My LG DR787T just died, I was watching DTV OTA with it (and had a blank DVD-RW in it) when suddenly it started making a strange sound like the disk was spinning up really fast and then it turned off. It refused to come on again for a long time, now it has finally come back on and I removed the disk. Anyway this problem, along with the fact that mine wont read DVD-RAM disks (even with the disks they reccomend) I am taking it back to best buy.

I am considering the Toshiba D-R550, has anyone tried it? Or maybe I will just get the cheap Magnavox at walmart then wait to see if they ever get the Polaroid HDD unit in stock (the panny EZ27 looks nice to but to expensive for what it is I think).

Odd thing is the 550 does not write to dvd-ram but the 650 does.

Hard to get info since Toshiba does not appear to make manuals available for download.

Yes it is strange that there are no manuals out for download, but there is the 2 page datesheet thing... no DVD-Ram does not bother me as long as it can do the timeslip on DVD-RW.

Yeah, weird tho, wonder if there is more difference between the 550 and 650 besides the vcr part.

I am curious as to how the 4 hr quality of the Toshiba compares to the Panny.

Any stores have them in stock?

Amazon.com has them in stock and so does Target.com (can return to store if you dont like it).

I checked my Target today, none.

Got the Panny EZ27, BB had 2 in stock.

Paid full MSRP but I am lost without a recorder. My ES20 died earlier this week.

Scanning channels now.....

Odd thing is the 550 does not write to dvd-ram but the 650 does.

Hard to get info since Toshiba does not appear to make manuals available for download.

They do, just not for that model:

http://tacpservice.toshiba.com/ConsumerProductSupport/consumer_manuals.asp

I had to use the Toshiba Canada site to obtain a .pdf version of my RD-XS35 manual, though:

http://209.167.114.38/support/ceg/manuals/

The Toshiba USA site is oddly missing manuals for models that are listed on their product pages.

- ooofest

My LG DR787T just died, I was watching DTV OTA with it (and had a blank DVD-RW in it) when suddenly it started making a strange sound like the disk was spinning up really fast and then it turned off. It refused to come on again for a long time, now it has finally come back on and I removed the disk. Anyway this problem, along with the fact that mine wont read DVD-RAM disks (even with the disks they reccomend) I am taking it back to best buy.

I am considering the Toshiba D-R550, has anyone tried it? Or maybe I will just get the cheap Magnavox at walmart then wait to see if they ever get the Polaroid HDD unit in stock (the panny EZ27 looks nice to but to expensive for what it is I think).


I got this yesterday. The player is junk. It doesn't even work right. It picks up some digital channels then when you tune back to them, the channels are not there. Other times no digital channels it picks up at all.

Also the upconverting does nothing for enhancing the regular dvd movies. I have it on HDMI cable and 1080i looks the same as 480.

I rather have vcr tapes to record. Cause each dvd players only likes certain blank disc to record on. Some names don't work. The entire recording on dvd disc is just a mess. VCR tapes were so much eaiser You got so many dvd formats.

The player is made in CHINA and if I had known it would never have been ordered. No more Toshiba dvd players for me.

^ wow, I was really thinking about the 550 too

bummer

I just received mine (Electronics Showplace, $199 including shipping. So far, I really like it.
I am not an AV expert, just a consumer. The tuner is great. It sets the channels for two separate bands, analog and digital. The digital pulls in stations that are snowy in analog.

I was shocked how many multi-casting channels we have. It is practically like cable, although I never heard of these channels.

The DVD player works fine with pre-recorded DVDs. I am using the component output to my older Sony analog TV.

I haven't tried the recording yet.

I am using this as a digital tuner and replacement for my VCR. So far, it has done everything beyond expectations.

I got this yesterday. The player is junk. It doesn't even work right. It picks up some digital channels then when you tune back to them, the channels are not there. Other times no digital channels it picks up at all.

Also the upconverting does nothing for enhancing the regular dvd movies. I have it on HDMI cable and 1080i looks the same as 480.

I rather have vcr tapes to record. Cause each dvd players only likes certain blank disc to record on. Some names don't work. The entire recording on dvd disc is just a mess. VCR tapes were so much eaiser You got so many dvd formats.

The player is made in CHINA and if I had known it would never have been ordered. No more Toshiba dvd players for me.

Upconverting is often debated in terms of visual improvements to different viewers. You really can't expect 480i sources to pass through upscaling and/or progressive conversion via either a DVD player or television and have it always appear as true HD, for example. However, some folks do see improvements in scaling and/or a progressive signal with their combination of external upconverter and TV.

I've seen plenty of plasma owners who said that upconverting seemed to make little or no discernable difference to their DVD experiences. There's surely many reasons why that was so, but it just has seemed such a prevalent wave of opinions I've encountered. Everyone's mileage will vary, of course.

It might seem more interesting if you attempt upscaling to 720p or even 768p for your plasma (in the latter case, probably by sending it 1080p from the Toshiba), rather than staying interlaced and looking for most of the viewing improvement through scaling.

Is your complaint about the VCR tapes vs. this unit primarily about not liking the Toshiba interface?

And . . . Oppos are made in China, aren't they? Being of Chinese origin is not an automatic problem in consumer electronics, IMHO.

- ooofest

I have had mine for a few days. I am new to DVD recorders, so I cannot give an educated or detailed opinion yet, but I think it's great. I have it set up to record from my cable DVR and it makes a great DVD from HD programming. No, it's not making an HD disc, of course, but it's great quality, and I can record Discovery HD shows in great quality. I am still playing around with it and learning about how to tweak things to make it work even better. It does time slip and chase play with use of a DVD-RW in VR mode. It says it will play DVD-RAM, but does not record on DVD-RAM. If you ask some specific questions, I can try to answer them or look things up in the manual for you. I got mine through American*TV, but Circui*Cit* had them on-line at one point recently.

Does this model have an epg for ota digital and HD programs. Im very interested in this model. Can anybody that has one give a good review.

Thanks Ken

Also does this have a sd tuner or hdtuner thanks.

Also does this have a sd tuner or hdtuner thanks.

From a quick Google search:


http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/484319925

. . .

The DR550 features built-in ATSC, NTSC and QAM digital/analog tuners to allow for tuning of analog or digital channels from over the air or cable, including "cable-in-the-clear" digital channels. SD Bridge Recording lets you easily record programming received from the built-in digital and analog tuners onto DVVD in standard resolution. . . A 12-Program/1-Month timer recording feature lets you plan your recordings well in advance. . .


- ooofest

From a quick Google search:
But I assume it still doesn't work to output live HD. Instead it probably converts everything to SD. :( I'd be glad to hear otherwise.

But I assume it still doesn't work to output live HD. Instead it probably converts everything to SD. :( I'd be glad to hear otherwise.

Which output is your area of concern? The spec sheet at Toshiba's site mentions that it simply offers passthrough for the RF IN -> RF OUT connection, for example.

Are you questioning whether it pumps out live HD through the HDMI connection? It mentions upconverting DVDs through that connection, so if it then used the SD recording bridge to output live HD as downgraded SD video signals (presumably with the original audio) through HDMI, I'm not sure why they would go to that trouble. Unless there's some legal issue there.

- ooofest