Toshiba MW24FP1 24-Inch TV/DVD/VCR Combo
79-pound set could use another pound of sound
With entry-level DVD players, CRT TVs, and VCRs all available at commodity pricing, the attraction of an all-in-one set like this is not cost, but setup simplicity and freedom from a rat's nest of wires.    Setup is straightforward, as you would expect it to be. Once unboxed and plugged in, you're up and running in 5-10 minutes.    Out of the box the picture seemed a bit intense. Sure enough, the set is shipped from the factory with the contrast at the maximum (+32) setting. I dialed it back to flat. To correct the slightly oversaturated color and overly-bright reds and oranges, I was able to adjust the color and tint to get a very good (for the price range) picture. Your taste and set may differ, but it is worth spending a few minutes getting the picture right.    You can pick up a well designed remote and immediately find the channel and volume buttons with your thumb. Not so here. These oft-used controls are hidden in plain sight amid identical numerical, mute, and display keys. You find yourself spending too much looking at the remote, which can be annoying in the dark.    The DVD player and VCR both work well. The DVD player loaded and changed scenes fairly quickly and played without odd artifacts. The VCR performed well, if unspectacularly. There is no flashing 12:00 to remind you of the days before ergonomics -- that is the remote's job.    The set has small (1-13/16 x 3 7/8 inch) front-firing speakers on either side of the screen driven by 1.5 watts per channel. Not surprisingly, they sound like they look -- thin. I keep finding myself turning the volume up to \\"find\\" bass which isn't there. The obvious solution would be to route around the issue and run RCA plugs from the back panel audio out jacks to a stereo, but this negates some of the appeal of a combo set.    The instruction manual included is clear, which is a good thing because the on-screen menus are only average.    CONCLUSION  The picture is pretty good for this price point. Spending some time looking at much more expensive plasma, LCD and DLP sets, you appreciate how good CRT (picture tube) technology has become, even as it heads into the sunset. I found the MW24FP1 did everything competently. The sound is thin and the remote could be better, but combined these only merit a one star deduction.