LG RC797T Super Multi DVD±RW/VHS Recorder w/Digital TV Tuner

by LG

Product Details

• Shipping Weight: 14 pounds
• ASIN: B001BOD7DQ
• Average Customer Review: 1.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #137,493 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: July 8, 2008

Product Description

Enhance your life with this LG RC797T Super Multi digital recorder that will capture high quality video on recordable DVDs allowing you to both record and play DVD and VHS easy recording from disc to tape or reverse!Archive your old VHS family home movies to DVD with this LG RC797T Super Multi recorder. Key features include an ATSC/NTSC/QAM Clear Tuner, 1080i Upconversion via HDMI Output, and Digital Cable/Satellite Box Controller. TThe LG RC797T supports a wide variety of entertainment formats such as MP3/ WMA/ JPEG/DVD Audio/Dual Disc and has the connections you need for serious entertainment! NOTE: 90-DAY WARRANTY

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The best so far, May 14, 2007

By 

Michael K. Novak (Urbana, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

I have tried three new ATSC DVD/VCR units. Overall, this is by far the nicest, with one (now small) flaw. The newest units should be shipping with the new firmware; the old ones will require a small easy firmware download and upgrade.

Pros:

Nice picture and sound quality

Good build quality

Decent tuner -

It's fast and looks good, with one flaw - see below.

Records aspects correctly -

If the screen is full, the recording will be also - no resolution wasted recording black bars. Flag setting is unimportant to me. Many recordings are just throwaways - catching a show while I'm out. If it's a keeper it goes to the pc for re-authoring anyway.

If the signal is widescreen, but contains a 4:3 picture and bars (pillarboxed), you can trick the recorder. If you "lie" and say you have a 4:3 tv (set the display to "4:3 pan & scan") it will record only the picture to the 720x480 frame, throwing the bars away and not wasting resolution.

Surprisingly good VCR -

I didn't expect any VCR of today to stand up with a quality unit back from when tape was all there was. I was sincerely surprised and impressed.

Surprisingly good dubbing -

Similarly, dubs of tapes looked better than expected. Also, the procedure is nice. You can pause the tape, find the exact starting frame desired and begin dubbing. Not every combo machine can do this.

Complete channel list plus a favorites list -

This means you don't have to wipe a channel to not have to surf through it - nice.

Cons:

ATSC tuner needs a firmware update -

[Edit: A firmware update is now available at the LG website. You have to look for it by going to the service center, then device drivers, then select "DVD Video & Settop", then type in the model #. It's a pain, but it is there and it works.]

LG customer support -

Their online support is non-existant. If all you get is pat troubleshooting answers or no answer and directions to call phone support, there is no point. After a lengthy time on the phone I felt I finally adequately conveyed the trouble with the tuner. I never did receive a response. They did not email or call about the firmware update; I found it myself.

I returned the unit to try others. I have re-bought it since the firmware update.

In summary, if all your stations conform, I think you will be completely happy with this machine. If you have any trouble with some stations, a small easy firmware fix should now take care of it.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Features are cool, but mine failed almost immediately; completely failed now, August 14, 2007

By 

Edward A. Oates - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

As soon as I set up the LG 797T, and checked the VHS tape player: works fine; then the TV Tuner (I use an RF modulator, so it only has to work on channel 84, 86, 88, 90) and it does. Peachy.

Then I tried to load a NEW commercial DVD: it was ejected with the "unknown disc" message. I reinserted it and after quite a while (more than 30 seconds), it started the FBI warning, etc. It stuttered a couple of times. Then I got the DVD menu, and just picked "Play."

The movie started but after about 15 seconds I got some stuttering, then the picture froze. I waited for 5 minutes, and the only way to do anything was to press the Power button for 5 or more seconds which powered it down. I thought, maybe I had a bad DVD, though it looked pristine. So I tried another: same deal; initial "unknown," starting playing OK, this time for more than 1/2 hour, then bang, stuttering and a hard freeze.

Both of these DVDs play well in my Denon 2900, my PS2, and on my Mac; heck, even in the car (Lexus).

LG phone service was OK (press power for 10 seconds to reset the machine; still failed; unplug for 15 seconds, etc., still failed). So they gave me a case number and pointed me to a local service center. When I got there, they said, Case Number? LG doesn't recognize those; and they also said that the unit was not field serviceable (I believe that; the cheapest thing for LG would be simply to send another one). But they took the unit in to do the rest of the work with LG. The Warranty is parts + labor, and shipping both ways. (for a change: that's why they get three stars). But we'll see what happens next.

The features are fine, but QA is not good if a unit fails this obviously. I will update the review with maybe another star if I get a working unit within 14 days.

******* it's been a while, sorry.

LG sent a unit that worked fine, albeit it is the SLOWEST DVD player on the planet. It takes forever to boot up (about the same as my Pioneer BluRay player!), and takes a long time to recognize and play a DVD.

It you just want to use the tuner, the unit is easily put into a state where you need to get into the menu to "configure" your channels. Some GUI throwback designed this thing. It is not intuitive, friendly, or easy.

If I could rerate, it would now get zero stars. After just over a year (and out of warranty by a few weeks), the unit has completely failed: when powered up, it displays "Hello" for about 25 seconds, then shuts off. Can't open the DVD drawer, pressing power off for 10 seconds does nothing, unplugging, etc. does nothing. It is dead, dead, dead.

The unit is junk, and my advice is to avoid ALL LG products if this is any example.

Eddie O

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Warning about ATSC digital tuner limitations, November 28, 2007

By 

notmicro "notmicro" (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews

If you plan to use this unit's built-in ATSC tuner with an external antenna to watch over-the-air HDTV, note that it does not pass HD signals through unmolested. Instead it "downconverts" 720p/1080i to 480i (in preparation for DVD recording); then "upconverts" back to HD resolution for output. This can be a serious deal-breaker for certain prospective buyers (including myself) who do not have one of the newer HDTVs with built-in digital tuner, and are not on HD cable. All current 2007 high-end DVD recorders with ATSC tuners have the same problem (Panasonic / Sony). Hopefully new 2008 models will correct this.