Neither has mine.

If you have problems try www.p4c.philips.com to see if new firmware is available.

Please have a look at www.p4c.philips.com for some known issues, and see if an updated firmware will resolve the matter.

And for those who have problems, it can get worse.
There is JVC.
They also produce items resembling dvd-recorders.......

Philips only recommends 8x from SONY TDK MITSUBISHI RICOH

Other brands might work, but is not guaranteed.

Progressive scan does not require a HDTV how ever it does require a different set of cables and inputs on the back of the tv. To use progressive scan you need to do one of the following. (1) If the recorder has a progressive scan switch on the back set it to off. You should then be able to see your menu on your tv in L1 mode if your using the yellow video cable in to the back of your tv. (2) Most of the newer models are using menu config which brings about a problem. If the menu is set to progressive scan you should be able to run the red, green and blue outputs on the back of your recorder to the same color inputs on the back of your tv so you can access the menu and reset it to video mode.. Most tvs built in the last 4-5 years have these inputs. If yours doesn't maybe its time to upgrade. You can use the good video(Yellow) cables in lieu of the pgscan cables. Just make sure that they are correctly hooked up to the same color. You will probable need to tune to channel L1 to see the menu. Hope this helps

My impressions for the DVDR3355 is as follows:

Sometimes a recording on DVD-R media did not allow Fast Foward or Rewind. There was a similar issue that a firmware upgrade was meant to resolve: Before the upgrade all finalized DVD-R could not be FF on the device but would be perfect on another player. Now it became erratic: sometimes it´s possible to FF sometimes it´s not (even on other DVD players), which is frustrating.

When the EDIT menu is poped-up I cannot FF or FRW because the remote buttons to do that are the same to navigate the menu system. It´s a pain in the ass trying to find the index picture if you´ve missed it because you can´t go back without exiting the Edit menu, which brings another issue:

Exiting the EDIT menu always makes the device to UPDATE the disk, regardless if you did any actual edit or not. This is such a simple software issue to resolve that I can´t believe philips did not make it into a firmware upgrade yet.

I can´t change the video aspect unless there is no disc on tray or tray is open. I can´t accept that an expensive device like this one does not let me change the display aspect "on the fly" like any (unexpensive) other DVD player around (including DVD players from philips)

My brother owns another DVDR3355. He lost unique, very important recordings (the 2006 world cup final for instance) that took 2 hours recording because the UPDATE of the disk failed after the STOP was pressed. His device also did not seems to be able to record successfully on DVR-RW media from philips (and perhaps any other brand). My own device do not have this problems tough.

There seems to be impossible to RECORD in 16:9 aspect (widescreen). I own a Widescreen digital camera (Panasonic PV-GS59) but I´ve found no way to record on my DVDR3355 in widescreen using the front CVBS inputs (I did not tried the other inputs nor the MiniDV input - firewire - because I did not own a DV cable yet - and yes, I made sure the camera was outputing int 16:9 before you ask :-) ).

Many operations are DAMN TOO SLOW. Ejecting a DVD can take up to 30 seconds. Boot up can take this or much longer (up to 1 min). If I tried to Eject just after powering on, the device seems to freeze. If I operate too fast the remote, the device sometimes seems to freeze for up to 1 min (one time even requiring me to click the power button on the device because the remote wasn´t responding).

I think the firmware of this unit and it´s menu system to be pretty much in beta stage and still too much stupid. Overall I liked the unit because I really wasn´t expecting too much from it, but I was TOO MUCH disapointed by the firmware and Menu/Operation. I was very satisfied with my previous philips players and found them simple to use, but this DVDR3355 usage is cumbersome. I also thought that this device would be full of new features because it was such a modern concept, but instead it was a rather primitive DVD player compared to more "ancient" pure DVD players. This device is really a recording one and do not replace your (old) top-notch DVD player / Home Theater system.

I´ve paid around US 375 for it here in Brazil.

If it was not for the menu and firmware I would rate it 8 out of 10, which means that a future firmware upgrade could make me this happy. Today, with the menu and firmware issues I will rate it 6 out of 10. Since I did never own any other DVD recorder to date (not counting PC based ones) I can´t be sure if there is a DVD recorder that is better than this unit today.

Regards and thanks for the nice forum!

