JVC HR-XVC20U Hi-Fi DVD-VCR Combo , Black
About what I expected...
I'll start off with the good points -- Playback is uniformly excellent, and I've had absolutely zero problems with playing DVDs, VCDs, even SVCD on CD-RW.  The remote took over most of the functions of my TV remote after extremely minimal setup.  The system itself looks nice, and is generally well laid-out, with a few carefully chosen controls on the front panel.  The MP3 playback mode is a particularly nice feature.  I've owned this for several months now, and so far it's been perfectly reliable.<br />Now the disappointments.  The remote is frequently a pain to use -- the labels on most of the option buttons are tiny, confusing, and occasionally misleading, and there seems to be no logical order to them.  The most forehead-slapping example would have to be the buttons which choose subtitles and audio tracks -- they're *miles* from each other, and neither one is clearly labeled as to its purpose...  Audio switching is done by repeatedly pressing \\"A. Monitor\\", for example, and subtitle switching is the alternate function of a button whose primary function I don't remember since I've never used it.  Glow-in-the-dark buttons would also have been a nice feature for those of us who like to watch movies with the lights out.<br />DVD+/-R is iffy at best, with some sound problems, and some discs completely refused.  If playing home-burned movies is a priority, look elsewhere.<br />One more thing I wish I'd known -- I had been hoping that with the S-VHS emulation mode, that I'd be able to play the VCR through the S-Video port.  As it turns out, this is impossible.  This made wiring this thing to my TV and stereo a serious logistical challenge.  Effectively this is two seperate appliances sharing the same case and a few of the same outputs -- it will save you some room in your entertainment center, but it won't save you any wiring.  This is the case with most, if not all, of these VCR/DVD combos, though, so it's not exactly a strike against it, I'd just like to know why it'sapparently so difficult to handle S-Video gracefully on these things.<br />This is probably not a good choice for anybody serious about home theatre, but is certainly a good performer for folks who just want a reliable, up-to-date replacement for an aging VCR, say.