Bought a used unit from the seller and the one that was sent had some issues. I had visions of this being a disaster. However, the seller worked with me on getting a replacement unit to me, same model, that was in good shape and working condition. The seller was considerate of my expectations and paid for all shipping. It did take a couple of more weeks, but the replacement meets all my expectations according to what was advertised when I ordered it. I am very happy with how this turned out. No disaster here. I am a previous owner of a Sony RDR-VX535. This upgrade definitely has some advantages over my old one. Good machine. Read more
This is one of the few remaining dvd vcr combos that record from one medium to the other, quality is very good. Playback on vcr tapes or dvd discs, the playbacks are in 1080 HD.It can also records directly to vcr or dvd from television. The remote allows these features to be controlled either from the unit itself or the remote, even recording vcr to dvd. We really like our unit and have not had one problem with it. I am not an expert on the particulars of different mediums and other technical information, but in the product description it is listed in detail. I have read some of he negative reviews, these are not problems we've had in the 4 yrs. we've owned ours. It gets used every single day usually 3-4 hours, we recommend. We own this and a Phillips that works the same way, both have performed very well between the 2 we've transferred about 300 vcr movies to dvd. Read more
While the VHS portion of this combo player seems to work well, the unit refuses to play CD's (though it should) and more important, the DVD player is balky - refusing to load some commercial DVD discs, player others on repeated loading attempts, and playing some normally. According to AI, these players suffer from laser output failures due to age and heat, so any units of this vintage (2008) should be considered suspect! Further, even if one is willing to spend more time and money on a replacement DVD drive, they all tend to be of similar vintage. I had asked the seller to check out all functions, but can't fault him since the unit will load some discs some of the time! I'm almost afraid to test the VHS to DVD dubbing feature that makes this product so attractive, when operating. Read more
After the 1st month's use, I have been very satisfied with this unit. (note: I reserve 5-star ratings for items that go above and beyond my expectations or are of exceptional value for the money.) You should also keep in mind the specific uses I had in mind when I bought it (in priority order): 1. Dub off an extensive library of home movies filmed on Hi8 and D8 tapes with Sony Handycams. 2. Record TV off my cable box (non-premium channels) 3. Dub off old home recorded VHS tapes 4. Play commercial DVDs (rarely) Before I go into usage details, I want to pass on my #1 piece of advice for on-line purchasing: >>> Go to the manufacturers' customer support website to download the users manual - and then read it carefully!! <<< I am amazed at how many "1-star" reviews that basically say "it didn't do what I wanted" could have been avoided because either A) the manual never said it would do that, B) the manual implies it might not do that - which usually means it won't, or C) the manual says explicitly says it WILL NOT do that. Of course, reading the manual wouldn't have helped those that apparently got a few of the "lemons". Example "B" above saved me disappointment. As I said in my 1st paragraph, my #1 priority was dubbing off Handycam tapes. I downloaded the manual for the Panasonic DMR-EZ48V that I was considering instead of the Sony. There in small print on pg 29 under "Notes" along with all the other problems you may encounter was the line "Compatibility with video camcorders from other manufacturers is not guaranteed." I found someone with a similar model and, sure enough, the Panasonic and Sony Handycams didn't play well together. The dubbed DVD had repeated video freezes. Apparently Sony and Panasonic don't interpret the IEEE 1394 standard the same way. This unit was effortless to use for dubbing from my Handycam with D8 tapes. It was less than one minute from reading the manual before I had pressed the One-Touch Record button and off it went. I was disappointed that for some reason I couldn't do the same with my Hi8 tapes. I was able to do this with my previous Sony recorder but with this one I had to use the manual (simple dub) mode. I have had no problems with simple timer recordings off TV. I haven't yet found the right codes to use the Sony to change the cable box channels but that is not a big concern for me. I have been satisfied with dubbing off old VHS to DVD and have noticed only the slightest of duplication loss. (Yes, Virginia, there is transmission loss any time an analog medium is used in the process.) I am also not foolish enough to think that any recent Sony, Panasonic, Toshiba, etc. unit would dub off copyright-protected tapes. Therefore I didn't needlessly slam this product with a low rating becuase it didn't do what it said it wouldn't do; see pages 3, 31, 33 and 84 of the Operating Instructions. I have played a few commercial DVDs on the unit and have fortunately not experienced the "freezing" a few have reported. Most of playback is on another unit since I bought this one specifically for recording/dubbing. I haven't tried to record on the VHS since I have no reason to do so. All my DVD recording has been on DVD-R and -RW media. I would recommend this unit to a friend for the uses above. Read more
A very good product. It is somewhat hard to tell the exact quality of the upscaling, but it says it is doing it so I believe it. Recording from VHS to DVD works great, easy to use. This can record from my DVR to either DVD or VHS, in various qualities too, which is extremely handy. Be aware, that sometimes if you record a show on your DVR that if it is copyrighted then sometimes it will not allow you to put it on DVD, it simply closes down and doesn't let you do it. To get around that you have to record to VHS, then back to DVD which is a pain Read more
I bought this item as a gift in January but did not give it to the recipient until the middle of February. Since it was outside of Amazons window for returns I was forced to contact Sony since the item did not work. I asked for a refund or replacement for the item and was told that they could repair it or replace it with a refurbished unit. The unit that I bought was new, not refurbished! Due to my inconvenience and the fact that I paid over 200 dollars for a new item this was not acceptable to me. When I asked if there was someone else I could talk to I was told no one was available. Needless to say I will not ever spend money on a Sony product again. This policy of theirs is totally ridiculous and I would think that good customer relations would warrant them offering a full refund or at least replacement with a new unit. Read more
