I'm the proud new owner of a Mitsubishi 73727 which I stole from a local retailer (not literally... I just got a great deal ;) )

...I was really excited about the IEEE1394/firewire ports on the TV and it's apparent ability to 'use' a IEEE1394 device as a DVR. So I started looking around on the internet for devices I could use... I came across the X-Symbio which I ended up buying on ebay, but with its mixed reviews I'm not sure how well it will work out (although I remain hopeful)

The way I understand it, I need an IEEE1394b (AV/C?) device versus an IEEE1394a (traditional firewire) device. Originally when I read the manual I was thinking I could just use ANY external firewire drive and the TV would kind of do the rest, but after reading as much as I could online (not that there's much official info out there) I found that there just weren't many options available.

Why have all these devices (Toshiba / JVC) showed up, changed prices up and down by factors of 4 several times, and/or been discontinued? What's the beef?

Is this really a viable solution for recording OTA HD signals and a basic PVR device? I'm not looking for a DVD recorder, nor am I looking for something that provides programming information or fancy menus... the TV's TVGOS is actually working QUITE well for all that (yeah I was surprised too) and I'm thinking the addition of a cablecard would actually work really well with this set, and I could throw away my dish setup... however THEN I'd really need the PVR capabilities, otherwise I'd end up ripping out my hair (don't know what you got till it's gone, right?)

Is this concept (IEEE1394b devices for recording HD) kind of obsolete before it really got moving?

What would I get if I plugged a regular firewire drive into my Mitsubishi set? Would it see it as a viable recording destination?

I'm hoping someone that's actually been down this path can speak to my questions... I'm just finding myself quite confused by it all.

IEEE1394a, IEEE1394b, DTVLink, iLink, AVHDD, AV/C... I'd like to add my own acronym... WTF?

Check the Mitsu 46231/131 thread, last page. One poster is using a firewire drive as a recording device, more like a VCR than a PVR though.

Well I'll have to wait and see what all the 160HD4 does for me and whether it's much more than what he described with a simple firewire drive. If not, I'll feel quite cheated. Thanks for the heads-up.

Does anyone else have any info regarding the 'future' of this type of setup? With terrestrial HDTV looking so good, and a cable card for additional programming, I feel like it'd be the best option but...

Just to give feedback on this topic and to answer my own post...

I received the 160HD4 and it's a more than satisfactory bare-bones solution for recording and scheduling recordings of digital OTA content. On the Mitsubishi 73727, you don't need the TVGOS working as is reported in the Toshiba manual, but it's definitely nice to be able to use TVGOS for scheduling future recordings and you can't make recurring schedules without it.

The only thing that the 160HD4 doesn't do that it supposedly does when using it with a real Toshiba set is the live TV pause, RW, FF functionality. While it would certainly be logically possible using the device, it's the TV hardware that makes that functionality possible, and the Mitsubishi set I have doesn't do that.

Playback from this device looks every bit as good as the original material.

Hope it's helpful to someone who had similar questions to me.

Thanks!

Thanks, I've been waiting for your report.

So only the "live" FF/RW functions won't work with a Mitsu? Then I assume the FF and RW work on recorded material for commercial skipping purposes, correct?

Correct. The right and left 'adjust' buttons skip forward or backward X seconds (can't remember how many) while watching recorded material. The FF and REW buttons do typical forward and backwards playback at varying speeds etc like your run of the mill tivo controls.

You CAN do 'psuedo-live' pause/skip etc, by recording the program you're watching, and then switching to the AVHD device, and watching what you're recording (you can record and watch at the same time, either the same program or record one and watch a previously recorded program) - so, the functionality is there but it's not an always-on functionality, and there's no way to say "record a rolling 60 minutes" etc. I think that is functionality that the actual (Toshiba) TV provides when using an AVHD.

Also, for those wondering, you CAN record digital OTA content and watch a different device at the same time, however you can't record from ANT1 and watch ANT2. I don't know if that's possible when a cablecard enters the mix or not. I'd assume the TV has a SINGLE digital tuner even though there are two ANT inputs.

I can record ANT1 and watch a DVD or Dish, though. It will also record without the TV being on. If I try to change channels on ANT1 though while recording, I'm prevented from doing so by the TV.

I have cablecard in my 46131 and it works the same, if you are recording from it you can't switch to antenna B, but you can watch any of the other inputs.

Toshiba TV just puts the unit in record mode, and constantly records a loop(?) of current programming, so that you can 'live rewind' it. Its a TV interface thing, and not really dependent on hardware. Its just more difficult (as you explained) to achieve same operation on a mits tv.

Timecop --- wow. This is exactly what I'd like to do on my LC3200N with and RCA DVR2080. Haven't got the unit yet, but I hope I can set this kind of viewing up.

has anyone tried to hook one of these AVHDD's up to a PC? i'm interested in making a chain, i've got the RCA DVR2160, and my PC sees the device but i can't mount the drive (i'm sure i have taken a very simplistic approach to this), i'm interested in creating a 1394 chain using my PC, the DVR2160, and my Mitus-62627, hopefully i'll be able to record to the drive from my PC and do play back to my tv