Hello,

I seek help in choosing a DVD Recorder. Key functions that I need are:
1. Region Free.
2. Divx supported
3. Upscaling of DVD and DivX to 720/1080 (can I upscale to 1080 without HDMI?)
4. HDD no more than 160-250GB
5. Progressive scan.
6. Good quality :)

Thanks!

Mark

Please help! :)

Thanks!

This isn't much help, but I can make ordinary DVDs on my Pioneer 531 (one year old this month! -- one year at my home, anyhow) here in Albuquerque and my friends in England and Germany can play them, and I don't think my friends have any special DVD players...though they *might* be playing them via their computers... don't know. An Aussie sent me 2 PAL DVDs but I could play them via my liteon exteranl DVD recorder hooked up to my computer. I suspect newer Pios can do the same -- record region free, the Hard Drives would be 160G, and that the quality will be good. Don't know about the rest though

DebbyS
With region free I meant playing movies :)! Not recording! Recording is not a problem. I want to play european movies (region 2) and US (region 1) ;)

Quite frankly, you would be better off getting a dedicated DVD player that was region free than trying to find a DVD recorder that is also a region free player. I only knew of one that B&H had for a while, but it was really pricy.

Hello,

I seek help in choosing a DVD Recorder. Key functions that I need are:
1. Region Free.
2. Divx supported
3. Upscaling of DVD and DivX to 720/1080 (can I upscale to 1080 without HDMI?)
4. HDD no more than 160-250GB
5. Progressive scan.
6. Good quality :)

Thanks!

Mark

Gee why not ask for a bit more? How about multi card reader, USB output, MV free, Universal remote, Digital Tuner, TVGuardian, CD,VCD,SVCD record; and all for less than $300. DREAM ON!

Hello,

I seek help in choosing a DVD Recorder. Key functions that I need are:
1. Region Free.
2. Divx supported
3. Upscaling of DVD and DivX to 720/1080 (can I upscale to 1080 without HDMI?)
4. HDD no more than 160-250GB
5. Progressive scan.
6. Good quality :)

Thanks!

Mark

The Polaroid 2001G will give you 6 out of the 7. No HMDI. The HDD is only 80GB but can be upgraded to 250GB in less than 10 minutes. It can be made region free. Plays xvid/divx. Great qulity. Of course has progressive scan.

$220 for the Polaroid (if you can find one). About $60 for the 250GB HDD. So it is less than $300 all in and you have the original 80GB drive left over which has value.

Look here http://www.welectronics.com/dvd/index.shtml
You may find what you need.

Many DVD recorders can be made region free. See the link here..http://www.videohelp.com/dvdhacks

Gee why not ask for a bit more? How about multi card reader, USB output, MV free, Universal remote, Digital Tuner, TVGuardian, CD,VCD,SVCD record; and all for less than $300. DREAM ON!

Price is not a factor here...

Is it possible to get upconversion to 720/1080 not through hdmi??
Thanks!

You do realize that all fixed-pixel (and many CRT-based) HDTV's automatically upconvert any Standard Definition signal they receive (to match their native resolution in the case of fixed-pixel displays, or for HDTV CRTs that upconvert, typically to 1080i).

I'm from Poland, Europe.

I bought lately a Full HD Sharp 52XD1E LCD panel and would like to watch dvd's on an upconverting player. However both of my HDMI's are already used (hdtv boxes) and would like to know if a DVD Recorder, such as: DMR-EH55S can upconvert via RGB? Or is there any possibility to connect it like this:
HDMI -> DVI DVI -> RGB

Is it possible? Or will I loose much of the quality?

If you send a Standard Definition video signal from the DVD Recorder to your Full HD display via Component Video, your display will upconvert that to 1080p. There is no need for the DVD Recorder to do this when all HDTVs do it too.

Thanks bobkart for info - that's great.

How about HDMI->DVI DVI->RGB
Is it possible? Do I loose quality?

Thanks!

You can't in general go that route because you lose the HDCP at the DVI->YPbPr step (Component Video is not RGB like VGA is, it's either YPbPr for HD or YCbCr for SD).