Price Paid:  $0.00

Summary:
Look I had this player for 9yrs what people don't know it has a twin wave laser in it this means it reads the disc a hell of a lot better then any dvd player pioneer is always in show room and HAS NEVER FAILED THEIR SHOWS I've compared a bdp320 pioneer blu ray player which I have and like and put a regular dvd in if you guys are curious it was step brothers movie and the dv343 dvd player delivered a lot less haze using component cables of course people who have "disagreed" probably haven't well taking good care of there systems furthermore I've had 6 of their products although I've busted an amp in one of the receivers I've had but that was my fault if blu ray used two lasers instead of one it would be a phenomenal amount of clarity and pioneer has already done that with this dv343 dvd player and I'm a proud owner of it

Price Paid:  $230.00 from Sears

Summary:
Do Not Buy Pioneer. This player stoped playing dvd all together.

Strengths:
It was good while it lasted. It didn't last long!

Weaknesses:
Pioneer knows they are peddling lemons.

Similar Products Used:
I will NEVER buy Pioneer Again.

Price Paid:  $170.00 from Ebay auctions

Summary:
bought this dvd player for less the market price over ebay auctions. at that time progressive scan capable dvd players are so expensive so i thought this was a good deal. but i think this is not a real progressive scan player. though it plays decently based from the price i paid. so far this player hasn't let me down. from what i read below, it plays region 3 dvds, but it does not. it only plays region 1 dvds. hope it doesn't breakdown soon as stated by some reviewers. the loading tray is quite noisy when it opens. i'm planning to upgrade this with the dv-45a (model 655a in asia) with dvd-audio and super audio capabilities.

Strengths:
decent dvd player. digital outputs (optical and coaxial). dts and dolby outs. hasn't let me down yet, still waiting if the reviews are true.

Weaknesses:
not a real progressive scan player
noisy tray loading
construction is not for heavy duty uses

Similar Products Used:
sony, phillips, jvc, panasonic, apex

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Price Paid:  $175.00 from buy.com

Summary:
DON'T BUY.

I will say this; when it is working, the picture is good, and it makes a decent transport (I just send digital to an outboard converter) -- not trans-dimensionally perfect, but quite good, especially if you don't have a dedicated listening room with studio monitor quality speakers.

And the price was right.

But it crapped out on me, freezing while playing various DVD's. Luckily, it was still in warranty, although Pioneer gave me a *very* hard time about honoring the warranty, since I had bought it on line. Luckily I had saved all of my documentation, so eventually they agreed to honor their warranty for the product that had actually rolled off the factory floor less than a year before going belly-up (the production date was stamped on the back of the machine).

Although the local authorized repair shop was fine, very nice people who tried their best to fix this lemon, Pioneer customer service was sh!t. It was in the shop for 2 1/2 months before it was finally admitted to be irreparable. The Pioneer rep offered me a refurbished 434 with a 90-day warranty as a replacement. When I said I wasn't happy with a short-warranty refurbished version of the same model that had broken, he ARGUED with me, asking me why it wasn't good enough, since all I had paid for was this model and 90 days was about all that was left on the warranty anyway. I mean, what? After going around and around he agreed to replace it with a 444. I expect this will probably break soon as well, and I will never, ever buy Pioneer again.

Bottom line: Boo, Pioneer!

Strengths:
Can be found cheap. But value rating 1 star because if it doesn't work, it's money in the toilet anyway
Decent picture and transport while it works.

Weaknesses:
unreliable product.
Terrible, terrible, terrible, terrible, terrible, terrible terrible customer service.

Similar Products Used:
Denon DVD-3000 (also do not buy!)
Pioneer DV-444 (OK so far, but do not buy Pioneer anything)

Price Paid:  $179.00 from Costco

Summary:
Great player for the price! Combined with my Sony WEGA and using the component outputs, it looked fantastic. Not to mention that the player itself can play other regions besides 1. I've tried a Region 3 on this player and it worked perfectly.

Strengths:
Great pciture and audio quality (using digital audio out and component video out).

Weaknesses:
Needs bigger buttons on remote.

Similar Products Used:
Pioneer Dv-343