Toshiba RD-XS32 Progressive-Scan DVD Player/Recorder with 80 GB Hard Drive
Powerful combination of features
I've had this unit for about a month now, and here are my observations:<br />1) The manual needs to be re-written.  It's not horrible, but it definitely needs work.<BR>2) Note that the RF Out (to the TV) only passes on the original channels; you will not see any of this unit's output on it.  In that regard, it differs from a typical VCR.<BR>3) Note that the remote control has a hinged section at the bottom.  I searched for over an hour to find the \\"setup\\" button.  This was shown in the manual, but never caught my attention.<BR>4) I've not noticed the problem with the black level that other reviewers have noted.<BR>5) There are about three different ways to do anything.  Sometimes it can get confusing, but you figure it out after a while.<BR>6) The remote's not bad.  Inputting names is tedious, but not overly so.  You can get very good at skipping over commercials.<BR>7) It doesn't replace a TIVO or ReplayTV, but does give you about 90% of what they do, and no subscription costs.<BR>8) Recording, time-slipping, chapter definition and playlist editing all work very well.  I've burned about 8 discs now, and they're all fine.  I've only put one title per disc, so I haven't bothered with the menu stuff yet.<BR>9) I really appreciate that when I turn it off, the hard disk stops spinning.  I have this in my bedroom, and the noise difference is important.  I sure wish my ReplayTV stopped the hard disk when it was turned off.<br />All in all, I'm very pleased. I used to use my PC with a TV tuner card to record and playback programs, but have now almost completely moved over to using the Toshiba instead.  The combination of a hard disk with a DVD burner is very powerful.