CyberHome CH-DVR 1500 Progressive-Scan DVD+R/+RW Recorder and Player , Silver
GREAT DVR
This DVR is great for the price.  You can get it at walmart.com for $248 or Radio Shack for $250, if they don't have it in stock they'll UPS it to you, no shipping fees.  There is firmware to upgrade it and it's easy to use, just follow the directions on Cyberhome.com's website carefully.  It writes good quality DVDs and played on all DVD players that we tried it on, it records in +R and +RW, although -R and -RW are more universal, we had no issues.