Price Paid:  $70.00 from Best Buy

Summary:
This is a very nice low-end VCR. I bought it to replace my Sony 900 series VCR that started eating tapes. It would have cost around $100-150 to repair the Sony, so I opted to purchase the Toshiba 522. I've used the 522 regularly for about 10 months now without any problems...none! It rewinds a tape extremely fast! Much faster than my 7 year-old Sony 900 did. The 522 is also very quiet...much quieter than the Sony in all aspects. It plays all of my tapes recorded on the Sony flawlessly, but if I freeze the image, there is a little bit of snow at the bottom of the screen. However, when I freeze an image that the 522 recorded, there is no snow whatsoever...just a great-looking still with no jitter! As a side note, the Toshiba 522 does not allow you to go backwards frame-by-frame when paused. It does go forward frame-by-frame. Not a biggie in my book, I was just spoiled by the upper-end Sony. Overall, I am very pleased with my purchase and would recommend this VCR without hesitation.

Strengths:
Very reliable...no problems to date. Has numerous features, more than I expected for the money paid. Produces a very nice picture, even a tape recorded in EP mode from another VCR. Very quiet and rewinds a tape extremely fast...less than a minute (I've timed it!).

Weaknesses:
Hmmm...doesn't go backwards frame-by-frame when tape is paused...if you can call that a weakness.

Similar Products Used:
Sony 900 (1994 year model)