Sony VRDVC30 DVDirect DVD Recorder

by Sony

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 6 x 11 x 13 inches ; 5.9 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 6 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B000HTEZ1E
• Item model number: VRDVC30
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #80,444 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: September 15, 2006

Product Description

Introducing the VRD-VC30, Sonys latest video-only DVDirect recorder. Transfer home video to DVD, quickly and easily - No PC needed. Connect virtually any camcorder, VCR, even Digital Video Recorder (DVR) and record video to DVD in real time. Enhanced connectivity to Sony HDD Handycam family will record all video to DVD (full mode) or just whats new from last DVD burn (incremental mode). Support for advanced camcorder features, including 16:9 and 4:3 aspect ratio and Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound. Connect to Windows XP/2000 PC to make DVD copies to share. Connectivity and ease of use make the DVDirect VC30 a DVD recorder Like.No.Other

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

38 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Great product, but . . ., February 7, 2007

By 

jball (Colorado) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Sony VRDVC30 DVDirect DVD Recorder (Personal Computers)

I bought this expecting that it would serve both as a capture device and a DVD recorder. In the stand-alone mode (not connected to a computer), it is amazingly simple and effective. I was able to convert all of my old home videos to DVD at the push of a button. Of course, it took as long as the length of each VHS tape to convert the files, but it was very simple.

My problems came when I wanted to use it as a normal external DVD-RW drive. The only way to accomplish this is to do it through the included Nero software. Even though that software is very complete and effective, I was disappointed that I could not use any other software to run the DVDirect hardware. That even includes Windows Explorer! If you want to copy files to this drive, you need to use Nero. If you want to delete files from this drive (assuming you are using a DVD-RW disk), you have to use Nero. Windows Explorer treats any disks in the drive as "formatted in a manner not recognized by Windows."

Why Sony chose to go this route is a mystery. But they did.

Bottom line is that if you want a device that easily converts old VHS or other analog sources to DVDs that will play in any DVD player, then this is the ticket. If you are looking for a general capture device or external DVD-RW drive, then be forewarned that this comes with a few caveats. None that can't be overcome, but the fact that it isn't as simple as it should be is a shame.

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Transfer home video to DVD, March 15, 2007

By 

John H. Tyson (Kansas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sony VRDVC30 DVDirect DVD Recorder (Personal Computers)

I transfered video directly to the DVD with 15 minutes of reading the manual and hooking up the device. It was easy, with clear instructions. The DVDs paly on any DVD player. I don't see how it could be any easier. Video and audio came through great. I'm very happy with the DVDirect.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not User Friendly, July 18, 2007

By 

Amanda Peitz "love to read" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Sony VRDVC30 DVDirect DVD Recorder (Personal Computers)

All information provided for this recorder advertises ease of use. We bought the recorder so that we could transfer video from our harddrive digital video camera directly to a DVD while we were on vacation. Every time we used the recorder it would reject the first disk inserted. It locked up three times the first time we tried transferring videos. I don't trusts the equipment. I had to find a DVD player while on vacation to be sure that our video was transferred before I would erase it off of the video camera. This is a very touching piece of equipment and requires a lot of patience. I think we are going to return the item, since we were unable to get it to work properly.