Pioneer DVR-533H-S Slim Design DVD Recorder with 80 GB Hard Disk Drive
The good, the bad, and the ugly
Have had this for 2 months... <br /> <br />The GOOD...    <br />Easy to navigate through recorded programs using the navigator <br />Thumbnail of each recorded program  <br />Very easy to record, stop record, play, stop play, delete recordings etc.  Makes a VCR seem like an antique. <br />Commercial skip...  30 seconds 1, 2, or 5 minutes..  great for breezing through commercials <br />Quick copy time from Hard Drive to DVD <br /> <br />The BAD... <br />No previous channel button <br />Display is hard to read <br /> <br />The UGLY... <br />The TV Guide feature.  I have become used to this but it is annoying to have the EPG clanging away all the time.  Luckily mine is behind a glassed door so I don't hear it.  Also sometimes it will start taping a program 20 seconds late.  Not a dealbreaker but 20 seconds can be a lot when a show is just starting and you end up missing something.   <br />The times when I turn it on and see it say \\"WAIT\\" and I have to wait 20-30 seconds before it is ready.   Very annoying if I have to quickly record something. <br /> <br />OVERALL.. <br />I've never had another DVR so I don't know what to compare to.  But this thing has made my life a breeze when recording and watching.  I can deal with the crappy TV Guide feature.