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Product: Digital video recorder and DVD burner

Developer: Humax

Retail Price: $499.00 ($399 with rebate)

Availability: Out now

Review by: Marc Zeedar

If you love being in control of your TV viewing, you understand the
value of a digital
video recorder (DVR). Unlike an unintelligent VCR, a DVR understands the
network TV
schedule and can be programmed to record the shows you want every time
they air, with
no assistance from you. Since everything is recorded to an internal hard
drive, there
are no tapes to mess with and the device can record hundreds of shows
before it runs
out of space.

However, it's a known fact that there isn't a big enough hard drive in
the world.
Every drive, no matter how big, eventually fills up. When that happens
with a DVR, it
begins to delete old shows to replace them with new ones—and that
could be annoying
if you really want to save some of those old programs.

From the beginning, Tivo, the world's best-selling DVR, has let you move
shows to a VCR
to free up hard disk space. Unfortunately, this is an analog process
that happens in
real-time, so an hour show takes an hour to move to videotape. Another
problem is that
you can't queue multiple shows to move several in a row to a tape, so
the process
requires constant attention. Also, because your Tivo is playing the show
while you're
recording it on your VCR, you can't use your Tivo for anything else (it
will still
record in the background). The result of these limitations is that it becomes
such a hassle that
few people bother.

But finally, digital technology is here to rescue us. When the Humax DRT800 was recently announced, I began to drool. The specifications made it sound like the ultimate Tivo: a standard 80-hour Tivo box with an integrated DVD burner that lets you burn DVDs at faster-than-real-time speeds while still allowing use of your Tivo for other things (recording and viewing). The $500 price, while still high, is significantly better than the Pioneer Tivo DVD burner introduced last year at $1200.

Is the DRT800 the ultimate Tivo? Unfortunately, no. It comes close, but
misses it by a
few points.

First, the positive. The DRT800 is a standard 80-hour Series2 Tivo, and,
in that regard,
it works beautifully. The Tivo interface is elegant and easy-to-use, and
standard Tivo
shortcuts and hacks work fine on this box. The DRT800 includes the same
basic
connections as a regular Tivo, including USB, which allows a network
connection (with a
USB-to-Ethernet adapter). In fact, when I swapped the DRT800 for my
Series2 Tivo (I
moved it to the bedroom), I used all the existing cords and just plugged
them into the
new box! Since it's a Series2 Tivo, you get all the Home Media Options a
network
connection allows: music and picture sharing from your networked PC, the
ability to
move recorded shows between networked Tivos, and remote scheduling via
the Tivo
website.

But of course we expect all that. A more important question is how the
DVD burning
works. To record a DVD, you simply insert a blank disc in the drive and
choose "Record
DVD" from a menu. The unit allows you to set up a list of existing shows
to copy them
to a DVD-R or DVD-RW. The graphical interface makes this easy, showing
you the
percentage of space each show will require on the disc, and allowing you
to arrange the
order of recording. If a show won't fit, it's disabled in the list. If a
show's too
long to fit on a single disc, the DRT800 can break the show into
segments and let you
put them on multiple DVDs.

The amount of space taken up by each show depends on the compression
used when the
show was recorded. An hour-long show recorded in Best quality will take
up an entire
DVD, while you can fit six hours of Basic quality shows. Here, I was
disappointed to
realize that the DRT800 cannot change the quality of the show. You
cannot force the
unit to squeeze a two-hour movie in Best quality to fit onto a disc.
Whatever quality
level it is recorded in is how it will be saved on the disc and controls
how much
space it uses.

Burning a DVD shows a progress bar, and the DVD light on the front of
the device
lights up. But, you're free to use the Tivo for other things while the
recording takes
place. You can watch shows, schedule recordings, etc., and Tivo performs
any scheduled
recordings as planned. In my initial test, I burned four hours of
material (recorded
at Medium quality) to a DVD-RW disc in 55 minutes. That seems to be
standard for a
full disc. Not too bad, especially considering I could watch and record
other shows
during the process.

