I Need Help (Gadget Help)

[gonzai]

So, I've been thinking of getting a DVR - reading about them, looking at stores and prices, etc but not feeling comfortable enough about them to pull the trigger. Due to circumstances yesterday, I no longer have the luxury of time - I need one, NOW. Thus I turn to the internet for help.

I know I need a DVR with a VCR combo - we have too many VHS tapes still floating around here, and the downstairs still records on VHS.

As I understand it, a DVR with its own digital tuner can record one channel while you watch another? If so, I need that. We often have 2-3 shows on at once we want to see.

The new television which occasions the need for the DVR appears to be a 1080i (the manual says nothing and my brother, who surprise-gifted us with said TV, doesn't know.) Therefore, I think an upconverting DVR would be a worthy compatriot to the new telly. So, desired, but not a dealbreaker.

The big question for me is in the actual recording. Do programs record directly onto a DVD, or do they record to a hard drive in the machine? If the former, is there any way to edit what goes onto the DVD (ie, cut commercials?) If the latter, do you record to the hard drive and then burn it to DVD at your leisure? Can things recorded to the hard drive be transferred to a computer instead? (I have plenty of portable and external hard drives, and I know how to make DVDs on my computer.) I've just never quite gotten the hang of this particular aspect.

I'm willing to pay a fair amount amount to get a machine that does what I want and will last a few years - up to around $300 or so.

With those criteria in place, what should I be getting/looking for? Any particular brands, models, or stores I should go to? I did look at Circuit City before they closed, but they only had floor models that you weren't allowed to test, and I'm not paying that amount of money to gamble, I want something under warranty that I can return if need be!

All advice is most appreciated!

Comments

[giandujakiss.livejournal.com]

A DVR records shows to a hard drive.

I've never heard of one with a VCR built in - they may exist (maybe you've researched it?) but I'd be surprised if they're easy to find; VCRs are dying out as a technology.

If you want a built-in DVD player/recorder, that's a different animal. I once had one with a built-in DVD recorder and it was pointless. This was several years ago and the tech may have changed, but at the time, the quality of the image was nowhere near as clean as what I would get if I .. um... ahem'd the episode on my computer and burned it to DVD. Plus, the DVR recognized copy protect software, so there was lots of stuff I couldn't record at all. And, I don't know what kind of TV set up you have, but I just have a regular TV and cable. Many stations broadcast widescreen shows in standard size format - i.e., they chop off the edges so that, say, Supernatural, which is a widescreen image, doesn't appear with letterboxing but loses part of the image on the sides. If you record that to a DVD, you still have the same problem- but if you... ahem the episode, you'll get the full widescreen.

If you have cable, I recommend contacting your cable company. Many of them offer DVRs instead of a regular cable box. You pay a higher monthly fee, but they work well, they coordinate well with your cable, you can record two shows at once, etc.