Philips HDRW720 DVD Recorder

[mobily]

Hey all,

I've been having a look at a cheap HDD recorder such as the Philips mentioned in the title.

http://www.ebuyer.com/customer/produ...duct_uid=85070

I would like to hook up the machine to a Telewest box and record things to a hard disk with ease.

How good is the machine and is the 80gb hard disk big enough?

Cheers

[Vallyboy]

No knowledge about the box, hopefully others will advise.

Originally Posted by mobily

How good is the machine and is the 80gb hard disk big enough?

Cheers

Only had it a few days but I am delighted. Feels and behaves like quality, quiet as a mouse and has GuidePlus+ one of the reasons I bought it.

One issue that people might mention is that it cannot re-encode to fit a disk.
In practical terms not an issue that I see as mine is set to 2+ and so you can fit 150 minutes on a dvd.....sorts out 99.9% of the stuff I record. The most positive fact about this setting is that it is indistinguishable from the live TV, that is my observation and of many who have this unit.

Hard drive, bigger is better ?, will be when Hi-Def is the norm, but I have recorded about 6 films ATM only taken a small bite out of the drive, at this setting I can store 40 hours of stuff, and if I get lazy and start to run out of space...well a couple of clicks and archive it to a 20p DVD..so easy you cannot believe.

Until you use it you will not appreciate the buffer feature of this unit, 1 to 6 hours, 3 as default. A programme started last night, I started to watch it a neighbour came round with a problem sorted it out an hour later used my remote to wind back to where I stopped watching, I had forgotten to pause it, but it did not matter. Not all PVRs have a buffer feature I believe, but I know now that if I ever replace this one I will want this buffer feature.

When in use it has a quality feel and more importantly gives quality results, and without a doubt it is about the most stylish on the market....especially when the groovy lights are lit up.

Get it quick before they all go, I had mine from Dabs, saved a £1..well it all counts, and if ordered early enough it is next day delivery.

Agree with the above. Recording quality at 2x is as good as broadcast live. Buffer feature is excellent. Machine is easy to set up although not helped by a manual that isn't particularly helpful. The Pioneer with Guideplus is probably a better machine and has had better reviews but it's also around 100 quid more expensive.
For the money the Hdrw720 is quiet, easy to use and the main reason I bought it was for the inclusion of guideplus and the fact it can control my NTL Pace box. Guidelplus (when it works) is brilliant and literally means one touch recording. It is though, temperamental and sometimes doesn't download all the channels and info on a programme you're interested in. (or is that just my set up?) The ability to add ten minutes to start and end of a recording would also be helpful as Guideplus cuts things off at exactly the time advertised.
All in all though the Philips, for around 220 quid has been a superb investment and the old VCR/DVD player is now lying in a cupboard collecting dust. Would highly recommend it.

[mobily]

I would be using the machine with Telewest, would it be able to operate my Telewest box? For example if I connected the Telewest box to the Philips and then the Philips to the TV?

[Vallyboy]

Originally Posted by mobily

I would be using the machine with Telewest, would it be able to operate my Telewest box? For example if I connected the Telewest box to the Philips and then the Philips to the TV?

Searched and found this thread so it seems that with up to date box it will, as the Tosh has the identical channel switching gizmo I believe, but without GuidePlus+

Do a search for Telewest in this forum and you may find more evidence. What I can say is that when setting it up it has cable as an option but as I have Sky did not click on that to see what providers were listed.

[JethroUK]

with the exception of some old pace tuners the 720 can control most digituners straight out the box - additional tuners cades are added after the first download

Originally Posted by mobily

I would be using the machine with Telewest, would it be able to operate my Telewest box? For example if I connected the Telewest box to the Philips and then the Philips to the TV?