Product Description
Convert (non copyrighted) DVD to VHS Tapes / Convert home VHS Tapes to DVD / Progressive Scan / Record andPlay DVD / Play CD Virtual Surround Sound capability when played through TV or sound system using 2 speakers Dolby Digital and DTS compatible SP/LP Record Speeds, SQPB (VCR) VCR+ Plus Timer Recording Auto Clock, Daylight Savings Time Adjust, Time Zone Adjust (VCR) On-Screen Keyboard Auto Channel Setup Parental Lock Front Panel A/V and IEEE1394DV Inputs MTS Stereo/SAP with dbx Component Video Output (DVD&VCR), S-Video Output And Input (DVD&VCR), RCA Video Output And Input Optical and Coaxial Digital Audio Outputs (DVD&VCR), L-R Audio Output IEEE1394 DV Connection, S-Video, RCA-Video, L-R Audio Inputs Time Slip Recording/Playback, Fast Forward With Audio (2x), Fast Scan, Slow Motion 10-Bit, 54MHz Video D/A Converter 24-Bit, 96KHz Audio D/A Converter Universal Remote Control With TV Controls Unit Dimensions WHD - 17 x 3.5 x 12.25
Customer Reviews:
Relatively Expensive Piece of Junk!.......2007-10-24
I tried to give this thing no stars, but had to give it one in order to write a review.
I bought this on Amazon about 6 months ago. In spite of the backwards messages and displays (described later) and unbelievably tiny red Timed Recording indicator light, it worked fine for the first 3 months. Then one night, while it time-recorded from 9-10PM onto video, it didn't stop recording until it ran out of tape! I didn't know it had done that (duh!), so when I returned home from work the next evening, the daytime recording onto DVD never happened. Seems that, if you schedule timed recordings onto both DVD and VCR, if there is no tape left, no recording occurs at all.
Then the error message that was on the screen that must've occurred when it "couldn't" record onto DVD that day wouldn't go away. As a last resort, I unplugged the thing for over 3 hours - It finally went away. Of course, all of the timed recording and system settings were gone and had to be re-input. Unplugging it for 3 or more hours is now the only way to get rid of ANY error message.
Now it never stops recording onto tape no matter what the scheduled stop time is. I've resorted to only time-recording onto DVD...what a waste of money for a dual unit, eh?
Oh, yes, the indicators and backwards messages. The VCR is on the left and DVR on the right of the unit; but when ejecting, the eject indicator on the screen is on the right when ejecting a tape and the left when ejecting a DVD (that engineer must've been on drugs). The messages are also backwards: If what you actually need to do next is press the time recording button to turn it on, the message tells you to turn it off, and vice versa...perhaps same engineer on the same drugs?
I haven't yet tried copying my video tapes onto DVD...from the other reviews here, I anticipate another "fun" experience. I strongly suggest buying a unit like this that is manufactured by ANYONE other than Toshiba.
Works well, but channels are limited.......2007-05-31
I followed the manual for the setup and everything works well. Those having problems watching a DVD need to make sure they don't skip the "Finalization" so that you can watch it on other DVD players. The only problem I've encountered so far is that it is limited to 123 channels and only goes up to 123 (so channel 252 is out), which would not be a problem if I could get it to play the channels I manually tried to program (numbered UNDER 123, of course). It won't let me add or delete some channels, and after I've added them, I only get the "blue screen" and no broadcast. I have everything hooked up correctly, so I don't know what's going on with that except I won't be able to record TV programs as I wanted to. I do have some really good VHS tapes I will use it to transfer to DVD so all is not lost. I know. Good luck to me.
Glad they don't make this anymore.......2007-03-31
This thing is terrible. I don't know where to begin! Anything I burn (if it burns) doesn't play on anything else. The picture quality sucks. Any good features are non-existant. I actually got sunburned from the bright display. It was WAY overpriced. And to top it off, it crapped out on me 14 days after the warranty expired. Thanks Toshiba for a wonderful product.
My own experience.......2006-07-10
In looking at the other reviews, I felt I needed to base one on my own experience after having the DVD recorder/combo for over 3 months.
I have had it freeze up and need to be unplugged twice, usually after I have left the unit turned on for 2-3 weeks without shutting it off.
I will agree the VCR/DVD light is bright, but it is easy to tell which you are set to. The light for the clock is very dim when the set is turned off.
