Toshiba DR410 1080p Upconverting Tunerless DVD Recorder by Toshiba
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List Price: Our Price: $124.00 You Save: $5.99 (5%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Home Theater See more digital camera details and other models |
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Digital camera reviews of Toshiba DR410 1080p Upconverting Tunerless DVD Recorder
Digital camera Review: 1080p looks pretty good
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm replacing an older DVD recorder, and wanted 1080p upconversion to complement my 1080p TV so I got a Toshiba R410 locally over the weekend.
The R410 replaces Toshiba's R400. Looking at the specs for the two here on Amazon, differences are difficult to identify and are likely just incremental. The price remains fine, in fact starting lower that the R400.
The unit--like most--is a bit flimsy but I don't intend to handle it much. More serious, the rear input jacks on the first one of these that I was sold were inoperative. It took too long to make sure that there was a malfunction rather than a setup error by me but the exchange went easy. The second unit is working fine.
This is easy to operate: recording, finalizing and playback are intuitive (an exception is timer recordings--we've not come far from VHS timer silliness--but dubbing from a DVR after the fact is a good workaround). There are one-touch recording and auto-finalizing options. Input is through S-VHS and RCA base band jacks in the back and on the front. There is also a DV camcorder input on the front. For output there is an HDMI jack, an S-VHS jack and RCA base band jacks. HDMI must be used for high-definition playback.
As I stated in the title of this review, the upconverted 1080 line progressive scan (1080p) playback to a 1080p TV is pretty good. The unit does not, however, default to progressive playback. You have to set it. With this in mind, it seems to be a good idea to go through the setup part of the instructions to catch little surprises like that. These and other settings are not difficult to do. It would be a shame to leave it at 1080 line interlaced scan (1080i) leaving you--thinking that you are seeing 1080p--to wonder about the difference between the two. (There is a difference. Not much, but if you've got a 1080p player and a 1080p TV you might as well watch your upconverted DVDs at the top-of-the-HD-line 1080p.)
Bearing in mind that a $120.00 piece of home electronics gear is not a lifetime investment, this machine is a good deal. I'm delighted.
Digital camera Review: A DVD Recorder that WORKS!
Summary: 5 Stars
The Toshiba D-R410 DVD Video Recorder combines simplicity of operation with high quality performance, all at a very affordable price. Connection between either a satellite receiver or a VCR and TV monitor via RCA audio/video cables was a breeze, and my first recordings looked great. For this manner of hookup, a built-in tuner isn't required, and its absence contributes to the unit's affordability. I've recorded using both DVD+R and +RW discs with equal satisfaction. I recommend it without reservation to anyone seeking a "no frills", "does its job well" DVD Recorder that will be used with either a cable, satellite, or home VCR signal input.Digital camera Review: A basic digital VCR
Summary: 3 Stars
This is a very basic digital VCR - pretty straightforward. I bought it to try to replace my cable DVR - no comparison! This is a tunerless deck (I knew that going in) so you can only record what you are watching and cannot program it to record shows on different channels (unless you change the cable box before each record). I was able to easily record on the fly as well as programmed and after finalizing the disk the DVD played A-OK on all my other DVD players. This only gets 3 stars due to the fact that you can only use s-video or RCA jacks for video/audio quality, so you are stuck with SDTV. A coax jack for input on the deck would have been great. The HDMI upconversion is window dressing - it can only record s-video quality and you will get so-so video on any HDTV as it will be 480. This would be a great deck for someone to use on a 4:3 aspect display/TV - if you use it on a 16:9 display you will get bars on the sides or have to stretch it to fill the screen (and the image will be less than desirable).Digital camera Review: A piece of Junk
Summary: 1 Stars
I purchased this dvd recorder at Best Buy on July 7, 2009. I used it that first week to record about 30 minutes of stuff off my Comcast DVR. Worked kind of slow, but the quality was decent and I liked the one touch record button. Used it strictly to view DVDs from that point until this week (11-20-09). Went to record a couple of programs, and the sound didn't record, only the picture. I tried several different discs, all wasted with recorded picture and no sound. I hauled out the warranty, and imagine my shock when I saw it was for 90 DAYS! Yes, parts and labor, 90 DAYS! That's it. The Canadian warranty is for one year. Here in the US, a lousy 3 months. Thankfully I had purchased an extended warranty from Best Buy. Took it in today, they will of course opt to repair the crappy thing rather than replace it, so who knows if it will work when I get it back, which they said would be from 3-5 weeks. Lovely. A 4 month old machine, and already junk. Stay away from this thing unless you don't mind buying a new one every few months. Toshiba used to be a very respected name in electonics and computers, but apparantely they have decided to build junk now and rely on their former reputation.
