Toshiba RD-XS55 DVD Player/Recorder with 250 GB Hard Drive

by Toshiba

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 13.4 x 17.1 x 3.2 inches ; 14.6 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 18 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• Shipping Advisory: This item must be shipped separately from other items in your order. Additional shipping charges will not apply.
• ASIN: B000FEE4SA
• Item model number: RD-XS55
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #127,615 in Electronics (See Top 100 in Electronics)

Product Description

MULTI DRIVE DVD RECORDER W/250 HDD

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

87 of 103 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Amazing Recorder! Sophisticated With A Massive HDD!, July 23, 2006

By 

Grumple Dumple - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Toshiba RD-XS55 DVD Player/Recorder with 250 GB Hard Drive (Electronics)

You don't have to read this review from beginning to end. It might be too overwhelming to read it straight through. It is long. Just skip around if you want to.

Some of the instructions I have included below for accomplishing certain editing tasks with this recorder may seem overwhelming when you read them. There are a lot of steps for some of them. It's only that you don't have the recorder there with you to try them on so just reading these instructions makes them seem complicated. Don't be overwhelmed, the processes themselves are straightforward and simple really. Anyway, you don't need to read through all those instructions unless you want to.

I have only just begun to use this unit. My understanding so far is very basic. I figure some people are wishing someone would post a review of it. I will be the first, but at this early point I can speak about it only so in-depth. I have not used many of its features yet.

Anyway, I guess I can describe the procedure I went through setting it up and also some of the recorder's basic processes and functions.

Just to clarify a little thing: Below, I make frequent use of the phrase "nav buttons". I am referring to the left, right, up and down arrow navigation buttons that surround the ENTER button on the remote control.
__________ __________ __________ __________ __________

At the very beginning...

I started off by disconnecting the antenna cable from my tv and connecting it to the RF IN terminal on the recorder. I then used the supplied coaxial cable to connect the RF OUT on the recorder to my tv. My set up doesn't make use of a cable box so I can't really speak about that.

My tv is very primitve. It has only 2 composite connectors (yellow and white) on the front (one for video and one for audio). I had to connect with the recorder that way (using the supplied composite cable). I will use a better tv for the recorder sometime in the future and will connect via component and not composite connections because the signal quality is much better when using component.

I installed the supplied batteries for the remote control unit.

Connections ready, I set my tv to the A/V IN channel it has and turned on the recorder with the remote. When turned on, the On/Standby indicator light changes from red to green. After waiting a few seconds a pretty startup screen appeared. At startup a loading icon at the top right of the screen flashes for a few moments. When it does that it means that the recorder is checking the status and reading the data of the Hard Disk Drive (HDD) and the DVD drive. You cannot do anything until it stops flashing but it is only momentary.

***
It is at this point that you set up the recorder for the TV Guide Program Guide feature. Actually, you don't even have to do it right then. You are given the options of doing it later or to not be reminded again. If you choose to set it up, it asks which country your recorder is in (USA or Canada). Then you enter your ZIP or postal code. Then it asks if you have cable service connected to the recorder. Then it asks if a cable box is connected to this recorder. If "NO" then you go to step 12 which asks if you have an antenna connected to the recorder. And finally, it asks if the above settings are correct. There is then a confirmation that you have successfully completed setup.

You must then turn the unit off and keep it off for at least 24 hours so that the information for the eight days worth of listings has a chance of being downloaded successfully.

An interesting thing is that at just about 4 1/2 hours after I turned the unit off so that it could download listings for the very first time, I noticed that the recorder's clock had set the correct time for itself. I guess one could take that as a hopeful sign the TV Guide listings download process might be going smoothly. Anyway, you might glance at the clock every so often during those first 24 hours to see if your recorder's clock has set itself to the correct time.

I did have a little trouble the first time through though. I actually had to wait through a second cycle of 24 hours because when I turned the unit on after the first 24+ hours and went into the TV Guide screen interface there were only two channels showing up there with very little TV Guide info for them. We have something like 75 or 80 basic cable channels here where I live. Obviously the process didn't take. I was disappointed and decided to go through the TV Guide setup process again. As soon as I began it an unexpected screen came up indicating that there are 3 cable system carriers in my area (region). One choice listed was Charter, which is my cable service. I chose that one and then turned the unit off for another 24 hours. When I turned it on again, there was an abundance of TV guide listings for most if not all of the channels for the next many days. It apparently had been confused about which cable system to go with initially.

I am satisfied with the TV Guide Program Guide feature so far and hope that I will never experience any difficulties getting accurate listings information using it.

Setting A Timer Recording Using TV Guide On Screen
Here's how to:

When using a satellite box, only manual timer recordings are available for setting recordings.

