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panasonic DMR-EZ27K or Sony RDR-GX350

post #1 of 15
9/26/07 at 8:10pm
Thread Starter 
Hi, I want to buy a dvd recorder and I hesitate between panasonic DMR-EZ27K and Sony RDR-GX350. I want to record tv show and personal video, and I want see all type of DVD. Somebody could help me? Thank!
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post #2 of 15
9/27/07 at 5:04am
Being a tech who works on these 2 products Id say go with the Sony, they are typically built better, I see alot more panasonics then Sony RDRs and when I do see a sony RDR on my bench 9 times out of 10 its operator error (people have hard time reading user manuals these days). Plus sony has better warranty and we send the units directly to them for repair, better for the company who made it repair it.
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post #3 of 15
9/27/07 at 5:18am
Beware of the possibility that Sony DVDRs may have a chip in them that prevents copying of protected material, including broadcast material (e.g., premium channel movies). I got this information from some owner reviews at Amazon.com. From a review at Circuit City:

Sony RDR-GX355 DVD Recorder
Also, the copy-protection is at full-force on this recorder. Don't try to record anything from Pay-per-view or HBO-you'll get a nice little blue screen telling you that you cannot. Best to stick to DVRs for recording your missed television programs, since most shows are also available on DVD, it's only a matter of time before they are also copy-protected, rendering this product useless.

It sounds like a choice between reliability and universal usability.
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post #4 of 15
9/27/07 at 6:53am
Sony's build quality is something to consider and I have read of Panasonic's poor build quality on my EZ17. However, even despite my preference for Sony's cosmetics, I chose the Panasonic for the 500 line LP recording I have not found in any other recorder. Using a dual layer disc further yields 7hrs 20mins of DVD quality recording. If only Sony would match that. But I guess I have been fairly lucky, despite having to overcome some early firmware issues, my Panasonic has held up well to weekly recording chore with no build quality issues to speak of. Maybe I am just easy on my stuff!
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post #5 of 15
9/27/07 at 7:24am
Perhaps more Panasonic product gets serviced because Panasonic sells the most. I don't think Sony sells as much as Panasonic in the DVD recorder space. As a result more Panasonic product will be serviced.

I'd be more interested in service rates as opposed to simply volume. For example, if the Panasonic fleet is three times that of Sony (with service rates being the same or similar) three times as many Panasonics will require service. Which may lead one to think (perhaps incorrectly) Panasonics require more repair.

I've always thought of Panasonic as a pretty solid build. But I guess when you get to some of the lower end stuff that is introduced as a reult of pricing pressure all bets should be off.
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post #6 of 15
9/27/07 at 7:45am
Quote:
Originally Posted by nextoo View Post

Perhaps more Panasonic product gets serviced because Panasonic sells the most. I don't think Sony sells as much as Panasonic in the DVD recorder space. As a result more Panasonic product will be serviced.

I'd be more interested in service rates as opposed to simply volume. For example, if the Panasonic fleet is three times that of Sony (with service rates being the same or similar) three times as many Panasonics will require service. Which may lead one to think (perhaps incorrectly) Panasonics require more repair.

I've always thought of Panasonic as a pretty solid build. But I guess when you get to some of the lower end stuff that is introduced as a reult of pricing pressure all bets should be off.


Excellent point! I have heard poor things about build quality on other Sony products but not so much on their DVD recorders/players. Unfortunately, despite Panasonic's overall good reputation, I have heard poor things about the EZ series recorders build quality from several techs and not just based on volume of repairs. Overall, companies do have to cut costs somewhere and low price items will be that way because they were cheaply built.
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post #7 of 15
9/27/07 at 12:45pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by SlapnutsGT View Post

Plus sony has better warranty and we send the units directly to them for repair, better for the company who made it repair it.

Sony has a 1-year warranty (doesn't specify parts or labor), and Panasonic has a 1-year parts and labor warranty. How does Sony have a better warranty?

Perhaps you are thinking of the Toshibas, which have a 90-day warranty. Toshiba will repair or replace a defective DVDR free of charge only during the first 90 days after purchase. From day 91 to 365, Toshiba will repair or replace a defective DVDR FOR A FEE!!!

I think that the warranty for Toshiba rates as one of the worse I've ever seen.
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post #8 of 15
9/27/07 at 1:14pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by rgazzara View Post


Perhaps you are thinking of the Toshibas, which have a 90-day warranty. Toshiba will repair or replace a defective DVDR free of charge only during the first 90 days after purchase. From day 91 to 365, Toshiba will repair or replace a defective DVDR FOR A FEE!!!

I think that the warranty for Toshiba rates as one of the worse I've ever seen.

Unless there is an 89 day warranty out there somewhere. That would be worse than a 90 day warranty.

Toshiba does work with their customers though. And has extended their warranties to beyond the 90 day in some cases based on reports I've read on here. Actually beyond a year. I've never had to use their warranty services but when I did have them send me a firmware update they were very professional. And they did have a knowledgeable staff that seemed responsive enough. My call was answered in Iowa.

