Toshiba RS-TX20 DVD Recorder with 120 GB TiVo Series2 Digital Video Recorder

Other products by Toshiba

Product Details

Product Manual [11.85mb PDF]

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Supplementary Guide [1.69mb PDF]

• Product Dimensions: 19.2 x 16.2 x 7.8 inches ; 8 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 13 pounds
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B000646MZW
• Item model number: RS-TX20
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #47,105 in Electronics (See Bestsellers in Electronics)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: May 2, 2006

Product Description

Amazon.com Product Description
Toshiba's RS-TX20 Digital Media Server is two high-tech components in one: a full-featured DVD recorder/player and a TiVo Series2 digital video recorder with free TiVo Basic service included with purchase. The unit's high-capacity, 120 GB hard-disk drive (HDD) stores up to 140 hours of audio/video storage (depending on the quality level you select), while DVD recording gives you the option for archiving your VHS and camcorder footage and for easy recording of your favorite TV programs. A convenient, front-panel DV input (IEEE 1394) is perfect for quick transfers of camcorder material onto the hard-disk drive and then to DVD.

The unit also comes with a 45-day free trial of the TiVo Plus service so you can try features unique to the TiVo Plus service, including the ability to search for programs by title, set up Season Pass recordings for your favorite shows, and create actor, director, and keyword WishLists searches.

With TiVo Basic Service included and without paying a subscription fee, you can record your favorite TV shows onto the HDD and watch them on your schedule. You can also record content from the hard disk drive to a DVD media (DVD-R or DVD-RW--does not record to DVD-RAM discs) quickly and easily. The easy-to-use TiVo interface can automatically create a DVD menu for easy navigation. DVDs can be named according to your program selections, or you may manually enter a title.

This is a great DVD player, too. Whether your living room is currently home to an HDTV or you're merely thinking of "someday," the RS-TX20 will deliver the full potential of your commercial DVDs. Progressive scanning, referred to as 480p for the number of horizontal lines that compose the video image, gives you higher resolution and sharper images than standard 480i signals while eliminating nearly all motion artifacts. Toshiba's Digital Cinema Progressive feature (3:2 pulldown detection and reversal) digitally corrects frame distortion in film-based material to display a film-frame-accurate picture.

The recorder/player offers 1 set of ColorStream Pro component-video outputs (selectable for 480p/480i), 2 composite-video-based AV inputs, 1 S-video input, and 1 RF coaxial input (for an antenna signal or a feed from an older VCR or cable box). A set of left/right analog-audio outputs channel audio to Dolby Pro Logic receivers and stereo televisions, while both Dolby Digital and DTS 5.1-channel surround-sound signals can be routed through the player's Toslink optical digital-audio output for direct connection to a full-featured audio/video receiver.

The DVD drive is fully compatible with your MP3 and WMA music CDs and will even play discs full of your favorite JPEG digital photos for ready-made slide shows right in your living room.

A supplied IR blaster cable for cable-box and satellite receiver control (C3 Control) connects to the back of the recorder and transmits an infrared (IR) signal to change channels on your cable or satellite box, as needed, for advance recording--freeing you from having to pretune the correct channel ahead of time.

The included, no-fee TiVo Basic service features a 3-day rolling program guide, TV "Trick Play" features (such as the ability to pause and rewind live TV), instant replay/instant skip, and manual recording capability with repeat function. The unit is fully upgradeable to the TiVo Plus Service (subscription required: $12.95 per month or a "product lifetime" fee of $299 that's good for as long as your RS-TX20 remains operational), which includes TiVo's Home Media Option for remote (online) scheduling, access to MP3/JPEG digital media files from your PC, and multi-room viewing with no additional TiVo receivers.

What's in the Box
DVD/HDD recorder/player, a remote control, remote batteries, an IR blaster cable, a user's manual, a stereo analog audio interconnect/composite-video cable, and warranty/registration information.

