Whats the benefit of a DVD recorder with a hard disk drive?
A. Standalone DVD recorders may start at less than 150 but they operate like a VHS deck. They record off-air programmes as they happen, or connect to external sources such as camcorders. As explained above, most discs don’t permit heavy editing after recording, especially if you want high compatibility, so you can be stuck with unwanted parts of a DVD recording. Combined hard-drive/DVD recorders now cost less than 300. With these you can record many hours of material, chop bits you don’t want and then transfer to DVD, often at high speed. Q. Do DVD recorders include tuners for digital TV (Freeview)? A. Only a few models include Freeview tuners, notably Sony’s RDR-HXD910 and Panasonic’s DMR-EH60D. If you live in a good coverage area, you’ll get a sturdy picture quality, extra channels and a vastly better way of setting the timer via the Freeview electronic programme guide. The EPG also names recordings properly. For the time being, machines may be limited to single digital tuners, preve
