Watch TV like never before!!!
Written: Oct 17 '01 (Updated Jan 16 '02)
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Pros: Convenient, EZ to use, excellent build quality, good picture, super connectivity
Cons: limited capacity, high initial price of entry, heat, macrovision enabled, no digital audio support
The Bottom Line: BUY IT. Upgrade it. OR get the new replay 4000 unit coming to a store near you. read the review - about as comprehensive as they come.
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| magnusmx's Full Review: Panasonic PV-HS2000 Showstopper (30.4 GB) 30-Hours... |
This is the perfect gift for anybody that watches television. It doesn't matter if you're young or old, smart or not, couch potato or workout queen. You will benefit from owning this fine piece of digital equipment. I’ve had my unit for a little over a year, and it is hands down one of the most important parts of my home entertainment system. And definitely most used (along with the TV of course).
I admit, although I'm a techno-geek who must have the newest thing on the block, this unit really does live up to the hype. TV SCHEDULES NO LONGER PHAZE ME... must see TV night is now see anytime I want when I want; With or without the commercials. This concept really blows people away when they sit down and use the darn thing. It takes a while to sink in, but then they must have one.
Even if you only watch 1 show per week, the unit is worth it. If you say just watch the west wing once per week, you’d have up to 30 shows taped for you automatically each time. Since you’re obviously very picky about what to watch, how would you feel if your VCR tape was full over vacation or you forgot to put the right tape in; or worse, the tape got stuck in your VCR and the repairman can’t fix it till next week, and the tape’s a gonner.
You will find like most people that once they figure out that they can watch anything they want, when they want. They will start watching a more variety of shows they always wanted to watch, or didn’t know till they watched, or didn’t even know was on at 4 AM in the morning because its too much of a hassle to program, label the tape, eject the tape, re-insert new tape etc. You will get more out of the cable bill you pay every month with this machine.
Watch the same TV shows in 33% less time. How do you do that? Watch the show 20 minutes into it – yes you can do that with this digital recorder. Lets say “the practice” was on at 10 pm, and you just much watch it Sunday night. Wait till 10:20, after you’ve got the beer, wine, chips and salsa ready, turn on your showstopper and choose tonights show from the show guide. Watch the show from the beginning (while the unit is still taping live), skip over the commercials, and finish watching at 11 like everybody else. 1 hour shows typically have approximately 20 minutes of commercial ads beginning to end… watch the ones you want, skip over the ones you don’t. If you watch begining title and end credits etc, you're looking at around 25% time savings -- someone pointed this out. (I personally skip those because they're usually the same show to show). And hey, if your 'significant other' needs to get up and answer the phone you can pause the show till he/she gets back.
Features:
- 30 hours of extended quality recording, 12 hours of medium quality (SVHS or better), 9 hours of high resolution quality
- DVD resolution quality at the highest quality recording.
- VCR resolution at the lowest quality – only if you have a good cable signal coming in.
- Quick-skip allows you to skip any number of minutes forward or backward on a recorded or live show. (Press an integer using the keypad and choose skip, or instant replay.) Pressing quick skip alone skips 30 seconds per press, while pressing instant replay skips back 7 seconds per press. The best use for quick skip is to skip over those annoying commercials.
- slo-mo playback (slow motion) Press the play button while playing back a show or watching a 'live' show
- automatic titling of saved episodes from TV
- Program the shows you like once, and worry less about it not recording; more on this later – it’s a rare occasion when you actually miss a show, but I assure you its not the machine’s fault.
- Save to VCR feature places title and episode information 10 seconds at the front of the recording on VCR tape
- TVGUIDE, built in television guide similar to digital cable guides and DSS guides on an onscreen programming grid. Also ‘type’ in via onscreen keyboard what show you are looking for, and it will search up to 2 weeks ahead for it.
- automatic dialin to server for updates
- myreplaytv service also allows you to program, update recording schedule from the internet!!! Since it has to dialin to synchronize the data, it only works if you’re changing the recording schedule a day in advance.
- pause live TV
- no monthly fee, its built right into the units price
- a lot of nice hidden features that are accessible if you know the codes.
- replay zones, is like a TV guide featurette where they recommend shows that you’d like to watch categorized under different genres.
- replay themes. Lets say you are a huge fan of Jessica Alba (from Dark Angel). Create a theme in her name and the recorder will record anything shown on TV with Jessica Alba in it.
