Page 1 of Panasonic DMRE85 Advice please

I`m thinking of getting one as reviews are positive.
My main concern is - Can you play disks recorded on this machine in other makes of DVD Player?

Thanks for your help guys

The panasonic uses DVD-RAM (rewritable) or DVD-R (write once)

DVD-RAM discs are unlikely to play back in other DVD players, or on a DVD-ROM drive on a computer. These are the only discs on this player that would be editable.

DVD-R discs are likely to play back in other DVD players and DVD-ROM drives - but they are write once and lack the editing capibilities of other types of discs.

DVD+R (write once) and +RW (rewritable) are the most compatible types of disc as they follow the DVD-Video standard, although DVD-R (write once) and -RW (rewritable) will probably be compatible with most modern DVD players - i.e. I have a very old DVD player which will play DVD+R and +RW but won`t play any DVD-R or -RW.

Hope that helps!

Isn`t the E85 HDD so editing on discs is a not really a valid point?

Also your claims about compatibility are going to cause a stir(especially since - standard preceeded + standard didn`t it so generally - is more backward compatible)

From DVD faq:

Quote:
How is DVD+R/+RW related to competing formats like DVD-R/-RW/-RAM?
DVD+R/+RW, DVD-RAM and DVD-R/-RW are all rewritable DVD formats, however, only DVD+R/+RW is designed from the start to be compatible with existing DVD-ROM drives and DVD-Video players, both on a physical as well as on a logical level. This means that a DVD+R or DVD+RW disc recorded in a DVD+R/+RW video recorder can be played in virtually all DVD-Video players or DVD-ROM equiped PCs, and that any DVD+R or DVD+RW disc recorded with data on a PC DVD+R/+RW drive can be read by most DVD-ROM drives.

DVD-RAM uses a totally different kind of physical recording method, which is absolutely incompatible with DVD (hence, it can hardly be called `DVD`). No normal DVD player will be able to read DVD-RAM discs, even if you use the newer DVD-RAM version without a cartridge housing.

DVD-R and DVD-RW were initially not designed to be used as a DVD-compatible recording solution. DVD compatibility was added at a later point, however since the formats were not developped for this purpose, they do not offer the level of compatibility and flexibility (while remaining DVD compatible!) that DVD+R/+RW offers. Furthermore, DVD-R/-RW is less suitable for data applications as well due to a number of technical limitations (such as the inability of random access writing). For a very extensive comparison of the various formats, please refer to Comparison with DVD-R/-RW Video Recorders and Comparison with DVD-R/-RW PC Drives.

The DVD-RAM and DVD-R/-RW supporters have announced numurous compatibility programs for their DVD players (such as "DVD-Multi" and "VR support"), however only a small minority of players will include these (costly!) additions. DVD-RAM/-R/-RW lies the burden of compatibility on the player, while DVD+R/+RW lies the burden of compatibility on the recorder itself.

Ok, from videohelp

Quote:
DVD-R was the first DVD recording format released that was compatible with standalone DVD Players.
DVD-R is a non-rewriteable format and it is compatible with about 93% of all DVD Players and most DVD-ROMs.
DVD-RW is a rewriteable format and it is compatible with about 80% of all DVD Players and most DVD-ROMs.
DVD-R and DVD-RW supports single side 4.37 computer GB* DVDs(called DVD-5) and double sided 8.75 computer GB* DVDs(called DVD-10).
These formats are supported by DVDForum.

DVD+R and DVD+RW
DVD+R is a non-rewritable format and it is compatible with about 89% of all DVD Players and most DVD-ROMs.
DVD+RW is a rewritable format and is compatible with about 79% of all DVD Players and most DVD-ROMs.
DVD+R and DVD+RW supports single side 4.37 computer GB* DVDs(called DVD-5) and double side 8.75 computer GB* DVDs(called DVD-10).
These formats are supported by the DVD+RW Alliance.

I think the point is that DVD+R and DVD-R will be most compatible (will play on most players)

DVD+RW and DVD-RW will play on a vast majority of DVD players.

DVD-RAM is not likely to be very compatible with other DVD players.

My recommendation would be to go for a recorder which does both + and - and then you can determine for yourself which will play in your player. I would recommend the Sony RDR-GX300 which does DVD-R, DVD+R, DVD-RW and DVD+RW.

For me DVD-R works in a recent dvd player, but not an older dvd player or portable dvd player; DVD+R works in all of my dvd players - so I stick with the +R / +RW format as it works best for me.

Does the Sony RDR-GX300 have an HDD? my preferance would be for the hard drive.

No.

Ste

Quote:
I think the point is that DVD+R and DVD-R will be most compatible (will play on most players)

DVD+RW and DVD-RW will play on a vast majority of DVD players.

DVD-RAM is not likely to be very compatible with other DVD players.

My recommendation would be to go for a recorder which does both + and - and then you can determine for yourself which will play in your player. I would recommend the Sony RDR-GX300 which does DVD-R, DVD+R, DVD-RW and DVD+RW.

For me DVD-R works in a recent dvd player, but not an older dvd player or portable dvd player; DVD+R works in all of my dvd players - so I stick with the +R / +RW format as it works best for me.


So someone who has asked for an opinion on a HD based Panasonic(fairly well regarding as probably being one of the top ) DVD recorder makes) and you`ve suggested that because they also provide DVD-RAM compatibility on the model it may not be a wise choice and suggest a non HD model because it offers DVD+R/RW?

To the original poster, assuming you are getting it for a decent price i.e. sub £300 it`s probably a good choice for whats out there, you may want to look at the topic about the new Panasonic models as they have +R/RW so no doubt will be much better :/

If you want a HDD machine you want a Pioneer 420.Only £299 at Richer Sounds currently.
You can use the HDD for editing,then if you want to reuse a rewritable you can burn to -RW in VIDEO mode which should playback on most players.For permanent recordings burn to -R.
Getting a machine with both formats is a waste of time and these offerings are simply marketing ploys designed to trick uncertain buyers like yourself into thinking they are playing it safe.The reality is that while some players do have a preference for + or -,chances are that players that dislike recordables will dislike both formats.
The new Panny`s offer true multiformat(+R/-R/-RW/RAM) but when these will be on sale is a guessing game at the moment.The Pioneer 420 for £299 will be hard to beat