Sony RDR-VX500 DVD Player/Recorder with VCR
It's the bomb!
Hope I'm not premature here, but I just made my first DVD dub from a VHS home movie tape and everything is as good as can be.  Remember, the VHS playback (which may also record, but who cares?) is in the same streamlined case, so you don't have to hook up your old camcorder, or buy one, or clean the heads, etc.   It plays back S-VHS too, so I imagine it can dub those as well, although I haven't tried.   If you're familiar with video equipment, will take about five minutes to get going; if you're not familiar, maybe 15 minutes or more depending on your aptitude for following manuals for \\"menu\\" items.   Incidentally, probably a very much higher percentage of unsatisfied customers (got \\"lemon\\", nitpicker, neurotic, etc.) post negative reviews on the web than the percentage of satisfied customers.  Elementary psychology, my dear Watson.  Addendum May 20, 2005: while it makes a DVD from S-VHS it does not make a S-VHS from your commercial or other DVD -- only a VHS.  I've bought so much equipment I believe this is a manufacturing cost difference to SONY of about $2, but of course I could be way off. Perhaps there is a copyright/duplication issue lurking in their anti-consumer choice here.  I also dubbed from a JVC MINI-DV camcorder, purchasing from eBay the connecting cord for about $10 instead of JVC's house cord for about $35.   When you hit the start button on the SONY recorder, it automatically starts the camcorder as well, a characteristic, evidently, of DV connections.  Finally, you might think the slot for your VHS home tape is unnecessary, as you could simply cable your camcorder or a VCR to a simpler designed DVD recorder.  Trust me, it's a lot more fun not to have bother with another appliance. (But note I had to for my MINI-DV tapes, and will have to use yet another appliance (or a camcorder) to track my HI-8 and 8 tapes for DVD dubbing.   How many more formats before I die?)