Panasonic DMR-EX77

Technical Details: 160GB HDD

Features: Dolby Digital and DTS audio output, Digital tuner, Viera Link (Panasonic’s HDAVI feature), XP , SP, LP and EP recording presets, HDMI output

Pros: Features a wealth of editing options. Picture and recording quality is excellent, the handling of upscaling is particularly a strong point, whether formatted at 720p, 1080i or 1080p. The 1080P upscaling conversion is an added bonus, because few machines are yet to offer it. The setup procedure is fool proof, the Direct Navigator menu makes viewing and recording every programme a breeze. Unlike some recorders it also supports all the discs format, DVD +R/RW/-R/-RW/RAM, DVD+R Dual Layer, DVD-R Double Layer discs.

Cons: Nothing, it's practically perfect. There is an issue with aspect ratios, you can no longer record any changed aspect ratio to the HDD. Simply put, the aspect ratio of the recording is fixed to what it was at the beginning of the recording.

Verdict: One of the best DVD/HDD recorders available.

Reviews

Posted on 25 / 08 / 2007

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It was a toss up between the EX77 and EX95. The 95 has a VCR slot, and I couldn'tdecided whether to ditch my old VCR to free up some space and an extra plug. I decided to keep it and choose the 77. I was advised that using separates machines gives better results, and most importantly is a considerably cheaper option if you still have a working VCR I am currently in the middle of transferringmy VCR collection onto to DVD. For those of you wondering, will I be able to record from a VCR player onto DVD using the DMR EX77? yes you can, just make sure your VCR has a scart plug. I have had my EX77 for just over a month and I am very happy with it. It's great infact. I had no idea about the aspect ratio problem, seems like an issue only techies would fret over.

User Rating -
User Name - I. McDiarmid