I needed a new DVD player and wanted one like the last combination VHS and DVD player I had. That last one had just ceased to spin my discs when I placed them into the tray and even refused to open when I wanted to take out my discs. I make a quick decision on Father’s Day when I looked at a circular in the New York Times that advertised a sale at Target. It was one of the best purchases I ever made.

Standing at just about 4 inches high, 15 inches across and 9 inches deep, it fits easily on just about any standard shelf or, as I have it, on top of my Toshiba television set. The thing only weighs about 4 pounds, and is a nice silverfish grey color- kind of Star Wars style- I wish they had it in black but that wasn’t available.

The player will play back the following: CD- (S)VCD- DVD (like any pre-recoded movie you might buy at a store), DVD+R/RW- DVD-R/RW- DVD+R DL (like the kind of discs you might create at work on the computer, like when you copy something in Real Player onto a disc to take home), VHS; also plays MP3 and JPEG digital camera photos (like the kind of disc that you have shot video onto and pop it out of the camera and put into this machine to play); and also plays Hi-Fi Stereo, and the VHS plays back true stereo VHS.

When placed in ‘pause’ mode, the player side for VHS will pause for about 3 minutes then automatically stop to prevent the heads from wearing too much on the tape. The DVD player is Dolby Digital, seems to be able to pause indefinitely without browning out. I have used the dubbing function to copy many original discs onto VHS without losing much quality.

The big drawback and probably the main reason that this product is on sale at such a low price is that it does not come with a tuner. For me, that only person in the Northern Hemisphere who does not watch TV, meaning that I do not have a cable with Television Signals coming into my house, nor do I have rabbit ears (personally, or otherwise attached to my TV), which means I do not watch Cable Television shows, so I do not have any relationship with any regularly-scheduled programs on HBO, Showtime, or any TV stations, so when people ask me about what happened on Lost last night, I appear lost because I am.

So I had to purchase a modulator to use with my DVP3345V/17 - VHS DVD player so I could watch DVDs and VHS tapes on my TV (which in this case merely functions as a monitor).

I went to Radio Shack and purchased a Video Component Adapter RF Modulator which states on the package that it easily connects a DVD player, VCR, cable TV or Satellite receiver to any TV that does not have A/V inputs. The things cost me $27.49, and I needed to buy an additional BNC cable, and once I attached all the cables and plugged in the modulator I had a great signal. So I ended up spending just under $100 dollars for a new VHS/DVD player with all the proper hookups.

Since I do not watch TV, my primary use for the player is for watching movies either on VHS tape or DVD. My collection contains a good many films that are not yet available on DVD in the United States, so I really use my tape player as much as my DVD player and this machine is a great buy for the cost.

The player comes with a 63-page manual which gives a very comprehensive look at every one of the player functions, including all the functions available, and in English, French and Spanish. If you peruse the manual you can learn how to program all the functions of the machine including the clock- if you have time, this is especially helpful because the manual will instruct you how to set up all your cable boxes before or after the player.

What is a great addition is the Quick Start Guide which is a three-page overview of the major steps you need to go through to set up your player and play a disc or tape- this addition has pictures showing all the steps to go through so nothing is left to untranslatable chance.

The player comes with a Product Registration Card that urges the buyer to return within 10 days of purchase to ensure product registration privileges, confirmation of ownership, and product safety notification- not a bad idea in case of flood or fire and you want to file an insurance claim- otherwise the card appears to be pretty much a way to set you up for a million spam mails and junk mail deliveries, not to mention telemarketers- proceed at your own discretion.

Great little combo for the price and easy to set up and operate, for under a C-note.

Recommended: Yes

Amount Paid (US$): 68.