Toshiba RD-XS34 DVD Recorder with 160-GB Hard Drive
Great Recorder But Serious Problems
This recorder offers some of the best features for a DVD recorder.  Of special interest is the ability to tailor the bit rate of the recording in very small increments from 2Mb/sec to 8Mb/sec.  It has the ability to record LPCM audio. It also allows you to record in Dolby Digital in 2 different bit rates.  Overall, this unit offer incredible flexibility for the user.  This was a huge selling point for me.  It has a very easy interface (which becomes intuitive after a couple of uses) to create menus for DVDs.  It's well designed and attractive.   <br /> <br />Now for the bad news.  A total showstopper:  The TV Guide menu system never worked.  The manual tells you to go through the set up process, then turn the unit off for 24 hours, avoiding unplugging any connections to the unit.  I live in Austin, TX, and get my signals over the air.  Reception is excellent in my area.  The unit displayed all the available channels.  They all came in clearly.  But after 24 hours, I turned on the unit to find no program data.  I must have done something wrong, so I went through the entire process again, ensuring that I waited 24 hours (this time, just to be safe, I waited 30 hours).  I turned on the unit, and again, no data.  I tried one more time.  No luck.  I called Toshiba.  They said, \\"well, if the data doesn't show up, we can't help you\\".   <br /> <br />I would have kept the unit if I could have recorded off the air by setting up schedules manually.  The unit REQUIRES the TV Guide program guide.  It is the only way that the unit can record TV shows.   <br /> <br />Second huge issue for me, regardless of the state of the unit (on/off), the fan in the back of the unit stays on ALL THE TIME. And it's not so quiet.  Forget about putting this unit in a small room, because you'll hear it...ALL THE TIME. <br /> <br />Given these two issue, back in the box it went.  And here's the really disappointing point...I did my research.  This unit has the best features for the price.  It has ahefty 160 GB hard drive.  It was the perfect unit....almost.