DVD+Tivo vs. DVD-Recorder? (1 Viewer)

[Aaron H]

If you were buying new equipment right now, would you go for the seperate DVD player (something along the lines of the Panny RP91) and a Tivo/ReplayTV unit, or would you go for the new Panny DVD-Recorders?

I figure the RP-91 combo plus the PVR would be about $700, versus the E30 which I see all the time open box for $500 or the new HS2 which you can get for around $750.

Thanks!
Aaron

 

[Steve Meister]

TiVo is much more flexible than a DVD recorder will ever be. I'd go with separate units.

 

[Mark_E_Smith]

A Tivo is not just a recorder. It has a program guide that it uses to record your programs, perform searches, wishlists for future programs or movies and set up season passes that get your favorites no matter if they move time slots. If you dont have one or know someone that has one you are in for a real treat. I have 5 (3 DTiVos and 2 SAs), it is the neatest piece of equipment I have gotten in a long time.

 

[Ian Montgomerie]

As far as "timeshifting" goes (recording shows to watch it again in the near future), a DirecTivo blows away any DVD recorder, there is just no comparison. Can hold dozens of hours of programming at once (hundreds with upgrades), rather than just a couple, so you can leave for the week and still have all your shows recorded, etc. Zero quality loss from the original program. Not only has the best program guide but the ability to automatically record shows for you that you might like. Can record two shows at once.

The only reasons to buy a DVD recorder are that you want to give high-quality recordings to your friends, or save hundreds of recordings indefinitely (in other words, archiving rather than timeshifting). Or, if you really want to record from non-satellite sources, and care a lot about image quality - standalone Tivo "high" quality encoding is worse than the encoding of some DVD recorders. Personally I have little desire to build huge collections of TV shows, and the ones I really want to archive are all coming out on DVD anyway.

 

[Gary Thomas]

What if you want to get the best of both worlds by recording shows from a High Definition Satellite receiver? Currently there are no PVR's available to do this. Can a DVD-Recorder handle this task?

I've got a Dish 501 PVR and would like to get the HD6000, but would still like to time shift tv shows.

I guess another option would be the HD6000 & stand alone tivo to record standard definition programs...but then I'm stuck with the subscription fees.

 

[MikeM]

Well, you can always buy a DirecTivo, and an internal DVD-R drive for your computer. With the right knowledge, hacks, and software, you can extract your favorite shows and archive them to DVD-R. It's quite a bit of work, you'll void your warranty, and there is risk of damaging your unit, but the results are stunning.

 

[Ian Montgomerie]

You won't find a DVD recorder that can record at HD resolution now or in the near future. Standard DVDs cannot handle HD.