Panasonic PV-VS4821 S-VHS VCR
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- VCR Type: S-VHS
- Number of Video Heads: 4
- Audio: Hi-Fi Stereo
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The ?heyday? of the VCR has come and gone?.
Pros
None
Cons
Poor layout of remote, poor interface, poor playback of pre-recorded tapes
Recommended it?
No
The Bottom Line:
Poor image quality, odd controls and weak features really tells me that the golden age of VCRs is truly gone...
I needed to replace my present S-VHS machine after it had problems ejecting tapes. I looked for what was available in Canada and came up with JVC and Panasonic. JVC had a few models available but Panasonic had only one. I decided to buy the Panasonic because of their better reputation. When most VCRs seem to be selling between 80$ and 150$ cnd, this one is a little more pricey at 300$cdn. In part, because of its higher price, I had confidence that this would be a good product…..
The first thing you notice is how light this thing is. You can easily manipulate it with one hand…. Okay, so it's plastic – seems almost all new VCRs are that way. Hook-up was easy although the RCA jacks are cheaply made and are not has tight has they should be for the sound in/out. I also hooked the S-video in the back.
Set-Up
The user interface to this product is really poor. I also own a Sony (N81) and Mitsubishi (old U-770) and can honestly say that setting up the Panasonic is more confusing and seems to offer less options (or they are more hidden). The problem, in part, has to do with the poor manual and badly designed remote. The often used function keys on the remote are not laid out logically and are quite small. Furthermore, the remote is not ergonomic and is balanced oddly. These shortcomings can be overcome if the picture quality is good but….
Picture Quality
I plugged the cable connection directly into the VCR. The reception on most channels was good and the signal strength strong, no problems here.
Next test was the playback of a pre-recorded tape.
I put in a pre-recorded tape and was taken aback – image quality was reminiscent of what it looks like when the heads are really dirty. Subtle snow, looks like tape is partially demagnetized, colour fading. So, I took the same tape and played it in the Sony, picture was clear with good colour saturation. Thinking that they had to be something wrong, I inserted and compared a few more tapes with the same result every time. I was never a big fan of the Sony's picture when compared to the Mitsubishi's, but the Panasonic is really awful on pre-recorded tapes. You just don't feel like watching tapes…
The next test was recording a T.V. show. I used an S-VHS tape and recorded at the shortest speed. The playback worked fine but it was nothing extraordinary. I then started to test other modes. The image quality degraded even more with longer playing times and lower tape quality.
Features
The Panasonic comes with features that are usefull if they appeal to you such as:
Commercial skip
Movie advance (skips previews on pre-recorded movies)
Index search
Rapid FF and Rewind (quite good actually)
Program end search
Tape Position Display
Time Stamp
VCR
(There are more but none really useful to me)
The first thing you notice is how light this thing is. You can easily manipulate it with one hand…. Okay, so it's plastic – seems almost all new VCRs are that way. Hook-up was easy although the RCA jacks are cheaply made and are not has tight has they should be for the sound in/out. I also hooked the S-video in the back.
Set-Up
The user interface to this product is really poor. I also own a Sony (N81) and Mitsubishi (old U-770) and can honestly say that setting up the Panasonic is more confusing and seems to offer less options (or they are more hidden). The problem, in part, has to do with the poor manual and badly designed remote. The often used function keys on the remote are not laid out logically and are quite small. Furthermore, the remote is not ergonomic and is balanced oddly. These shortcomings can be overcome if the picture quality is good but….
Picture Quality
I plugged the cable connection directly into the VCR. The reception on most channels was good and the signal strength strong, no problems here.
Next test was the playback of a pre-recorded tape.
I put in a pre-recorded tape and was taken aback – image quality was reminiscent of what it looks like when the heads are really dirty. Subtle snow, looks like tape is partially demagnetized, colour fading. So, I took the same tape and played it in the Sony, picture was clear with good colour saturation. Thinking that they had to be something wrong, I inserted and compared a few more tapes with the same result every time. I was never a big fan of the Sony's picture when compared to the Mitsubishi's, but the Panasonic is really awful on pre-recorded tapes. You just don't feel like watching tapes…
The next test was recording a T.V. show. I used an S-VHS tape and recorded at the shortest speed. The playback worked fine but it was nothing extraordinary. I then started to test other modes. The image quality degraded even more with longer playing times and lower tape quality.
Features
The Panasonic comes with features that are usefull if they appeal to you such as:
Commercial skip
Movie advance (skips previews on pre-recorded movies)
Index search
Rapid FF and Rewind (quite good actually)
Program end search
Tape Position Display
Time Stamp
VCR
(There are more but none really useful to me)
