I am interested in the Phillips DVDR3475/37 DVD Recorder. I would like to know certain information about it, but I don't see any threads dedicated to this product, nor any references to it when i searched for it. I have a few questions about this product, and hopefully a few of you can answer some of the questions I have about this product. I have never used a DVD Recorder before so I apologized if some of these questions have obvious answers. They aren't obvious to someone new to the DVD Recorder scene.

This is the product that I am talking about.
http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/d/dvdr3475_37/dvdr3475_37_pss_aen.pdf
Product Manual
http://www.p4c.philips.com/files/d/dvdr3475_37/dvdr3475_37_dfu_aen.pdf

1. First and formemost, DVD picture quality is important to me. The most important function of this unit is as an Upconverting DVD Player to watch movies. In that respect, does this unit do a good job upconverting DVDs? How is the image quality (Poor, Average, Good, Excellent)? If someone here has used the OPPO 980H, how does the image produced by the Phillips compare in relation to the OPPO?

2. Can it record Cable (Analog and Digital) and Satelite sources, and not simply OTA? If it does, are there limitations to what content is recordable? (other than the obvious fact about HD)

3. Can it record Widescreen SD onto DVD? I own a Sony HDR-HC1 (Hi-definition Camcorder) that can output Video via Firewire as Widescreen SD. I want to be able to record this content onto DVD.

4. The specification for this product make no mention that it can play DVD-R DL products. I have some media that is burned onto DVD-R DL discs. So can this player play DVD-R DL?

5. In your opinion is this a quality product; Are there major problems or glitches or important fuctionality that is missing? I have read a little about the inability to remember channels on older stock.

Thanks

Sudhakar

Duplicated on the main thread.

I believe the Phillips DVDR3475/37 DVD Recorder is an analog recorder. You might want to go for a 3505 or 3575 (HDD) recorder that has the SDTV (not HD) tuner.

As of right now, I only know of two recorders that can record widescreen properly. One of them is a Lite-On (I heard they stopped making STB DVD recorders?) and a Panasonic. The Pany only does this using DVD Ram. The regular blank DVDs, the Pany will record all widescreen squished into a 4x3 screen. You have to use a +/- RW and a freeware program called Ifoedit to fix this. Type in “widescreen” and “Ifoedit” on the Internet to get the instructions.

If you use a Philips 3505 or 3575, depending on how you set the recorder, it will record 16x9 squished, pan & scan, or letterbox. I was successful in using a RW disc and making it widescreen with letterbox and Pan & scan enabled. This means the widescreen will show up as widescreen on a widescreen TV, letterbox on a 4x4 TV depending on how I set it on the player.

I’d stay away from the 3475 unless you are planning on connecting it to satellite, cable or use a digital to analog converter (at Feb 2009).

I don't know the answers to your other questions.

wristpad2 - you nedd to read up a bit on recording widescreen. :)

Panasonic actually "limits" 16x9 wide screen recordings to DVD Ram. Most if not all other recorders will record 16x9 images just fine without this DVD Ram limitation.

Also there are DVD recorders that set the widescreen flag without having to import to a PC and using Ifoedit. Certain models of Toshiba and Sony for example.

wristpad2 - you nedd to read up a bit on recording widescreen. :)

Panasonic actually "limits" 16x9 wide screen recordings to DVD Ram. Most if not all other recorders will record 16x9 images just fine without this DVD Ram limitation.

Also there are DVD recorders that set the widescreen flag without having to import to a PC and using Ifoedit. Certain models of Toshiba and Sony for example.

I returned my first Philips 3505 because I found that it recorded widescreen squished into a 4x3 format. I later bought the recorder again after I discovered Ifoedit. I do know that the squished will play 16x9 if played on a widescreen TV if it is set to “stretch”. What I wanted is the disc to be just like a commercial DVD where it would play widescreen or letterbox depending on the player’s settings on a 4x3 TV. The way the Philps is, any widescreen recording is squished… on a 4x3 TV. If is set the recorder to letterbox, it will record letterbox. Looks great on a 4x3 but it will be letterboxed and pillarboxed on a widescreen TV.

I should have done more research on widescreen recording before re-buying the Philips. I decided to live with Pan&Scan recordings now since the Philip’s SDTV looks so good and the recorder is cheap.

Thanks for the information.

Recording widescreen can be a very confusing topic. Terms like squished, squeezed, pillar box, letter box, stretched, zoomed, widescreen flags, anamorphic, 4:3, 16x9, etc, etc.

And now with the introduction of down scaled SD digital ATSC/QAM tuners a whole wrinkle.

When using the A/V inputs of pretty much any DVD recorder it will record the image sent to the recorder. So adjusting the source to send the DVD recorder a full screen image is where the focus should be. Less with the recorder itself unless you would like one that can set the flag for proper 4:3 playback.

But again. Now with ATSC/QAM tuners there is a whole new wrinkle to consider.

I have this hooked up to my Viewsat Ultra STB, using the S-Video out to the S-Video in on the unit, then Component out to the TV. The picture coming from the satellite, is horrible... if I put a DVD in, the pic is perfect... wondering if anyone knows if the S-Video in is the problem, or the S-Video out on the STB is? I am going to try and run another DVD player through the S-Video tonight, to see how the pic looks, I have a feeling that the STB is the problem and was wondering what remedies I have to try adn get a better pic going through...

Thanks