DVD recorders with digital tuners are coming! - Page 2

Yes, I agree, for as long as cable continues to transmit analog. But as per my original post, I am concerned with OTA which is how I get my signals.

I agree with you totally on this. If this is the case I might actually buy one right away, otherwise I'll probably wait until one of my units dies.

I'd bet that stand-alone ATSC tuners will be available which can be programmed to turn on and switch to a certain channel at a given time, just like cable STBs can do. That way, you schedule a recording in two places - once on your DVD recorder and once on your STB. It's a little more work, but it's how I schedule recordings for pay channels with my cable STB and it works just fine.

Sorry for the tape-delayed reply. I'm behind on my subscribed threads :-)

I used 20c as a reference because the ones at 20c in my experience are fairly reliable. The 5c Playos and such, I don't trust as much for must-save one-chance recordings, but you are right, the comparison could be at 5c per disk instead...

The Memorex (hello Spyder6969) discounted their HD recordables from $20 to $17 per, but I would be scared to put that brand in a $1000 BluRay/HD-DVD recorder (not that I would ever buy one) :-)

I am still waiting for a combined ATSC /DVD recorder, I can live it upconverting / downconverting to DVD instead of directly to a HD if the price is right.

-DonB2

Just a few more weeks till CES - info should be out then.

Indeed! It will be interesting to see what direction they go to and what they do about digital tuners (ATSC/QAM), media types (+/-/RAM and HD/BR), size of hard discs, and whether any of them license the TiVo interface...

I sent this EMAIL to LG on 1/5/07:

I am curious as to when you will be shipping the LG DVD/VCD HD ATSC tuners - Model DR787T and Model RC797T.

The reply:

Dear Customer, Thank you for inquiring of LG Electronics. At this time, we have no information pertaining to possible future releases; however, your email has been forwarded to our research and development department. Customer requests are highly considered in the process of developing new product aesthetics and features. Please feel free to contact us with any additional questions or concerns. Thank you again for contacting LG Electronics. Kristi E-mail Administrator Customer Interactive Center LGEAI

-DonB2

Don't you love the $10/hr support rep that can cut and paste canned answered.

How R&D would do anything with your release date request is beyond me. So according to their email LG doesn't know when they are shipping new items until it ships...I wonder who packs them and calls the carrier

DVDrs are not that sexy or high on the list of priority items for most makers - you're bound to see them on the shelves instead of any big announcement.

I felt like writing back to them since the answer was rather canned but figured I would just get another canned reply.

I just hope it has as least as good a ATSC tuner as the Samsung DTB-H260F.

-DonB2

I have IR blasters from many different devices and as long as the plug is the same, all of them are compatible with each other. It's just an IR led. I don't think my E85 came with an IR blaster, come to think of it. Anyway, if you really need one and can't just order one from some source, I have one I'm not using that I can send to you. It will have to have the right "end" though to plug into the DVD recorder.

Just don't order one from Sony.

I was looking for one a year or so ago and saw on their website that they wanted $25.00 for it!!

OK: CES news!

http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-12760_7-9675202-5.html
http://www.twice.com/article/CA64052...dustryid=23099

Prices have STILL NOT been given for the LG ATSC tuners. BUT, there have been prices given for DVD+VCR and DVD-only models from Panasonic, RCA, and Samsung, ranging from $230 to $380.

Also, the cheapest of them all (a $230 Panasonic without a VCR) either will or won't have HDMI upconversion, depending on the source. I hope that Reed's wrong.

dump the VCR and give me a hard drive that can record an HD signal.

I bought a VCR (old one died) last year that remains in the closet and is only pulled out when I need it (have used it once).

Why won't these people listen.....

ATSC/QAM Tuner
Hard Drive (500GB) to record 60 hours of HDTV
DVD Recorder to archive hard drive items (in 480i/p of course)
HDMI Output to watch HDTV from live and hard drive feed and upconverted DVD.

