Panasonic DMR-EX85 DVD recorder review
| Design |
| It’s a stylish looking machine the DMR-EX85. The sleek sliver body comes with built-in Freeview receiver and 250GB hard drive. So at the front you’ll find a large on button on the far left hand side while on the far right hand side are the control buttons including open/close, a drive selector, stop and record button. Hidden away in the middle of the front panel are some sockets for attaching your camera so there’s the S-video input, composite video input and stereo audio input as well as the SD card port. Turn the machine around to the back and there’s another array of inputs including the HDMI output, component video, two Scarts, and then lots of other extras. There’s also a fuss-free remote control that is quite bright but designed well. |
| Setup/Installation |
| Using this machine couldn’t be easier. The fact that there is only one HDMI port makes everything simple for connectivity. The rest of the inputs have been clearly labeled so even if you have your Panasonic DVD recorder on the floor you won’t have difficulty plugging things in. |
| Features |
| The first thing to mention again is the 250GB hard drive that comes with this DVD player. Thanks to this large space you can store up to 443 hours of programming in the lowest quality mode, but you probably won’t really want to record on anything less than SP which would give you around 111 hours of programmes direct to disk. The Panasonic DMR-EX85 offers DIGA DVD recording which gives the ease and convenience of Super Multi-Format recording and playback, which basically means you can play any format you like including DVD-RAM, DVD-R, DVD-R DL, DVD-RW, +R, +R DL, +RW. The Graphic User Interface means gives an easy to follow menu for users and the SD card means you can play your holiday photos straight to your TV. The connectors also mean you can attach your camcorder or digital camera straight to the DVD recorder. Oh and it comes with Freeview. |
| Performance |
| The EX85 has an outstanding quality of image and is really easy to use. The editing features are very good, although you’re best to record straight on to HDD, edit and then transfer to DVD there’s no reason why you can’t record straight to disc. While editing you can completely erase whole sections or move scenes around and add chapters and titles which we really like. Or you can transfer digital camcorder footage to DVD without losing any of the quality. The Freeview works well but unfortunately there’s no way of upgrading to subscription digital TV channels. When recording from TV the easy-to-use menu meant you could set programmes very quickly and easily and record for hours on end. While the upscaling doesn’t give you full HD experience it definitely improves the image of ordinary DVDs and gives you proper high definition viewing of HD movies. |
| What's In The Box? |
| Pansonic DMR-EX85, remote control, HDMI cable. |
| Overall Opinion |
| We really liked the Panasonic DMR-EX85. There’s no airs and graces, there’s a simple elegance about the design which follows through on the spec. This EX85 provides you with good picture quality, easy recording functions and the 285GB hard drive means you’re not going to run out of space in a rush. |
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Pros + 250GB d + 720/1080i upscaling + Multiformat DVD recording + Freeview + SD card slot |
Cons - Can't upgrade Freeview |
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Overall Rating 
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By Babita Wakelin
20/10/2006 at 2:00:38pm
20/10/2006 at 2:00:38pm
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