Burned DVDs have a standard Tivo-like interface. It's cool and familiar,
though
simple: the main menu's simply a list of shows on the disc. Tivo does
include the
standard program information with each show, so you can see a program's
description,
date, cast, and other details. Once a show is playing, it has chapter
marks every five
minutes, and the included Tivo remote's channel up/down button acts as a
chapter
forward/back button. You can, of course, play the DVD in your regular
DVD player. As
long as it's a fairly recent model, it shouldn't have a problem with the
recorded
discs, though some older players may be picky about the media or refuse
to recognize
the disc at all.

One of the best features of the DRT800 is that it includes a Firewire
input on the
front of the unit (there are also standard AV inputs as well). This
means you can
connect your digital video (DV) camcorder and easily move that material
to the Tivo
and eventually burn DVDs. While not as powerful as creating your own
iMovies and DVD
navigation system on your Mac with iDVD, it's a quick way to preserve
camcorder
material (though it does happen in real-time, so 30 minutes of DV footage
takes 30
minutes to record).

Everything sounds great so far, but there are some negatives. The first
is that while
the DRT800 will allow you to reuse DVD-RW discs, it does not support
appending: you
cannot add to an existing disc. Rerecording onto a RW will automatically
erase it
first. Most standalone DVD recorders allow appending, and it's annoying
that the DRT800
does not.

In fact, that's one of the key drawbacks of the DRT800. You'd think that
it could
serve as a regular DVD recorder and thus get you two devices in one: a
Tivo and a DVD
recorder. Unfortunately, the DRT800 is severely limited in its DVD
recorder
capabilities. For example, it can only copy Tivo recordings from the
hard drive to a
DVD disc. That means you can't go from your DV camera directly to a
disc, but must
first record to the hard drive, then copy to DVD. The same goes for TV
shows: you must
use the Tivo to record the show first, then copy it to DVD. A disc's
menu and chapter
options are fixed and unchangeable, and while the defaults are beautiful
and work
fine, a standalone DVD recorder will usually give you more control over
how discs are
built. A regular DVD recorder will also let you control the compression
amount,
lowering quality to fit more material if that's what you want. With the
DRT800, there's
no way to reduce quality to fit more onto a disc.

Finally, I was seriously annoyed to discover the DRT800 will not
allow you to
even play a DVD until you've completed Tivo's Guided Setup
(basically Tivo's
initial setup). Since Guided Setup can be a long process (it has to
download your
local details over a phone line), you cannot just bring the DRT800 home
and
immediately use it, but must first set it up as a Tivo.

The bottom line is that the DRT800 is more of a Tivo than a DVD
recorder. That's not
necessarily a bad thing, but just keep in mind that the box is nearly
useless without
the Tivo service. If you're not committed to Tivo service (you should
be, of course,
since that's what makes Tivo's magic work), the DRT800 is not your best
choice as a
standalone DVD recorder.

Unfortunately, the problems with the DRT800 don't end there. The most
significant
limitation for me, as the owner of several Tivo boxes, is that the
DRT800 will only
burn shows recorded on itself. This means that if I record a show on a
different box and
move it, via my home network, to the DRT800, that show cannot be burned
to a DVD. I'm
not sure if this is because of a technical limitation (the DRT800 could
use a
different video encoding system) or if it's some sort of copy
protection, but either
way, it's really dumb. I've got a number of shows saved on my older Tivos
I wanted to
move to DVD, but though I can move them to the DRT800, I can't burn them
to DVD.

Now, there is a work around for this problem. It's ugly, but works fine.
Because the
DRT800 accepts video input, you can chain a VCR (or Tivo box) to the
burner and record
from that AV input. There are four drawbacks to this. One, it's analog
and real-time,
so a two-hour movie takes two hours to record. Two, it's being
recompressed, so there's
potential degradation of signal quality. Three, you lose all of Tivo's
handy program
guide information (description, actors, etc.) and are limited to a 32
character title
which you "type" on the TV screen. (I worked around this by briefly
displaying Tivo's
Info screen at the start of the show I was moving so when the DVD is
played, I can
briefly see the show's description.)

The fourth drawback is that this completely ties up both Tivos. The
playing Tivo can
still record as scheduled in the background, but the DRT800 will not do
anything while recording from an external video source: no
scheduled
recordings, no DVD playback, no recorded show playback. This means you
have to carefully pick your time to do the recording. While it makes sense that
the DRT800
can't record something else while it's recording an external video
source, I don't
understand why it can't let you watch a recorded show or at least use
the DVD player!

