Sharp DV-SR3US DVD Player/Recorder

Rating:
Summary: The WORST
Review: I have 4 DVD recorders.I have 3 Panasonics (great machines) & wanted a 4th but because of the IR remote I was limited to 3.So I needed another brand and SHARP had a good price (it seemed, incorrectly)so I got the SHARP.It is an amazing BAD machine.It doesn't work correctly and getting it fixed is a nightmare. I just sent it back for the second time,it returned today and they fixed NOTHING.It is a true Nightmare,STAY AWAY!!!

Rating:
Summary: Very good quality, but a few small problems
Review: The recording quality of this recorder is excellent in SP or FINE mode, and pretty good in LP mode, but I found the EP mode could be better. Variable bit rate recording allows you to record up to an extra eight minutes in FINE mode.

There is a defect in this recorder that will not allow you to set a recording timer for channels 54-60. Sharp wanted me to send mine in so they could fix the problem, but it wasn't that big of a deal to me, so I kept mine as-is.

This recorder will absolutely not record anything copyrighted, so those of you looking to copy your store-bought DVDs will be disappointed.

Operation of this machine is very quiet, I know some of the others can be quite loud. The remote control is very comprehensive, including about every function I could think of and more. There is a slight delay between pressing a button on the remote and the recorder performing the desired function. This is almost unnoticeable unless you are trying to fast-forward to or pause at an exact point.

Overall, I would recommend this product. It has more outputs and as many analog inputs as any other recorder (although the lack of DV input may turn some people away), and excellent recording quality in FINE and SP make this recorder stand out. A fairly easy-to-use GUI doesn't hurt either. Just don't expect it to duplicate Star Wars or The Lord of the Rings, or timer record channels 54-60.

Rating:
Summary: Great, affordable DVD recorder
Review: This is my first DVD recorder, and so far I've been really happy with it. It has a lot of good solid features, including progressive scan, and many outputs/inputs. Coaxial & digital surround output, several S-VIdeo inputs & outputs, component video output, regular cable line in and out, and a whole bunch of composite RCA jacks. It had my input/output needs well covered!

The manual is very helpful, and all of the onscreen menus & such were easy to navigate. I recommend reading the manual before recording though! There is some details, like switching the recording mode from "FINE" (60 minutes) to a variety of other recording modes in "manual record mode". I prefer this as it allows me to use the maximum disc space & bit rate for a video I'm transferring over. The picture quality is awesome (perfect to the source), and I have seen no compression or motion artifacts. I haven't tried out the DVD-RW mode, which has a lot more special features & options than DVD-R, and I haven't yet tried out the longer recording modes (more than 2 hours), but I'm sure these are very satisfying as well.

**helpfuly information on compatible DVD-Rs for this player**

The first blank discs I used with this Sharp were Memorex (a brand usually well known for it's good blank media), only 3 were accepted by my DVD recorder! 1 I messed up on, but that was my fault, and 2 came out okay.. but only 1 out of those two could play on my Sony DVD player. *DON'T USE MEMOREX DISCS!*

I don't blame either company, I have many Memorex DVD+Rs from people that play great, so Memorex is a good brand to go with for other DVD recorders, just not this one.

Verbatim & Fujifilm both work great, and I haven't had any problems with them. Verbatims are a bit more expensive, but that's because they're top of the line. Fuji's are very affordable, and work great, so I'd recommend those as good starter discs.

The player is region 1/0 only, and it does comform to copy protection (for those interested in that sort of information). I've mainly been using (and intend to use) this recorder for archiving various VHS tapes, and it's kept me very satisfied, as it records however the video looked perfectly. Of course, if the video has crappy quality, the DVD will look just like that... but not any worse.. and it won't get any worse over time!

Overall, a great recorder/player with many excellent features, all for a price far below most!




Rating:
Summary: First Dvd Recorder
Review: This is the first dvd recorder I've owned. I basicly wanted to burn my old vcr tapes and record from the TV. The Sharp DV-SR3U records dvd-r,dvd-rw discs. Rewritable discs can be recorded in video and VR mode.DVD-RW recorded in the VR mode can be edited after recording,but will only playback on this machine. The dvd-r, dvd-rw(video mode) seem to play in most standard players. The operation manual is 100 pages, well written, but somewhat complicated for a non-tech person. I don't like the flip open remote, but most often used keys are on top. Easy to set up timer recording from TV. Overall this is an excellent recorder and fulfills my needs!