Back in the age of VHS tapes recording was widespread. Once the DVD format became the norm at-home television recording had disappeared and been forgotten by the average consumer. This was mainly because many DVD player models did not support recording and services like TiVo eventually became the norm in many households. However, TiVo isn’t free, and neither is any other DVR service. Recording your own DVDs with a DVD recorder/player is about as free as you are legally able to get.
Finding one can be difficult, especially at department stores or even some electronics retailers. Recording your own DVDs has a stigma surrounding it that VHS recording never quite received from film production and distributing companies. DVDs burst onto the scene as piracy really boomed — and DVDs might have been part of the reason for that boom. Because of that, DVD recording is not something you hear about every day, even if you just want to record your family videos from VHS to DVD.
Several models of DVD recorder players are VHS and DVD compatible just for the purpose of recording VHS movies onto DVD. This type of model is very useful if you have a large quantity of home movies or if you have a VHS collection that you can’t bear to lose. VHS tapes do not last forever, mainly because the tape inside the casing can deteriorate over time, but partially because VHS players are outdated and are getting hard to find.
Almost all commercially available models that can both play and record DVDs are high quality, mostly due to the fact that they are a sort of niche item. Reputable manufacturers do make them and they can be found on some internet stores and some electronics stores. These types of player/recorders are also getting more affordable with each year that passes, just like normal DVD. The difference is that they are often more pricey than standalone DVD players themselves. Luckily the prices of blank DVD-R and DVD-RW discs are getting increasingly cheaper, especially now that Blu-Ray is making its way to becoming the standard.
As a one time investment, a high quality DVD recorder player is a solid buy, especially if you want to record programs for free or copy your old VHS tapes. These players are not going anywhere, and they are certainly useful in some situations, but finding one that is worth the money can be a pain. But a little bit of trouble for a useful feature can be worth it.
Anyone looking to save some money on recording their favorite television programs would do well to seek out a reasonably priced DVD recorder player.
