harpitect

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
More than 1 year

Price Paid:  $79.00 from Electronic Express

Summary:
I don't know why the other reviewer of this DVD player had such a bad experience. Our DV-354 has been an excellent performer. Picture quality on our 800-line Samsung TV is superb. Digital 5.1 sound separation is very effective and distinct. We use a Sony STR-DE635 AV receiver, which does an excellent job of processing the DVD signals and sending them to the proper channels. The only thing to be aware of in my experience with this player is the need to keep the discs and lens clean.

Strengths:
Great picture and sound. Easy to use. Slim-line design makes it fit well with other components. Easy to understand and use remote, with zoom and angle controls. No problems with video-sound synchronization, like I experienced with a Magnavox player.

Weaknesses:
Sensitive to dust. A little dust will stop the movie. Make sure discs are clean. I have to use a cleaning disc every so often to keep the laser lens clean.

Similar Products Used:
Magnavox MDV-435

Price Paid:  $105.00 from Crutchfield

Summary:
I purchased this based on my prior experience and expectations of Pioneer product quality. I also liked the idea that it played MP3's and DVD+R's. Decent picture and sound for the rpice but I am now on my third unit since December and it is going back for a refund. Every time a layer change occured it would reboot...the screen would go blank and the DVD would start again from the beginning. This happened on every dual layer DVD I played except 2. Crutchfield was very responsive and worked with me to get the unit replaced twice. But the third unit doing it made me get a refund. I now notice that Crutchfield is no longer selling this unit...and the price elseware is now in the $80 range. Strange that a unit that was advertised that it came with 3 years of ROM upgrades only has a six month product life?!

Strengths:
Decent picture and sound. Crutchfield is a very good company to deal with when a product has problems, customer service is top notch.

Weaknesses:
Can't do a layer change correectly

Similar Products Used:
Sony DVD550D, Sony DVPNC655S,