The Panasonic DMR-E20 gives you DVD recordings from your TV!
Written: Sep 15 '02 (Updated Jan 27 '03)
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Pros: Save Home movies on DVD and record your favorite TV shows.
Cons: Output is only 480i and no progressive scan.
The Bottom Line: This is a great replacement for that old VCR, it will do what a VCR will do with better video quality.
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| surferdude7's Full Review: Panasonic DMR-E20 DVD Recorder |
The Panasonic DMR-E20 makes it possible to throw away that VHS player. The DVD player is made to play your store bought DVDs, record from its built-in tuner or transfer your camcorder and VHS movies over to a DVD-R or DVD-RAM. It will also play CD, VCD, CD-R and CD-RW discs with 3 or 5 inch discs.
This DVD recorder Will Not let you record a DVD movie from another DVD player that is copy guarded and most are. I can record a digital quality movie from my satellite but it won’t record in the 5.1 sound, it only gives you a good stereo sound. Though if you have a good 5.1 system it does sound good in Dolby surround sound.
The list price for the Panasonic DMR-E20 is $999 be sure to check out the Epinions sponsors below and buy it as low as $519.95.
~~~ DVD-R ~~~
The DVD-R is basically like a CD-R disc made to write on it once for a permanent record. Be sure to look at your discs because it Will Not work with a DVD+R disc.
~~~ DVD-RAM ~~~
When it comes to recording media for a DVD it can become confusing because of the different formats available. In the rewritable discs for DVD you have DVD-RW, DVD+RW and DVD-RAM. The Panasonic DMR-E20 use the DVD-RAM discs.
The DVD-RAM is DVD disc that can be recorded and erased for about 100,000 times verses the DVD-RW and DVD+RW discs that can only be recorded and erased about 1000 times.
DVD-RAM is basically a high-speed removable hard drive that can read and write video at the same time. This gives you recording and editing capabilities that are similar to those of a TiVo digital video recorder.
~~~ Recording ~~~
To record a movie the Panasonic DMR-E20 gives you four recording speed to pick from.
XP
The XP speed on a 4.7GB DVD-RAM will give you one hour of the best quality for recording. This is professional quality but you are limited to only one hour of recording time.
SP
The SP speed on a 4.7GB DVD-RAM will give you two hours of recording. This here is pretty good quality and my recommendations for putting a whole movie on one DVD.
LP
The LP speed on a 4.7GB DVD-RAM will give you four hours of recording. The quality here is about like recording on a VHS tape in the fastest mode of only two hours on a six hour tape. If you only have a small TV then this speed will give you pretty good results but I would not recommend it is you have a large screen TV.
EP
The EP speed on a 4.7GB DVD-RAM will give you six hours of recording. This recording mode reminds me of the quality you get when you record a VHS tape in the six hour recording mode, quality is rather poor. I would not recommend this recording speed.
You can purchase DVD-RAM discs with 9.4GB and double the recording time of the standard 4.7GB discs.
~~~ Forward or Backwards ~~~
The Panasonic DMR-E20 lets you scan a DVD forwards and backwards at 2x, 10x, 30x, 70x and 100x the normal playing mode speed. The audio is only heard in the 2x forward speed but you do see the picture in all speeds.
You can also freeze a frame on the DVD.
You can play a CD forwards and backwards with the audio heard at all speeds of 2x, 5x, 10x, 20x and 50x of the normal audio speed.
~~~ Audio ~~~
The DMR-E20 lets you play Dolby Digital and DTS audio for the best movie experience. You will have to use it through a receiver with the built-in decoders to work. There is an optical output to connect to a receiver.
~~~ The Connections ~~~
The Panasonic DMR-E20 gives you input jacks in the front of RCA stereo audio jacks, RCA video jack and an S-video jack.
In the back you have for input for two sets of RCA audio, video and S-video jacks plus an AC in and RF in.
In the back for outputs you have two sets of RCA audio, video and S-video jacks, plus a component, optical and RF
~~~ The Remote ~~~
The remote is nice looking and it fits my big hand very well. The layout of the buttons is something to get use to because of some new functions to learn. The buttons are small but are placed far enough apart from each other that pressing two at a time is not a problem. Some of the buttons glow in the dark making it easy to use under low light conditions.
It is a multibrand remote made to control other devices and it works fairly well with most devices but it works the best with other Panasonic devices.
~~~ Other Features ~~~
Built-in TV tuner of 183 channels
VCR+ for easy recording like a VCR
Easy editing of video clips
Channel labeling
Simultaneous read-write operation
~~~ Overall ~~~
The Panasonic DMR-E20 DVD video recorder is as easy to use as a VCR. The blank discs are a little high but I think in time it will come down in cost.
As far as using the recorder it is as easy, one thing I did notice when you hit the record button to record on the spot that it started recording instantly where a VCR will take a second or two to start recording.
If you are wanting it for copying other DVDs than it is a waste of time and money buying this model because it will not copy them. Now if you want to copy your favorite Soap Opera or Sports program then this recorder may be what you want. It is also great for copying your home movies from your camcorders.
I did copy my 8mm movies to a DVD-R in the XP mode by connecting my camcorder to the front connections and they turned out beautifully. Then I connected my regular DVD player to the DMR-E20 and made copies or the DVD with my home movies on it and they are as good as the first one.
Now finding it in the price range of $500 makes it affordable!
Thank You for Reading my Review!
Here are some of my other DVD Player reviews!
Audiovox DVD 1500
The Mitsubishi DD-6030 DVD Player
Pioneer DVR 7000 DVD recorder
RCA RC5240P DVD Player
RCA RC5255P DVD Player
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 699
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