Sony RDRGX315 DVD Recorder
Recorder, yes, but what about the player?
(I'm not commenting on the recorder part - just the player.) <br /> <br />I bought this mainly to replace an aging Sony player that was having trouble with long movies and well-used rental discs.  The fact that it is also a recorder was nice, though I really haven't used it yet. <br /> <br />It had no trouble with the previously-troublesome discs, and gave me a beautiful, error-free picture. <br /> <br />But I'm returning it tomorrow.  The reasons sound petty, but are really annoying for me, based on how I want my DVD player to work: <br /> <br />1.  There is no screen saver - if you pause the playback, it will start playing 10-15 minutes later.  So if you have to pause to take a phone call (or for some other reason), be aware that you'd better be quick or the movie will go on without you. <br /> <br />This might not have been a deal-breaker for me if I could have just stopped it and resumed when I was ready.  But... <br /> <br />2.  There is really no Resume feature - if you stop the disc, or eject it, you have to start over.  The only way to get it do a resume is by powering down the player.  This is not what I'm looking for. <br /> <br />3.  The freakishly long delay on tray-opening from power-up and the even longer delay before playing a commercial DVD.  I realize there's a lot of disc examination needed, so the play delay is understandable, if annoying.  But the power-up empty-tray-opening delay is over the top. <br /> <br />4. There's gotta be something wrong with the remote.  I often had to press the buttons twice and always had to point the remote directly at the Sony.  It always seemed to take several seconds for the Sony to wake up and recognize the remote - a real \\"mushy\\" feeling. <br /> <br />5. The display on the unit is tiny, uninformative, and very difficult to see from any reasonable distance. <br /> <br />These are not the ergonomics I expect from Sony - especially in this price range.  It may not be enough to affect your buying decision, but it affects mine.  Sorry, Sony.  It's the little things that count.  You can do it right with your players. Why not with your recorders? <br /> <br />The good? <br /> <br />1. The player really does produce a wonderful picture and the controls for adjusting that are excellent. <br /> <br />2. The fan was nicely quiet.