Panasonic DMR-EH50S DVD Recorder (Progressive Scan, 100 GB Hard Drive)

Panasonic DMR-EH50S

DMR-EH50S DVD Recorder (Progressive Scan, 100 GB Hard Drive) Review, by Melissa Perenson November 30, 2005

Show More Show Less

0 Comments | 0 Topics | Print Only This Review

• Reviewed by: Sharad1982

  Strengths: versatile

  Weaknesses: Why am I not seeing good picture quality?

  Overall: Alright, folks, please help me outI purchased this dvd recorder about 7-8 months backbut to this date i am not achieving that great video quality everyone is speaking about.I don't know what i am doing wrongis it that i'm using composite connection only ? i mean i just have the dishnetwork cable plugged ini am not using s video or component since my tv is not supporting it, could that be just reason, or what is the problem, the photo quality is very dull, no colors, darkish.can someone help me PLEASE--SharadSharad1982@comcast.net

• Reviewed by: ndbob79

  Strengths: excellent image quality

  Weaknesses: no Firewire IEEE port for a digital camcorder

  Overall: This is my 2nd Panasonic DVD Recorder. I previously owned the DMR-HS2, which served me well for 2 years until it required a repair which was apparently irreparable. The repair center offered me the DMR-EH50S as the DMR-HS2 is no longer available. The hard drive on the DMR-EH50S is substantially larger and the image quality is comparable. After owning the DMR-EH50S for 2 months, I was deeply disappointed to learn that it does not have a DV (firewire) input to transfer digital camcorder home movies. I am, therefore, in the market to buy another DVD recorder.

• Reviewed by: megacacti

  Strengths: 100 GB Harddrive. Multi-Format recording. Ablity to edit titles before copying. High Speed dubbing. Multiple record speeds. Ease of navigation. Simplicity of use.

  Weaknesses: TV guide function does not work with all cable companies. Will not work with Comcast cable box(made by Motorola). A good option is to connect the unit directly to cable, bypassing the cable box.

  Overall: This is my second Panasonic DVD Recorder. My first was a DMR-ES20. It was also an excellent machine, but did not have a hard drive. I tried several different brands before deciding on Panasonic. The first was an LG combination unit, DVD recorder and VCR. This was a truly awful machine. I didn't realize just how awful until I purchased the Panasonic. I also tried Lite-On and Sony. None of these products came close to matching the features and ease of use of the Panasonic. The 100GB harddrive is great, the manual easy to understand, the remote is very well designed and simple to navigate and use. I think the best part of the Panasonic is the ability to easily edit titles before copying them to dvd. It takes me less than 5 minutes to edit out all the commercials in a 1 hour recording. I would imagine that with a little practice it would take even less time. Once all those annoying commercials are forever deleted, I can dubb multiple titles to dvd very easily at high speed. I transferred four individulal 1 hour titles (43 minutes once the commercials were removed) in 7 minutes flat. My old Panasonic was a fine recorder, but without this feature and the harddrive, I was forced to watch the entire length of each recording; to pause with each commercial, fast forward and continue. This is a vast improvement, especially for someone who hates commercials (like me). If there is one flaw in this unit, it is not the fault of Panasonic, but the TV Guide company. The TV Guide feature of this recorder will not work with some cable companies, including Comcast, or any company which utilizes a Motorola cable box. An easy way around this is to bypass the cable box completly and have a direct connection to the cable. It should work with any cable company when attached this way. I have Comcast and the TV Guide feature works fine with a direct connection. The only other drawback with the TV Guide is that it limits the number of channels that are available. Don't expect to record off of a high end movie channel with TV Guide. Mine only lets me go up to channel 110. I have heard that TV Guide will often only allow channels up to the high 70's. But again, this is not the fault of Panasonic, but the TV Guide company. Actually, One other thing I should mention about this unit is that it does not have a dual tuner. This means you cannot watch one channel while recording another, or record two channels at once. I am not aware of any other dvd recorder that does have this feature, although it would be very nice. One other curious problem I should mention is that I have not been able to successfully make copies of dvd's on my computer that were originally created from the Panasonic DVD recorder. This is not a problem with my computer, since I have no problems copying other types of dvd's, and even ones created using a different brand of dvd recorder. My computer usually gets to 60-70% copying before I recieve the error message "unable to read data". I have tried using Nero, Dvd Decryptor and 1Click DVD copy, all with the same results. I contacted Panasonic and they didn't seem to believe it was a problem with the recorder. They kept asking what type of computer I have, what type of disc I am using, what operating system, etc. Even when I explained the computer copies everything else perfectly, they still thought it was not an issue with the computer. This problem remains unresolved. In summary, I can find some minor issues with the Panasonic DRM-EH50. However, from someone who has tried multiple brands, I would recommend this unit over any other product on the market. The only real problem the unit itself has (copying the dvd's on a computer) is something that I believe can be resolved. Customer service leaves a bit to be desired with Panasonic (30 minute hold time, inability to diagnose problem), but this may be due to the busy holiday season.

• Reviewed by: jtsmith23

  Strengths: don;t know haven't gotten tv guide to work yet

  Weaknesses: huge weekness in my opinion, when connectrd to a t,v, cable box you cannot record one show while watching another. in my opinion, this is a huge problem. manual is also a mess.

  Overall: i just purchased my recorder and am planning to take it back. who hasn't wanted to at some time or other wanted to watch one thing while recording another show. if connected to a cable box you cannot. you have to watch what you record, it mentions this unique problem in frequently asked questions. i spent quite a while trying to solve this problem without knowing a solution was not possible. the manual stinks and is complicated as others have suggrsted. i cannot recommend anyone purchase one of these unless you can live with this huge flaw. best of luck in finding a recorder. i guess i need to do more research.

• Reviewed by: Relay2005

  Strengths: Great Video Quality. Tivo's quality isn't even close. No monthly fees for Guide. Very Quiet when playing back from harddrive.

  Weaknesses: The Manual...just way to much stuff to go over. The quick start guide was easy and got me started.

  Overall: I have been looking for a solution that would allow me to record shows from a easy to use tv guide and transfer those shows to my computer. Well this product does that. I'm so amazed at how easy it is to record and edit a show (basically I remove the commercials) then burn those shows to DVD-RW (so I can reuse the media). I can easily import the shows from the DVD-RW to my PC and reformat/reuse the DVD-RW again. Burning is great as long as you have Fast Burning turned on. Remember to finalize your disks before you play them on other equipment. I'm not sure why I will use the DVD-Ram disk since I burn to RW and reuse it. DVD-RAM can't be read in most DVD-ROM drives on PC's. Again great product!