NO VCR COMBO -- I don't know anyone that owns one of these.

I am waiting to buy a unit like I described above, does anyone want to make one? For now my Sony HD DVR and my old E80H will have to do.

Let the VCR die like the 8-track player! Pawn shops and eBay will VCR's for years to come....let consumers buy them there.

My friend works at Best Buy and has seen some DVD recorders come in with printing on the boxes that states the recorders will not be work after Feb 2009 without a converter box. He didn't recall the exact wording. It was not a big warning label but just printed on the box along with all the information such as features, etc. He wonders how many people actual read the info on the box.

Analog tuners don't require a little computer with memory.
See what an ATSC tuner needs to do at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ATSC_tuner
Quote:
performs the following tasks: demodulation, error correction, transport stream demultiplexing, decompression, analog to digital conversion, AV synchronization, and media reformatting

Also patents and royalties cost $23 bucks for each one:
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/bizchin...ent_768603.htm

I go along with what you say. But I don't think the people that frequent these forums carry much weight with the manufacturers. IOW, we are a small part of the total consumer electronics market.

My friend works at Best Buy and has mentioned a couple times that they do not carry DVD recorders with hard drives because people were returning them and saying they were too difficult to use.

He also said they sell a lot of the VCR combo units. The presumption was that people want to copy their home movies to disc with a push of a single button.

Anyway it makes me concerned that the manufacturers may stop making HDD models. I thought I read in a CES thread that Panny did not introduce and new HDD models, but I'd have to go back & re-read that thread.

As far as I know, no one announced a DVD recorder with a HDD this CES 2007 :-(

I guess if none come out with hard drives, no reason for me to upgrade...only was planning on upgrading to combine 2 units (DVR with HD playback and DVDR for archiving at 480 lines). Just keep my old DMR-E80H up and running I guess

The only thing so far with a HDD is the Sony hybrid PC/BluRay at $2000+ :-(

I thought about using my old computer to build a PVR, but it's not powerful enuf. So I'd have to buy a cheap PC, HD tuner card, software, etc. Sure would be cheaper to buy a DVD recorder with a HDD and digital tuner - presuming someone will make one.

My guess is that DVD recorders with HDDs will be announced later in the year.

The point about engineering and testing time sounds reasonable. Just to throw some more ideas into the mix:

Does anyone find it curious that all the big guys made the same decision not to upgrade their existing HDD units with ATSC tuners? You'd think one might have broken away from the group, since the first one out may have profit advantages over the also-rans.

Will some clone maker be the first, ahead of Panasonic, Sony, Toshiba, et al.?

Will someone hit with a no-hassle HTPC for this niche (as opposed to the multiple-hassle HTPC solutions now available)?

And: With a good HDD DVR that records and plays back hi-def (archiving to DVD with lower resolution when something just has to be saved), some viewers may say "a plague on both your houses" to Blu-Ray and HD-DVD and adopt neither. Does that have a part in this?

Such a unit would certainly slow the adoption of HD DVDrs. I think most folks use a recorder for time shifting and less so for archving - under such a scenario a DVDr w/HDD that can record HD to the HDD is very compeling to most folks.

It might be complicated but it certainly won't be that expensive. I assume when makers buy the ATSC chip all royalties have already been paid. Most chip makers are quoting the chip at less than the royalty figure listed in that article. The $50 STB by 09 would not be possible with such royalties.

I'm in for one. I'd easily pay $500 for a unit with these capabilities!

Sounds like good reasoning to me. I really can't believe that that likes of Panasonic, etc. are giving up the DVDR HDD market. They should be coming along in the near future.

I wouldn't make that assumption. Many chips are programmable, so you don't have to pay royalties until it is doing the patent infringing job. I suspect that the $23 dollar figure is for a ATSC receiver+TV that is doing everything. Perhaps the chip(s) you are looking at doesn't do everything.