cheap but good dvd recorder wanted

magzy1827

i'm looking for a dvd recorder with or without a video although preferred with.any out there?

3jay

Boots have good offers

http://www.boots.com/shop/product_list_new_template.jsp?classificationid=1029853

shokadelika

Saw ALBA almost certain or Bush last night 79.99

xpf

Argos are doing an Alba one for £79.99. You can also get some DVD Rs at half price as well.
Don't forget to get your £5 voucher from them as well.

mutley74

see some in Asda for less than £90.

sonic

atpug wrote:

see some in Asda for less than £90.

Or maybe not. There's another thread slating the ASDA Cyberhome one.

Personally I wouldn't buy a combined DVD/Video. When one part breaks, you have to replace the whole lot. Best get separates. Can still be done at a decent price.

Check out Big Pockets under the home electronics tab.

There's a few reviews which sound good as well.

hushpuppy

magzy1827 wrote:

i'm looking for a dvd recorder with or without a video although preferred with.any out there?

Check out the thread under Grabbit while you can board for the Cyberhome 1600 from Asda at £60.

RufusA

Another alternative is the Yamada 8400x.

Maplin is clearing stocks so the price is down to £79.99, and if you register on their website for the newsletter you can get a £7 off £70 voucher.

Stocks are limited, but you can use the online stock checker to find a store with one (you'll need to enter your postcode).

http://www.maplin.co.uk/NearestStore.aspx?OrderCode=A23FG&source=17&location=sw1a1aa&doy=31m10

details / reviews of recorder can be found here:

http://specialreserve.co.uk/Umax-Yamada-DVR-840_4081_r.html

IMHO a very good DVD recorder. Uses a Philips drive (so should be reliable) and has all the usual features (tuner, timer recording, one touch recording, plays nearly every format etc., ) Being Philips based it only supports the plus standard for recording e.g. DVD+R or DVD+RW or any CDR.

However the thing that sets it apart in my opinion is that it plays MPEG-4 movies (i.e. Divx or xVid files) natively. So you can download stuff (such as https://www.thebroken.org) and burn on the CDR or DVD+R and play it on the machine.

Also has a firewire port (for copying stuff off your DV camcorder), and a USB port (for showing pictures off your camera or mem-stick).

Downsides are it chucks out a lot of heat so you can't really hide it in a cabinet or stack a VCR on top of it. The remote control is the size of a 200g bar of chocolate and has more buttons than a melon has seeds, and probably as sensibly arranged. You also need to point the remote exactly at it to get it to respond (although some people have reported being able to open the case and reposition the sensor in the recorder).

Yamada are a well liked brand, and unlike other no-name Chinese brands appear to be commited to providing firmware on their site. Also they respond well to email support queries (which makes a pleasant change), via their German operation.

As cheap (under £90) DVD recorders go, I think it's about the best of the current bunch. If you are willing to spend £130+ then there are some much nice recorders out there with bonus features such a video plus, PDC and chase play.

Personally I bought it to tide me over until an all in one DVD Recorder / HDD based PVR came out with two Freeview tuners at a sensible price (hopefully late 2006).

HTH - Rufus.

keithscott1

"The remote control is the size of a 200g bar of chocolate and has more buttons than a melon has seeds"

:rotfl: Classic phrase! One for the 'Best quote on MSE 2005!"

magzy1827

thanx all for your help