Toshiba DVR660 1080p Upconverting VHS DVD Recorder with Built-in Tuner Review

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(More customer reviews)I have a Samsung digital TV (1080p), and with my new Toshiba DVR660 and an HDMI cable, I can turn HD programming into sharp DVD's that appear to match my 1080p picture pixel for pixel. (In actuality, the DVR660 records it to 480p and then upconverts it back to 1080p.) By the way, I get all my programming from a portable antenna, and the DVD recorder has an excellent HD tuner.
The VCR is adequate, giving me the same picture quality as the SONY which preceeded it. After seeing how easy it was to make a DVD recording, and how fabulous the results, I realized that I would never make a VCR recording again. It did an excellent job dubbing a VCR tape to a DVD.
Although I am not a computer programmer like the "Man from Happy Rock", who found it so difficult to use, I found that the machine was not so difficult to use at all, as long as you followed the instructions. One of the major complaints from Mr. Happy Rock was that the machine turns itself off after you use the "set timer" button. My brother, who IS a computer programmer, said that his Magnavox also turns itself off when you use the "set timer" function and that they all do this. He also said it took him 2 years to master his Magnavox!
I did have a couple questions the first day, and I called the Toshiba telephone number given for DVD recorders. My call was answered by a real person with an American accent within 30 seconds. She answered all my questions easily.
Before I purchased this recorder, I spent hours reading and re-reading the reviews for like products made by Sony, Samsung, Panisonic, JVC, Philips, etc. All the other products seemed to have fatal flaws, so I made the decision for Toshiba. I'm glad I did.

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DVD Recorder/VCR Combo with 1080p Upconversion with Built-in Digital Tuner

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Sony RDR-VX560 1080p Tunerless DVD Recorder/VHS Combo Player Review

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(More customer reviews)Finally, a DVD Recorder and VHS combination unit that allows you to view DVD and your old VHS through your HDMI connection. That's right, you read that correctly. One of the biggest drawbacks of earlier upscaling machines from a variety of manufacturers was that you STILL had to use primitive S or RCA cables to output VHS images onto your HDTV.
Like many folks, I still have a large collection of movies on VHS (for some films, it remains the only version in print), but I was not going to buy another VCR unless I could really view them on my Samsung HDTV. Some VCRs connect with component cables, but cost as much (if not more) than this combo unit, which is so feature laden that I'm glad I waited.
The upconversion is very impressive so far for both DVD and factory VHS releases (lets face it, grainy home recorded VHS copies of TV programs will never look sharp at 1080p, so keep that in mind) and the controls are no more complicated than the average machine (which, may in itself be a problem for some already).
I have yet to fully utilize all the features, including the use of my Sony HD digital camera or camcorder, but those were secondary parts of the purchase. For me, the fact that I can now view my VHS library (and non-Blue Ray DVD library) on my HDTV through HDMI with such impressive image quality is more than enough to satisfy me.
If you are in the market for a combo unit to use with your HDTV, then this may finally be what you and I have been waiting for. Stellar product.
Why 4 stars? Well, I've only had the product a week, so it is too early to throw a 5th star onto the score, but it certainly merits 4 right out of the box.

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Sony's new DVD Recorder/VCR - Just what your cable box ordered. Save your favorite TV shows, archive old VHS tapes, even burn photos and personal video from Sony USB based camcorders and digital cameras The RDR-VX560 brings the ability to record your content to DVD to your living room. Do you have old VHS tapes lying around? Well, now you can save space and make them last by burning them onto a DVD. The RDR-VX560 brings ease of use with One Touch dubbing from VHS to DVD, or even from DVD to VHS. It couldn't be simpler.

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LG RC897T Multi-Format DVD Recorder and VCR Combo with Digital Tuner Review

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(More customer reviews)As a satisfied owner of an LG HDTV, I bought this DVD/VCR combo recorder fully expecting to be likewise happy with the quality of the images produced by another LG product. Unfortunately, I had to box it up for return the same day I got it. The problem with the product is one that I hadn't anticipated, but which further very specifically-targeted reading online revealed as a known problem with LG's DVD recorders. That problem is what various message-boarders and bloggers call "image over-processing". Translate that as "too much anti-aliasing" (image-smoothing) or "too much blur". And it was not just on the recorded images. For the minute you switch from the LG TV's internal tuner to the LG recorder's internal tuner, there's an instant layer of "smoothing" that is pronounced enough to be distracting. ...I am talking, depending on your threshold of sensitivity to such things, a potential headache-inducing level of fuzziness.
If you purchase this product hoping to use it to archive your family videos, no way it can do them justice. If you plan to use it as a down and dirty digital era VCR, grabbing episodes of shows you intend to record over once you watch them a single time, it is really not quite servicable for that. All this keeps pulling me back to one head-shaker of a question: What were the people at LG thinking? At nearly three hundred bucks, the quality of the LG RC897T is a major disappointment.

