Panasonic SD-YD250 Bread Machine

Pros: Reliable 13+ yo work horse which gets heavy use w/o any problems
Cons: not enough mouths to feed all the lovely bread one could easily churn out.

Bought this as an indulgence during residency - between 1994-1995 - it was an indulgence as $ were tight. What a great decision! One of my bestest most reliable kitchen products - right up there with the 1985 vintage Cuisinart & my 2006 Electrolux.
The Panasonic bread machine gets used 2 to3x a week - never a problem! I do listen to hear if she sounds like she's straining with too dry dough & I rarely actually bake in her anymore as I prefer to shape my breads by hand. However I do if I want to awaken to the smell of freshly baked bread (that's a really nice way to begin a cold dark morning!).This machine is awesome. No "jam" or "cake" settings - just a reliable workhorse I cherish. Multigrain & raisin settings are very useful bells & whistles.

Pros: works great... bread great
Cons: bread too good.. cant stop eating it..warm bread with butter and jam...

I read the reviews on Epinions before purchasing our first bread maker and to say the least I am quite pleased with this machine. The very first loaf came out great and since we have only had one disaster (due to my own fault). We put the ingredients together in the morning and set the timer for 9 hours and come home to fresh bread or we set it at night and wake up to fresh bread. Smells fantastic..
The only bad thing I can say about this machine is that the bread is tooooo good and you cant stop eating it. We have only made the french bread so far and it is great. We have had this machine for about a month and a half. I would recommend this machine without hesitation. I bought mine on line at Circuit City for about $110 (no tax, no shipping).

Pros: Makes great bread & pizza dough! Timer can have a fresh loaf ready anytime.
Cons: Panasonic support if you need them is a nightmare.

We've had Panasonic breadmakers since the 80's. This is our third one. Its a delight to own and use once you get past any problems.

The bread maker makes a beautiful two pound loaf of bread.
Great consistency to the bread and a great crust. Also makes great pizza dough.

The pan is much easier to remove than the older model we replaced.

Unfortunately we returned the first one we had ordered direct through Panasonic because the pan/basket didn't line up with the motor shaft. What a nightmare dealing with them directly. If you can't buy one at a local store I can only recommend buying one that can be returned, if necessary, to a local store.

Based on past experience this will last us at least ten years and get lots of use by the whole family.

Pros: It seemed sturdy, just didn't bake =)
Cons: Received a defective machine, poor Panasonic customer service

I searched all over for this breadmaker after seeing the high reviews on this site, and finally found it at the AAFES military store for only $99. However, it was backordered for 3 months. Finally got it, and the heating element just plain didn't work. I never got to try it out, as dealing with Panasonic to try to get it fixed was a joke ("Ma'am, do you have the machine plugged in?"), and neither Panasonic nor AAFES could do anything to prevent another 3 month waiting period. =(

Pros: Bread is so good
Cons: loud noise after just under 2 months of owning

I am totally new to the "bread machine world." This is my very first bread machine, and also have never really had any type of contact with one prior. I am hooked, however can anyone tell me if these are made to use everyday?? It seems in just under 2 months I have had it, it is getting noisier and noisier when functioning. I hate it b/c i have a 2 month old, who always wakes up to this machine's noise. It produces fabulous bread still, so I thought maybe bread machines just are "once in a while" products?? I literally use it 4-5 times a week. Stopped buying bread at store - b/c this is healthier. ANY thoughts would be helpful jal123s@yahoo.co.uk Thanks

Pros: Very easy and fast bread. Easy clean-up.
Cons: None so far.

When I first tried this breadmaker, I was disappointed.
The bread was very heavy and dense. It also dried out very quickly. We live in Tucson, Az. and the elevation is 3000 ft. So after some web searching I modified the 'basic sandwich' recipe as follows:

Flour: 3 cups -3 TBSP (down 3 TBSP)
Salt: 2 tsp (up 1/2 tsp)
Dry milk: 2 TBSP (up 1/2 TBSP)
Butter: 2 TBSP (up 1/2 TBSP)
Sugar: 2 heaping TBSP (up about 1 TBSP)
Water: 1 and 1/8 C (down an 1/8 of a cup)
Dry yeast: 1 3/4 tsp. (up 3/4 of a tsp)

Wow! What a difference! Great soft light bread. I'm now a very happy camper :-)

Pros: Benefits:  easy to use and bakes well.
Cons: Pitfalls:  inferior production materials and expensive replacement parts.

I bought the SK-YD250 and used it frequently (once or twice a week).  After about three months of use the kneader part started to wear out (part was made out of a soft metal that the drive shaft "wallowed out"). 
I went online to look for a new part to find that a replacement kneader was over $25.00 plus shipping, too costly for a part that wears out so quickly. 
I am very dissapointed in the quality of the materials used in the production of this bread maker and have returned to the "old" way by using my ever reliable Kitchen Aid Mixer with dough hook.