Variety is the spice of life — clichéd but oh so true, especially when it comes to TV. No one wants to watch reruns of 24 on the tube 24/7. That's just boring, even if the show does kick butt and Jack Bauer is one tough hombre. Fortunately, cable, satellite, and DVD satiate our jones at home — but getting that same programming variety for a handheld video player such as a video iPod or Sony PSP isn't so easy. Your options are to either download the limited television content available on the Web from sites such as iTunes (and pay the asking price) or buy expensive prerecorded movies such as those in Sony's UMD (Universal Media Disc) format for PSP. That's not much of a choice.
The Neuros MPEG-4 Recorder 2 just may be the solution. The R2 is a digital VCR for the portable video age. This ultracompact deck lets you record video files onto digital memory cards (instead of VHS tapes) in MPEG-4 format for direct playback on your PSP or other devices or for easy transfer to your video iPod. You can record from any source equipped with a composite-video output, including DVD players, though be advised that dubbing copy-protected DVDs may violate copyright law.
SETUP If you can hook up a VCR, you can handle the R2. You wire it between your video source and television via the supplied minijack-to-RCA composite-video cables (for video input and output). In addition to the ins and outs, the relatively naked box also has slots for Memory Stick Duo and Compact Flash cards, though neither is included. All control is handled via a credit card-sized remote.
|
The Short Form
|
| $150 / 4.6 x 3.4 x 0.8 IN / 4.9 OZ / www.neurosaudio.com / 866-563-8767 |
|
Plus
|
| •Simple to set up •Easy to use •Compact and easy to transport |
|
Minus
|
| •Records in real time •Memory cards must be purchased separately •No USB port for direct transfer to PC or Mac |
|
Key Features
|
| •Records from any video source (TV cable box, satellite receiver, DVR such as TiVo, DVD player, VCR, camcorder) •MPEG-4 video format allows you to view content on your PSP, video iPod, or other MPEG-4-compatible device •Pocket-size device is small enough to use as a portable VCR •Uses AAC format for high-quality stereo sound •Upgradeable firmware from neurostechnology.com for future expanded functionality |
The Neuros can record in three different resolutions: VGA (640 x 480) for near-DVD quality playback on TV, QVGA (320 x 240) for high-compression playback on most handhelds such as the video iPod and Sony PSP, and WQVGA (368 x 208) optimized for playback of widescreen movies on the PSP. It also has four "recording quality" modes (Superfine, Fine, Normal, and Economy).
I started by cueing up an episode of Law & Order ("The Blue Wall") in my DVR and popping a Compact Flash into the R2. I set the recorder to QVGA and the "Economy" quality mode (this setting will give you the most recording time on a 1-gig card, about two and a half hours). Since the R2 records in real time, I had about an hour on my hands to nap and dream about crisp, clean video. Unfortunately, my dreams were dashed when I played the recording back through my 40-inch Toshiba Cinema Series TV. Digital artifacts danced across the screen like a swarm of termites driven from its nest. I quickly ran to my Apple PowerBook to download the video to an awaiting video iPod via an external memory card reader (again, not included; approximately $20). The resolution didn't get much better.
Willing to give the R2 a second chance, I stepped up to "Normal" mode and was duly impressed. Sure, there were a few artifacts, especially on the big screen, but on the mini-display the image quality was very good. "Fine" and "Superfine" were also impressive. However, they significantly reduce the amount of recording time on a single card (to about an hour per gigabyte). I think Economy mode provides the best balance of image quality and storage capacity. I repeated the process with the Memory Stick for playback through a PSP and came to the same conclusions. Even the stereo audio was passable. I expected some serious distortion or buzz. When it didn't appear, I was stoked. For what it is and what it's intended for, this little recorder is a solid performer.
BOTTOM LINE The Neuros MPEG-4 Recorder 2 is well worth its relatively meager asking price and is a must-have for movie and TV buffs who spend a lot of time on the go. Video quality is good on the small screen (not so much on the big screen), audio is solid, and you don't need a computer science degree to operate it. What more do you want — popcorn?
Back to Homepage
What's New on S&V