- Average user rating: 3.0 stars out of 4 reviews Back to product review
- My rating: 0 stars
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2 out of 2 people found this review helpful
2.0 stars
"Got two successive units which would crash in second half of playing DVD"
Pros: Good Features
Cons: Issues playing my DVDs, terrible support
Summary: I purchased this unit, and found the feature set to be great. But in playing my existing DVD-Rs -- which had been recorded on a Toshiba PC and played fine on my other DVD player -- problems developed. The Panasonic would play the first half fine, but then in the second half it would start displaying big unpainted blocks on the screen, and then finally hang for a few seconds and return to the menu. It did this on multiple DVDs, all of which played fine all the way through on my other DVD player (a Toshiba).
Just in case there was some unexpected thing they could suggest, I contacted Panasonic support. After traversing a large phone menu, I was told someone would be with me in an estimated 25 minutes. I hung up and exchanged the unit for another just like it. The second one had exactly the same issue. I tried giving Panasonic support one more chance -- this time they estimated 40 minutes to speak to someone.
So I returned the unit and bought a Toshiba D-R4 Multi-Drive DVD Recorder. It is the same price (slightly less in fact), and has almost exactly the same features. As a double-check before buying it, I called Toshiba support to ask them about disk editing, and a technical support agent answered within about 30 seconds and answered my question. So the support is there too.
Most importantly, it plays all my DVDs fine. But also, after trying it, I found several features in the Toshiba that had not been on the Panasonic, to my pleasant surprise. They include:
- A "zoom" feature, which lets you magnify part of the screen to see something you are interested in
- A "replay" button, which backs up an amount you can set to hear again what someone on the show said, see something cool again, etc. This is a feature I had missed in my previous DVD player from my TiVo. Replay is much more useful than rewind, wait, play, try to get the timing right.
- Shows how long a program is, and what % you are through it. The Panasonic showed how far you are into the program, but not how much time is remaining or what % you are through it. In deciding whether to finish a movie now or hold the rest for later, this is pretty helpful information.
- Will record timer programs even if you forget and leave the DVD recorder turned on, so long as there is a disc loaded with space on it.
- It even has free shipping at Amazon, which the Panasonic does not.
In the end, I was quite glad the Panasonic had these problems, so I would find the Toshiba D-R4 instead and get these additional features for free. The only issue I found on the Toshiba is that it is only available in silver (which doesn't match all my black Audio Video components well), but that is a pretty small issue.
- 1 reply to this review
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I already have a Panasonic receiver. I tried for a WEEK to get phone support with NASTY menu perusals. My quickest quoted time was 30 minutes! I was trying to find out if the DMR-ES10K DVR would work with my unit before I purchased it. Well, after this experience, I'm not going to buy a Panasonic anyway. I'll buy a can of spray paint and some masking tape, and buy a Toshiba. Are you listening Panasonic?
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