Why Americans don't buy DVD players that record

The recording DVD player. These have been popular in Europe and Asia but have fallen flat in the U.S. Most companies don't even bother to put much effort into marketing them in this country.

The same phenomenon will likely hold true for recording Blu-ray and HD DVD players.

Makato Ebata, CEO of the consumer business group at Hitachi, gave us an explanation in a recent interview. Cable TV penetration is far higher in the States than Asia or Europe. With cable, the same show can appear on a channel several times. In Europe and Japan, you need to grab it when you can.

"The non-recording DVD player is quite popular in this country (the U.S.), but they are not popular in Japan at all," he said. "Here, you use them for the rentals. In Japan, they use it for recording."

TiVo also took off more rapidly in the States and elsewhere. TiVo, he added, is also one of the reasons selling TVs with embedded hard drives in the States remains a challenge. Selling these on the other two continents is far easier. Consumers interested in digital video recorders (a) already own one or (b) have more options on how to put one in their living room.

Of course, the recording debate doesn't apply to video cameras. Americans are shifting from tape to disc and hard drive camcorders.

Other notes from Ebata:

IPTV will become a more dominant theme for TV manufacturers. All of the major manufacturers will add content providers and services to their sets. So far, the manufacturers are avoiding the mistake of putting the whole Web on your TV, and instead popping up windows for must-have information like local sports and weather, or entertainment modules with wide appeal.

The question, though, will be how TV manufacturers can earn money from providing content.

OLED (organic light-emitting diode) TV is great and the technology will likely come to market, but it will take years to figure out ways to mass-manufacture large sets. (Panasonic, Sharp, and Samsung hold a similar opinion, but Sony says you will see it quicker. More here on the debate.) Another challenge lies in the fact that LCD and plasma continue to come down in price.

Plasma will survive. It doesn't have as many manufacturing backers as LCD and the public perception isn't great, but it remains competitive for large TVs. Hitachi makes plasmas.

[kakodes_too]

Don't need'em

I'm on Cox cable and use the rented DVR. With rapid tech advances, I'm convinced I'm better off renting rather than buying ($5 more a month). If the DVR fails, I take it to Cox and get a new one.

Years ago, when tape players/recorders were common, I recorded a million programs that I never got back to watch ... eventually tossed all the tapes. If I recorded DVDs, they'd sit on the shelf unused.

[rcrusoe]

Record DVDs on your computer, not in your living room

The only DVDs most people record these days contains video they
shot themselves. And if you want people to actually watch your
home movies you need to edit them, etc. which means you need a
computer.

I use DVRs when I need to record television shows (Tivo and
Elgato). Why burn a disk of something you'll only watch once?

[cillbat]

stop speaking for everyone

personally i've created over 200 dvds of shows and series i've wanted to keep for future viewing. And I would HATE to have to hook up my pc to my tv to do it. I spend all stinkin day working on pc's the last thing i want to do is go home and do more. Give me a nice simple feature like i have set up with directv dvr recorded program, play it at night while recording it to the panasonic Harddrive/DVR so i can run it to a dvd and add to my library. Perhaps others prefer to spend $100 for a dvd copy of a single season of a series they really liked - not me. All I need now is an Blu-Ray version of the same panasonic DVDR with a harddrive and I'll be all set.

[sommer182]

Cable / Sat TV / DVR

Yep, very good points. I'm one of the less than 15% of American's that doesn't either have cable or sat TV. That make a DVD Recorder much more attractive in our house, and I've had a Panasonic EZ17 since they came out last year. Works great with the over-the-air digital signals in our market, something the old VCR of course can't even pick-up. There hasn't been a DVR option for us antenna crowd, but I intend on checking out the new EchoStar TR-50 when it hits store shelves later this spring.

[martin_c_e]

Philips DVDR3575H

My household is over-the-air analog and digital only. The Philips DVDR3575H is great. It has a hard drive and a dvd burner. True everything is saved in 480P, but, it upconverts to 720P or 1080i. It works with 4x3 or 16x9 tv's. It picks up broadcast analog and digital. We have used the dvd burner several times; mostly we use the HDD to record and playback tv shows.

[r3tard]

Not reliable

The DVD recorders aren't reliable. I don't know how many times I've seen people miss an important program because they made a coaster out of a DVD on one of those cheap recorders.

If you want a reliable DVD copy, you have to do it on your computer.

[tgmaniac]

I wouldn't want to miss an "important program"

Are TV programs so much apart of our life that they are classified as "IMPORTANT" now?

[scottbwalter]

love mine

I've had a recordable DVD player for a year now and couldn't live without it. I don't have to pay a subscription fee like TiVo, don't have to situate my TV/DVD near a phone jack, and can still watch shows when I want. If you get the right recorder, you can even start watching a show from the top while it's still being recorded. Great for parents whose favorites shows come on right when the kids have to go to bed!

[tux_warrior]

Sounds Great

Unfortunately though, more often than not my DVD recorder screws up where as my Tivo never misses, plus if we're comparing a Tivo with a stand alone DVD burner, Tivo out features the DVD 10-1.
Anyone who honestly thinks DVD burners can compare with a Tivo, has never used a Tivo, and I'm not talking about those half baked DVR's from Sat. companys or you cable company.
Can you get online at work and tell your Tivo to record something for you at home?
Can you record the entire series of a program without ever having to swap discs?

