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Anybody have any recommendations for cheap Mono (Not stereo) videos ?
I want to avoid the Philips / Funai clones based on ours workshop experiences with them.
Argos doesn't have much of a selection though they do have a cheap Bush model.

Times past I'd have bought one from work but since Funai started making them I would use one even if I was given one.

Any ideas ?

Try COMET on-line, they still do a few but not MONO

the LG LV880 works ok and is cheap enough at £59.50
or go to the LG site, they may still do some mono ones.

ebay usually has everything

The LG decks don't seem too bad as we have the LG cloned Philips DVD/VCR Combies at work. I might see if they can do me a good price on one of these as at least them I have easy access to spares if something goes wrong.

The VCR isn't for me but for a OAP customer who goes through videos quicker than anybody else I know due to the amount of use they get.
He is more of a friend of the family who my parents have know since childhood and I rarely charge him to maintain his videos though he normal offers something. But I have lost count of the number of machines he's had over the years..

If I can get a good deal on one of the combies I'll get him one. The only calls I'm likely to get for a while will be after he presses the wrong buttons. I don't know if he'll ever use the DVD part but there again you never know.

Yes Ebay can be a good source ,I've got an array of Multi-Standard videos which I use to transfer peoples videos onto DVD. I think as longs as it recorded on VHS or S-VHS regardless of where it was recorded I can transfer it. I've got to get around to fitting the bits in my Mitsubishi HS-M1000 (S-VHS) that I bought off Ebay cheap (Faulty). I also bought a box of remotes for I think less than a tenner just to get the one for this video. So yes there are some good bargins to be had.

Stay away from Bush or Alba theyre about as good as Funai

Our local Dixons and Currys still do have a few models in stock but they appear to be pushing the Funai DVD/Video combo.

Have a hunt round on the net but personally Id stay away from Ebay if it's for the guy you described as you never know what sort of condition 2nd user kit will be in!

I bet the combo is like the first two that Philips used.
The same deck as the stand-alone videos and the tv/vcr combos.
The metal pieces are too thin and prone to bending. Some of the main plastic parts are prone to deforming. The pinch rollers collapse.
The main combo motor which has the drive for the loading motor and Head motor plus the main function as the capstan / Reel motor is prone failure. We order the motors either 20 or 40 at a time and must have replaced over a 1000 by now.

And IF the DVD loader is the same as the ones above then there is a problem with the disc turntable cracking and falling off !

These are just our workshop observtions and may not apply to all Funai models and may not be a true representation general failure rates but it's enough to put our engineers off using models with these tape decks.

On the subject of VCRs, do you recommend getting a DVD/VCR Combo, or 2 seperate machines?

Ideally seperates though unless the video fails in a way that shuts the unit down (funai capstan motor) the DVD remains usable. If the DVD fails then the video is still usable.

My options so far

Philips DVD755VR Older model LG rebadge.
Philips DVP721VR LG Rebadge.
Philips DVP3100V LG Rebadge.

Price I've been quoted for a B-Grade (Marked) is very good and is the priced the trade pays.

Not sure who makes the new model DVP3055V but we saw a lot of DVD problems with our first batch.

The LG models use a disc that puts you in a hidden menu where you can change the region code.

I bought a Sony DVD recorder recently, amazing picture quality on it and 6 hrs on one disc...I've got all my vids to transfer yet but it'll free up loads of space.

We have a disc at work which is a commerical one that has 5 films on it. I guess there must be around 8 hours on there. Qaulity is no worse than LP VHS without visible dithering.
I don't like recording anymore than 3 hours on my Philips DVDR70. Normally I use 2 1/2 hour mode.
Now if they can make a recorder than uses the H264 compression method to create the Divx / XVid AVI type recordings then you drastically increase the length of recordings on a single DVD5 (Single layer single side). I know the results would be limited the Divx compatable players but more and more can play the files these days.

DIVX would be nice on the Sony but I can live without it,I've never downloaded a DIVX movie before

The quality in home theather mode is excellent .HQ mode is exceptional. Bear in mind that films compress between 600 - 1200 Mb depending on wheather HQ is used. If convertions are for a portable device then they use a lower bit rate.
I've seen some excellent quality files that are a fraction of the size of the DVD equivilent. I don't just mean downloads but converting dvds for Personal Digital Video Recorders. I transferred a number of DVDS for my mate onto his new toy so he could watch them while on the plane when he travelled to the Far East.
I think they quote something like 400 Hours of recordings on the 40Gb version !

I once had a play with a D-VHS machine. Digital recordings on a VHS sized tape. Manual said 15 hours on the normal sized tape. Think only JVC make the tapes as I know we had a job getting tapes for it but the quality was incredible.