Contrast this to some of the off brands where customer support is non existent. Where a contracted call center is used and the next call may be for ordering a infomercial miracle mop.

There probably is much worse than Toshiba out there.
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post #9 of 15
9/27/07 at 1:46pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by rgazzara View Post

Sony has a 1-year warranty (doesn't specify parts or labor), and Panasonic has a 1-year parts and labor warranty. How does Sony have a better warranty?

Perhaps you are thinking of the Toshibas, which have a 90-day warranty. Toshiba will repair or replace a defective DVDR free of charge only during the first 90 days after purchase. From day 91 to 365, Toshiba will repair or replace a defective DVDR FOR A FEE!!!

I think that the warranty for Toshiba rates as one of the worse I've ever seen.

Well I meant to say their handling of the warranties are better, direct send to Sony, alot of times they exchange the unit for new one....panasonic on the other hand you have to troubleshoot to component level, which takes ALOT longer and they screw around with getting parts out and you have to go through so many doors just to order something (authorization etc etc)....

Basically send in a Sony for repair you get it back or taken care of quickly, panasonic Ive seen it take up to months for any results
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post #10 of 15
9/27/07 at 9:56pm
Ok.
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post #11 of 15
9/27/07 at 10:59pm
If you want to record from cable or satellite I'd still recommend something other than the Sony.

Too many people here have had to return them because of the hyper-sensitivity to copy protection.

If I recall from some of the posts here, the LG's seem to be pretty bad with it, also.
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post #12 of 15
9/28/07 at 1:32pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Rammitinski View Post

If you want to record from cable or satellite I'd still recommend something other than the Sony.

Too many people here have had to return them because of the hyper-sensitivity to copy protection.

If I recall from some of the posts here, the LG's seem to be pretty bad with it, also.

Yeah this im not familiar with...never heard a complaint for this so really never put that to the test. LG's are possibly the worse built players on the market, so if you are worried about that stay away from them totally...or make sure you get an extended warranty if its offered because a few of their players only have the 90/90 parts and labor coverage, or 90/365...and I know labor alone at best buy service can range from $75-$110 roughly
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post #13 of 15
9/28/07 at 3:29pm
I think that most or all of the LG recorders only have composite inputs, also. At least that's how it appears according to the specs in my latest Crutchfield catalog.

A Sima might help with the CP issue, but then that's another hundred bucks.
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post #14 of 15
9/28/07 at 6:51pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by SlapnutsGT View Post

Yeah this im not familiar with...never heard a complaint for this so really never put that to the test. LG's are possibly the worse built players on the market, so if you are worried about that stay away from them totally...or make sure you get an extended warranty if its offered because a few of their players only have the 90/90 parts and labor coverage, or 90/365...and I know labor alone at best buy service can range from $75-$110 roughly

Interesting.

I just bought an LG DP781 portable DVD player for my wife's plane trips because its resolution beat anything I saw except for the 10" Toshiba at twice the price, and it has 4.5-5 hours battery life. It had none of the "screen door" effect that all the other portable DVD players had. It has kinda cool touch-sensitive illuminating controls, too. One thing it lacks is a hue control. The brightness/contrast is a single control, and achieves a good balance between the two, and you can increase or decrease the color intensity all the way to black and white, but the default/set hue is a bit too blue for my tastes after watching our close-to-calibrated TV. But for plane travel and kids in the car, it's fine. I did get the Best Buy extended warranty, though. Maybe one can get into a service menu and warm up the image a bit. And, on a plane, one needs sound-muffling earphones, because the volume does not get very high.
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post #15 of 15
9/29/07 at 11:37am
Quote:
Originally Posted by eweiss View Post

Interesting.

I just bought an LG DP781 portable DVD player for my wife's plane trips because its resolution beat anything I saw except for the 10" Toshiba at twice the price, and it has 4.5-5 hours battery life. It had none of the "screen door" effect that all the other portable DVD players had. It has kinda cool touch-sensitive illuminating controls, too. One thing it lacks is a hue control. The brightness/contrast is a single control, and achieves a good balance between the two, and you can increase or decrease the color intensity all the way to black and white, but the default/set hue is a bit too blue for my tastes after watching our close-to-calibrated TV. But for plane travel and kids in the car, it's fine. I did get the Best Buy extended warranty, though. Maybe one can get into a service menu and warm up the image a bit. And, on a plane, one needs sound-muffling earphones, because the volume does not get very high.

Yeah I see this unit alot also, but honestly only problems I ever see is where someone spilled a soda on it and screwed it up somehow...and you are right it has the best LCD of mainstream portables right now, im seriously considering getting one. Good deal getting the extended warranty because that player only has a 90/90 parts/labor from day of purchase, which is a horrible warranty for such a nice player.
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