Defective out of the box

I purchased aSony RDR-VXD655 DVD Recorder / VCR Combo and when it arrived it was doa.  i was getting black, green, pixels on the screen when playing a dvd, any dvd. I tried to return it to the vendor, and i was told it must go through sony repair.  i had to pay shipping to sony.  After almost a month since i paid for this unit, i have yet to use it.  NOt real happy with this unit or sony.  i would have preferred to get my money back and purchase a different brand.  i hear panasonic is pretty good.