Toshiba SD-V593 Progressive Scan DVD/VCR Combo with HDMI

• Progressive scan DVD/VCR combo; measures 17" x 3.5" x 9.8 inches (WxHxD)
• DVD player compatible with DVD movie, CD audio, DVD-R/RW, CD-R/RW, VCD, and SVCD discs; MP3, WMA, JPEG
• 9-in-2 memory card reader; VCR with 8-event/1-year programming
• 1 HDMI, 2 composite in, 1 composite out, 1 S-Video out, 1 component out, 1 digital optical audio out, 1 RF in, 1 RF out
• Dolby Digital and DTS surround sound modes

Note: Past Toshiba DVD players have had documented problems reading disc (see all product reviews prior to 59.. series). This is not the better, newer 59.. DVD model. They are using the older (bad) drive in the combo VCR/DVD to save money.

I purchased this model expecting the newer 59.. model DVD drive. This drive has eliminated many of the previous problems associated with Toshiba DVD system. Unfortunately, I gave Toshiba too much credit.

The system showed all the signs of being the older drive. Skipping, random pixilated image, loss of sound, and problems initializing the disc. Come to find out they are using the older drives to save money on these combo units. Toshiba has deceptively named this model after their newer, redesigned system in an attempt to sell their remaining stock of older drives.

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Well, I didn't need to read far into the first customer review to discover that my issue wasn't singular. The issue? The DVD player, after working just fine, just stopped reading disks. Boom, just like that, over, out and that's all she wrote! One night it was working great, the next night a "NO DISK" message. Naturally, I tried a number of disks, even the optical lens cleaner one, but no go, it's dead.

The player was got in late August of '05. I'm the only user and I'm a Type-A careful guy, so I didn't do whatever killed it.

For image and sound, high marks while it worked. For longevity, minus marks; why should it only function for 13 months? I've got another DVD player, Toshiba, or there would be no need to mention it, that's been working wonderfully for over 6 years. Why this glaring discrepancy in the products sold under the same name?

If you are comfortable spending a fair amount of money for short-time usage, it gives high quality pictures and sound while it's alive. Otherwise, research DVD players and buy something reliable, which this particular one isn't, alas.

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After reading some of the reviews a few months I reluctantly purchased this machine because it had the features I wanted. I was reluctant to buy because of the difficulty many reviewers on here expressed about set-up and getting a picture.

I had no problem setting it up and it used to work fine. However we've had it a few months now and the machine does not recognize DVD disks. I've read other online reviews today of Toshiba's other DVD products and it seems that their products give up after a few months.

I've always been a Sony guy and have bought MANY things over the years from them without any problems (as with any company I'm sure Sony does have some occaisonal defective products, but I personally have never come across any). At any rate I can not recommend buying any Toshiba DVD products based on my limited experience and what I've read.

I went to Toshiba's web site to see if they offered trouble shooting. It seems logical to devote some space on the web site that lists the various error messages with suggested actions. The web site does not have this. I did look at the owner's manual, which does offer some trouble shooting, but it does not cover this particular error message. Toshiba's customer support is open M-F, 10 am to 7 pm Eastern. I'll call them when they're open. Obviously customer support is another weak point of Toshiba. I'm in California so I'd have to call between 7 am to 4 pm California time, and I'm either on my way to the office or already there. So their hours of operation for most people in the Western US is inconvenient.

To be fair I do not know Sony's customer support hours (or if they are better) but that's only because I've never had a problem with Sony or had a reason to call them.

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I've had this combo VCR/DVD for two weeks now and so far I am very pleased. I didn't have any issues with connectivity to my Pioneer Elite Plasma. I have the DVD portion of the player connected via the supplied HDMI cable to Input 3 of the plasma and the VCR portion connected via the supplied composite cables to Input 2 of the plasma.

The picture quality of the upconverting (I'm using 720p at the moment) DVD is very good especially at this price point. I considered other DVD players from Denon and Panasonic but decided on this Toshiba. I decided I would save a little money for similar PQ and a VCR as well for the tapes I haven't replaced yet. Since HD-DVD or Blu-Ray is right around the corner I didn't want to spend too much on the upconverting feature, which is merely a stopgap technology anyway.

As for the VCR picture quality, it is fine. It's more a function of displaying on a 43" Plasma than the player anyway. I don't know of any player that will display a great VHS picture on a large screen panel.

Overall, I'm very happy with this unit. The price/performance can't be beat as far as I'm concerned. I obviously haven't had the player long enough to comment on its durability, build quality etc, but I'll be keeping an eye on it and add to my review in a few months.

This machine only lasted a few months and know the DVD player constantly freezes. I tried cleaning it, but it still constantly freezes to the point that watching the movie is impossible.