Panasonic PV-HS2000 ShowStopper 30-Hour Digital Video Recorder
Replay redefines TV (and it's better than TiVo).
The Showstopper is not JUST a digital VCR. It redefines what TV and puts you in CONTROL.  It on longer matters when shows are on, you watch them when you want, you pause them, you skip the commercials.<br /><br />We never recorded shows with tape -it was too cumbersome. Now, with a simple on-screen menu we've set it to record every episode of \\"Who Wants to Be a Millionaire\\" and told it to keep the last 2 (or 3, or 4 -your choice) episodes. Plus, with the 30 second skip button (TiVo uses the much inferior Fast Forward button)you can now watch WWTBAM in 40 minutes instead of an hour. I love it because the kids don't get inundated with commercials anymore. The kids love it because it painlessly records every episode of \\"Boy Meets World\\" (including that which is on during dinner, piano lessons, etc). My wife (who generally hates TV) loves it because now she has control over when and what to watch. Our second ShowStopper (the modems do not conflict with one another) was just con!nected to the TV in front of the treadmill which now gets used regularly. TiVO is inferior for 2 main reasons; it has a monthly fee (something like $20) which the ShowStopper does not and TiVo does not have the 30 second skip function.<br /><br />Caveats: Both Showstopper and TiVo require connection to a phone line so they can download the next weeks's worth of cable programming. For parents- before you bring it home, clarify with the kids the Showstopper is for watching better, not more TV. Finally, the hard drives do make a little humming type noise. We solved that by putting the unit in our glass enclosed TV stand. The treadmill setup includes wireless headphones so noise is not an issue there.<br /><br />In summary, the Showpstopper is the single best 'gadget' we've bought in years.  Get with the program and take over your TV.