Complex sentence: For this reason, it is not uncommon for the VCR component to cease to function or to become unreliable years before a similar fate befalls the television component, leaving many households with only "half" of the combo in operation.
Split into simpler sentences: For this reason, it is not uncommon for the VCR component to cease functioning or to become unreliable years before a similar fate befalls the television component. This leaves many households with only "half" of the set in operation.