I have had a Philips DVDR70/051 for just under three years now.The problems started with "disc error".Months later the machine stopped playing rented or purchased dvds(all legal).It then started to turn itself off when it wanted,then it would not turn on either with the remote or with the on off button.Last week it decided to stop erasing my own discs and just to top it off it has decided to stop recording.In truth i may as well have purchased a kettle(not from Philips) as at least a kettle makes a cupper.And yes i have contacted Philips about these problems and allthough the replied promptly and used very posh words they basically said."Sod Off,and tough shit,unless you want to pay.My rating out of ten would be '0'

I bought my DVDR985/171 back in summer of 2001 (manufactured in March '01). It worked great for about one year, recording TV and transferring camcorder movies to disc. Then it started having recording errors and I began making a collection $1 beverage coasters... I contacted Philips and they sent me a firmware update. Problems lessened but still had issues. I upgraded the FW myself off their web site a few more times since then, but now the machine won't read ANY new DVD's (rentals or store-bought) and forget about recording anything... the latest FW CD I burned failed to complete and I called Philips yesterday to find out how to open the tray. "There is no manual procedure to open the tray" I was told. "Sorry, but there is nothing you can do..." Then I found this forum and at least learned how to do a "Forced Down" to get the disc out. I also found a way to open the tray manually! Anyway, I have a $700 paper-weight if anyone is interested and I gladly send along about 50 coasters. As for Philips, I am surprised that with ALL the NEGATIVE comments online about this product that they don't have some type of upgrade rebate for dissatisfied customers (where are the ambulance-chasers when you need one!). But then again, that would imply that Philips understands the concept of customer satisfaction and retention... If anyone knows of an attorney to start a class-action lawsuit, count me in!

I have had the philips dvdr75 for a few years. A friend and I each got one at the same time. I have got great use out of it, recording hundreds of shows off tv.

After the first year of use it began giving "disc error" messages. I read about the problems related and changed media. I had started with Memorex and went through a few spindles, no problem. The next batch was a 100 spindle of Ritek DVD+R's. I got through about 70% of the spindle and started getting disc errors again. So I went over to the Maxell DVD+R Ink Jet Printable's (since they are made in Japan instead of Tiawan), and went through about 3 to 4 of the 25 pack spindles, without problem. So I just kept using them.

Recently, after 70% through a Maxell spindle, again, disc errors. So I swapped media again, and this time went with Sony discs. Well the Sony discs would not ever record over 20 seconds without locking up. I looked at the package and noted the speed was 1-8x. At that time I was about ready to give up on this unit. But something told me it was media related. So I managed to locate an old DVD+R lying around the office, it was a Sony with speed 1-4x. So I decided to try a test record of a 2 hour movie - IT WORKED!!! On a recent trip to (insert favorite retailer here) I could not find ANY discs that were 1-4x speed. Many were up to 16x already. That was my conclusion that the media is in fact changing with greater speeds and the DVD recorder is just not capable of playing this new media. I have considered buying another Philips DVD player since I love the picture quality of the 75, and the ease of use, but still have yet to find ANY Philips recorder that ANYONE recommends.. It does seem people only go online to write about something when they are pissed off about it giving them problems. You dont see the posts and review from all the happy users, which makes shopping difficult. I spent $200 for this player and got it refurbished...I noticed philips has the 3355 and the 615 at their outlet store for under $100 shipped, which might be a deal IF I could trust it would provide reliable service, however theres still that fear. And I really dont want to fork out $400 for a different brand if I dont have to.

The Maxell's would record fine, the disc error messages only came up when attempting to finalize. So, one workaround I did is, since it still records DVD-RW, and doesnt require finalizing, I just recorded to that, then copy the disc on the PC - hey its time consuming, but it works.

As stated earlier, my friend has the same machine. After an error in finalizing I went and put the disc in his machine and it did the same thing, disc error. So that made me think it was the media, not the player.

I may be trying the firmware, which COULD resolve my issue..I dont know. You need special software to burn it, and it could actually screw up the player from what I hear. The firmware for the 75 is a few years old so how can it actually update it for record speeds that are only recently developed? doesnt make sense.

correction... mine is a DVDR72 (not 75)

DVDR985 - First recorder, tried to update the firmware and turned it into a doorstop. Returned for a new one
No major complaints, would often make coasters for one reason or another - unknown disc as a result.

Died after about a year of mild to heavy use. Didn't bother to get a repair estimate since the price of a new one was most likely cheaper.

DVDR615 - 3rd recorder. Improved over the 985, the menu system and whatnot seemed faster, the remote was smaller and better. This one didn't have audio level meters on the front panel display but it was the cheaper model and the next one up might have had those. Wasn't my money to decide with. Still going strong after almost 2 years of mild to heavy use.

