Price Paid:  $415.00 from retailer

Summary:
this is my 1st player & I bouhgt it in 1999. basically it's ideal for DVD but unluckily it won't play with CDR. Now i'mlooking for new one with DTS/AC3 together on board and must play CDR
a/way Panasonic is good for picture, much better than Pinoeer I've seen

Strengths:
Nice picture, good sound

Weaknesses:
can not play CDR, no DTS/component video out, Remote need push hard

Similar Products Used:
none

Price Paid:  $799.00 from Best Buy

Summary:
I bought this player the first week DVD's came out and never needed to buy another one since. I haven't had any problems with the laser pick-up like everyone talks about and the DD Decoder is great. I plan on buying a progressive player in the future, but until then this player will stay where it is.

Strengths:
AWESOME Player. Multi-Region and NEVER had a problem. Clean picture and AWESOME sound!!

Weaknesses:
No bass control. Price I paid compared to the prices of players now.

Similar Products Used:
Pioneer and Hitachi

Price Paid:  $370.00 from Hall

Summary:
I'm not a Panasonic fan. But what i am is an Archive junkie. & this was the only player in the market that would let me record movies from a DVD over to my Hi-Fi Tapes. & THAT was the main reason why i got this player.
Few DVDs did give me problems, but that was because the guys who rented before me were probably using them as coffee coasters. Player isn't too great for playing music though, so i prefer using my old LD player for that (it's no good for anything else anyway since everything now adays is on DVD!). Plays CDRs & VCDs without a glitch. Although not too intelligent .. for instance open the tray, power off the unit & the tray just hangs out whereas my old Pioneer LD player was smart enough to close all doors before going to bed.
If you're going to play a lot of VCDs, get something else. Even though it would play VCDs just fine, doesn't even have a time search so you have to hold the jog until you get to 50:25. Even though time search works fine on DVDS. i wonder what Panasonic people were thinkng of when they excluded the time feature from VCDs .. Vinyls?!
But Overall, Ok .. although if built in AC-3 decoder & recording isn't your priority, i'm sure you can find something better elsewhere!

Strengths:
Built in AC-3 decoder. Recording Capability. Decent Picture & Sound.

Weaknesses:
Average on Audio Tracks. Can't play CDRWs. Pathetic maneuvering on VCDs.

Similar Products Used:
None

Price Paid:  $375.00 from Best Buy

Summary:
I got this DVD player 4 days after they hit the shelves at Best Buy. I had read everything under the Sun about the release of DVD, and this one just fell in my lap. On openning day I had heart failure at the $750 price tag and opted not to buy it. With some soul searching, I went back three days later ready to plop down the $750 and spotted this one as an open box item. Some other guy bought it, took it home, and apparently his wife kicked his ass, because he returned it! I like this guys wife, she saved me $350!

As for the player, the primary reason I picked it was the built in decoder, which worked well with my 'AC-3 Ready' Kenwood receiver. The performance was excellent and it has continued to perform well since. I have had to clean it a couple of times to keep it playing well on the Matrix and some other DVDs. Picture quality is good and sound is good. Considering this is a first generation player, its reliable serivce to date are a good indication of its quality.

I have upgraded to a Marantz 880 MkII receiver with its own AC-3 decoder and sound has improved significantly. Although the on-board decoder is solid, the Marantz greatly enhanced the overall sound quality. I will be buying another DVD soon for my new home theater room that is nearly finished. I will look carefully at newer Panasonics, yet will likely move to Marantz or Onkyo as an upgrade. Panasonic has served me well as a first player. The choices have greatly improved since I purchased this unit.

Strengths:
Consistent, Longevity, Easy to use

Weaknesses:
Won't Play CD-R or CD-RW recordings

Similar Products Used:
First DVD

Summary:
my first dvd player. i have to disagree with others, mine plays cd-r disks fine. haven't tried rw's, tho. my reciever is just pro-logic, so can't speak for ac-3 ability. plays matrix fine. on my next dvd player, i'll consider panasonic, thet haven't done me wrong yet. wife hates it because now i want a dolby digital reciever :-) mike

Strengths:
cheap. $100 as open box product at circuit city. it was a display

Weaknesses:
didn't come with a remote(lost a long time ago)