Get Smart, DVD Recorders That Is
What's So Smart?
"That's the trouble...I haven't got a brain...only straw." The Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz might be saying what your DVD player is thinking (if it had a brain, of course). Sure the DVD player is smarter than the old VHS VCR, but without a computer, are either of them really smart? I need to record this show, but I want to check out the program I recorded last night. I guess I need two machines for that. My video gear needs more smarts. Besides there's getting to be an awful lot of electronics boxes in here. Can't some of these functions be combined into one device? Why can't they combine a DVD, PVR, and a VCR into one device? Now that would be smart.
Well, wake up and smell the coffee. This is the year of the smart DVD. Throughout 2003, consumer electronics manufactures will roll out model after model of smart DVD recorders. This new breed of recorders functions as VCR replacements, burning television and home videos onto recordable DVD discs. If that was all there was it would be great. After all, fifty DVDs take up a lot less space than fifty VHS tapes. But there's even more. Recording with DVD media has serious advantages, such as simultaneous recording and playback from the same disc. Try that with VHS. Want more? How about instant random access? As you know, DVDs don't need to rewind or fast forward like tape. With instant recording onto a DVD disc, there's no need to find blank space like with tape. Press record and the unit will automatically find space on the disc, just like a hard drive does. The media holds 4.7GB of video with accompanying audio, which can translate into an hour (or more) of content. Compared to videotape, DVD has a vastly increased lifetime of the media itself.
With many of the machines being introduced having a list price of around $600, Smart DVD recorders will reinvent home taping and viewing. They offer easy recording and editing from broadcast programs via antenna, cable or satellite receiver. With Smart DVD recorders, you can watch what you want, when you want to watch it. You can even watch last week's episode while recording this week's from the same disc at the same time. That's Digi-VooDoo, isn't it?
Smart Features
A smart DVD recorder most likely will include some, if not all of the following: an Electronic Program Guide, basic editing capabilities, FireWire input, Internet access, a hard drive and support for the multiple DVD formats. Let's take a closer look.
It's important to remember that all this machine smartness is happening without a general-purpose computer attached to anything. Intelligence without booting up is a refreshing thing. That's why they're called Smart DVD recorders.
Beware the Format Bog
There is one sticky wicket in all this techno-delight, and that is the bewildering fuzzball of conflicting standards for recording DVD media. Just neglecting to notice whether your discs have a "+" or a "-" in their name can spell the difference between compatibility and frustration during the burning process. Until the marketplace sorts out this format war by killing off a standard or two, machines like the Sony RDR-GX7, that provide multi-format support, are well worth considering. Even so, it looks at this point like the two major formats may be able to co-exist. And when you want to share your DVDs with standard DVD players, the player may not care at all which format was selected for the burn.
In the end upgrading to the new generation of smart DVD recorders is about adding information, customization, and precision to your media recording activities. The way you go about organizing, retrieving, storing, and viewing your video is going to change. It makes sense.
Now that we've crossed over into the 21st Century, shouldn't we be acting like it? Let's get smart.
[Sidebar]
At the Consumer Electronics Show, held in Las Vegas in January 2003, many electronics companies, large and small, announced Smart DVD recorders. See their respective websites for further information. Here's the rundown.
Philips showed the DVDR75, DVDR80, and included the LX9000R, a home theater system. Suggested retail prices are $699, $799 and $1,299 respectively. The Philips machines support the DVD+RW format. www.philips.com
Sony rolled out the RDR-GX7 DVD recorder. Suggested retail price is about $800. It's a multiple capability machine recording in the DVD-RW and DVD+RW formats. www.sony.com
RCA offered the DRC8000N DVD recorder. Suggested retail price is $599. It supports the DVD+RW format. www.rca.com
Panasonic had the DMR-E50 DVD recorder on display. Suggested retail price of $600. It supports the DVD-R/RAM formats and has Time Slip and Chasing Playback functions. www.panasonic.com
Pioneer introduced the DVR-7000 DVD recorder with a suggested retail price is $2,000. It supports the DVD-R/RW formats and has an internal tuner. www.pioneerelectronics.com
Toshiba hawked the RD-X2, which is a DVD video recorder with a hard disk with a suggested retail price is $1,500. It supports the DVD-R/RAM formats. www.toshiba.com
CyQ've displayed the PV-2400i DVD recorder with FireWire input. A suggested retail price was not available at press time. It supports the DVD+R/RW formats. www.met.com.tw
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