As for performance, I'm enjoying the DVD burner. It works well, and I have very few issues. (See above). I would recommend reading the manual first though. While not entirely necessary its a good idea when you are trying to record movies that run just over 2 hours (due to the DVD media and picking the type of record XP, SP, LP, SLP).
For playback, the movies I burn come in a little dark on my HDTV, while normal DVD's work fine. If I play the burned discs on a computer or other DVD/TV set they look fine.
Overall I think the product is a good buy for a mid-range price.
Good on paper, poor on execution.......2006-04-13
This is a sad machine. I have now tried to copy 5 VHS tapes to DVD's using this machine. Of the 5:
1. Three of them copied fine, but are UNPLAYABLE on any player except THIS ONE. I have tried 2 new computers, and two very recent component DVD players. Also tried different brands of DVD-R's. No luck.
2 The other two totally froze the unit. During the "finalization process". "Processing Please Wait" remained on the screen for over two hours. Had to pull the plug on it to shut it off. Not one button worked.
This machine was designed by an idiot. The upwards tilting MIRROR finish across the front panel reflects any sunlight or room lighting right into your face and BLINDS YOU!
The VCR and DVD indicator lights are blinding bright enough to guide a plane onto an airport runway on a dark foggy night.
On the other hand, the clock digits are so DIM, they are nearly invisible while the machine is off.
I believe this model is not available in many places anymore. Too bad I got in at the end of it's life. I think I still have a few days left to return it to Sears. They don't seem to have any more either.I will gladly pay whatever restocking fee they charge me, to put ME out of my misery.
What a complete, frustrating waste of time this was.
Product Description
You've grown up with a VCR. It had its ups and downs but, overall, it was okay. Now you don't have to be satisfied with "okay". You can now record your own DVD's. A DVD is a digital means of preserving a recording which, unlike a videocassette, means a recording is a virtual copy of the original. Toshiba DR4 DVD recorder is designed to provide the greatest flexibility in recording and playback by supporting DVD-RAM, DVD-R, and DVD-RW recordable disc formats. 3 - 2 Pulldown Digital Cinema Progressive Up to 125-Channel TV Tuner (Cable-TV compatible) for direct recording of favorite TV shows / Multiple event programmable timer mode Comb Filter 2-line Digital Black Level Expansion 0 IRE / 7.5 IRE Recording Selection Digital Video Noise Reduction Playback Simultaneous Play and Record Time Slip (Chase Play/ Live Chase Play Pause TV) Time Base Correction Instant Replay, Instant Skip JPEG Viewer Fast Scan, Slow Motion Audio D/A 24-bit/192kHz Dolby Digital /DTS Compatible WMA & MP3 Playback on CD - CDR - CDRW 3-D Virtual Surround Sound Auto Clock, Daylight Savings Time Adjust Time Zone Adjust One-Touch Record Auto Title/Chapter/Thumbnail Creation On-Screen Keyboard EASY NAVI Menu Up to 36 recording events may be programmed within a 2 month period Auto Channel Setup Parental Lock Universal Remote Control Connections - Compontent Video - 1 Rear Output / S-Video - 1 Rear Output, 1 Rear Input, 1 Front Input / RCA Audio Video - 1 Rear Output, 1 Rear Input, 1 Front Input / Optical Out - 1 Rear Output / RF - 1 Rear Output, 1 Rear Input Unit Dimension (WHD) - 17 x 2.3 x 11.8 inches
Amazon.com Product Description
A happy meeting of high quality and high value, Toshiba's Multi-Write D-R4 is not just a full-featured progressive-scan DVD player that handles your DVDs, CDs, MP3/WMA music discs, and JPEG-filled recordable discs. It's also a DVD recorder capable of storing up to 6 hours of audio/video on a single-sided 4.7 GB recordable DVD--whether broadcast programming or copies of your home movies to share with loved ones.
The D-R4 offers the flexibility of recording on both DVD-RAM--perfect for instant chapter access and for multiple re-recordings--as well as DVD-R, the most widely compatible of the many DVD formats (great for sharing camcorder footage with loved ones). DVD-RW compatibility lets you erase and rewrite, though relatively few players and computer drives will play back DVD-RWs. DVD-RAM discs can be read, written, and erased more than 100,000 times.
