On 20th June, Panasonic will release the first ever Blu-ray recorder
in this country, offering the ability to record to HDD or archive on
50GB Blu-ray discs.
We're the first to get our hands on a full production sample, and we'll be publishing our verdict as the lead First Test in the July issue of What Hi-Fi? Sound and Vision, on sale from June 3rd.
In the meantime, we thought we'd bring you our initial thoughts on the product.
The
Panasonic DMR BS850 is a massive achievement. In a box no bigger than a
standard Blu-ray player, it hides a Blu-ray recorder, a 250GB or 500GB
hard drive and a Freesat HD receiver.
Panasonic is pitching it
as the single box you need under your TV – and, as a concept, it's hard
to argue with the logic. The 500GB and 250GB (DMR BS 750) models will
cost £999 and £899 respectively, with a 250GB DVD version (DMR XS350)
available for £699.
Twin Freesat tuners as standard
The DVD version will not record HD footage
direct to DVD (just the HDD), though all models come with twin Freesat
tuners and feature Viera Cast, allowing access to internet sites such
as YouTube and photo-sharing site Picasa.
The hard disk drive
on all models can store music and photo content too, and, as internet
connection is offered as standard, it's certainly the most convincing
stab at genuine home cinema convergence we've seen.
Both the
DMR BS850 and BS750 are Profile 2.0 players and all models come with a
Gracenote database of 350,000 albums and song titles, which can be
updated online via the ethernet connection.
The EPG
automatically tells you when a programme is in HD as well as
standard-def. All HD shows will record to the hard disk, though some
content may only be able to be copied once (and, rarely, never) to
Blu-ray.
Recording of HDTV and 5.1 audio
Direct bitstream recording of HD programmes means
everything is uncompressed. You'll also get 5.1 audio on the high
quality 'DR' recording setting if the original broadcast supports it.
The DMR BS850 has upgraded audio connections, which include an enhanced
DAC and gold plated terminals.
There are five recording modes,
with the DR mode offering 77 hours of content on a 500GB HDD and the
lowest HL setting offers 240 hours on a 500GB HDD.
Of course,
25GB and 50GB Blu-ray discs are available too – a three pack of 25GB
rewritable BD discs will cost £30. Amazingly, Panasonic also promises
100GB BD discs next year.
As well as ethernet, there's a USB
socket for MP3 players and an SD card slot for photo, music and home
movie content. Regular movie content such as DivX files can be played
via the USB socket.
An optical socket is also featured and the
two Blu-ray models can both decode Dolby True HD, DD Plus and DTS HD
Master Audio. We have an exclusive UK review next issue, on sale 3rd
June.
Forum Feedback
Your thoughts on recordable Blu-ray:
"This
product is exactly what I'm looking for. I have an HDD/DVD recorder but
upgrading to HD will mean I don't have to fiddle around with plug-in
hard drives"
Forum username: Charlesnancarrow
"I'd be happy
if they released one with a HDD recorder and just a BD player instead
of a recorder, as I think that's what pushes the price up"
Forum username: Fido87456