Panasonic DMR-EX 75

Advantages: Good picture quality
Disadvantages: Slow and unresponsive

Hmmm, not perfect..... We have owned this machine for about a year. This was the second DVD recorder we bought, the Sony model was returned as it was too noisy - a common complaint it seems. This is a much quieter machine, looks good but is SOOO frustrating. The often mentioned complaint of not being able to watch another channel whilst recording is irritating but for me the worst thing is how unresponsive it is. Don't be in a hurry to watch ...
...warm up. Its says hello, then asks you to wait...and wait...and wait. Then you need to get the guide on screen to choose a channel, that can only be done by scrawling through the DVD, SD and HD modes, depending on what was last watched, which won't work until the machine is fully warmed up. The guide function can sometimes be rather slow. For some reason, and even my engineer husband can't fathom why, it has a tendency to slip into record mode even ... Read review

Advantages: Everything in 1 - great 160GB hard drive
Disadvantages: Cant record 2 channels at once

I have been watching this market for many years, really from the first time the DVD recorder came on the market (and started at the £1000 mark). I have been waiting until the price was right to purchase one. I scanned around what was on offer and ended up purchasing this one in Feb 2007. The main point for me is to have everything in one box. Which is the beauty of this product. I wanted a DVD recorder, Freeview and Hard Drive. The 160GB Hard Drive ...
...without having to go through loads of DVD’s in the process. Many things that I watch, I watch once and delete. This is an awesome feature. I have had the product now for 4 months and only just starting to get near to having too much on my 160GB hard drive. But the DMREX75 makes it so easy for you to record from your hard drive onto DVD, which allows you to store the programme you really want to keep. Having a freeview box makes it easier to record ... Read review

Advantages: Top notch picture and sound - multi format compatabilty - 160Gb HDD for hasstle free recording
Disadvantages: At the price for me nothing

...reading the spec for the Panasonic DMR-EX 75, this thing does it all! A 160Gb hard disk drive (that's up to 284Hours of recording to you) on board means no scrabbling about for a blank disk to record your fave shows. If you do however prefer recording to disc rather than Hard drive the Panasonic isn't fussy about what you've got to hand, DVD Ram, DVD-RW, DVD-R, DVD -RDL, DVD+R, DVD+RDL and DVD+RW are all catered for in both recording and playback ...
...all this multi format trickery Panasonic saw fit to give us an excellent remote control, HDMI connectivity along with 1080i/720p video upscaler (so ideally suited to HD TVs) and a integrated free view tuner with built in 7 day planner for your must watch/record TV, oh and you can get it as a multi region player too. So where's the catch, I hear people asking, "bet the DVD playback's crap" comes the comment from one friend "you'd be better off buying ... Read review

This is the second Panasonic DVD recorder I have bought, the first being a DMR E55 which is still going strong but is so obsolete now. They have come a long way since then, I really bought the for the integrated digital tuner and the hard drive function because I now own a 106cm plasma tv and needed the function on being able to record a widescreen broadcast so hence the digital tuner. I also use the hard drive for recording subsription tv which is connected via a scart connection. The unit has multiple inputs (4 in all) and is so is very versatile for transferring old video tapes and and connecting... more

...digital cameras etc etc...

Advantages: Upscaling, one unit, HDMI port
Disadvantages: Can't watch one channel and record another

...if you don't have a panasonic TV it requires some fiddling around and this is not just me read any AV forum and you will find the same issue Black out on TV channels - this is an issue with flicking tjhrough channels too fast and results in a situation where when you finally stop on a channel it blacks out after 10 secs. The solution is call up the guide and select what you want to watch or let the picture come up on each channel before moving on. ...
...Panny TVs that use the same tuner Burning to DVD form HDD - when you burn to DVD it plays back in 4:3 even when it was originally in 16:9. Still trying to find a way to rectify this User friendliness - the instruction manual is vague at times and the on screen menus for anything but the simplest tasks is far from intuitive which stops you getting the most from the machine. Solution - have some patience and a mug of coffe make yourself comfortable ... Read review