Sansui VRDVD4005 DVD Player / VCR Combo

Pros: IDE-based DVD recorder, dedicated controls on remote, a decent combo
Cons: Reliability, tedious menu interface, remote control, sluggish DVD load times

I happened upon the Sansui (not the good Sansui of many years ago, just Orion's sub-brand) VRDVD4005 combo recorder a few days ago at a thrift. Of course, the markings on the top cover noted that the DVD recorder section was non-functioning and the VCR ...

Pros: Many discs finalized. Speed/quality flexibility.
Cons: Full DVD recording not possible after ~3 years. Wasted discs. No pause during dubbing.

Maybe I have lofty expectations, but a major malfunction after 3 or so years is unreasonable. I purchased this unit from a friend in early or middle of 2004. He had it for about a year. I made many recordings from VHS to DVD over the 2 years I had it. ...

Pros: Great price, great feature set, reliable.
Cons: Awkward manual, limited to DVD-R/RW and commercial DVD.

I found this unit by accident while shopping for a DVD recorder. I hadn't seen a combo DVDR/VCR unit anywhere, and was somewhat surprised to see one at Sears. In light of the price of DVD-only recorders at the time, I decided to snag it. Several months ...

Pros: Play-back picture quality, thoroughly written documentation, flexibility in recording
Cons: DVD-RW disks harder to find more expensive than DVD+RW in my area.

I purchased this unit on eBay in March of 2004. I have played both VHS tapes & DVDs. Both worked superbly well. I recorded from VHS to DVD and from TV to DVD and as well to VHS. The picture quality is great. There were no problems as long as I followed the directions to the letter. I have had no problems with this unit and and am thoroughly satisfied with it. Its a steal at the price I paid on Ebay even though is was an opened box unit.
Based on pictures that I've seen in recent newspaper ads this unit appears to be coming out also under other names. This may be so as Sears seems to be the only 'brick & mortar' retailer that is selling the Sansui4005. Using other brand names may be the only way that this unit can be sold by other retailers.

Pros: Nice looking. Has a zoom feature that we found hard to find in other units.
Cons: DVD portion rarely works. Cannot record personal DVD to VHS.

Hard to use. The player has to have all the planets in alignment to work! You MUST read the whole operating manual in order to know how to work it, and even then---if you have questions/problems, there is no website info or 800# to call to get help. Will not play MOST of our pre-recorded DVDs. Very inconsistent play-reliability. VERY slow loading for DVD reading. Not worth the money!

Pros: I like all the options that come with it.
Cons: Have not found any at this time.

I purchased this product and have recorded a few movies we have on VHS over to a DVD. It works great. I have only had this product a few days but it seems to work flawlessly. There is so much you can do with it. You can record from DVD to VHS, VHS to DVD, TV to VHS or DVD, Camcorder to VHS or DVD and you can also watch a DVD and tape a TV program to VHS or vise versa. When we tape a movie off of TV, you can go through and edit what is on the DVD, removing commercials and overlaps. I really haven't had this product long enough to give you my personnel recommendation on whether you should buy it or not, but I have to say that I am impressed with it.

Pros: Price
Cons: Unable to get it to finalize a disc Slow response to menus

I purchased the VRDVD4005 at Sears as a Christmas present for my wile and despite many attempts have never been able to get it to completely record and finalize any video. I have tried at least 5 brands of DVD-R and DVD-RW discs without success. Has anybody else had this problem and is there a solution to it?
Thanks
tom@leen.com

Pros: Very easy to set up. Great Manual! Lots of advanced features!
Cons: Does not play Video CDs, but who really cares!

I have owned this unit for a week now and all I can say is WOW! I have recorded several DVDs off of my TiVo, and VHS to DVD copies. Each one has recorded flawlessly.
The manual is one of the most comprehensive of any audio/video component I have ever owned. Be sure to read it from cover to cover before recording DVDs. There is a lot of information in there and it is all worth at least a once over.
All in all, I have to say that I am very satisfied with this recorder.
I purchased it at Sears for $249.00 right after the New Year.
Also, it comes with a one year warranty, which is about 9 months longer than most others!

Pros: The system is easy to operate and burns all brands.
Cons: I'm a senior non-driver. I wish i could return it where i purchased it.

I purchased the DVD/VCR recorder and am not satisfied with it. I returned my first one to be repaired because i had error messages on about 1/2 that i tried to burn. Sears replaced the recorder in July 2004 and for 4 months i had no problems. The past 3 weeks i have had many show no error message but when i play them they them back they lock up.

Pros: Great VHS/DVD Player
Cons: DOES NOT RECORD IN EITHER VHS OR DVD MODE.

I had been searching for a VHS/DVD combo recorder. At first glance, the unit I purchased from Sears was very impressive. Guess looks can truly be deceiving. The unit worked great as a VHS/DVD player, but that's about all. It would not record a thing. I followed every procedure down to the last letter. Unfortunately, the recorder part on both sides did not work. I wasted money buying various types of DVD-RW discs to use with the unit. I would NOT recommend this product to anyone.

Pros: Records cleanly and rarely fails.
Cons: Slow to finalize discs.
Can't pause videotapes when converting to DVD.

I've had this machine since 2003 and the only bad thing I can say about it is the ridiculously long wait time during the finalization process. Also, when converting VHS to DVD, you can't pause the video tape. You have to physically stop it from recording to scan through commercials or something. That's a bit of a pain. Other than that, it runs like a dream!