DVD Recorder Help? Tivo Also?

[SueInCali]

Okay, color me clueless here with this new fangled technology!

 

I need some help in figuring out IF I want one of these. I see they have gone down in price a bit and am wondering if the masses here find if this is something that you use enough to warrant a purchase.

 

Not that I would do ANYTHING of the sort But........if one would rent a DVD say... from video store X, could this item be used to record said DVD? Just wondering...

 

We have one of those Go Video VHS/DVD players, I guess I can transfer VHS to DVD. But, I need to hop into the 21st century here! I have seen that they have a DVD/DVD unit as well. Is this what I am looking for?

 

As far as Tivo, I am even more lost.

 

We have Digital cable here (HBO,Starz,etc) and I think the cable company offers some DVR thingy for like $15 a month. Would this be the same as going out and buying a Tivo w/o having to shell out the purchase for the Tivo?

 

Ross- I read that there was some deal in the past at CC (maybe?) that it was FAR for a Tivo? Anticipate any other specials like that or are offers like this commonplace?

 

I just wanna know the facts before I may have to shell out $ for possibly something I really don't need and taken to the cleaners.

 

Of course, hubby is no help! (Don't tell him that!)

[RossMAN]

I need some help in figuring out IF I want one of these. I see they have gone down in price a bit and am wondering if the masses here find if this is something that you use enough to warrant a purchase.

 

If you watch a lot of TV and want to record shows then yes a DVR (Digital Video Recorder) such as TiVo is what you want.

 

Not that I would do ANYTHING of the sort But........if one would rent a DVD say... from video store X, could this item be used to record said DVD? Just wondering...

 

That would be illegal. I think you mean if you wanted to copy a DVD you already own for archiving purposes

 

We have one of those Go Video VHS/DVD players, I guess I can transfer VHS to DVD. But, I need to hop into the 21st century here! I have seen that they have a DVD/DVD unit as well. Is this what I am looking for?

 

We're talking about 4 different devices here:

• Combo VHS/DVD record VHS to DVD but no TiVo.
• Dual DVD burners copy one DVD to another with the push of a button, no computer needed and again no TiVo.
• TiVo series 2, basically TiVo with no DVD Players or Burners. $12.95/mo or $299 lifetime for the service.
• TiVo with single DVD Burner, allows you to record TV shows to hard drive then burn it onto a DVD. However you cannot copy from DVD to DVD.

We have Digital cable here (HBO,Starz,etc) and I think the cable company offers some DVR thingy for like $15 a month. Would this be the same as going out and buying a Tivo w/o having to shell out the purchase for the Tivo?

 

Correct and there are 2 advantages of your cable companies DVR vs TiVo:

1) $0 upfront costs vs $99 - $199 with TiVo.

2) Most cable DVR's have dual tuners allowing you to record 2 shows at once while watching a previously recorded show. TiVo only has 1 tuner.

 

Ross- I read that there was some deal in the past at CC (maybe?) that it was FAR for a Tivo? Anticipate any other specials like that or are offers like this commonplace?

 

That was similiar to this expired deal except for it was $99 - $100 rebate = FREE and was at Best Buy (not Circuit City). You still have to pay $12.95 per month or $299 lifetime TiVo fees. This deal isn't that common I'd say it comes around once or twice a year.

 

I just wanna know the facts before I may have to shell out $ for possibly something I really don't need and taken to the cleaners.

 

I would say here is your ideal solution:

• Buy a DVD Burner for your computer such as the NEC ND-3540

  This will allow you to archive copies of your DVD's.

• Buy a reconditioned Humax DRT800 DVD Recorder for $129.98 after rebate with free shipping. With this DVR you can record TV shows then burn them onto DVD! If you don't really need that capability or your budget is tight, I would consider your cable companies DVR.

Of course, hubby is no help! (Don't tell him that!)

 

Then you should him into submission

[SueInCali]

Ross- thanks so much for giving me this info! Not that I understand it 100%, but I know a lot more than I did earlier.

 

Now, I have a internal DVD player on my desktop. Hubby installed it , so it basically doesn't work. lol On the door, it says DVD..below that ROM/R/RW. On to the side of that, it says CD ReWritable. For the life of me, I have tried to just play a DVD and have no luck. I d/l PC Friendly and that works as well as my hubby does on computers (meaning zippo). I remember it working at one time after d/l some program.

 

I don't think it's a burner though. Would it tell me right on the DVD door? Seeing how this thing doesn't work all that great, do you think it would be better off just to get that linked DVD burner you recommended?

 

And, how would I ARCHIVE a DVD with just that without another DVD source? I have a CD ROM that came with this Dell (2400, I think). Needless to say, it will probably be me installing this. (oh help us! ) Would I have to get rid of the CD ROM and install another DVD player drive to ARCHIVE ( ).

 

So, I wanna make sure I get the right stuff.

 

That reman unit sounds intriguing. I just am hedging on whether I should get a Tivo or do the DVR thingy (with Moxi...whatever that is!) from my cable company.

 

Then again, I could buy a Go Video (or like that) DVD/DVD recorder (to ARCHIVE) and then get the DVR from the cable company?

 

As far as hubby goes, this and this are much easier and as effective than

 

I REALLY appreciate your expertise. If you EVER need any help on shoes.......ask Mugs!

[Keebelf]

Sue, I have a new Comcast DVR and I was trying to archive a Netflix DVD (mainly to see if it would do it....it was an anime series so no big deal) and the Netflix DVD's are copy-protected. I am not sure how many DVD's are copy protected at a regular video store but that was my trial and error. We no longer have a VHS player so I am not sure if the DVR could record a VHS tape while it was playing but, I was using Video On Demand yesterday and tried the same thing with the DVR and it wouldn't record that either.

 

Hope that helps some.

[i-bystander]

All legitimate DVDs are copy-protected... you can't just copy it like you would, say a VHS or a cassette tape.

[SueInCali]

Leah and i-b...

 

Thanks for the heads up. I figured as much, with all the copy protection laws (Napster,etc.) and such that it would be futile to try "archivng".

 

Looks like DVR (with Moxi?) for us. May just keep the 'ol VHS/DVD combo for playing rentals,etc.

 

Thanks again. :)

[i-bystander]

Looks like DVR (with Moxi?) for us.

What is this Moxi that you speak of? I've never heard of it.

[SueInCali]

Here's a little story on Moxi.

 

http://www.pcworld.com/reviews/article/0,aid,121201,pg,7,00.asp

[chriszke]

I've wondered for a while now why there aren't more devices similar to TIVO, but not requiring a subscription or activation.

 

Hard drives are relatively inexpensive and I'd rather record to a hard drive and THEN decide whether or not I want to archive on a DVD.

 

I've seen DVR's with harddrives, but they're still relatively expensive. I'm not sure why....

[RossMAN]

I've wondered for a while now why there aren't more devices similar to TIVO, but not requiring a subscription or activation.

 

Actually such a device does exist, you want to look for Tivo Basic.

 

The hard to find Toshiba SD-H400 offers FREE BASIC TIVO and a DVD Player.