The good news is that this process works, though it's a little convoluted
and awkward
and takes time. Tivo makes you go through a multi-step process to
activate this
feature (you have to choose the AV inputs you're using, type in the
show's name, tell
it to start recording, wait 15 seconds while a countdown clock ticks
down, and the recording then finally starts). One nice feature is that it tells you the
exact time
recording will be done, so you can keep an eye on a clock to return when
it's
finished.

Since I only have a limited number of shows I need to move over, it's
not too bad. In
the future, however, I shall have to remember to specifically use the
DRT800 to record
shows I may want to save. If I record something with a different Tivo,
moving it to
DVD will be a hassle. Of course if the DRT800 will be your only Tivo,
this isn't a
worry at all as it only effects those with multiple Tivos, such as me.

There is one more kind of show that the DRT800 won't let you record to
DVD, and while
this doesn't seem to be an issue right now, it could be in the long run.
Apparently,
television shows can now include a special "don't copy" signal within
the show. If the
DRT800 detects a show is copy protected, it will not allow you to burn
it to a DVD.
Right now, few shows bother with this feature, but as digital technology
proliferates,
networks may start to limit copying of their broadcasts. That could
potentially render
the DRT800 useless; what good would it be if TV shows wouldn't
allow themselves
to be saved?

To be fair, however, most standalone DVD recorders also include this
feature. It must
be a legal requirement. My brother has a DVD recorder and ran into a few
occasions
where he wasn't allowed to burn a certain show to disc. And of course
you can get
around this simply by doing the analog process described above
(recording to the
DRT800 via an external video source such as another Tivo or a VCR and
later burning
the show to DVD).

Some other features get a mixed review. In terms of connections, the
DRT800 includes
component video output as well as S-Video and digital optical sound
output, so you can
also use it as standard progressive scan DVD player if you want.
Unfortunately, the
included Tivo peanut-shaped remote, which adds handy DVD controls, does
not include the
standard Tivo switch which lets you use the same remote to control up to
two Tivo
boxes. That's surprising, since you'd think existing Tivo owners would be
a prime
market for the DRT800. Rather than keep two Tivo remotes out (that's the
whole point
of the convenient switch), I just use my normal switchable Tivo remote
which works
fine; I just don't have DVD controls. Even that's not a big deal since
the DRT800's
DVD player responds to standard Tivo buttons like Play and Pause the way
you'd expect.
For now, I'll stick with my existing DVD player, though I may eventually
move it to
the bedroom and use the DRT800 as my primary DVD player.

I was disappointed to find that the DRT800 eliminates Tivo's extra set
of AV out
connections. There's only one AV out, while regular Series2 boxes have
two. I used the
second to connect to my TV's picture-in-picture so I could have one Tivo
displaying in
each PIP window (useful for when two soccer games were airing
simultaneously and I
wanted to watch both live). I can still do that with my other Tivo box's
second output,
so it's not a big deal, but it's an interesting omission. The front
inputs for
connecting a camcorder, VCR, or other video source are much more
valuable, of course.

Other nice touches by the DRT800 include a front display that shows the current
time or the
progress of a playing DVD and a mini-joystick and play controls on the
front of the
unit (useful for when you don't have a remote handy). The joystick seems
fragile, and,
since it sticks out a bit, worries me that it may break off some day, but
front
controls are useful. I wish more manufacturers included them.

Bottom Line

The DRT800 is an excellent Tivo. It's a decent DVD recorder, though a
bit basic. There
are some design limitations I don't like, such as support for copy
protection, the
refusal to burn shows imported from a different Tivo, the complete
stoppage of all
Tivo/DVD features while recording from an external video source, and the
inability to
reduce a show's quality to fit more material onto a disc, but those rare
issues don't
outweigh the key benefit of being able to archive material to DVDs.

You could achieve a similar result by buying a standalone Tivo and a DVD
recorder, but
you wouldn't save much money and you'd be limited to moving material in
real-time one
show at a time. Being able to archive multiple shows quickly (and in the
background)
is invaluable, and I'm delighted with the Humax DRT800. It may not be the
ultimate
Tivo, but it's darn close.

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