Samsung DVD-VR330 DVD Recorder

• Combo DVD/VCR with capability of converting VHS tapes to DVD; measures 17 x 3.1 x 10.6 inches (WxHxD)
• Full-function VCR; timed and one-touch VCR and DVD recording
• Records to DVD-R/RW, DVD+R/RW, dual-layer DVD-/+R, DVD-RAM; plays CD-R/RW discs and MP3, JPEG files
• Connections: 1 component out, 1 composite out, 1 S-Video out, 1 Firewire in, 1 RF in, 1 RF out
• Digital optical and digital coaxial audio output for home theater surround sound

I've had this player/recorder for about 2 months. I found it at my local Ckt Cty for two-hundred twenty plus tax. I have recorded some of my older VHS tapes (Kung Fu stuff that is not on DVD and may never be) onto blank DVD-Rs and DVD+RWs. Both discs worked fine and I did not wait an inordinate amount of time for the discs to be finalized (maybe 2 minutes). The picture quality was just as good as the tape (no loss) as I expected. (I figure DVDs will last a lot longer than those ratty VHS tapes I had been keeping, that's why I transferred them.)

The recorder is supposed to handle pretty much any type of DVD media and it records at 4 different speeds for DVD. For VHS, it records at the standard 2 speeds (SP, SLP, EP). The manual claims slowest speed for DVD can save up to 8 hours on a standard single-sided disc; VHS can get 6 hours from a 2 hour tape (3X), just like other VCRs.

I have my recorder connected to cable and a powered antenna with a splitter. The tuner works fine for both sources, even with my cable source being split off for Internet. I have time-shift recorded using both disc and tape and was happy to see that works well, too. I recommend recording stuff with commercials to a VHS tape first since there is a record pause button that I like to use for eliminating commercials before I commit shows to disc. The chapter breaks for DVD are automatically set for every 10 minutes, but I wish there was a way to (on the fly) chapter stamp where you wanted to. You can edit chapters afterward, but it sounds too complicated and time consuming in the manual.

So far, I have had no reliability issues. Each time I have performed an action the player/recorder has worked as expected. I have also gone the other way and recorded DVDs to tape (mostly as a test, but also because there is no way to record from DVD to DVD). Note: I am not suggesting breaking the law, merely pointing out what is possible.

The player starts tape and DVD playback quickly and you can switch back and forth between VHS and DVD very easily. I sometimes record a TV station and watch a DVD at the same time, too. My only complaint besides the chapter thing would be I wish the DVD section played at least 3 discs since most TV series have 3 (sitcoms) or 6 discs (dramas) and I wouldn't have to change discs so often.

Update: Thanks to a question by a reader of this review I went back and tried my homemade discs in other players. Turns out the Samsung will definitely not make working copies of video recorded on 8x discs. The 4x DVD-RWs play fine, though. And make sure you've finalized the discs. This can be done later if you forget at the time you make the disc. Read and re-read that manual!

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I tried a Sony RDR-VX511 for 3 months and found the DV input was flakey and it would not play DVD+R dual-layer made on my computer even though finalized and would play on my laptop, a Panasonic and also this Samsung. The Panasonic (forgot the model) will not record the second layer of a dual-layer until you close out the first layer! This is ridiculous if you want to record on a dual-layer. Luckily a small note on the box warns you of this but I didn't see it until I read the manual.

This Samsung works very well for me. The DV input works and as a bonus will send commands to the DV output on my Sony camcorder. Very handy for dubbing from the DV tape camcorder.

The other bonus I found was it controls my Samsung TV. It can be set for other TVs too, a real plus.

The only disappointment so far is the lack of an S-Video input on the front AV2. That would sure help dub from my Hi8 analog tapes. Too bad, I could have rated 5-stars otherwise.

One other worrisome point is that it takes forever to finalize some disks, my dual-layer for example. It goes to 95% for as long as nearly a half hour. The first time I thought it was frozen so I unplugged and restarted. The DVD seemed to play OK but this was bad. The second time, I just left it and started looking on the internet for any clues. Then all of a sudden after around a half hour it completed the last 5%. Very weird.

I will try to contact Samsung on this. I do not see any software update yet for this model. (You burn a DVD with a downloaded file and the player will update its flash memory..Good plus.

Layout of the remote is a bit crowded and the unit itself won't win any beauty contests but it's the best I've found for my purposes.

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Since I make DVDs for some customers, I would like to think that I understand these type of gizmos to a certain extent.

Most of the complaints on the reviews were caused by customers who do not understand how the DVD burning process works. I can refute almost all of the complaints.

The quality of transfer from video to DVD is outstanding. I could not see any loss at all on my 37" television. It took all of a second for me to do it. I pressed the "to dvd" button. That is all it takes. DVDs do have to be finalized in all of these console units if you want to play the DVD elsewhere. Your computer burner/software likely does this automatically.

