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Panasonic DMR-BW850

By Ty Pendlebury on 06 April 2009

The Panasonic DMR-BW850 Blu-ray recorder features a 500GB HDD, twin HD tuner and access to YouTube and Picasa web services.

Topics: panasonic, dvd, blu-ray, recorder, blu-ray recorder, bd-r, bw750, bw850, DMR-BW850, blu ray

• 

  Meanman gave a review on 18/09/2009 20:02 Report abuse

  • Good: plenty of features
  • Bad: Low quality tuner

  I have a Panasonic plasma and the Tuner/picture is very clear but if I watch the picture through the tuner on the recorder it is not as clear as the TV.... very disappointing.

• 

  Rasputin gave 9/10 on 30/08/2009 20:22 Report abuse

  • Good: Does the job nicely
  • Bad: pricey

  Upgraded the panasonic dvd recorder hdd . Not disappointed as Panasonic products just do what they are designed to do .Best on the market , had an Lg dvd recorder hdd also -hardly used it cos it was crap to tmer record etc

• 

  Shelli gave a review on 28/08/2009 15:47 Report abuse

  • Good: Everything
  • Bad: Nothing

  This is an excellent unit! I've had mine for about 4 weeks now and absolutely no complaints. I love that the timer recording will start up whether the unit is off or on. My old LG never did that ... if it was on, the timer wouldn't start. And you can watch previously recorded shows while the timer recording is going - another cool thing!The EPG is great! And as for having to GET OUT OF YOUR CHAIR TO PUSH THE RECORD BUTTON to adjust the recording length (see review above) ... holy cow, what's the problem with that? You gotta get out of your chair at some point! :-) Anyhow, ignore the nay-sayers ... just get one!

• 

  Pete On the Coast gave 7/10 on 21/07/2009 09:16 Report abuse

  • Good: Very Good

  I paid $1796 for this at JB Hi Fi and find it a very good recorder. It is my first Blu Ray experience and I am completely blown away by the HD picture. Blu ray movies are far more superior than normal DVD.

• 

  Irish gave 8/10 on 07/07/2009 14:23 Report abuse

  • Good: Almost everything except time shifting.
  • Bad: Have to agree with Randy re the time shift though, what were panasonic thinking? its disappointing compared to my Topfield. But that's the only flaw.

  9/10

• 

  randy gave 5/10 on 20/06/2009 17:12 Report abuse

  • Good: good picture, range of features
  • Bad: user interface

  I was expecting something amazing. Lacking some very important functionality.
  Some examples are:
  if it is recording, and you hit the power button, it switches of with no warning.
  Time shifting/Pausing live tv is rubbish. You cant change channels without annoying dialog boxes that you have to click ok to get out of and then hit stop, then choose yes to stop time shift, and then another big pause till it gets up to real time. Also, if you have paused live tv, when you start playing it again, the interface does not show you where you are up to, eg it is 8:30 now and you are up to 8:15. I used to use this all the time with my previous box as you know when the next program starts etc. Also you cant simply rewind to say last night or whatever you were previously watching if you have changed the channel. I used to be able to simply rewind, and then if needed record part of the timeshift buffer. Forget that on this unit.
  Another example of weirdness, if you hit record to start instantly recording, you can't adjust the length of the recording unless you, GET OUT OF YOUR CHAIR AND PUSH THE REC BUTTON on the front of the unit. No, not a button on the remote, on the unit itself. When you do, it scrolls through 30 min 1 hour etc.
  I am sure this unit does some amazing things, but having had it now for about 6 hours, and getting thoroughly annoyed with it, it is going back tomorrow. (I am an computer expert, so 6 hours in normally enough for me to master anything)
  On one hand I applaud Panasonic for making such a product, but I just can't use their interface or wait for them to fix up it's shortcomings via a firmware update.
  On the plus side, setting record timers via the electronic program guide is very easy. And the picture quality is fantastic. I am sure that a lot of people will love this unit, but if you have had a HD PVR before, then you might find this unit does not behave as expected.

• 

  Sparra gave a review on 09/06/2009 12:06 Report abuse

  • Good: Does it all
  • Bad: None found yrt

  This is a great product. I now have 2 Panasonic DVD recorders and cannot either of them. I love the new one. Paid $1640.

• 

  I got 1 gave a review on 30/05/2009 17:55 Report abuse

  • Good: Does everything you need it to do.
  • Bad: nothing yet.

  I just picked mine up from Harvey Norman yesterday. Pre ordered for $1900, he said "they'd be sold out before they even got to the store" ...so i got in early. RRp $1,999. I realise that more professional-minded people will nitpick at this product on minor details but so far im extremely excited about what its done and what it is capable of doing..
  
  My only negative was that it is a 'Panasonic' product, as having only bought 'Sony' products before and more recently, a beautiful LCD 'Bravia' ...i would have liked to of kept it 'in the family'.
  
  Alas, Sony haven't made one outside of Japan yet ...so congratulations Panasonic for putting your neck on the chopping block first.
  
  Apart from pricing (which you would expect for a new technology), it is a great product and a must have addition for recording and watching perfect picture and sound. I may even think of buying a Panasonic 'Viera' as my next T.v upgrade...
  
  Of course, i'll let you know if it all goes terribly wrong one day and suddenly falls apart on me.
  
  In conclusion... Just get one!
  
  Happy Watching

• 

  i dont need 1 gave a review on 30/04/2009 18:55 Report abuse

  • Good: don't no yet
  • Bad: don't no yet

  i ordered a dmr-bw850 from a vip night last night price was $1650 so when i get it which is about the end of may i'll let you no what i think.

 

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