There's also no subscription fee if you bought the lifetime deal. ;-)

[nomadrider]

Use mine everyday

I used to use VCRs to record and timeshift all the shows I watch. Now I have switched to DVD recording. I use 3 Panasonics that use DVD-RAM discs and they work just fine. You can record and watch something previously recorded or 'chase' record (watch the beginning while recording the end of the show).
They also play rental movies just fine.
And transferring video from a camcorder that has a firewire connection couldn't be easier.
I guess you have to like TV and be cheap like me, I don't pay for cable or satellite (I still use an antenna, shame on me, but it's actually free and digital TV comes in great) and don't want to pay a subscription for TIVO or similar services.

[i_am_still_wade]

I'll tell you why it flops

DVD recorders can't record widescreen broadcasts. I don't expect them to record in HD, but I do expect them to record in 16:9. Alas, since EVERYONE is a pirate according the MPAA and RIAA, this isn't allowed.

[Cricker12]

DVD Recorders

I bought a recorder that records on both VHS and DVD. Unfortunately the DVD recorder isn't reliable. I just tried recording a three part TV show. All three days were set up in timer the same way with the same DVD's. The first recorded although it got started about 5 minutes after the show started. The second day it didn't record at all on the DVD. Having missed the second part, I gave up on the third one. Next time I'll use the VHS tape.

Computers are just as unreliable with DVD's. Get rid of the various types (+R, -R) and standardize on one, dump the stupid "region codes", and make them reliable and I might go for them.

[mbourgon]

Hard drives hard drives hard drives

That's why people don't buy them - no hard drive. Which means that if you want to watch it, you have to deal with multiple DVD/RWs, and you get to (joy) save the commercials on the drive. All the hard-drive based ones apparently either suck, or are 600$ or more. Put out one with two tuners (so I can do more than one thing at once), a hard drive, and a decent UI and way to remove commercials, and you'll sell a ton of them. But that would require work.

[nomadrider]

I agree

If Panasonic (or someone) made one with DVD-RAM support, digital tuner and a large HDD I'd buy one. If it had 2 digital tuners I'd buy it immediately, not even waiting for the price to come down. I had a Polaroid, no DVD-RAM and it had troubles so it went back. So, I agree, they aren't making what we want to buy.

[jrm125]

I think it has to do with physical perception

This may sound simplistic, but I think it's because people don't have the same perceptions about it as they do tape.

For instance, when recording on a tape, you know that it's ok to stop it wherever, eject it, look at the tape to get a physical indication of how much tape is left, etc.

But with recordable DVD...while many of these things are possible (most, not all) it makes people uncomfortable since by this point pretty much everyone can operate a VCR at least decently well.

[bparker666]

they only work for 40 hours

I keep asking my technology testing friends (that have been playing with technology for 30 years) what their experience with DVD recorders are, and they usually rant off about the last one they bought that worked for 30-45 hours, and then started creating coasters. My take is they are not ready for prime-time and that is only for making a home copy of a DVD. The ability to record a show off the air is even worse. My Tivo is reliable for a year or two at a time, quicker and easier to use (no needing to label, or swap disks, and the labels (the program information) is much more complete then my patience would be.

[palewook]

price vs reliability

its a 500.00 dollar coaster maker. and you can buy a 30 dollar dvd recorder for your pc. which would you rather replace?

[videography]

Late into the HD Game

Americans like to think they are on the cutting edge of videography. Not true! The FCC and it's divisions have botched the transition to HD TV so thoroughly that it may take years to unwind all the confusion.

The future of HD broadcasting of user generated content [including clips recorded off the air] is "cut & paste". The rights acquisition is another matter.

At Videography Lab we propose a standardized licensing fee for use of material "cut & pasted" via any form of downloaded recording. We believe in agnostic formats. Open source.

We also predict that creators of such content will demand just compensation. See current Writers Strike if you doubt the importance of this issue.

Bob Kiger
Videography Lab
http://videographyblog.com

[3conomy1]

Another point of view.

Piffle.
Americans don't buy DVD recorders because the options made available to them SUCK.
I've got a Panasonic and being able to use the DVD-RAM is great - for stuff I don't want to keep or share with someone else.
Since DVD-R prices have fallen, it doesn't bother me so much create coasters when the auto time-update malfunctions.
I've only recently been able to purchase one with a digital tuner inside at all. (Did you also burst out laughing with the little paper "consumer warnings" posted at Circuit City when the only ones they sold just had NTSC tuners!)
And FORGET about hi-def!
I'll concede that maybe American cable has something to do with the market but I'd say it has less to do with the mind-numbingly repetitive scheduling of shows and more to do with the mind-numbingly poor quality of the shows.

[bpstratton]

I always find these conversations months after they've long ended, and I let sleeping dogs lie (as in post-dogs, not people-dogs, :P)

But I just have to stand up and represent all the movie nerds out here. I've had a low-end Samsung DVD recorder attached to my satellite box for about 2.5 years now, and have recorded over 1000 movie DVDs with it, all from my satellite DVR. First, I capture the film on DVR, then, at bedtime, or whenever... I start the recording and set the timer to stop after the movie runtime expires. Not hard -- very rewarding.

I'm really more of a classic movie buff, but I also have recorded hundreds of newer films. Some hit the satellite catalogs as early as the same year they're released, but most don't come around until a year or two after. I can wait for them, and now I have them.

After having to chuck the worn out VHS tapes I made in the 80s, I probably should have been a little more skeptical of the future of DVD, but it looks like Blu-ray will be backward compatible with DVD for the next decade, or so, and it also looks like Blu-ray will be the next "leap forward," as it claims to be.

Unless you're like me, movie lover, I suppose you might not see a good reason for owning a DVD recorder -- but I do, indeed.