Home > Consumer Reviews > Toshiba DR570 DVD Recorder with Built in Tuner, Black

I purchased this DVD recorder two weeks ago due to a need to replace an aging VCR that had provided many years of excellent service. Since I currently own a Toshiba DVD player and the VCR was a Toshiba,I decided to purchase the DR570, a newer version of the DR670 which was overwhelmingly positively reviewed.

The setup was extremely simple. The built in tuner has made recording easy and the picture quality is amazingly clear. I have not had any problems with the machine locking up or losing settings. I have played DVDs of both TV programs I have recorded as well as feature films. True, the remote does not feature a volume control-- however, neither does my Toshiba DVD player purchased back when video rental stores switched from VHS to DVD.

My only complaint is that loading is a little slow, but all in all I am extremely delighted with my purchase.

I purchased 2 Toshiba DR570 DVD Recorder to replace by VHS. What a difference. I record on it daily because I hate watching tv with all the commercials, and I can watch the shows when I want. It is like watching a live broadcast with the bonus of fast forwarding through the commercials. At times, I have taken the disks out of the Toshiba and play them in a DVD player that is several years old. No Problems. I did set up the Toshiba to do automatic finalization of the disk when I finish recording after reading the review that some people have problems with playing back in older DVD players.

I do record on Memorex 4x DVD+RW. It says I can record on them 1,000 times. So far, no problems with re-recording on the same disk. I do have to remember to Format each time I want to tape over something - which you need to get use to after having only VHS. The Toshiba does tell you how much record time you have left. So if you have a problem when you record, I have found it is usually the "operator" or "me" setting the times.

So, Great Product. Yes, I would buy again!

I have the DR560 which is the older version of this one. I had some issues with the 560, but it worked okay and the picture quality was very good. So, I decided to get this newer version DR570. I reviewed the other recorder, so I am not going the repeat myself in this review because both recorders are almost exactly the same.

Here are my complaints with this DR570. Both remotes are the same in that you cannot see what the buttons are because of the black remote and gray lettering. The picture quality is great, that is, when I can get it to work.

I set up the recorder and the next day I noticed the time was off by over 6 hours. I tried to turn the unit on to set the clock again, but nothing happened. The recorder was locked up and would not turn on. I unplugged it for 10 minutes then plugged it back in and it worked. So, I reset the clock and then checked the channels. Then I pressed setup again to recheck the other settings and the recorder locked up again. Soooo, again I unplugged it for 10 minutes and plugged it back in and it worked. It seems that it does not hold the settings and I will have to keep unplugging it. The other recorder did the same thing, but only occasionally so it didn't bother me. However, I don't know just how often this new one is going to give me problems.

Obviously, I cannot recommend this recorder.

This product met high expectations. I found it difficult to find a standard DVD player/recorder with a DTV tuner for a price that I was willing to pay. This was a bargain and Amazon made it better with an HDMI cable and free shipping deal. I don't really need blu-ray for my dvd needs. I require good, clean recording quality but it need not meet HD standards. If conventional pre-recorded dvds become less available in the future, I'm sure I can live with a "player" only. The DTV transition made recording some of my favorite progams, using a converter box, too cumbersome. This device is about as easy to use as current technology permits. Upconvert TV quality is very good, although of course it is not quite HDTV quality. The operator manual is also very good and large as a result of the many features. The only item I struggled with a bit was the Regza/HDMI CEC control interface (information is sparse in both the Toshiba TV and DVD manuals). I would recommend this unit to anyone who can do without surround sound and the best HD recording quality.

Overall this machine functions as stated in the product description.

Like the other reviewers, I too am pleased with the picture quality and recording capabilities. However, unlike the others, I am all about the Home Theater experience. Thereby, I was rather disappointed to discover that, unlike the JVC DVD/VCR Recorder combo I already own, this machine does not/cannot "detect", "decode", "receive" or through-put the 5.1 audio from cable or broadcast DTV/HDTV channels. Also, the menus are rather plain(reminiscent of a VCR with it's big blue background). Furthermore, it does not give one the ability to remove(skip or delete) a specific sub-channel. Hence, if there is a particular "sub" you do not want, you're SOL. Either you live with it or you delete the main and lose them all. Thus is the reason for only three stars, as opposed to the four or possibly five I would have given it.

Therefor, if, like the bulk of the other reviewers, you are looking for a good quality inexpensive recorder solely for that purpose, I very much recommend this machine. However, if you are like me and are looking for that PLUS the ability to watch first run episodes of your favorite shows in HD with surround sound, then I have to direct you AWAY from this particular piece of equipment!!!

Otherwise, I am reasonably satisfied with this purchase.