Rating: 
Summary: Remotely disappointing
Review: One would think that in this day of breath-taking technological advances, creating a dependable and user-friendly DVD/VCR combo would be child's play for manufacturers like Toshiba and Panasonic. Upon setting up this Toshiba unit, the latest acquisition in what may be my serial quest to find such a machine, I am rather reminded of the occasional difficulty some folks have in walking and chewing gum at the same time. The Toshiba replaces a similar Panasonic unit (Model No. PVD4742) which I received last year as a birthday present. Having always been a big Panasonic fan, I was not surprised by the unit's excellent video recording capabilities or with its clever DVD playback otpions. But there were two issues, one fatal. First, the remote was an ergonmic hodgepodge of indecipherable function keys so tiny that one was almost forced to use a stylus to operate them. But that glitch was nothing compared to the machine's occasional failure to "accept" VHS tapes, i.e., a tape (no matter old or new) could be placed in the slot, but the door would not close and the tape would be ejected. Despite my best efforts to get Panasonic's attention, they would do nothing about it, indeed suggesting that since they had never encountered the problem, I was likely imagining it. Having written off that machine (resolving at the same time to shun Panasonic products for the foreseeable future), I was attracted to this Toshiba unit because I have also had excellent luck with their products, including an older VCR which functioned perfectly with the most comfortable and instinctive remote I've ever used. I also noted in this site's close-up of the machine's remote that it appeared far more simple than the Panasonic's. It wasn't until setting up the new machine that I realized that the remote's simplicity comes at a price. In order to squeeze in every function button apparently demanded by the discerning DVD viewer, they omitted a couple of functions one never uses, like, for instance, volume control. That's right, the remote enables you to make a DVD stand on its end and translate German subtitles, but you can't adjust the volume, and since there is almost always a disparity between TV and tape sound volume, you thus always have to have the TV (or another) remote at hand as you switch from one to the other medium. Absolutely infuriating! Otherwise, the new machine's functions are about average: VHS recording on SLP is OK, but not as good as the Panasonic's, VCR timed recording is more complex than necessary (and much more so than my older machine), and the basic DVD controls are straightforward and reasonably legible. But if I had realized that there was no volume control, I would have continued to argue with Panasonic or bought another brand. On reflection, maybe it's best just to have separate VCR and DVD players because it certainly appears that the combo's are simply too much trouble--for both manufacturers and their customers.
Rating: 
Summary: Toshiba...or is it?
Review: The front exterior of this unit is made by Toshiba but the insides are manufactured by LG Electronics, which makes Zenith products.I had to return mine within a week. The DVD player worked fine, and so did the VCR, except for the fact that the timer record function proved unreliable. Sometimes the machine would simply not record when it was supposed to; other times it would not turn off after it was finished recording. Also, the timer recording screen was very tedious to use. Amazon.com makes returns extremely easy, so I did not get stuck with a unit that I might have otherwise been forced to send to a service center and wait who knows how long to get repaired.
Rating:
Summary: Good for 6 months
Review: This combo unit seemed like a good buy - stylish, functional and reasonably priced. After six months of use - mostly for childrens videos, the playback quality deteriorated - even on brand new tapes, and after several cleanings. Now, a tape will not eject, and that malfunction has caused the entire unit to shut down. So, now I have a brand new tape stuck in the slot, my kids' favorite DVD is stuck in the other drive, and we have to take it in to retrieve our media. What a pain. Now I have read the reviews here, and I realize this product is lousy. Bad choice.
Rating:
Summary: Problems!
Review: This combo unit would have received atleast 4 stars if it wern't for a pretty big problem that has already been identified by [another reviewer]. The first machine I had would not record from the timer all the time. Hoping it was just a lemon, I returned it but after a few weeks it failed again to record from the timer. Luckily it is under extended guarantee so I hope to return it for a DIFFERENT MODEL.
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