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Panasonic DMR-EZ47V Up-Converting 1080p DVD-Recorder/VCR Combo with Built In Tuner Review

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(More customer reviews)My setup: HD antenna directly into the Panasonic's coax input, then connected via HDMI, coax and component cables to the back of my LCD panel (a Sharp LC37D62U, a 1080P panel with HDMI inputs).
The tuner in the Panasonic unit, while capable of receiving HD signals, cannot output a full HD signal, but only 480P. If you are looking for a unit to act as a full-on HD tuner, this unit is not for you, but if your TV already has an HD tuner, then this unit offers some cool features. Before I start though, I want to point out that the unit does "pass" a full HD signal - that is, when using my TV's own tuner with the Panasonic set to "TV" (on the "TV/VCR" selection), the TV receives a pass-through of the HD signal coming in over the air to the Panasonic. Other descriptions of this unit had me believing that it would pass-through a 480P signal, but this is fortunately not the case.
Cool Feature #1: Recording HD TV shows over the air. This is one of the first of a new generation of DVD recorders that can record an HD signal onto a DVD disc (although only at the lower 480P resolution). Despite the lower resolution, the picture looks great, obviously not full HD but far better than analog TV. I have recorded "Lost" and "House" and both shows look pretty good. While the unit appears to be able to record on every DVD format known, DVD-RAM format provides some advantages. Using a DVD-RAM disc and the HDMI connection to the TV, the TV switches automatically to a full wide screen picture. Setting the unit on its LP recording mode, I can record 4 hours of HD programs on one disc, and the sound is great.
Cool Feature #2: Chase play. After starting a program recording, you can start watching the recorded program before the entire recording is complete - skipping past commercials and so on until you catch up to the "live" point in the recording. This works only with DVD-RAM discs, but is pretty nifty. By the way, the DVD-RAM discs can (according to the Panasonic manual) be re-recorded up to 100,000 times, so they are ALMOST like having a hard drive in the unit.
Cool Feature #3: Disc navigator. This allows you to see all the programs recorded on a DVD disc on a single screen - you can then use this to select which recorded program you want to watch. Nifty! No more hunting through VCR tapes for the program you recorded you can't remember when...
The VCR output is also fine (although obviously much less impressive that the DVD output). I can't comment on its ability to output upscaled 1080P as compared to other DVD units with a similar feature, but the outlook looks pretty darn good to me, no noticable "jaggies".
Complaints: The auto-channel setup missed one of my local HD stations, instead tuning a secondary station being broadcast on the same signal. Annoying! There appears to be no way to manually select which channels are tuned by the unit. I have been meaning to call Panasonic about this, but haven't gotten around to it. Also, long-ish startup time (like 15 seconds). Sometimes the DVD output seems a little washed out, but this can be taken care of by re-adjusting the TV's color settings. Having to turn the unit off in order to have it launch a scheduled recording.
Overall, quite happy with the performance.
FYI, the first unit I bought (from Amazon) arrived DOA, but they were great about returning it and I had a new unit two days later. They even paid for the shipping to return the first unit. Nice!

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Panasonic DIGA DMR-EZ475VK - DVD recorder/ VCR combo - black Review

