Home > Consumer Reviews > ReplayTV RTV4532 320-Hour Digital Video Recorder

ReplayTV has done it again with their latest release and improved on it.

The RTV4504 Replay unit is very similar to previous ReplayTV/ Panasonic offerings, making it a very good PVR. One of the best new features over the older models is the addition of control buttons on the actual unit, while the older models depended solely on the use of the remote. The Replay unit comes well apportioned with inputs and outputs and a very usable universal remote, not like the ones sitting around your house doing nothing. There are two sets of composite inputs(RCA), one RF antenna, and one S-Video input. The outputs are one digital audio, one component (through a VGA adapter), an S-Video, and two composite outputs.

In order to use even the basic functions of the ReplayTV, you must have a broadband connection to register online. Once you've cleared that initial hurdle, you'll be ready to play. This unit different from previous units has a phone jack in the back that was disabled in previous versions of the software and hardware.I t offers connectivity via both phone and an always on broadband network connection. This unit allows for 40 hours of storage at standard recording quality. Of course, the amount of programming you can store depends on whether you record at the Standard, Medium, or High setting. At its best resolution, the RTV4504 holds around 26 hours worth of content.

Using the RTV4504's high-resolution VGA connector, you can hook up the PVR to a PC or to a TV's component input. You can even use a DLP or LCD projector with VGA inputs to enjoy ReplayTV at the 480p, semi-HDTV video resolution.

One of the main features of this unit is its network capability. If you have a home network you can share shows with other Replay 4XXX units and you can share it with others outside of you home via the internet with the required broadband connection. With variables such as your ISP and connection along with those with whom you're sharing programming content with can mean that a single standard-level half-hour recording could take anywhere from two to eight hours to download.

The internet interoperability also allows for you to program you Replay via a web interface called MyReplayTV.com. This however takes at most 24 hours for it be "synched' with your replay unit when "calls" in for updated programming schedules usually around 3-4 AM. Sonicblue says the 4000-series models will "soon" support direct, instant access so that you can set shows remotely to record on the fly. And they upgrade their software regularly.

The best feature is the PVR's ability to filter out almost all commercials with a simple menu change. When it's recording in the Commercial Advance mode, the ReplayTV RTV4504 automatically skips from about one second into the first commercial to about five seconds before the program resumes, but you still may end up with a few commercials (it isn't perfect).

I love my ReplayTV, there is great third party support ... for this unit just like TiVo that if you are so inclined to void your warranty can improve on this already great PVR. There is talk that the low introductory price may involve a subscription base service of [price] instead of the all included Lifetime Service Fee from previous models

The features of the ReplayTV are well documented in other reviews. This review is for those people trying to decide between a ReplayTV or a TiVo. Both are fine products, but there's one feature that ReplayTV has that TiVo doesn't (and never will)...the Commercial Advance feature. This one button makes all the difference! If you have recorded a show, with the commercial advance feature enabled, you can play the show back commercial free. The feature works by detecting the gaps that are present in between commercials. When the commercials come up, it simply skips over them and back to the program in a split second. With TiVo, you have to fast forward (just like speed searching on a VCR). The commercial advance on the Replay unit is not fool proof. It looks for those gaps in :30 second succession. So if the network throws in a :60 second commercial, that's where the unit will advance to. But, Replay has a "QuickSkip" button. Push it, and the program advances :30 seconds per push. "QuickSkip" is another feature Tivo doesn't have.
I own 3 Replay units (2; 2000 series and 1; 4040) and have never had a problem with their tech support. Contrary to what another reviewer stated, I've always found the tech people at Replay knowledgeable and helpful.

The 4504 works as advertised. However, if you want to take advantage of its ability to use your home network for viewing stored program material from another location in your house, you not only have to buy another unit (this is reasonable), you have to pay the activation fee for the second unit (which is not). This is like having to pay for a new water meter every time you add a new hose bib in your garden. You only need one unit to do the recording, to be hooked in to the programming information the activation fee gives access to. The other units ... should be able to be slaved to the main unit. The activation fee in the case of secondary units is just a way to stick you for more money. That said, it's still a marvelous little box. I just don't like the bait-and-switch aspect of the added, uncalled-for fee.

BUYER BEWARE: If you ever have a problem, there is very poor support. If you activate a unit using the monthly fee, there's no way to deactivate it via the web. If you can get through to the support number (most days you get a message saying "We are experiencing high call volumes -- please try again later" and a hangup), count on at least several hours before you can talk to someone. Email gets an automatic response. Of the 10 or so emails I have sent, I have yet to get a response by a human. The automatic responses are all but useless if you have a problem that isn't covered by the FAQs.

My advice:

STAY AWAY FROM ANY SONICBLUE PRODUCT.

If you ask anyone that's owned a ReplayTV or a Tivo, they will tell you that they never want to go back to TV without one. The 4532 is just more of a good thing. While it's rated at 320hrs. of recorded material, nobody I know watches on low resolution, which is the reason to own a large capacity unit. When run at medium quality setting, you are down to 160hrs, and increasing to highest quality reduces that even further. For us, an 80hr unit is plenty, however we want all 80hrs to be of the highest video quality, hence the 4320.

Watch shows when you want to, pause to answer the phone, schedule your viewing for a week and then watch it later with no commercials. Commercial Advance allows you to skip the commercials entirely. There is also a 30 second button that allows you to step through commercials.

Nothing is perfect, and PVR's (personal video recorders) are still relatively new products on the market. There are occasional software glitches, but overally these units work very well. ReplayTV was recently bought by the parent company to Denon, a very large Japanese consumer electronics company, which should ensure it's future.

Having owned earlier ReplayTV units, the advances with the 4xxx series are nice. The 5xxx series does not have the same level of build quality, and the software is buggier. I feel like the 4320 is the best PVR on the market right now. We also own a Tivo, but we let the kids use it. The ReplayTV units have features that Tivo just doesn't have, however Tivo is a solid platform, and doesn't suffer the occasional minor software glitches the Replay units do. Casual user should steer toward Tivo, while people that want to use the networkng capability and are willing to do a bit more setup will be well rewarded by the Replay 4320.

Warranty and out of warranty repairs are handled by exchanging for a reconditioned unit. These units also carry a warranty. We have never hand to exchange one, and from what I see on the AVS forum, not many others have had to as well. ...