When recording, the D-R4 captures the first video frame and displays it as the chapter mark. You can then designate chapter marks with custom screen captures or thumbnail images of your choice. The D-R4 also lets you generate and save custom playlists using any title and chapter. Each list of desired footage can be separately titled and edited (for removal of, say, commercials) and then seamlessly played back.
Time Slip lets you use your DVD recorder like a personal video recorder, or PVR. Because of DVD-RAM's fast transfer rate, you can view the recorded portion of an ongoing program from the beginning, while still recording the show in progress.
The D-R4 features a 181-channel cable-compatible tuner and 2-month, 36-event programming. And, in addition to recording new video content, the D-R4 lets you transfer and even enhance your favorite video recordings to durable, space-saving discs--a terrific way to archive, preserve, and access your movies and family videos. The unit's EASY NAVI menu simplifies operation by giving you direct access to key operations such as locating and playing back of recorded content.
For top-of-the-line playback, the D-R4 is equipped with a 10-bit/54 MHz video digital-to-analog converter capable of great color purity and detail. When connected to a high-definition or HD-ready television through its ColorStream Pro component-video outputs, the D-R4 delivers Toshiba's Digital Cinema Progressive picture. Progressive scanning, referred to as 480p for the number of horizontal lines that compose the video image, creates a picture using twice the scan lines of a conventional DVD picture, giving you higher resolution and sharper images while eliminating nearly all motion artifacts.
The D-R4 also has Toshiba's Digital Cinema Progressive feature, which performs 3:2 pulldown detection and reversal. DVD mastering introduces a common distortion when adjusting 24 frames-per-second movies to 30 fps video; 3:2 pulldown digitally corrects this distortion, removing the redundant information to display a film-frame-accurate picture.
The deck's abundant connections include multiple composite- and S-video inputs and outputs, stereo analog (left/right) inputs and outputs, and an optical digital-audio output for use with a compatible digital surround receiver.
What's in the Box
DVD player/recorder, a remote control, remote batteries, a user's manual, a stereo analog audio/composite-video cable, and an RF coaxial video cable.
Customer Reviews:
Judgment: A practical and reliable product.......2006-11-13
How could I miss giving this dvd recorder the thumbs up that it deserves. Sorry, Toshiba! Even tho I had a problem prone laptop from you, this DR4 dvd recorder gets 5 stars. Have used it every week since I bought it to record our family outings from my camcorder. My family spread all over thanks you for the terrific quality of the dvds. Yes, I recommended it to others while it remains available.
Firmware Upgrade Fixes Problem with 16x Media.......2006-10-06
I've owned the D-R4 since January 2006 and have not experienced any problems when using 4x and 8x speed discs from Maxell and Taiyo-Yuden. I took a chance on the Maxell 16x discs, which were on sale recently at Office Depot, and did have a problem finalizing them. As pointed out by someone else, the D-R4 records to the 16x media fine but gives you an "ERR 14" when finalizing. When I called Toshiba customer service (1-800-319-6684) about this, the rep sent me a firmware upgrade that fixed the problem.
I wish the D-R4 would load discs faster and I wish it could record back-to-back TV shows using the timer without missing the last two minutes of the first show (a quirk that is described in the manual), but overall I like this recorder very much. It does a great job archiving VCR and camcorder tapes. The 1-, 2-, 3- and 4-hour recording modes provide very good quality. Most of the problems mentioned in the reviews can be avoided by buying the recommended 4x and 8x media. Get the firmware upgrade to use 16x media.
FREE FIRM-WARE UPDATE FOR D-R4.......2006-10-02
My unit like many others, broke after a few months. I was told by customer service that I would have to ship it in and pay 70.00 for a repair. Thankfully, I called back and got the help desk who informed me that there is a free firm-ware upgrade for this unit.
They shipped it free, it took 30 seconds to install and the unit is working perfectly now. If it continues to work so well, I'll change my rating to 5 stars. Time will tell.
I would highly recommend contacting Toshiba for this upgrade which is free. (I called the 800 # and pressed prompt #4)
Excellent recorder after fixed problem........2006-09-27
I'm updating my earlier review, which gave only 1 star due to the machine's general bugginess, incl frequent freeze-ups, failure to turn on for a scheduled recording, or failing to recognize a disc.