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(More customer reviews)What makes this different from the DMR-EZ47V model? Only the inclusion of an HDMI cable. This is my third Panasonic DVD-type recorder and none of them have had major failings.
Don't believe the Amazon reports of a bad digital tuner as it just isn't true. The secret to good terrestrial digital reception is the right antenna. If you have that, you get great channels. Albeit, not in high def. But this is not a high def recorder. I didn't bother with the analog channels as I receive them all digitally, and then some.
I recommend the stand alone Phillips "Silver Sensor" antenna or clone. Don't waste money on the Terk models as they look nicer but don't do the job as well. Analog transmission is going away so you won't need rabbit ears. If the "Silver Sensor" doesn't work, you are just in a bad location. Mine works great through a 5-900 MHz 3-way splitter.
With my old GoVideo DVD/VCR combo I had 8 cables running from the back of the unit to the TV. 3 component cables & 2 audio. Plus 1 yellow composite and 2 more audio just to play VHS. 8 cables replaced by 1 (ONE) HDMI. Both formats play through HDMI.
With the HDMI upconversion turned on your DVD and VHS pictures can display at 480i/p, 720p, 1080i/p, or just select auto. While the difference in the picture is noticeable, especially with VHS, don't expect miracles. The best upconversion in the world can only simulate HD, it can't create information not in the original. For true HD movie experience we still need blu-ray. I have one and it is awesome.
If the HDMI on your TV supports Viera the Panasonic remote control can control limited functions of your TV. No more manual programming of the remote to work with your TV! The smart features means your player will automatically turn off when you turn the TV off. However, my Vizio doesn't support Viera so it doesn't work via HDMI. Pages 68 - 69 in the manual allows programming of the remote via the buttons.
As you can see in the product description this player supports a wide variety of discs. One long awaited favorite is the ability to record to DVD +/- R Dual Layer. DVD-RAM is great because playback supports 1.3x playback by pressing [play] a second time. Press [play] again to return to normal speed. Now you can record your favorite programs in digital quality (Analog only to VHS.), skip commercials, and watch them faster on DVD-RAM. The upconversion means you almost don't miss the HD airing. Plus you have the ability to cross copy VHS to DVD and vice verser, providing copy protection is not an issue.
One of my favorite features missing on this unit is "shorten segment". It easily allowed cutting out commercials, yet leave a single video file. Alternately, "divide program" allows cutting around the commercials, then you may delete them. It's a bit more time consuming and leaves you with a fragmented video file. This will not affect play back as it simply jumps to the next video block. However, the "combine chapters" function only works with "chapters" you create, and doesn't combine the segments of cut pieces.
Thus I must agree it is a bit more complex to use, and you will need to spend some time with the manual and even cross reference some pages. It is time well spent as it is nothing you won't learn with repeated use. It's not rocket science. You'll be a pro in no time.
While I wish this had a hard drive and recorded in HD, I can't ding the product because that is not the design intent. Maybe next years model. I'm very picky in what I like and I am VERY happy with this player.
This is a great way to give that old 4:3 analog TV a digital tuner and keep it around a few more years. Plus you could receive more digital channels than analog! But only HDMI supports upconversion. Even with some short comings such as the standard definiton digital tuner, this player does it all and does it extremely well.
My two biggest gripes which make me wish I never sold my analog GoVideo combo. Finalized DVD-R will NOT copy to VHS. Only unfinalized DVD-R will copy providing the material is not copy protected. I can no longer copy a couple of regular DVD's to tape. Maybe there are tweaks to be found. But my need to copy to tape isn't as great as was my desire to do so. Cest la vie.
For more on this product download the manual and firmware updates at the Panasonic website.

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DMR-EZ47VK Progressive Scan DVD Recorder with VHS VCR, SD Slot, ACCUTUNETM Digital Tuner, 1080p Up-Conversion with HDMI, EZ SyncTM HDAVI Control & HDMI Simple Connection, and 2x LP Horizontal Resolution (500 lines)

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Samsung DVD-V9700 Tunerless 1080i Upconverting DVD VHS Combo Player Review

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(More customer reviews)Wanted an HDMI upper for DVD's but also needed to be able to show legacy VHS. Price was same as Sony up converting player, (which I have for another TV) but has the the VCR. Sounded good. I am connecting to Samsung TV, so why not? First player was DOA. Wouldn't recognize a DVD. Amazon immediately shipped a replacement (They have really done right by me in customer service). Machine delivers a very nice image through HDMI output and the VCR transport seems to be fine. All's well that ends well.

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This versatile unit plays both DVD discs and VHS tapes, delivering crisp pictures and high-quality sound. Samsung's DVDV9700 includes a 4-head Hi-Fi VCR with the added visual clarity of Progressive scan output, and allows MP3, JPEG and WMA playback.

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Samsung DVD-VR357 Tunerless DVD Recorder and VCR Combo Review