The unit stops recording whenever there's a break in the time code when recording MiniDV tapes from a Canon Optura camcorder and from a Sony Digital8 VCR. The only fix for this is to record using the S-video connection instead of firewire. Otherwise I have to sit there and make it start recording again throughout the duration of the tape and that means that each recording is a new title rather than 1 tape being a title on the disc. Very annoying.

When changing recording modes, I have to insert another disc, record a title for a little bit, then put the other disc back on that I want to record with. The reason: Anytime I've changed recording modes without doing a recording on my RecChange disc, it makes a coaster.

I've never bothered to even look for updated firmware after my experience with the DVDR985.

DVDR3400 - 4th recorder. The system is slower, MUCH slower and clunkier than the DVDR615. The remote is TERRIBLE. Specifically the buttons are non-responsive. When trying to change the name of a title using the on-screen keyboard (another low-point) I often have to mash the dir buttons on the remote a few times in order to get them to work. The center 'ok' button is slightly less flaky but not much.

The on-screen keyboard is just bad, bad, bad. Even if I didn't have problems with the remote's buttons, they've left out almost all the non-alphanumeric characters that were available on the DVDR615. There's no -, &, @, ,, ', ", etc. On the 615 you change the character by using the up and down dir buttons... and there's also an undocumented feature (to my knowledge) in that you can use the number buttons of the remote to cycle through the characters. None of that in the 3400! This thing is a step backwards on so many levels! Maybe there will come a hack that will allow a USB keyboard to be plugged into the 3400 but I won't hold my breath for that.

On the 615 and 985, you could pause while recording by hitting the pause button, then resume by hitting the pause button again.
On the 3400, you pause while recording by hitting the play/pause button, then resume by hitting the record button. Retarded. In the past when S-VHS VCRs were what I was shopping for, the 2 button rec/pause thing was always a consideration. I hate that.

On the 615 and 985, you could manually add a chapter mark while recording by hitting the FSS button.
On the 3400, there's no FSS button and no way to add chapter marks while recording. Stupid.

No idea if the firewire time code break problem still exsists yet. I will find out soon I imagine though.

I like being able to set a 'default recording input'. That was something new and better over the previous models mentioned.

There's 2 things that have stopped me from returning the 3400 immediately.
#1, 2 hour mode = 126 minutes, not 115 or 117 or something less than 2 hours like on the 985 and 615.
#2, the 3400 pauses recording on blank spots of a tape (analog inputs), unlike the 985 and 615 which will record blank tape static and I'd have to search for and edit out by marking and hiding them.

I do alot of VHS to DVD dupes and those 2 things are very welcome... but the pain I go through to title things is too much so I'm shopping around and researching for a different recorder.

I'm honestly sorry I didn't research this before I bought it. I'm the type that usually researches something to death before buying but in this case I needed an extra recorder that day. I'd assumed that since Philips' DVD Recoders had been satisfactory in the past that the new ones would be more of the same. I will get something else as soon as I have the chance.

There are more things I could complain about, but those features are also missing from 98% of all other DVD recorders anyway so it would be pointless. I'm only comparing the 3400 to the other Philips recorders I've used. I never use the machines to record from the tuner so I can't comment on that aspect of things.

In addition to only recording from the video inputs, I also only use +R discs. Never +RW. Sony and Fuji branded stuff 95% of the time. I've had no problems with the DVDR615 as the burn speed rating of the discs have gone from 4x to 16x. I think I would buy another 615 if the current one I have died... wanted to edit this in but I can't

nice post videosean

i'm still tryin to figure out it the DVDR3355 will let you add chapters DURING record... might have to go with a 615 if it doesnt..

hmmm..

I picked up a DVDR3355 on clearance at a local store.

NOTE TO SELF: Return new DVD recorder back to store.

There are a number of "issues" with the device I had right off the start.

#1) Newer Philips models no longer allow for a direct RF cables connection from DVD to TV. If your TV does not have RCA inputs you will need an RF Modulator. The older DVDR72 and 77 would connect direct to TV without the need for the modulator. BAD BAD!

#2) Newer Philips models no longer have INSERT Chapter Market DURING recording. This has been confirmed with Philips, its ONLY possible during playback editing.... ANOTHER DOWNFALL

#3) The remote for the 3355 is horrible. The pause is tiny in the middle of the remote, the keys are not layed out for easy use. You press pause to pause, and then record to resume.... again BAD BAD!

#4) This model does not allow you to view the time of the recording ON SCREEN - you can press the "OK" key for it to appear for a few seconds, but it does NOT stay on the TV.. OHH MORE BAD!!