Preparation
*When you record on a DVD-RAM/R/RW disc, load it into the recorder.
-- Load a disc which has sufficient remaining space to record the program.
-- Make sure the loaded disk is not write-protected.
*Make sure the disk has enough space to record.
*Set "DVD Compatible mode" beforehand. (If you want to check on this, it is explained very simply on page 39 in the manual)
*To record satellite TV programs, set a recording manually.

With recording frequency only:
1) Press TV Guide
TV Guide On Screen Listings appears
2) Press up/down nav buttons to select a TV program to record
(You can also search for a TV program which is explained simply on page 24 in the manual)
3) Press the REC (record) button repeatedly to select the recording frequency
Each time you press the REC button, the little icon changes.

OR

Changing the recording options:
1) Press the TV Guide button, then press up/down nav buttons to select a TV program to record
(Again, you can search for a TV program as explained on page 24)
2) Press the remote's MENU button
"Episode Options" appears
3) Press up/down nav buttons to select "set recording" then press ENTER
"Record Options" appears
4) Press up/down nav buttons to shift and press left/right nav buttons to select

frequency:
ONCE: one time execution
REGULARLY:for a program on the same channel and at the same start time
DAILY: for a program on the same channel and at the same start time of Monday through Friday
WEEKLY:for a program on the same channel and at the same start time on the selected day of the week
OFF: keeps information without executing, until the frequency is changed

start:
Choices are between 120 minutes early and 120 minutes late, to "On time". (Default = "On time")

end:
Choices are between 120 minutes early and 120 minutes late, to "On time". (Default = "On time")

recorder:
HDD: Records onto the HDD
DVD: Records onto a loaded disc

quality:
Mode, bit rate, Sound quality and Recording time (all of those are listed right there on page 42)

5) When complete, press up/down nav buttons to select "schedule recording" then ENTER
"Record Options" is closed
The icon appears on the TV program

***
Of course, one does not need to use the TV Guide feature for recording. You can manually set the recorder to record programs that you know will be on at a specific time and on a specific channel. It is easy to do that:

1) Press the TV Guide button
2) Press the navigation buttons to select "Schedule"
3) Press Menu. "Schedule Options" appears
4) Press up/down navigation buttons to select "New Manual Recording" then press Enter. "Record Options" appears
5) Set the details (date, start and finish time, channel, recording source, recording media, picture quality, how often programmed recording is executed)
6) When finished, press Enter to select "Schedule Recording"
7) Press Enter again to close "Record Options"

There is also an almost exact duplicate set of instructions if you have a satellite box.

That's all there is to it!

***
Recording a TV program that is currently being broadcast is simple:
1) Press the HDD or DVD button to select which to record to
2) Select a channel to record
3) Press REC MODE button (on the remote it's located in the collection of buttons underneath the lid) Press it repeatedly to select the recording mode (SP, LP, MN)
4) Press REC (the red record button)
To stop recording just press STOP

***
Deleting Recorded Contents is simple:
1) Press CONTENT MENU button, then press nav buttons to select a title to delete
To display chapters, press the green button (with the star above it)
2) Press DELETE
Alternate method: Press QUICK MENU button, then press up/down nav buttons to select "Title Delete" ("Chapter Delete") and press ENTER button.
3) Read the message and press left/right nav buttons to select "Yes," then press ENTER
You are also able to delete multiple specified parts.
__________ __________ __________ __________ __________

This recorder has something... Read more ›

11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Sleek but complicated, November 7, 2006

By 

Jared Bodine "tobias" (Guam USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Toshiba RD-XS55 DVD Player/Recorder with 250 GB Hard Drive (Electronics)

I purchased 6 of these for work. Of that 6, three have to be sent back for repairs. Not a good percentage.

The menu is complicated and there is NOTHING intuitive about the usage of this device. I actually had to read the manual to figure out how to schedule a recording manually and burn it to a DVD that will play on regular players. I usually NEVER have to read manuals.

On the positive, the devices look sleek and professional. They have very large hard drives and when they work, they work well.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid Choice, January 5, 2007

By 

M. Bateman (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Toshiba RD-XS55 DVD Player/Recorder with 250 GB Hard Drive (Electronics)

The only real problem I have had with this unit is that it requires the TV Guide channel for its programming info, and a week after I got it, my cable company announced that they were cutting the TV guide channel on everything but digital cable. If I upgrade to digital cable, I get a DVR from them for an extra $5 a month, so my unit may soon be obsolete. So that may be something to check into.
That being said, I really enjoy this DVR. It has changed the way that I watch TV. I don't think that I have actually watched a commercial since I bought it. Very nice. I find the controls to be intuitive, but I'm a bit of a techie. My wife can't really figure them out, so I guess it is not easy for everyone.
People have said that it is noisy, but I don't notice it at all. The DVD recorder is another nice feature, I use it more than I thought I would.
The only thing that I don't like is that navigating the TV Guide listings sometimes lags quite a bit and can be slow and tedious. However, all the different seach options speed it up quite a bit and are great.
Overall, it is a very fun toy. I give it two thumbs up!