$97 DVD recorder... the VCR is now dead

[john1701a]

It's quite pleasing when a new technology surpasses the threshold, where mainstream acceptance becomes a rather obvious event. That's very apparent with digital photography already. Next will be with digital video recording.

I’ve been pounding on a new recorder that bought just a few days ago. It’s pretty amazing how much they were able to deliver for just $97. The new DVD+RW discs work flawlessly. The few discs I’ve been using for past few years, which were definitely of a lesser quality back then, have a few bad spots that the recorder manages surprisingly well. I was impressed.

From the aspect of not using VHS tapes anymore, it handles that quite well. The uninformed can pretty much just use Record, Pause, Play, and Eject the same way they always have been. Utilizing the random-access features is not required. But it is so heavily automated (chapter inserting, title details, and menu building) that I couldn’t imagine people not taking advantage of that.

Anywho, I’m glad we have finally arrived at that point... and the relation to Prius should be obvious. I'm seeing so many of them on the road now, it's rather pointless to count. So, I just smile and wave each time I see another... dreaming about when there become too many to even do that anymore. Needless to say, it's great that acceptance barriers for replacement technology are no longer that big. Mass-Appeal is becoming much easier.

[naterprius]

Call me when they are dual-layer, dual-format for under $100.

Nate

[john1701a]

Dual-Format makes no sense for video recording, since -RW wasn't originally intended to be used that. +RW was, it will allow you to watch video on a player without closing the recording session (finalizing).

Dual-Layer has no VCR counterpart, so placing a $100 limitation on it is questionable. Why isn't a higher price realistic for a significant increase in capacity without any quality sacrifice?

[DanH]

How's the recording video quality? Does it look like they used reasonably good ADC's?

I have been anxiously awaiting the time I can send the VCR packing. (Well I'd have to keep it around for a short while to get the old stuff on DVD's.)

[john1701a]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(DanH\";p=\"97360)</div>

How's the recording video quality?[/b]

Sorry, I have no idea how to rate it's MPG.

That's MPEG-2 compression, of course. My curiousity was on what non-essential features it didn't have that my HDD/DVD did, like title-divide & chapter-hide. And naturally, I wanted to see how well it dealt with errors and full and erasing and finalizing and menus and... Needless to say, it grossly outperforms a VCR. And it plays back MP3 & JPG as well as regular DVDs. That's quite a bit for just $97.

[naterprius]

The reason why that price can be easily achieved is because you can now buy a dual-layer/ dual-format (I mean DVD-R DL, not just DVD+R DL) computer drive for under $50.

The NEC-3520A is available from newegg for $46 delivered.

The cost to produce this drive versus single-format single-layer drives is negligible.

Nate

[Wolfman]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(naterprius\";p=\"97588)</div>

The reason why that price can be easily achieved is because you can now buy a dual-layer/ dual-format (I mean DVD-R DL, not just DVD+R DL) computer drive for under $50.

The NEC-3520A is available from newegg for $46 delivered.

The cost to produce this drive versus single-format single-layer drives is negligible.

Nate[/b]

Well Nate, ya beat me to it. I bought one for a little over $60 at wally woild a couple of months ago. Computer based electronics just keep getting cheaper and cheaper.

Even the color laser printer is beginning to approach the threshold of the disposable device. Costco has them on the shelf at around $350 now. I have the sneaking suspicion that the cartridges will exceed the replacement cost of the printer, as there are four of them.

[john1701a]

That's an excellent endorsement for the electronic interfaces Prius provides.

Goodbye mechanical components from the 20th.

In some cases, we are able to eliminate wires & touch too. Sweet!

[Blue]

This capability has been around for a number of years, most notably with ReplayTV and Tivo, but with a trend leading towards the Home Theater PC (HTPC). The HTPC will do everything a Tivo will do (scheduling, timeshifting, etc.) plus a lot more. Unfortunately though, not for a $100 (unless you have spare parts lying around). DVD single layer, dual layer, or Blu-ray is a moot point, since all recordings are stored on a hard drive (MPEG-2/MPEG-4) and can be deleted or saved depending on your needs. In fact, a HTPC changes the way you watch TV forever. There is no longer a need for channel surfing, and commercials are a thing of the past (if you want).

Visit HTPCnews.com for more information.

[naterprius]

Two notes, Circuit City now has a Dual Format recorder for $99.

Also, for those of you wanting to build an HTPC, there are now drivers for Motorola 6400 series set top boxes that control the box via firewire as well as draw in the video through the same firewire cable. If you are lucky enough to live in a cable system that has a full hybrid plant, then you will get all channels this way. If your cable plant is not hybrid, then you will have to add an analog tuner card as well.

Nate