Two-fer Deal Saved My VHS Tapes
Written: Jan 14 '05
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Pros: easy set up, simple to use, reliable, extra A/V plug in front, combo
Cons: minor glitches, odd remote with ill-placed unlit keys
The Bottom Line: If you're buying on a budget, this is a solid machine for the money
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| phoenixx's Full Review: Daewoo DV-6T834 DVD Player / VCR Combo |
The great audio-video upgrade-on-a-budget began in Summer 2004. Honey and I had decided that the new house deserved a new TV, Stereo System, and DVD player (well, ok, we decided we deserved those things, but that's semantics). We didn't want to toss the hundreds of VHS tapes we have laying around, so a combo player was called for.
We had a limited budget, and in order to get the 55" TV we wanted we knew we'd have to do some creative spending. We did not, however; wish to skimp on quality. We test drove several models of DVD/VCR combo players at stores around our area, from Circuit City to Target. We ended up buying this from our local Sams Club (in part because they also had the "MondoVision" TV we wanted, but I digress).
At the time of purchase this Daewoo combo player listed at $122, and was sold at Sam's for $79. I was able to purchase the DV-6T834N model - which is basically this in black. It came with a black remote to match, which has white keys (unlit - an issue when trying to watch a romantic movie with the lights off), the necessary batteries for the remote, a user's manual, and the cords needed to connect to a standard, modern television and a power outlet.
The price was a correct indication that this would be a fairly basic DVD/VCR combo, however; we were not looking for anything fancy, so that was fine. The VCR has a record feature, but the DVD does not record. The unit will accept and play CDs, including MP3s. The unit includes basic buttons on the base machine itself for playback, pausing, stopping, rewinding and fast forwarding (a major plus - some of the combo units we looked at only had control by remote - an issue if your remote breaks or the batteries die). The DVD is on a slide-out tray, with a basic open/close button on the main machine. Also on the machine face are one set of extra A/V plug ins - handy when you have a PlayStation 2 like we do that we move from TV to TV in the house - and the button to select between DVD and VCR modes. There is a power button in the rear as well.
The remote control is set up in a strange manner (at least in my opinion). The place I would expect to find the play/stop/FF/RW/Pause buttons has volume and channel control instead, with the buttons that receive the most use at the bottom of the remote - not the place most people rest their thumbs. You can eject CDs, VHS tapes and DVDs and switch modes from VCR to DVD from the remote. You can also record to VHS from the remote. There are some other features I haven't tried on the remote - but the basic DVD menu functions all work properly via remote for me.
One continual issue I have with the player (and here I'm not sure if this is user error or machine error, but being pretty electronics savvy I'm guessing it's a machine issue) has to do with the subtitle feature. After repeatedly following all instructions in the manual (which is written in passable, if not fantastic, English) for setting the player to always play English, withOUT subtitles, I always have to go through the minute it takes to turn off subtitles, and get the thing back to English mode. It's bizarre, and mildly irritating.
The other issue I have with this machine is the frequency that I have to clean the DVD player. I watch a minimum of 6 movies a week, and honey watches his own as well. If we don't run the DVD head cleaner thing through at least weekly, even a brand new, just opened, movie will skip and drag. A little more maintenance than I was planning for.
I don't think this unit has a way to set a time and record a show from TV to VCR. At least I didn't see one in the manual. I looked only for purposes of a complete review - that is not a feature I ever use myself. It does have a clock, which you can set by remote or by the front of the machine. If you lose power you have to set it again yourself. It does not blink when off, but rather has straight lines on the little screen.
That said, this unit has served us well for the price, was easy to set up, is a nice size for the top of the TV, has been fairly simple to use, and has not presented any major issues since purchase. I do have some time left on the warranty. I'm not expecting to use it, but if I do, I'll be sure to let you know here how the company treated the product under warranty.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 79
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Epinions.com ID:
phoenixx
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Member: Leslie
Location: New Hampshire
Reviews written: 38
Trusted by: 15 members
About Me:
Cleverly Disguised As A Responsible Adult
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