Panasonic DMP-BD70V Blu-ray Disc/VHS Multimedia Player

I was moved to purchase this item because it was available on a one-day-special at a great price. I had already researched it and liked the reviews. I replaced an aging VHS recorder and a very slow Philips DVD player.Hooking up the unit was a breeze. One HDMI cable to the flat screen and a pair of audio cables to the audio receiver. Setting it up was a little more complex but not too bad. The manual is the typical intimidating 52 page monster. After some study, the setup wasn't too bad. There was no audio at first. Running the trouble shooting suggestions located a setting that needed to be changed. After that all was smooth as glass.I've played a number of old video tapes on it, both commercial and homemade ones. The video and audio are noticeably better than when played on the old VCR. In fact, I feel that the fact that the VHS side of this unit is a player only, improves the playback quality since the head gap is optimized for playback only. It also helps that the signal is converted to digital and further refined before being sent to the flat screen.I noticed one user who commented that the VHS mechanism was rather noisy. As a matter of fact, this unit is surprisingly quiet and I'm more than satisfied with it. Further, it's rewind/fast forward times are great. It takes about 60 seconds to do either function with a standard length tape. Again, the noise is non-existent.As mentioned, my former DVD player is slow in startup. This unit is many times faster than the old unit. Again, the quality of images is far better than before. The discs play easily and smoothly. I'm able to access and play all the special features. I borrowed a DVD from the local library to view a movie that I don't own. The disc was badly scratched (no surprise here). I played it anyway and the DVD player handled it flawlessly. I am impressed. This is a fine DVD player.I have not yet played a Blue-ray Disc on it but I'm confident that it will be just as satisfying as my experience with the VHS tapes and standard DVDs. Having the Blue-ray capability was a definite plus in the purchase decision.The only disappointment was a 3" gouge in the side of the box. I quickly opened the box upon arrival and was relieved to find that the unit had no physical damage since the gouge entered the box where there were several inches of open space. (This is why some equipment is double-boxed) I hooked up the unit right away to see if it operated well and it did. Considering that this unit spent a lot of time being shipped halfway around the world, I'm happy that it works well.As always, I commend Amazon for their incredible shipping speed. The unit arrived overnight even though I had not requested the service. I've been with Amazon for several years and they continue to amaze me in how quickly my orders arrive. It almost feels like a "Twilight Zone" experience. (This is NOT a complaint). Amazon rocks!At this point, I'm working my way through the collection of tapes and DVDs that I have never viewed or haven't viewed in many years. It's a most pleasurable experience with this Panasonic unit. If you have very many old VHS tapes, this is the way to go. Even if you don't have any tapes, the DVD + Blue-Ray player alone is worth the money.

I am the co-moderator of the Billy Bob Thornton on-line fan group. As such, I have nearly every early film Billy Bob appears in for even a minute or two. When I wanted to purchase a Blu-ray player in 2010 I purchased this unit for $139.99 in April of 2010 and consider it one of the best $140.00 I have ever spent for technology. The draw was having a new Blu-ray player and a new VHS player. H-P Media center purchased in 1999 would record TV from cable so what more could I want? Technology has moved on; my H-P Media Center couldn't record from satellite and just the other day finally gave up working altogether after 14 years anyway. This Blu-ray/VCR unit still, even if it is Panasonic brand, plays on though.Surprised I haven't worn out the Blu-Ray player. I subscribe to Netflix, still get discs via mail in order to have access to their, still available, but shrinking, vintage disc selections. I cycle through about 16-20 DVDs a month from Netflix and I own 400+ DVDs and Blu-Rays all of which at one time or another have played through this Blu-ray/VCR unit, many of course much more than one time.I have an extensive VHS movie collection as well, and while I don't use it as often, when I do, the operation and the quality are better on this Panasonic unit than I ever imagined. I purchased my first VHS player/recorder in 1985. While this Panosonic unit does not record, I was stunned when I first put 'Sling-Blade' on VHS in the player in 2010. The upvert concersion quality was, to me, amazing. Just last week I again viewed 'Little Death' a 1995 VHS movie starring Dwight Yoakam. Once I got past the 'copy-protect' junk at the beginning, obviously the quality was much better than on any VCR player I have owned in the past. The VHS tape played flawlessly, the remote worked fine, and the film looked much better than it did in 1995.I have this unit connected to a 3-year-old Toshiba 55" wall-mounted HD LCD TV (55ZV650U) and a Yamaha RX-V571 7.1 AV Receiver with front and rear Energy Veritas Speakers and a Mirage MM-8 Miniature Hi-Performance subwoofer (due to living in an attached-residence). The sound from the combination with the Panasonic Blu-ray/VHS combo is amazing. The picture is stunning. The quality of the images from DVD and Blu-ray are top notch. The operation is more than adequate considering today's technology. But WORST of all, looking at the current units available for such a combo, when this one quits working, I am going to be so much worse off. There is nothing out there currently, at least in my price range, that is going to be able to come close to replacing it.No, it does not have built in Wi-Fi. I use a router from Direct TV to connect to my network for On Demand Viewing and Pandora (my TV doesn't have wireless capacity either). I have a Roku box which works great for streaming (Netflix and Yahoo are my streams of choice). My Toshiba lap top with the right soft-wear can record a DVD. I can record, but not manipulate (as I once could with my H-P Media Center) TV shows through Direct TVs router and my wireless network. I have never connected this Blu-ray/VCR combo to VIERA Cast, so I can't speak to the functionality of that feature. The unit otherwise functions fine. Given the wealth of information on today's Blu-ray disc, the start insert-to-start time is more than acceptable. The display settings are more than adequate. The remote is compact, well arranged, and does everything you want a remote to do.Despite the advanced technology available today, many great films are only available on VHS, having never been transferred to DVD/Blu-ray. The prices of these films on VHS continues to skyrocket, though occasionally bargains can be found. Fans of some of these fine films and television shows that have been passed up for updating, are going to find themselves limited in their ability to view their treasures. I truly do dread the day this Panasonic unit quits working because there really just isn't much out there that is going to be able to replace it at all! I consider myself lucky to have stumbled on this purchase while trying to locate something that would accommodate all my VHS selections, Billy Bob Thornton and otherwise. I wish it was available again in a price range my pocketbook could afford. For anyone who can afford this unit today, new or used, I can't recommend it highly enough. Technology maybe moving forward at break-neck speed, but in my opinion it came to a screeching halt in the area of VCR/DVD combo units with the end of the manufacture of this Panasonic DMP-BD70V Blu-ray Disc/VHS Multimedia Player.