Sony RDR-GXD455 Single Deck DVD Recorder with Built In HD Tuner

• Built-in ATSC/NTSC/QAM Tuner
• HDMI Output with 720p/1080i Upscaling
• One-touch Dubbing from DV/D* Camcorder via iLINK port.
• Muti-FormatDVD Compatible
• MP3 and JPEG Playback on CD-R/-RW and DVD discs

I purchased this unit to replace an non ATSC tunered Sony DVD recorder (RDR-GX330). In comparison to the 330 the 455 is perhaps not as well built despite being over $65 more expensive. Both have fans built in and you will hear them if you don't have the unit inside of a cabinet. As a DVD recorder it is functionally very similar to the previous generation Sonys. The supplied remote is basically the same as the 330 uses with one extra button to control analog/digital switching. Also it will record HD programming but downconverts the signal to SD, for HD recording you will need to wait for the Blueray recorders to arrive.

Ultimately I am going to return the 455 because of the ATSC tuners performance. Switching betwen channels is very slow in comparison to analog and the Samsung DTB I have also used. I was unable to get the Sony to go directly to a channel by punching in the channel number. Picture quality is good on OTA digital channels but is perhaps not as clean looking as the Samsung DTB(if only the Samsung put out the menu on composite video I would have kept it). In comparison to the Samsung the Sony lacks a signal strength meter which I consider essential for determining antenna direction. For those used to it the Sony also lacks even the most basic form of TV guide. Due to lack of guide the Sony feels very much like a VCR. As such I would say the 455 would be a good option for those upgrading from a VCR but might be a dispointment if you are used to the advanced features found elsewhere.

To summarise the Sony RDR-GXD455 is merely an ok performer as DVD Recorder. It is definitely a version 1.0 product from Sony as far as ATSC intergration goes. If you are upgrading from a VCR it should be one to consider on your list. If you are considering an upgrade to get the ATSC tuner I would wait for the next years model.

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I bought this from one of Amazon's partners. I wanted something of quality to get the best display and sound for my HD TV. The ATSC tuner displays a very good picture and has great sound. The recordings to disk from OTA tuner are great. I'm quite impressed. The interface: This unit is very VCR-like. The one minus that truly amazes me though is there is no on screen guide ... not even an 'info' with the call letters of the channel or the show. I know this is broadcast digitally and all other receivers I've seen have it. But I can live with this and the trade off of the rest of it working so well makes up for it.

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My Sony RDR-GX7 began to insist that clean sony +RW's and -Rw's were damaged and kept giving me "error" messages after making only 80 disk copies. So I dumped it and boutght two of these RDR-GXD455's. I set up one to try--hoping that this new model would not have copy-protection gimmickds installed on disks. The 80+ disks I copied from VHS super video sony tapes (containing documentaries --used for teaching) would mount on my brand new MacPro Apple Macintosh computer but would not open nor could I get them to play. So, what happened? This is what I experienced: This RDR-GXD455 made beautiful off air timer recording on a +RW Sony disk carefully finalized. But it would not play on the Sony DVPCX995V 400-Disc DVD Mega Changer/Player. I also tried the Oppo DV-981HD Universal DVD Player with HDMI, 1080p Up-Converting, DivX & SACD and got the same message that the disk could not be recognized. Sony is reported by a number of others in Amazon reviews as being notorious for copy-protection defender and that's causing ordinary, mass of loyal Sony customers heartache. Sony used to champion their customers. Now it seems they are more interested in the industry. What a pity.

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At first I was hesitant to purchase this DVD recorder because of all the bad reviews on AMAZON. In the end I decided to trust the name brand instead of the reviewers and I'm glad I did! This is a superior product. I haven't had any problems so far and I find this unit easy to use in spite of the time it takes to set it up.

I have used this unit to record both analog and digital TV as well as old home videos and gotten great results. The digital tuner performs better than the one in my HP LCD HDTV. I have not encountered any copyright protection problems or experienced any of the other issues that previous reviewers have complained about.

This unit was purchased to replace my SONY RDR-GX315 which cost about $350. For just over $200, the RDR-GXD455 is an excellent choice. The ability to record HD broadcasts coupled with SONY reliabilty cannot be beat!

Hey the title tells the story dose it not? When you you first look at the deck it seems to be designed well. But of course to well, it will not record your old VHS theatrical movies because Sony has the protection written into it. Also it runs about as slow as a computer from the early 90's. I did get it to record old television recordings I have. Qaulity was decent but the unit failed to operate within three days of starting to begin my transfer process and now I'm returning it.