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Panasonic DMR-E80H
DVD Recorder
Manufacturer: Panasonic

By Mike Ferrara
SPot Senior Editor

Model number: 

2003-08-10 - " The VCR Killer? "

Review:

Let’s face it – the days of tape based recording are over. Think for a moment: when was the last time you recorded music to tape? I certainly can’t remember.

And since a very cool PVR (personal video recorder using hard drive technology) joined my equipment rack, the only thing my VCR does is blink 12:00 AM.

However, there are shows that I’d like to archive, and VHS, with it’s poor picture quality, lack of instant access and true indexing, is no longer an option for me. But now, I’ve found a ‘breakthrough’ solution that is value packed: the new Panasonic DMR-E80H DVD recorder.

Burning DVDs Has Never Been Easier



Why do I consider this new DVD recorder a breakthrough? Admittedly, there are other solutions from other vendors, as well as PC-based DVD burners. But, the Panny has an integrated hard drive, and in one sense functions as a PVR like TIVO. Now, when you want to archive a recording, it’s a simple process to dub it directly to DVD-R. The Panny even allows high-speed bit-for-bit dubbing from the HDD, for lossless copies. SWEET!

Use the HDD for Editing



The inputs for the Panny have been tweaked to clean up as much as possible the poor quality signal from VCR source. Therefore, plain old composite inputs are preferred. For better source (digital cable/sat), one can use the S-Video input. The Panny also has an NTSC tuner for antennas or non-scrambled cable. I’m very pleased with how the DVD-R copy looks as good, if not better in some cases, than the original

Once your have transferred material to the HDD (from non-copyrighted source such as VCR, LD, or OTA/cable/sat broadcasts), there are abundant features that allow you to edit the material in numerous ways to suit your needs.

The previous Panasonic DVD recorders inserted a chapter mark every 5 minutes, whether you wanted it or not. Now, using FF (up to 100X), you can quickly navigate to a particular point in the program and create a chapter marker that will make navigating the final DVD-R easier (maximum of 99 per disk).

User-Friendly Menus To Guide You



The Panny has a helpful on-screen menu that effectively guides you through some of the more challenging operations. So, you want to remove commercials from a recorded program – easy! The Direct Navigator menu will show you how. When you have dubbed the program to DVD-R, you can add titles to each section (but not chapter marks), as well as a main disk title, and you have a choice of menu colors. It’s basic stuff, but works for me.

Like burning to CD, you must finalize the DVD-R before it can be played in regular DVD players (this takes about 4 minutes for a SP recording). I find the 2 hour SP (standard play) recording speed provides the best value for dubbing. Keep in mind that the DVD-R format is considered the most compatible for today’s DVD players.

An Excellent DVD Player



Although I have not yet run the Panny though my big HT setup, I can tell that this unit has a picture quality that is comparable to Panny’s stand-alone DVD players. Nice and crisp, with no excessive EE or chroma bug. I love the 100X FF, which works perfectly with little to no picture breakup. The remote is full featured, and easy to use. If you are in the market for a new DVD player, and your budget is flexible, this model should be at the top of your short list.

CPRM, A Possible Concern



CPRM (Content Protection for Recordable Media) is built into the circuitry, and limits the source for dubbing to DVD. This means that you cannot copy source from DVDs; it even means you cannot copy DVD-Rs that you create yourself! In the owner’s manual, there is a chart that describes the limits that CPRM places on dubbing.

For most source material, there are no restrictions. However, CPRM can be applied to digital cable/sat/OTA signals, preventing you from duping a show, movie, or event to a DVD-R for archive purposes. You would be able to copy to DVD-RAM, but the source is then automatically deleted from the HDD. Moreover, DVD-RAM is not compatible with most stand-alone DVD players. This is not a big deal at this time, but could be in the future when broadcasters begin to apply CPRM more and more.

A Winner!



The build quality on this unit is very good, typical of Panasonic, and the fan is silent – really. Good quality blank DVD-Rs are around a $1.25 for 2 hours at SP mode, and the 80 GB HDD allows up to 34 hours recording at SP mode. A previous Panny with similar features had a much smaller HDD, and numerous bugs, plus was $200 more. The DRM-E80H lists for $699, with a street price around $600. It’s obvious that Panny does listen to feedback from its customers, because this model has the best feature set of any DVD recording device now available.

I expect that over the coming months, eBay will be full of auctions for discarded VCRs. So long to unreliable tape – hello DVD-R!

Features:
  • Recordable Disc Type: DVD-RAM, DVD-R

  • Built-in Hard Disk Drive: 80 GB

  • Picture Quality Improvement Functions:
    Time Based Correction
    3D Y/C Separation
    3D Noise Reduction
    Block Noise Reduction
    Mosquito Noise Reduction

  • Playable Disc Type: DVD-Video, DVD-RAM, DVD-R, Video CD, CD, CD-R, CD-RW

  • Video D/A Converter: 54MHz/10-bit

  • Input:
    Composite Video In (x3) (RCA Jacks)
    S-Video In (x3)
    Composite Audio L/R In (x3) (RCA Jacks)
    RF In (x1) (UHF/VHF)

  • Component Video Out (Y, PB, PR): Switchable (480P/480I)

  • Selectable Recording Modes: XP/SP/LP/EP/FR
      Rating:
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