Product Description
Reliability. Performance. Technology. Leadership. The Toshiba name means all this and more. Toshiba builds upon this heritage by delivering the industry's most innovative, high-quality solutions.PRODUCT FEATURES:Records in DVD-R & DVD-RW Media;Up to 120 hours of recording;Digital Cinema Progressive for both DVD & TiVo playback;ColorStream Pro Component Output for both DVD & TiVo DVR;JPEG Viewer;WMA & MP3 Playback;24-Bit/192kHz Audio D/A Converter;Optical TosLink Digital Audio Output;DVD/DVD-R/RW/VCD/CD/CD-R/RW/MP3 Playback;TiVo Basic Service included;120 GB hard drive for up to 120 hours of record time;Up to 3 days advance program guide to record your favorite programs;Control Live TV - pause, rewind, instant replay;Easy-to-use TiVo User Interface;Front Panel TiVo Service & DVD Controls;Instant Replay;IR Blaster for Cable and DBS Box Control (C3 Control);Front Panel A/V, S-Video & IEEE1394DV Input for camcorder connection.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

110 of 112 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A TiVo I can (affordably) live with..., November 28, 2004

By	Jeff Erz (Palo Alto, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This is a pretty nice unit. 120GB hard drive, which means 32 to 141 hours of recording capacity depending on video quality. MPEG encoding artifacts become pretty apparent in motion scenes at medium quality (94 hrs) so I'm sticking with High for most recordings, which means 46 hrs storage on the hard drive. Of course the great positive here is that you can archive to DVD the stuff you want to keep. There's no editing of the material before you burn, but if you have a PC at home, you can always rip the DVD and probably edit more easily there. This unit, as well as the Pioneers, has a major advantage in that it comes with TiVo basic (3-day program guide, no "season pass", "wish lists" or home media features) so you don't have to pay TiVo the $13/mo subscription unless you really want that stuff.

A few nits:
* menus can seem pretty slow at times, as does the program guide
* does not display amount used/free on hard drive
* even "live tv" is displayed with "best" compression (i.e. not the native line-in signal)
* DVD burns are only at the same quality you originally recorded the show
* remote is too symmetrical; i've pointed it the wrong way 3 times already!
* $100 rebate requires perhaps 10-12 weeks of premium TiVo subscription

As for the HD complainers, come on. How many people are even receiving HD content, let alone recording it? Since the dawn of analog videotape, home recording options have always been inferior in quality to broadcast/prerecorded-content. I agree that if you have satellite HD, it's much more compelling to go with an integrated DVR/converter box that can save the programming in its native format. But most of us don't live in that world. We just want to time-shift our shows. I had been using a VCR up till now and this is much better. I don't doubt there will be better recorders in the future, but this is a nice combo IMHO.

BTW, I suggest doing a websearch/price-compare as you may not find your best deal here (hint hint).

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Nifty Machine, March 25, 2005

By	Peter Eavis "RiversideAmoz" (New York, NY) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

PROS:
1) The unbeatable feature is the ability to record to DVD. The recording is fast and the quality is always solid. A lot of cable companies' DVRs make archiving to DVD impossible. It is also very easy to do the recording, since the machine tells you how much of the blank dvd you will use up.

2) The other huge pro is the fact that this can be added to your home network, meaning you can port over songs and photos to the Toshiba.

3) Though somewhat lengthy, set up is very easy -- even the remote.

4) TiVo interface much more useful than anything put out by my cable company. I much prefer to use it over the cable DVR.

CONS:
1) No HDTV through this, but I just rented an extra cable box for $9/month for recording shows in HD. I use that for shows that I know will be in HD (and there aren't that many). The fact is, no DVD player plays in HD yet (soon to arrive at a high price). However, you can't have the two cable boxes in the same room easily, due to remote confusion (the cable remote will change the TiVo box and mess up recordings, so use separate rooms if you want the 2 box solution).

2) A small con. If you do want to hook this into the network you do need a wireless adapter that is now discontinued. These are plentiful on eBay (and cheaper than the new generation adapters), but you can't just walk into your local electronics shop and pick up the adapter you need. TiVo does list the adapters that work. Networking it was no problem whatsoever.

30 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars MUCH better than a VCR, November 8, 2004

By	Mom of 3 Boys (California, United States) - See all my reviews

After having 4 different companies, including Amazon.com, cancel my order for this machine I finally have it and love it!

The setup is as easy as can be. It walks you through every step. I'm impressed that it comes with all the cables and connectors you need for the various scenarios a user might have (i.e. by-pass cable, telephone split line gadget, etc).

I do have a normal TV so I don't have the problems that the other reviewer has. No more not recording an episode because I didn't turn the VCR off. In fact, I can still use my VCR for watching a movie or recording something while TiVo runs in the background recording something else.

I haven't tried it out yet, but am looking forward to using it to convert my VHS camcorder home movies to DVD.