Panasonic DMR-E55K Progressive-Scan DVD Recorder/Player , Black by Panasonic
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Digital camera reviews of Panasonic DMR-E55K Progressive-Scan DVD Recorder/Player , Black
Digital camera Review: Best of the under $300.00 class
Summary: 4 Stars
I just ordered one of these last week to transfer/archive my ever growing pile of 8mm & Hi8 to DVD. The picture quality of the copies are great, even on 4hr mode. A couple of hints which the manual does not cover very well. When recording to DVD-R, which has few editing options compared to DVD-RAM, use "stop" to break the recording into separate "titles"- otherwise you will get one long title broken into 5 minute segments which don't appear on the title navigator (menu) as separate thumbnails. The other hint, especially on dubbing, is to make a (-R) copy first. After finalizing, use this as your master. Play it from another DVD player to your recorder and edit in real time by "pausing" out unneeded material or "stop" for title breaks. On (-RAM) just let it run and go back later to edit it. Use the edited (-RAM) as your archive, to view off the Panasonic machine, or run another (-R) copy for use on a standard player. If you are looking to make multiple copies, or do extensive editing of the master, you might want to spend the extra $300.00 for an internal hardrive machine. This unit will handle all your typical VCR needs and basic dubbing at a reasonable price.Digital camera Review: Best price/value
Summary: 5 Stars
I needed a DVD recorder as entry level and this one is th perfect for my needs. I am now able to record directly from Premiere instead of rendering and authoring, I can do both steps on one.Digital camera Review: Best product on the market for the money
Summary: 5 Stars
I've had this machine for only a few days now and it rocks. Set up was easy (it helped to be able to read the manual on line prior to receiving the unit)and I was recording within the first hour. No doubt the instructions are a bit complicated but if you know how to use a VCR and have just a bit of tech know-how, it's really a breeze.
The only drawback I can see is that you really can't use a DVD-RAM anywhere but in this machine. Plus the DVD-RAMs are expensive and you can't really share the recordings with friends. On the other hand, it's the DVD-RAM that opens up the possibility of watching the program you're currently recording, time-slip, and editing. It's perfect for recording (and then erasing) things you want to watch once or twice and then get rid of.
However, the DVD-R recording is just as easy (without the possibility of using the extended cool features like time-slip and chasing playback) and if you want you can easily do some further editing on your PC if you'd like. When using DVD-R, just be sure to "Finalize" the disc so it can be shared with other DVD players.
Another slight negative of the machine is that it won't playback DVD+Rs, so if you have those in your collection, you'll want to hook up antother DVD player to the system (which is very easy to do). I have my VCR and old DVD player hooked up through this unit and everything works flawlessly.
I've already and easily started copying some of my old videotapes to DVD-R. I haven't yet hooked my Hi-8 video camera but I'm sure it will be just as easy.
This machine, for the money, is the best on the market. It not only matched my expectations, it far exceeded them.
I love this thing!
Digital camera Review: Completely satisfied
Summary: 5 Stars
I have no regrets about this purchase. I think it is very user-friendly and intuitive. It is packed with features and the recording quality is excellent.Digital camera Review: Consider the new model, Panasonic DMR-ES10
Summary: 4 Stars
If you're considering the DMR-E55, you might look at the just-on-the-shelves Panasonic DMR-ES10. As far as I can tell, though don't take this as Gospel, it does everything the E55 does (nifty DVD-RAM stuff like time slip; variable compression to make full use of the disc to record just exactly, say, a 1hr 23 minute program; etc) and probably has some new features as well. But most of all, Panasonic seems to have actually listened to people's comments and fixed a few things --
-- the ES10 uses not just 4X DVD-R discs, but both +/- and 4X/8X write-once discs (so a year from now you won't be vainly searching for media), and also re-writeable DVD-RW. Since most computers won't read DVD-RAM without extra hardware, this lets you, for instance, record TV shows and edit them on the computer without creating a bunch of unusable coasters.
-- many people found the E55 manual and operations obscure/difficult. The ES10's manual is clearly written, and the operation is almost intuitive (at least what I've tested so far).
And best of all, the going price of the ES10 is about $200 :-). At least that's what I payed for mine - after much research I had intended to buy an E55 in spite of its limitations, but this model had just come in, and I've been very pleased in the few days I've had it.
[I rated the E55K 4* to avoid skewing the rating; I haven't actually used it, but felt compelled to give this heads up.]