have to use the manual at all. I bought this VCR/DVD combo mainly on the quality of Sony's name (having bought a Sony camcorder and laptop PC in the past), and the fact that I could replace an aging cheap VCR and DVD for less than both units together would cost. Since my family will use this system heavily (4 hours plus a day), I did not mind going for the quality.I tried both old and new DVDs and tapes as I tested the unit and had no problems with pauses, skips, or picture quality. Some of the DVDs did have scratches (you can't have kids and DVDs in the house without scratches!) The remote control's basic functions are easy to learn, and the remote did control the channels and volume on my Sanyo TV. (If you own a Sony TV, you will get more functions.) The setup funtions all worked well and "intuition" alone guided me through the menus. The automatic clock set and the channel learning were the only settings I had to use; everything else stayed at default with no problems. If you want to stay cheaper, look to Emerson and Panasonic, but for me, once again, Sony has come through with another great product.
Rating: 
Summary: Bad News
Review: When shopping for a dvd/vhs combination player, I compared the various makes and models out there. Ultimately, I chose to pay a little more to get a Sony, based on my past great experiences with Sony products. The unit worked fine until, as fate would have it, it suddenly stopped working, right after the labor warranty expired (90 days). It won't even turn on - it just died. In contrast, a Toshiba provided a few years of heavy use before it gave up the ghost. This was a real disappointment. Now, I can chose to ship it to Sony and pay the labor charges to fix the unit (which will likely be more than buying a new unit) or I can throw it away and buy something with proven reliability. I should have done my homework. Unlike a lot of Sony products, this unit is made in China. I can only surmise that based on most everyone else's experiences, Sony has a serious problem with their factory there. I have a feeling we'll all get some class action lawsuit paperwork in the mail down the road.
Rating:
Summary: Piece of Junk
Review: This unit started out working poorly and went downhill from there. Sony's warranty is awful at 90 days, I don't know another manufacturer that offers such a short warranty on their products. After a series of poor quality products from Sony I am done purchasing from them. What is amazing to me besides the very poor quality design of the unit is the poor logic that went into the programming of it. There are just little logic flaws in its operation make it a much less satisfying unit to use. My 4 year old Toshiba DVD player was much better designed and a much higher quality machine, this was suppose to be an upgrade. I will be replacing this most likely with another Toshiba unit. We got this as a gift but save your money and purchse another brand.
Rating:
Summary: A GREAT COMBO DVD VCR!
Review: What the hell are you people talking about? For those of us who are not super geeks who obsess about every little quirk with our electronic items then this is the regular persons best buy. I just wanted something that lasted, worked well, and was easy to operate. This item fits the bill. This is a great combo DVD/VCR! Compact, easy to use controls, great Sony quality, and a very reasonable cost! I have had NO problems with this unit and love it! If you want a system that plays both VHS tapes and DVDs then look no further!
Rating: 
Summary: its ok...
Review: I got this unit thinking that it would be great since it is a Sony. It was easy to hook up and at basic testing seems fine. The unit does have mp3 cd and jpg cd playback which is nice. I personally haven't had any dvd playback issues as others have but I have been disappointed with the quality. When hooked up to a 100 watt amplifier with the volume at less then 1/4 this unit even when off produces an noticeable annoying electronic whinny noise. I also found that it failed to do well in hi-fi recording. The unit would act oddly and many times record in the old style with the audio on the side of the tape, and in this case made a disgusting warping sound. I also am disappointed that this player does not have options for random or programmable playback. I wish I did not buy this and I had bought a single dvd player and used my old hi-fi vcr.
Rating:
Summary: DVD stops all the time
Review: I got this thinking that Sony always makes quality. Up until this point it has been fairly true. After bringing this home and plugging it into my Plasma TV, I was glad that is worked the way it should. Everything looked great. Then, after about 45 minutes of watching, the picture froze. I assumed that the neighbors had a Sony remote for their TV and had it pointed in my direction. This happened time and time again. Night after night. I closed the blinds and it still stopped in the middle of a movie. This became VERY, VERY irritating. Only after realizing that there is no way a remote could be doing this, I found other people with the same problem.
Thanks but no thanks Sony. You blew it on this one. Learn your lesson and never start mass-producing a product that doesn't work.
Rating:
Summary: Piece of Junk
Review: Don't waste your money. I bought this product 6 months ago. Yesterday it stopped working. Completely dead. Customer support will trade me for a refurbished unit for $85. Any complaints about this are ignored and a stock answer ("your unit appears to need repair") email is sent. Sony used to mean quality, but not for at least this product, based on many other customers experiences.
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