Sony RDRHX715 DVD Recorder
I liked it so much, I bought another one.
I purchased the Sony HX900 when it first came out and liked it so much I got the HX715 (the newer model) for another room.  Between the two of them I have burned over 700 DVDs with a fail rate of less than 5%.  To achieve that rate of success I use Taiyo Yuden discs that I buy online in bulk for about twenty four cents a piece.  That's a lot cheaper, more durable, and more convenient than VHS.  Also, because of the huge hard drive, unless you are archiving material, there really is no need to burn that many DVDs.    After reading some of the reviews on here, I feel compelled to make a couple of points.  The TV Guide issue is not that big of a deal.  Mine works fine, but I rarely ever use it.  I just program the machine like it was a VCR (old habits die hard).  Let me reiterate, you DO NOT need the TV Guide funtion to properly use this machine.  The TV Guide is an imperfect resource on this and every other competing DVD recorder.  The GemStar reset problem is also a big non-issue.  I found out about it after my HX900 reset one time (over a year ago).  Since then, neither the HX900 nor the HX715 has reset even once, that I've noticed.  Even if it does reset, as long as you're programming it like a VCR, you'll probably never notice.    There have been some complaints that you can't insert your own chapter marks or make fancy menus.  This is true, however the Sony does put chapter marks in for you so you can jump through a program without fast forwarding through the whole thing.  The menu issue is what it is.  You get a standard menu listing the disc content.  It's simple and effective AND it doesn't take up an enormous amount of disc space like the fancy computer generated menus do.  If these two items are important to you, you should be looking to make DVDs on a computer.  You won't get the same quality recording, but your menus will look nicer.    One thing I've found that I really like about these machines is the ease at which you can edit programs.  It takes a little practice, but I've gotten to the point that I'm just as fast using the Sony as I am on my computer, and I don't have to transfer programs to my computer to edit them.  Just be sure you learn how to use the pause button and the frame advance button when you're setting your edit marks (I just told you the secret).  The HX715 improves upon the one aspect of the HX900 that I didn't like, which is I now have the ability to split a long recording into pieces.  With the HX900, I'd have to stop recording and restart if I wanted to put the first half of a game on one disc and the second half on a different disc.  The HX715 makes splitting programs a snap.    To sum up, I use this machine a lot, and I haven't seen any other product that comes close to the flexibility and quality that the Sony delivers.  I wouldn't worry about the minor criticisms seen in some of the other reviews.  After all, most of the competing products seem to generate the same complaints.