Sony SLV-D300P Progressive-Scan DVD-VCR Combo
Great but lousy remote
UPDATE: As of Summer 2006, this deck is gone. Stopped playing discs at all even after a lens cleaning. I threw it away and am left with a sour feeling toward anything Sony.<br /><br />As a DVD player it plays great. As a VCR player it also plays great, and plays videos better than two other VCRs I owned. Worn tapes play almost as new on this Sony, and I have been very pleased with the overall performance. I also like the nice touch of the machine automatically switching to the front inputs when you plug something in (in my case a camcorder).<br /><br />BUT: The remote is absolutely awful, and the deck doesn't automatically set itself to play on the TV.<br /><br />The remote is awful becuase the button groupings are not intuitive, the buttons are small, the labels are small, and they are not lit. So it is impossible to use in the dark. Further, unless you own a Sony TV, you can only use limited buttons to control the TV (no direct channel change buttons, for example, only channel up, channel down and volume).<br /><br />The deck doesn't set itself to play through when you switch it on as did every other VCR I have ever owned, and there is no way to do it from the front panel.  Additionally, you cannot control the DVD without the remote (OK, play only but no start menus)... So if you want to watch a DVD without the remote ... you can't.<br /><br />Simple things that SHOULD have been done in the original design. Typical Sony, I suppose. But they should have done better.