Like all high tech items, it has presented some interesting findings. DVD+R discs have to be initialized. The unit tells you what to do so this is easy. DVD+R discs seem to take longer to finalize but that could be due to a slower write speed on the DVD+R disc that I used. I do not seem to be able to pause a recording without flat out stopping it. If that problem continues, I will be upset. I suspect it is me not knowing what to do. Playback on a disc that has had recordings stopped goes much better on the Samsung than on other units. Using the SVHS input requires that you go into the menu and instruct the machine to use the SVHS input. I called Samsung and talked to a rep who did not know too much before finding what I needed in the pretty lenghty instruction manual. The manual seems OK....it is just...big. Accessing the A-B repeat function could be better, it could be worse. The remote is a good design except that the skip chapter button is 1/4" from the fast forward button. That is a matter of finger dexterity I suppose. If you transfer a DVD to video, the loss in quality is noteable. That is why DVDs are replacing video however. I like the fact that the highest quality mode allows for 1 hour and 14 minutes to be put on a disc. Better chance of putting an entire event on one disc with the highest quality. Also easy to use dual layer discs which almost double recording capability. Also plays SVHS tapes and I have a few lying around. I really like the function where a graph shows you how the tape is tracking in the Samsung. It automatically picks the best tracking and units are supposed to do that. But this machine shows you if your tape has tracking issues that require significant automatic adjustments. I believe the Samsung also allows manual tracking adjustments which is pretty awesome.

I bought the machine to mostly transfer old movies to DVD and I could not be happier with its performance in that critical respect.

I've only had the unit for a day. I wrote the review mostly to straighten out some erroneous complaints. It is incredily easy to use for dubbing video to DVD and that is what it is made for. Just remember that the disc has to be finalized if you want to play the disc in something beside the Samsung.

I think Pioneer likely makes the best DVD recorders. They are priced accordingly. I bought the Samsung because it is a bigger bang for the buck for me. This unit has several features that separate it from a unit simply made to make and sell cheap. It is for the person who can appreciate some quality features they may not have expected in a unit of this price.

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I spent weeks trying to find a DVD recorder, and finally decided on the DVD-VR330. I'm very happy with the operation of this unit. I wanted to transfer our old VHS home videos to DVD, and the process is very easy, and it works very well.

Samsung is NOT known for their easy-to-follow instructions, so it takes some time to interpret them and you may need to experiment for a while to figure out exactly how to work all the features, but all in all, this is a very nice unit.

I purchased a Samsung DVD-VR330 on November 24, 2006. It would never recognize and record on DVD+R or DVD+RW media that I tried from the get go. DVD-R media 4X seemed to work the best. However after a few months it started having a hard time reading blank DVD-R and even ones that had been recorded on in the DVD-VR330 itself. I would put the discs in and have the unit eject them several times before finally detecting them. I had pretty much given up on using it as a DVD recorder using it only as a player to play movies which it has continued to do fairly well.

Recently I tried recording again on DVD's using some TDK Brand DVD-RW 4X media, that I have had for a couple of years, with success. The disks are P/N DVD-RW47CCB25, 25 Pack. I have recorded TV programs, used recorder to cut out commercial segments, replayed them, erased them, and recorded again on the same disks with no problems. I once again tried DVD-R's, DVD+R's and DVD+RW's all of which it still will not recognize. The problem with my unit appears to be a media/firmware compatibility problem or possibly corrupted original firmware. I have found that DVD-RW 4X media is getting harder to find and if you do you can not trust that it is actually DVD-RW or even manufactured the same as the media bought 2 years ago. I have read reviews on TDK Brand DVD-RW media that the consumers actually discovered was DVD+R media labeled incorrectly as DVD-R when they put it into their recorders.

The manual for this unit indicates "Not all brands of discs will be compatible with this unit." However Samsung will not provide media brand recommendations. They want the consumer to spend all kinds of money buying and trying different media until they find something that works. The manual also indicates "The latest firmware upgrade to improve recording & playback quality can be downloaded from our web site." Samsung has never posted any firmware updates on their web site for the DVD-VR330. Apparently Samsung never planned on providing firmware updates, which is required to keep up with the rapid changes in available media. They want you to buy their products, throw them away and buy new when they become obsolete which is just after a few months.

This was my first Samsung product and I will never buy another. In fact I have since bought two LG Brand LCD computer monitors, one Panasonic Brand 50" plasma TV, One Sony Brand Blu-Ray Player and LG Brand Clothes Washer and Dryer which I am very happy with. My new Sony Blu-Ray player is connected to the internet and its firmware is easily updated which has been done twice, once at first installation and once about a month and a half later. Samsung, you should be ashamed of putting out such an unreliable product. However, it's your loss!