I should have read the fine print more thoroughly.  I didn't know that the "storage" on the sides was only accessible through the back - not by cabinet doors.  So really, those areas on either side are wasted space because you'd have to move the entire unit to get to them.  We had to get rid of our VCR because there just wasn't room for everything in that small cabinet.  The top shelf is for the DVD player and the DVR.  The bottom shelf is for the DVDs, although we'll have to store some of them elsewhere.