- customizable recording feature allows you to record a few minutes before or after the shows scheduled show time. This works well if you know the show starts 3 minutes earlier, or ends 5 minutes later than its supposed to. Perfect if you don’t want to mess the beginning titles or the end credits.
Setup / accessories:
Really easy setup. Comes with a color poster with all the most popular ways to hook up the unit for use. The instructions are clear and complete.
The cables provided are:
SVHS
Video and audio
25 foot telephone cable, with splitter so you just use the same phone jack
Serial port control module for DSS boxes
Infrared cable box control module
EZ setup poster
Users guide
Ergonomically shaped remote
When first setting the unit up, it will ask you for the first 6 digits of your phone number as well as your zip code. This is for the unit to look up a local access # for it to dial into to get the program listings and guides. After your initial setup, your showstopper will dialin every night around 2-5 AM (or when you aren’t using your phone) to update the listings. Make sure that you check with your local phone company to find out which phone numbers are local and thus toll free.
Ease of Use:
The unit gets two thumbs up for user interface. This unit is soooooo much easier to use than even the most advanced VCR. Everything is graphically displayed and easily controlled via the remote control. If you can get your hands on a webTV keyboard, you can even type in shows for it to locate and record.
Remote:
The remote controls ALL the features on the unit. The remote is ergonomically shaped and comfortable to use in small and large hands. It has a lot of buttons, but the main ones you’d probably use are easy enough to remember. (The only button on the unit itself is the power on and off button.)
Connectivity:
1 SVideo output
2 sets of A/V output
1 SVideo input
2 sets of A/V input
telephone / modem jack
serial port for satellite box control
infrared jack for cable box control
(no digital audio in/out) ;(
Construction:
(Almost) All metal case. 18 gauge steel sliding cover on top of metal base. Plastic but metallic colored front -- looks just like the 1000 model. Solid construction keeps everything intact – I know, because I opened the unit and upgraded the harddrives for higher capacity. The metal also serves as a heat conductor to keep the temperature under check since there is no cooling fan inside. The jacks are of standard quality, no gold plating here folks. Quality control is excellent -- I've opened and upgraded quite a few models thus far.
Picture quality:
I mentioned briefly regarding the picture quality. High quality setting is basically DVD quality. Medium is SVHS quality but better. Extended (30 hour) quality is better than VHS quality. The unit does not record well if you have a bad signal – what is bad? Well if you record off of rabbit ears and constantly need to adjust the aluminum foil to figure out who is who on your favorite show – don’t bother with the unit. Most people find the extended quality to be fine, but I prefer watching high quality (almost as if live) on my high resolution monitor so I only record in medium or high quality. If you’re recording sports, definitely record medium or high quality. There is so much going on in sports that a higher quality will help reduce the artifacts in digital recording.
Oh if you don’t have a high resolution monitor, and watch shows on a basic, oh lets say SONY XBR 32”, medium quality is good for most of the discerning viewers. I do not recommend low quality because the sound quality is also tied to the recording quality of the recording. So action movies, tv shows should be recorded in medium or above if you have a good set of home theatre speakers. Sitcoms in extended is satisfactory. Note they are not separately adjustable, ie you cannot record in extended video quality but record it in high audio quality. Extended video with low – most people watch and listen to shows through their TV set, so its not too big of an issue. For you audiophiles, you’ve been warned.
For you technical people, there are actually close to 400 lines of resolution detail visible even in extended recording quality if the source is excellent quality, and of a still nature. Of course this does not say much when it comes to motion picture. Bottom line is extended will do fine for you near sighted people, those with eagle eyes and good big screen TVs will appreciate a good capacity upgrade and medium or high recording quality.
Macrovision:
This unit will not record macrovision copy protected Tv show broadcasts or any other broadcasts. This has not been an issue and I do not foresee it being any issue in the near future. No television shows which I have watched and recorded are macrovision encoded. But you have been warned.
Trying it out:
Don't bother asking the salespeople for a demonstration, because they’re never hooked up properly. The best way to demo a unit is to visit a friend with one of these puppies. Don’t be shy about pressing all the buttons on the unit to see what it does.
Upgrading the unit:
After you’ve filled up your 30 GB hard drive with 12 hours of medium quality shows… there comes a time when you wish you’d fit more in. Well a group of people have found a way to upgrade the unit with higher capacity hard drives and it is highly recommended if you just have too many shows you want to watch. I’ve done several upgrades myself and you can find out more by visiting http://www.avsforum.com in the replay section. I’d be happy to help if you have any questions or would rather someone else more experienced do it you can reach me using my email mmxgroup@hotmail.com If you do decide to do it, make sure you follow all the precautions in the manual and UNPLUG the unit before opening it up. Opening up your unit does void your warranty, so be careful.
