CNNdotCOM Technofile: Digital TV recorders

From Rick Lockridge
CNNdotCOM Correspondent

(CNN) -- Some people know how to program their VCRs and can even keep the little clock set to the right time. The rest of us will someday undoubtedly own a digital TV recorder that contains the TiVo or ReplayTV services. There are more than enough reasons to make the move from tape to digital.

The picture is better, for one thing. VHS video tape can only store about half the information on a TV signal while digital recorders compress the signal -- and it still looks better than what video tape has to offer. Also, the newest model digital recorders can hold up to 60 hours worth of programs; a VHS tape will only give you eight.

TiVo and ReplayTV are basically souped-up TV guide services that work with the recorder to help you find the shows you want to snag. Each downloads new listings every night with a toll-free phone call. The listings allow you to look ahead up to seven days for programs you want to record.

TECHNOFACTS So what's the price tag on this?

You can surf and click, and record shows that way, but what's really great about these digital recorders is they're smart. I programmed the ReplayTV unit to record every episode of "Sex in the City," every show in which the comedian Chris Rock appears, and every NBA basketball game. With the service, I don't even have to know when they're on, or which channel they're on. The recorder will hunt for me by title, actor or genre. When the disk starts to get full, you can save shows you want to keep forever by "sending" them to a tape in your VCR.

Plus, because you're recording to a computer hard disk, you can "pause" live TV and do your own instant replays.

Setup is a little time consuming, but big color charts help make it clear about what plugs into what. The recorders cooperate with most cable boxes and satellite dish receivers, although it's not as smooth an integration as you'd like -- sometimes the devices fight each other a little bit. Just be prepared to spend an hour or two before either one is up and running.

ReplayTV can automatically record every show in which an entertainer appears

But it's worth any amount of trouble to get one of the best features of both services: a TV commercial zapper button on the remote that lets you skip forward instantly, 30 seconds at a time. The TV networks hate this little button and have threatened to sue to have it removed. For now, it's still on there.

These recorders don't come cheap. You'll pay about $800 for a 60-hour Panasonic model with ReplayTV. The Philips unit with TiVo will cost you about $700, but you have to either pay a monthly subscription fee of $9.95 or buy a lifetime subscription for $199.

You can get a 30-hour model for about half that much, and I might go that route. Let's face it, if you are recording 60 hours of programs -- every week -- then you need to get out more.

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Tivo
Tivo UK
ReplayTV
Panasonic
Philips

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