On the (somewhat) PLUS side, the newer Philips have the following:

1) DivX playback (3355 only has DivX 5.0, not 6.0) (as if this really matters?)
2) Use of discs with higher record speeds i.e. up to 16X (gee the 4X speeds worked fine on the earlier models)

I saw the newer 3390 verson for $25 more at another store (everyday price)
-- seems like only main difference is that it has DivX version 6.0. Still no chapter insert during record, no direct RF to TV without modulator, and another crummy remote.

Due to my ISSUES with the newer Philips I will am looking at LITEON models, but it appears the Audio outputs are only MONO, not stereo.

SIGH!!

My Philips DVDR80 has finally played it's last performance, and died. I have now upgraded to a Panasonic EX85 which is like the creme de la creme of DVD/HDD Recorders at present. The reviews this recorder has been getting are fully justified, trust me, it's a stonker of a machine.

However, I will like to say thanks to the guys and members of this forum, and the one's going back to the old DVDPlusRW.org forum days.

They have been extremely helpfull with any queries I have had with my Philips recorder. That was my very first DVD Recorder, and although I did have quite a few problems towards the end of it's life, it did a fine job for it's nearly 3 years of use. We all move on, and many players are now multi versatile, and capable of playing and writing to all formats. I've splashed out a little than normal restraints would allow, on my latest Panasonic, but it's well worth it

I have a 3365 and a 3370h. I edit on a pc with xp on board. I want to export to the machine through the provided fire wire input but the machine won't recognize the pc. If I export to tape through premiere then I can do it, but that ties up my dsr 11 for the entire dump. Can anyone help or is there no solution to this fairly simple probem.

Sean

dont buy a sdh400dvd from philipps brand new out of box wont load program guid so its prety usless called philipps said oh yes its a program fault if u bought it from an authorised dealer we will look at it if not hard luck well u guest it got it from yesbuy.net so i am screwed please do not buy any thing from yesbuy.net u will be screwed royaly dont buy philipps it simple good luck all u people regards glynn.

I own but not for much longer a HDRW 720/17 Phillips DVD Rec w/ 120gb HD. It lasted almost 11 months then stopped burning dvds. Then realised it would only burn 1 title to a disc. Trying more then that would crash the machine, and ruin the disc. So I was slowly and painfully uing a RW disc to transfer one show at a time to my computer. (Hard drive was full).

Well 2 days ago it stopped letting me even do that. Wont read discs at all anymore. So then I was transfering to my pc through the RF out which isnt great quality to my comp but better then loosing the things I had.

Well I used it this morning to transfer more stuff, turned it off after I wsa finished for the morning, tried turning it back on later and it wont go on. It starts to go on, the LED Says PHILLIPS like usuall when you turn it on but then freezes, the red light around the DVD Drive flashes as well as the TV Guide light icon flashes and it goes off.

So now I lost 100s of hours of stuff I had been putting of Rec until I had time to sit and edit out commercials, with babysitting and school I didnt always have time to sit and edit.

I am taking it back to Costco where I got it, as whatever you buy at Costco you can return no matter how long you had it as long as you have everything that came with it.

I will NEVER NEVER NEVER buy a Phillips product again.

And even when it worked, the TV Guide would mess up all the time, it would reset itself alot, and often shock me. But I put up with all that because it was nice when it worked.

My advice, STAY AWAY FROM PHILLIPS! And when on a budget and you know you cant afford to get another if anything happens I reccomend you buy at Costco.

I purchased a Philips DVDR 890 three and a half years ago. I estimate that it has been used no more than 20 times dyring this period. Like many other people I have had problems with this machine with 'DB' error messages on the display. I sent it back to my retailer who said that it needed to go back to Philips for specialist repair. This would cost £140. The unit itself cost over £500 when new and clealrly there is no point getting this unit repaired now when the price of new machines has come down so much in recent years.

It is clear to me that Philips DVDR machines are not fit for purpose. I have wrtten to the Philips CEO, Gerard Kleisterlee at their HQ in Amsterdam telling him just how poor his company's products are.

The best that any of us can do is boycott Philips products. I certainly won't be buying any Philips products again. They stink. £500 for 20 recordings! I feel like I've been mugged!