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(More customer reviews)Having had three combos in the last 5 years I decided to try a number of them at the same time and then return the worst of them - because as many would agree, what I actually want is just not available.
In comparison to Toshiba 650, LG 797, Sony 555 (these are the ones I have tried so far), this one is the cheapest, by a significant amount of money and better than all of the others in one way or another. The LG797 is best but it is so sensitive to copyright there are TV shows (Mad Men on AMC), even cartoons (Stuart Little), Sometimes even Lifetime Movies that it will not record from a DVR or straight from Satellite. Samsung is not sensitive.
Samsung has three drawbacks that are almost dealbreakers - except that the other combos are so much worse in so many areas- not enough connections and it is slower than the others in editing features. It records RAM but not Double Layer discs. I have never had a combo that records RAM or DL until now so I would like it to record both like the LG does.
If you research all of your components and maybe even get an adapter when needed, the hookups is no problem. The speed for deleting a portion of a dvd or dividing, is slower than the others. Since I do lots of dividing and deleting on my +RW's, this would normally be enough to send it back. But it beats the others in so many other areas, it's still close to the best.
I have been transferring 24 hours a day from VHS to DVD or DVR to DVD and it has only frozen once (the others have several times). It is not sensitive to copyright so I can tape a movie and watch it later. I only make dvd's for myself to watch and I pay for the tv stations so I should be able to watch them and Samsung gives me that opportunity at my convenience.
The video quality from VHS to DVD or DVR to DVD is ridiculously better than the Toshiba and the Sony (Both over $240 each). It records every format it claims to record (unlike Panasonic which has great difficulty with +R and +RW). I am a +RW fan - if you haven't tried it because you think it is no different than -RW - you are sorely mistaken. Not having to finalize and "make compatible" or unfinalize to add something saves time and the discs still play on all of my DVD players. Not to mention more editing ability and reusing the beginning of the disc while there are shows still on the end (I have not figured this out on the Samsung yet - my previous LiteOn's did this quite easily and from all the features with +RW Samsung allows, I think it will do this also). I have used 8 different brands of DVD's (and have tried +R/+RW/-R/-RW/RAM and every single one has recorded and played back without a problem. From high end discs down to office depot generics. This is rare. In +RW mode it has the lovely feature called "Divide" also available on Sony and LG (not Toshiba). If you are transferring or recording and you let it run long or fall asleep you can divide at the end of your show and delete the part you don't want. You can do this with all the commercials also if you wanted to take the time. You get to use variable recording speed so if you are recording in SP but the last show you are adding to the disc is a bit longer, you can record the last show in LP so it fits. When you press Record mode to set SP SLP etc, it shows on the screen how much time you would have left on the disc for recording if you used that speed. So you don't have to open up the title list or figure it out yourself. There is much more and as I continue to use the Samsung, if there is anything important, I will add to my review. This combo is not perfect - there are more things I would change if the DVD makers would let me creat my own machine with every feature I want but so far this is surprisingly better than the Sony or Toshiba and beats the LG if you tend to record show or movies to watch on DVD later. I need two combos and this is good enough that if I can't find something that has the LG797 positives and the Samsung's positives - I will actually buy another one. I am very picky with my media and especially because the combos out there generally do not do what they say they do and that's heartbreaking when you are spending anywhere from $170 - $400. My three others were Liteon's and JVC and all three broke in less than 3 years.
IF you have right hookups and this combo has the features you are looking for, I can certainly say, it is excellent compared to the others I have tried.

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VIZIO 26" Class HD 720p LCD HDTV - Black (VA26LHDTV10T ) Review

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(More customer reviews)I purchased this TV to replace the big tube TV in our bedroom, and have been extremely pleased with it. The viewing angle is extremely wide compared to other LCD TV's I have looked at in the past. I don't know if that is a product of the technology getting better in time or if it's specific to Vizio. The picture quality of HD signal rivals my 1080i native 50" plasma. The menu/software is fairly intuitive and gets you setup in short order. The only reason I did not give this a 5 star rating is due to the built in guide, which will show you what is on the current channel only. It would be nice to have some memory in the guide allowing you to view other channels schedule as well. I know that most of the converter boxes are doing this so it seems this would be a fairly cheap addition. Another poster mentioned that you cannot change the picture format & that it was not Closed Caption capable....which is simply not true. I can select from normal, wide, or pan for my standard def signals. Of course, if you're watching HD you are forced to use wide....which you'll get with any widescreen TV?!? Closed Captioning is also available.
Wall mounting this TV only requires a light duty wall mount as the TV itself only weighs 17 lbs. I picked up a mount at Best Buy for $29, mounted the TV to the wall, and now have the top of my dresser back.

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Samsung DVD-V9800 Tunerless 1080p Upconverting VHS Combo DVD Player Review

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(More customer reviews)Everything written about this unit in the other reviews is accurate. The combo player/recorder is an excellent example of a dying breed, is well crafted, and (I presume) performs to expectations. So why only 3 stars? Because no where in the description was the most important factor, that the V9800 is TUNERLESS. It must be used with another tuner source...like a set top box. Interestingly, I get cable from Time Warner through regular, in the wall, coax and all three of my HDTV's (Sony Bravia and 2 Sharps) have provisions for coax input. With separate DVD players and "traditional" VCR's this is no problem. Unfortunately I have not found any of the current combo players accepting of coax input for the VCR.
If you receive cable through a set top box this unit would be fine, and for under a $100 represents a nice value for the quality of build. My real gripe is with amazon for not being more diligent in spec'ing technical products that they sell. So 5 stars for Samsung and 0 stars for the amazonians!

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This versatile unit plays both DVD discs and VHS tapes, delivering crisp pictures and high-quality sound. Samsung's DVD-V9800 includes a 4-head Hi-Fi VCR with the added visual clarity of progressive scan output and allows MP3, JPEG and WMA playback.

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