DVR's?

[Van]

So far it seems that the only stand alone dvr I have found is the tivo and frankly Im not interested in paying a monthly sub ontop of buying the equipment. I had thought about getting a wintv card for the comp but that isnt really feasable in the duplex here without splitting the cable behind the charter box and running it around the room. Charters dvr's are on back order and its $14.95 a month for the service through them so again not something I want to pay a monthly sub for, any suggestions out there for a non dvd burning dvr thats not atached to a sat receiver or cable box?

 

[lakebum431]

Looks like you're kinda wanting something for nothing there Van I'm not aware of any that don't charge a monthly fee, sorry.

 

[charper1]

Yep, that PC add-on card you mentioned as not being feasible, really is your freebie of choice.

 

[Van]

Well its not something for nothing, I dont have a problem paying for the equipment, its the monthly sub to unlock it that stinks, I guess the pci card is the best bet then so its time to rought some cable.

 

[rad]

Found this DVR at BestBuy, http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...t&productCategoryId=cat03021&id=1140391906760 or this one at OneCall http://www.onecall.com/ProductDetails.aspx?id=32449. I think Sony's also supposed to be coming out with one.

 

[Bogy]

I thought I might have a suggestion for you, until the last line where you don't want something connected to a cable box. I already have a Toshiba/Tivo box, and a Motorola DCT6412, but this week I got everything ready to record the Superbowl on my laptop via firewire from the 6412. The laptop is a MCE, so it also is a PVR. The problem with both the Tivo and MCE is that they don't record a file that is really "burnable". In particular, the Tivo files when converted to a burnable format are crap. My daughter is currently in Kenya. She isn't all that interested in the game, because after all, its the Bears, but she does want to see the commercials. OTOH, she has a friend who DOES want to see the game, expecially because its the Bears. So I now have a nice setup that will record a HD stream. No video card needed. But you do need a set top box with an activated firewire port.

So are you actually paying Charter for their signal? Every month?

 

[Van]

Yea I am legal on my cable service, what I was looking for was preferably a stand alone dvr but without the monthly sub, I think that if your going to buy it you shouldnt have to pay to use it just as anyone who has a directv tivo or a dishnetwork dvr does. What Im going to end up doing is going the route of a tv capture card for the computer and only spend under $20 for one, it will record the shows I want and thats all I need it for.

 

[Digital Dude]

We have 3 stand alone DVR's with integrated DVD burners. A Panny DMR-E85 w/120 gig HD, a Toshiba XR-32 with 80 Gig HD and DVD burner, and a Polaroid DRM-2001G, The accurianhas an 80 Gig HD DVR with DVD burner is on clearance at Rat-Shack for $100 right now.

The cool thing about the polaroid is you can replace the HDD with a 500GIG HDD without a problem.

I archive many programs and burn them to DVD.

The Polaroid id $200 at wally world right now.

We've had stand alone DVR's with no monthly fees for 3 years.
We use the Panny to offload from the VIP622 and archive.

Screw Tivo and their ridiculous monthly fees.

 

[newsjunkie]

Found this DVR at BestBuy, http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage...t&productCategoryId=cat03021&id=1140391906760 or this one at OneCall http://www.onecall.com/ProductDetails.aspx?id=32449. I think Sony's also supposed to be coming out with one.

I have the Toshiba RD-XS35, and love it. As long as you have cable, it will download the Guide, and allow you to schedule recordings like a Tivo.

 

[Van]

Thanks DD, I will have to head buy rat shack soon as I get my tax return.

Does anyone have any knowledge of this capture card? I have found it at even cheaper prices and the phillips name is trustable to some extent.

 

[RandallA]

I have the Toshiba RD-XS35, and love it. As long as you have cable, it will download the Guide, and allow you to schedule recordings like a Tivo.

But it will still need the cable box to decode the HD channels, will it not?

 

[Van]

I dont do HD, its a waste of money right now and theres not enough content ( reread that as quality ) on there to justify the expense.

 

[newsjunkie]

But it will still need the cable box to decode the HD channels, will it not?

Yes, you still need the cable box. The unit has a repeater that controls the cable box for you. As long as your cable box is compatible, it downloads the TV Guide data to the DVR. From there, you can just click on a show to schedule it.