1 out of 10

Hi Tex
Ive had my Philips DVDR-75/17 since 2004,its worked fine up to now.Problem:wont play store bought DVD'S,it records ok but playback is screwed up.Every one says try cleaning the lens,but to be honest i dont know how.Most say use a q-tip with alcohol but i dont even know where the lens is located,some say use a cleaning disc and some say use canned air??Do you have any idea's?One guy said dont screw with it just play back on a cheap DVD player.
John
topgunner3@cox.net

I have use a DVDR 985/171 model 985A03 for a year with no problems. In order to use higher speed DVDs I did a firmware upgrade and have never been able to use it since. I can get it to recognize a blank DVD but it gives me a "No Disk" display with anything other than blank media. I don't believe that I will purchase Philips products any longer.

i have a dvdr 615, new 1 year old, which has been sent in cos it wouldn´t start up - which was repaired, 3 months ago, and now it´s showing the message, blocked. After I unplugged it, and plugged it back in, it keeps asking me if the tv is on and or connected

Firstly, as a “noob” to this site and DVD burning [although I’ve been burning cd’s for years] I’d like to say this is very interesting and informative and I only wish I had the time to read a fraction of the posts here. Also, I would like to thank all the contributors who take the time and effort to help others thru the technological wilderness.

I have owned a Philips DVDR3455H/37 DVD recorder w/160gig hard drive for since Sept. 06. It burns and plays flawlessly with TDK 4x DVD+RWs [TDKs are the only ones I’ve tried]. The +RWs will play/record on the Philips DVDR unit and also on my computer. I’m using Verbatim 16x DVD+Rs and they burn and playback without a problem UNTIL I finalize the disc [so the disc can be used in all DVD players/recorders]. Once I finalize the +Rs [you cannot finalize a +RW disc] neither the Philips unit nor my computer recognize the disc. Philips’ tech support first said to try Philips, Sony or Ricoh media as these were known to work with this unit. I purchased Philips 16x DVD+Rs…with the exact same result. Philips’ tech support then said that the media may be too fast and to try a slower speed disc, such as 8x DVD+Rs. There is no way to change the burn speed on this DVDR unit and, according to Philips, I have their latest firmware update. I found Sony 4x, but again with the exact same result. Philips has agreed to exchange the unit for another and I shipped it and now am awaiting its arrival. I paid $300 + tax for the unit and it cost me $43.00 to ship it to Philips. Their tech support has been very friendly and, for the most part, knowledgeable and helpful. I did have an earlier problem of the unit completely freezing up when I would try to record [to both DVD+Rs and DVD+RWs] some specific files [movies], which required me to unplug the unit to reset it. This only happened when I was trying to record [3] specific files from the hard drive to disc. Playing around, I discovered [no one at Philips seemed aware of] that it was caused by one of these files being “corrupted”. As soon as I found which one it was I could record the others with no problem.

On the whole I like this unit [except that it will not record from disc to hard drive] and has many useful features. Since it is my first DVD recorder and I really don’t have anything to compare it to, my subjective rating is:

8 = [good – very good]

[Please excuse this rather long post]

Had a Philips DVDR 070 for around 4 years - quirky, buggy prone to not power up and losing tuner settimgs occasionally. Did'nt seem to record more than an hour on m2.5x mode occasionally. Started to get a lot of disk errors so upgraded........

Philips 3380 - shipped with old firmware as I used brand new philips media - which it did'nt recognise.

Upgraded firmwarre - got one recording. machine locked up - forced to power off at mains.
Does'nt recognise, Philips, Maxell or TDK media - combo of "Blank Disk" , "no disk" "update" hang "incompatible audio". Broken after 1 Day!! - Pathetic and hardly inspired.

Will never ever touch Philips with any barge-poles ever again

Philips DVDR70 = 7
Philips 3380 = 0

I own a DVDR 615 and I'm glad it was a present. So did'nt have to spend money on it. The first thing was that ist would not record on several Disk Types. Tried some Types of discs and nothing really worked. Got new firmware from their Internet Site and flashed the DVDR 615. Now I could record on some +RW (Verbatim, Platinum) and +Rs (i.e. Platinum), but recording was sometimes a mess. It stopped recording after a few minutes and sometimes, after deleting a previously recorded Part from an RW and recording a new show, some of the earlier recorded shows were 1 or 2 minutes long.... shit.
Yesterday I watched a Show, turned it off and now it won't turn on again. It just says 'Startup' in the display and turns off after 3 Seconds.
No option to open the Tray, can't get my DVD out!

In 1998 I bought a DVD-Player from Philips. It was about 500 DM (~250 Euro).
I used it about 50 times, than it stopped doing everything. Didn't turn on, no option to take out the DVD, just giving periodic sound from the motor for the lens.

I'm screwed up with Philips. Will never ever buy a Philips anymore.

If anyone has a solution for my Problem with the DVDR 615 not starting up anymore, please let me know.

Regards
Itze

Poor perfromance from the philips dvd r610. Reading errors after 6 months ect