International CES -
Inside the Chassis of CES
(continued)
David Ranada
January 2002
Going for the Record
Recordable DVDs were coming on very strong, almost as if the manufacturers want
to kill off VHS, which would be understandable considering that no hardware
maker has profited very much from the videocassette for years. The recordable-DVD
format conflict shows no sign of resolution, as there were two separate trade
associations with exhibits and presentations, one leaning toward DVD-RW and
the other toward DVD-RAM, and Philips was making their DVD+RW recorders, including
the model we recently tested, virtually the centerpiece of their exhibit. The
resolution of the format war may come from universal players. I came across
a Sony model, the DVP-NS900V, which was claimed to play -- hold on -- DVD-R/RW
(video mode), DVD-RW (VR mode), DVD+RW, DVD-Video, SACD, CD, CD-R/RW, SVCD and
VCD. The only conspicuous missing format was DVD-Audio, which is not surprising
considering the player's manufacturer.
Samsung DVD-H40 |
One twist to DVD recorders was Samsung's DVD-H40 ($599) which didn't actually
record DVDs but was instead a combination personal video recorder with a 40-GB
hard drive combined with a DVD player. This is one unit whose capabilities were
clearly intended to replace the VCR.