HEAT:
This unit can get hot if you cover the ventilation holes or place other hot components below or above it. I have not had an overheating problem, but others have. Be smart and don’t risk it. Place the unit at the very top or all by itself with plenty of ventilation.
MISCELLANEOUS:
Fragmented hard drives: some people have expressed concerns about the hard-drive fragmenting up and ruining a taping. This is not an issue and the hard-drive does not need to be defragmented.
replacing the hard-drive: well sometimes the unit comes with a defective hard-drive. Usually what you should do is return the unit to the store. Trying to get service from Panasonic will be a real pain, and shipping is not exactly cheap for a unit of this size and weight. If you're out of luck, as one of us hackers/upgraders to get it working for ya. www.avsforum.com is the place to go.
Using it for video editing: not recommended. It is very picky about signals coming into the unit, and most consumer VCRs just do not put out a good clear signal. miniDV units do output a good signal. Editing with the Panasonic is clunky at best, and is not what the unit was designed for. But if you use it as a playback deck, it has its benefits... See below.
Uses for home videos: What I have done with the unit is record in copies of my home videos for distribution onto the deck, and then use the multiple outputs to record onto video cassette for my family and friends. It does work well in this regard, only if you have a full frame TBC hooked to a VCR, or use a miniDV deck or camcorder. I do this to preserve the original tape, as well as to reduce the wear and tear on my miniDV deck while preserving the quality of the copies.
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emailed questions:
Hello. I just read your review on epinions.com and found it to be very informative. I love epinions and think its one of the best sites on the web - thanks in no small part to people like yourself who post well written, informative reviews. Anyway, the reason I'm writing you is to ask a few additional questions. I am thinking about getting a digital recorder for my parents as a Christmas gift. It's sort of a gift for myself because they call me constantly for walkthroughs on how to program their VCR (something I find amazing considering my dad flew 747 for about 15 years of his life). You have obviously chosen RePlay over TiVo - why? I realize you have to pay for TiVo so their is a price advantage in choosing RePlay but are their any features that you miss out on without the paid service of TiVo? I would also like to be able to record one channel while watching another. Are there any models that will do this or is there a modification I can make to an existing model that would enable this feature. Is there a reason you chose the Panasonic PV-HS2000 over other models? What about the Sony V-2000? And the hard drive upgrade - do you have to be a super tech geek or just half of one. I do all my own pc upgrades. If I can handle that can I handle the RePlay. What drive did you buy to put in it? A regular pc drive? And most importantly, where did you find this for $299? That's a great price compared to what I've found around. Thanks so much for your time.
Sincerely,
Mark
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Hi Mark,
Sorry for the delay, I've been gone for a month. First thanks for your feedback, its appreciated. It was for the $299 price tag WITH lifetime service initially, but then it was for the quick commercial skip button as well as the internet control capabilities - Tivo doesn't have internet control.
Hmmm... TIVO has a todo list as well as a thumbs up, thumbs down. My dad knows how to program a VCR but never really ever gets to doing so and he prefers the TIVO simplicity. I like complexity as long as there are customizable options so replay was for me.
Sorry, you can't do that except with dual tuners. If you get a TIVO/directv unit with dual tuner then you'd be able to. No replay unit that I am aware of has this feature.
The PV-HS2000 unit had a more recent firmware than the 1000, otherwise I would have got the 1000 and upgraded. The 3000 was too expensive for my taste and just has an additional 30 gb harddrive.
V-2000 is a TIVO unit, and just a wanna-be tech geek would be necessary ;) But you really have to be extremely careful to make up for the lack in experience. A little common sense also helps.
I purchased a 40 GB Maxtor 5400 with good results for 70 hours. That’s enough for me since I have 2 of these units for recording 2 channels at once.
I purchased the unit at Circuit city with the $100 rebate which replay is good for.
You're welcome!
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Well I hope you’ve found my review informative. I try to give as detailed a description as is necessary for most people to make a decision. If you found this information helpful please sign-in and vote for the helpfulness of this article. Thanks! I will be updating this review from time to time in case new issues pop up.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 299.00
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Epinions.com ID:
magnusmx
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Member: Mike Mu
Location: Silicon Valley, CA
Reviews written: 27
Trusted by: 7 members
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