Connie K
Digital camera Review: AWESOME DVD RECORDER!! AWESOME DVD PLAYER!
Summary: 5 Stars
Just got this thru Amazon after making a 3 week research on what kind of recorder I should get. First of all, I got this to mainly transfer VHS home movies and Hi-8 tapes to DVD. I have tried cumbersome and time-consuming methods including the type where you transfer the movies to your computer. Somehow with the transfer to PC method, I always encounter audio sync problems. The Toshiba beats them all for its ease of use, simplicity and affordability.
Pros:
*Affordable, by far the cheapest name brand out there for a stand-alone
recorder.
*Simple, easy to use, no holds barred recorder. No complicated set-up.
*It physically looks good.
*It is multi-format
*It has an array of connections including HDMI, S-video and DV input
Cons:
*The only thing that I have found fault in this recorder is the remote,
it is flimsy and lacking some basic controls such as a volume control
Other than the remote (which is really negligible but I must point out since this is a review), this is one user-friendly stand-alone recorder. I was thinking of getting a DVD/VCR recorder combo which is a bit expensive than a stand alone but I still have 2 usable VCR's at home so I might as well just utilize what I still have and save money in the process. Before finally settling with the D-R410, I had my sights on the Sony VRDMC5 DVDirect DVD Recorder, another stand-alone recorder which is compact, multi-format, has an array of connections including the ability to connect memory cards and a small LCD screen. A little bit expensive than this Toshiba but with all its bells and whistles, its no wonder. The only thing that drew me away from the Sony was not having the ability to monitor audio and video on your TV screen since it doesn't have any video/audio output. You can monitor your recording task (video only, no audio) on the small LCD screen. Reviews for the Sony were very good just like the Toshiba.
The very first time I used the D-R410 was a quick breeze. Doing all the necessary connections going in to the recorder and out the TV took less than 5 minutes. Not a lot of figuring out to do since you are basically doing the same connections like the previous set-up with your TV and DVD player. When you are ready to do your recording task: 1) insert a blank DVD (I use a DVD+R), 2) cue your VCR or Hi-8 camcorder to the exact point where you want to start recording, 3) go to the DVD recorder's set-up menu and 4) set the recording speed (SP in my case since almost all my VHS and Hi-8 tapes are the T-120 type where you get 2 hrs of recording), 5) also on the set-up menu, hit auto-finalize, 6) push the play button on your VCR or Hi-8 camcorder and hit the record button on the remote of the recorder and just wait until the recording is finished. NOTE: NEVER FORGET TO FINALIZE THE DISC. If you fail to do this, you will not be able to play the DVD in your other DVD players. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. If your recording finishes BEFORE the allotted recording time, you can finalize the disc manually. You can also set-up chapters and you can decide on how many minutes you want for each chapter, default is 5 minutes for each chapter.
If you have a MINI-DV camcorder, you can connect it to the IEEE 1394(firewire port) on the front of the recorder and you can manipulate the controls of your camcorder.
You CANNOT copy DVD's or tapes that is encrypted with copyright protection. I haven't tried this yet although some reviewer mentioned that this recorder is not that particular about copyright protection compared to Sony since Toshiba does not make or produce its own movies like Sony.
Other than all the things I mentioned, this is a very good recorder for basic recording of home movies. Tapes gets worn out, eaten by your VCR from constant playing. It can also grow molds in them if not used at all. Transferring to DVD preserves your precious memories for a long time.
I highly recommend this DVD recorder!!!