?s about DVD recorder

[thinkerbell]

We are thinking about getting a DVD recorder to transfer our homevideos to DVD's. A couple of quick questions:

1) Does it matter whether you get the one that has -RW or +RW?
2) When buying DVD's, what is the difference between 8x and 16x?
3) Can I hook my current DVD player up to the recorder and transfer from one DVD to another? For example: We have a DVD of our daughters wedding and would like to make more copies. Is this possible with a DVD recorder?
4) Are there any must have things to look for when looking for a DVD recorder?--keeping in mind that I do NOT want to spend lots of money(100-120).
Thanks for your help.

 

[Towncrier]

1. A couple things to consider. The price of the media (-RW vs +RW) and compatibility with your existing DVD player. Some DVD players can handle -RW only, some +RW only, some can't handle either, and some can play anything you throw at them.

2. 8x and 16x refer to the media's certified maximum burn speed. For reference, a 1x recorder would take an hour to fill a 4.7Gbyte DVD. A 16x recorder with 16x media could fill the same size DVD in about 4 minutes. There is no advantage to purchasing media that is rated at a higher speed than your DVD recorder can handle.

3. The answer is "probably yes" (although this is not the recommended way to make a copy of a DVD). The original videographer who made your daughter's wedding DVD probably did not include any copy protection. If you use your DVD player and a DVD recorder to make a copy, you may notice a degradation of video quality and you won't be able to copy the menus on the original DVD. You would be better off to find someone with a DVD burner in their PC and ask them to make a direct digital copy of your DVD (with the original videographer's permission, of course).

You may want to check out my favorite reference site for all things DVD:
http://www.videohelp.com

Good luck and happy shopping.

 

[thinkerbell]

Thanks Towncrier. I really appreciate you taking the time to answer my questions.

 

[greenyskp]

We bought a DVD recorder for the computer (external, HP) and we love it.

The difference in going with a computer burner vs. just a DVD burner?

Editing. If you like scrapbooking. You'll love making movies out of your vacation photos, and events.

Plus, I took all of our home movies, and made beautiful DVD menus, and put them on DVD.

Plus, anytime someone has an anniversary, birthday, or even a holiday. Im considered the go-to person in our family to make these videos (out of pics or video) its even gotten me a side job doing it.

I would prefer the Computer one, if all you're looking to do is transfer tapes. Much more versatility.

But then more comes into play... like how new your computer is... how much hard drive you have..

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions!?

Good luck!