But the probems disappeared when I moved the Toshiba out from under another unit, so I am reversing my rating to a 4 or 5. My only complaint is the somewhat illogical button arrangement on the remote, for example putting Eject on the upper left where the On/off should normally be. Otherwise the unit now works fine. I use it to schedule several houres of programming each night using DVD-RAM discs. I especially like the good video quality from "MP" recording mode, which gives 3 hours on a standard disc, versus only 2 hours for "SP" mode, required by most other recorders.
I don't understand why a 6-lb weight (on top of spacers, no ventilation slots covered) would cause problems even when the 2nd unit is turned off, but I guess I can't blame Toshiba since #18 on the list of Safety Instructions is "Do not place anything on top of this apparatus." Now I know.
Things you need to know first.......2006-07-24
I bought this recorder to replace my VCR and to transfer 8 mm home movies to DVD. I bought a Toshiba certified refurbished unit. It did not work right out of the box. Sent in for repair, it was returned and different problem. Sent back a second time and this time they got it right. While frustrating the Toshiba service center worked hard in making it right. They paid postage both ways and even arrange for UPS pickup. And kept me inform by phone messages as to what was going on. Normally I don't buy the extend warranties by for this kind of unit that I expect to use a lot I did.
What I learned I would think will apply to any brand of DVD recorder. They are more complex then the typical VCR. More setup features and steps needed to do anything. But the more you work with it the better and easier it becomes.
First, I would recommend downloading the instruction manual and find out what brand of disk the devices will use. Next if you have a computer make sure you computer can read these disks. Transfer from 8 mm to DVD is time consuming. You have to do it in real time. If you plan to make copies to send to grandma etc. Then duplicating and editing on your computer is a lot faster.
Next I would suggest sacrificing a DVD R disk in experimenting with the features. I took one and tried recording in formats and times. Set up overnight recording to make sure the system would work. That was one of the problems I had. It did not remember the recording setups. But I kept it short. Set the timer to record 2 minutes on one channel, 2 on another etc. This helps me get familiar with the menus and what it could do. Plus help me adjust times on the clock. Nothing is worst then having the recorder stop a minute before the show is over. At least every disk has a two minute cushion on it. So it can record 2 hours and 2 minutes.
Did find the longer recording time per disk, did lower the picture quality. Not bad if you just want to catch that late movie later on, but not good if it is something you want to keep. But source signal also plays a part I am on an analog cable feed. Haven't gone digital yet.
As for the comments of no automatic finalization by other users, it is there to allow you to go back and edit menus, chapter titles and in some cases delete sections before closing.
For myself, DVD R is great for stuff you are going to keep and share. Copies of the home movies or your favorite TV show. Simple straight forward recording.
DVD RW gives you more capability. Record a show and gives you the option to keep it or erase and reuse.
DVD RAM same as DVD RW with more editing features to use. But found you have to use a DVD player or computer that can read the DVD RAM. Otherwise you are stuck with your machine only. And you won't be able to duplicate it easily. Other thing I found, it doesn't create the chapters automatically as the DVD R and DVD RW does.
The machine is slow at start up and each time you change the disk. It takes a moment to change channels. Have to keep in mind it is basically a dedicate computer to record TV signals and convert to digital formats. So it has to boot up. I do wish they had a provision for a keyboard so you could type in chapter titles instead of using the arrow keys and enter on the remote control. That can be time consuming when you are doing lots of chapters. Found that out when I did the kids' baby tapes. We shot a lot of stuff 5 minutes here 5 minutes there. So lots of different titles.
Oh yes, if you want separate chapters with titles you have to create them in real time. Play your source and monitor it. Stop the recorder where you want it. And restart at the next segment. Not bad for the school plays. Tough on little bits and pieces. I don't have the time for that. So generally I turn on both the source (my camcorder) and recorder let them go and come back after 2 hours. Then do my edits. What I found is the system creates one large file. The automatic chaptering does work, but only the DVD recorder will recognize and find the chapters. After I finalize the disk it will play on any other DVD player. You can skip to the next chapters but the chapter break downs don't appear in the menus.
I am disappointed that Toshiba's quality checks did not catch the problems with the unit. But they did work hard on making it right. Now that I learned the little things about the unit, I am quite satisfied with its performance and would recommend this unit to anyone.
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