*Can record on both DVD-RW and DVD+RW *Looks 'high-end'

*4 hour recording mode's resolution can't compare to Panasonic's and no 'flexible' recording mode to get the best picture out of let's say, a 3 1/2 hour program. *Very slow reading and writing discs. *Sound quality. You will probably want a seperate high-end DVD or CD player for serious listening.

There's not too many products I'd buy from Sony. This unit is a good dvd player. But it's very slow in every aspect of it's operation. And although you will hear people comment on how slick the menus are, Sony seemingly didn't double check thier logic behind it. Specifically, you have a button labelled 'system menu' that gives you access to setup, playlists, and timer functions. That's great but, you already have dedicated buttons for playlists and the timer already. The on-screen info is ridiculous as it is unecessary. I find it irritating to keep seeing a 'play' or 'pause' icon repeatedly at the start of playing a dvd (FBI warning, etc). For the station/network name and program title to keep reappearing on the screen as a result of the XDS (extended data service) is retarded. And who was the genius who designated midnight and noon as '00:00' without employing military time? Why the need to record on different formats without a built in dard drive? Using DVD-RWs (1-2x speed ver 1.1) in VR mode will give you the features of DVD-RAM. And you shouldn't shy away from them as the copies I've made have played in every newer dvd player I've tried. And though you must finalize the disc to do that being a RW disc you can reformat it and record on it again. I'll probably returnn this one for the Pioneer DVR-233s. My previous Panasonic really spoiled me with it's features and capabilities. DVD-RAM disc are just a tad expensive for what I want to do.

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Panasonic DMR-ES10K

Lot's of inputs & outputs. Lot's of options.

Doesn't record in HD. It will still record HD programs off of my DirecTV HD receiver & look very impressive, it's just not true HD. Doesn't record in 5.1 sound. It records Dolby Digital 2.0, but if you've got a reciver with Dolby Pro-LogicII, it's probably better.

This is a great DVD recorder. It records & plays DVD-R,DVD+R,DVD+RW,DVD-RW. It will also play MP3, CD-R, as well as regular CD's & DVD's. The A-B erase feature allows you to edit whatever you record. Say you don't want those commercials, just edit them out. There are about 6-different record modes you can use. The higher the quality the recording, the less time available to record. Like VHS's SP, LP, & SLP modes but better. I recorded some samples off of my DirecTV receiver & it looks great. I even tried recording some Hi-Def channels & it looked awesome. There's alot of flexiblity with connections and menu options. At $249, it was a bargain. You can also watch a show that you are recording from the beginning WHILE it's still recording!!!! That's cool. You can even watch another recording while you're recording something else. However, the show must be on the same disc that you are recording onto. There are more features to the recorder, but I haven't quite gotten around to exploring them all. The piture quality is great. Even regular DVD's look better than my old progressive scan dvd player. Well worth it if you're shopping for DVD recorders. I would definitely recommend taking a look at this DVD recorder if you're in the market for one.

Similar Products Used:

None. First DVD recorder.