Review on The Panasonic DMR-EZ475VK: Ultimate Progressive Scan DVD Recorder & More! by Tim Toscano

How is this model different from the DMR-EZ47V? Just the addition of an HDMI cable. This is my third Panasonic DVD recorder and none have had major failures. Don't believe Revain's reports of a bad digital tuner as this is simply not true. The secret to good terrestrial digital reception is the right antenna. If you have this, you will get great channels. Correct, not in high resolution. But this is not a high definition recorder. I haven't bothered with analogue channels as I get them all digitally and then some. I recommend a Phillips "Silver Sensor" standalone antenna or clone. Don't waste your money on Terk models as they look better but don't do the job. Analog transmission is disappearing, so you don't need bunny ears. If the "Silver Gauge" doesn't work, you're just in a bad place. Mine works well over a 3-way 5-900MHz splitter. With my old GoVideo DVD/VCR combo, I had 8 cables running from the back of the unit to the TV. 3 component cables and 2 audio. Plus 1 yellow composite and 2 more audios for VHS playback only. 8 cables replaced with 1 (ONE) HDMI. Both formats are played back via HDMI. With HDMI up-conversion enabled, your DVD and VHS images can be displayed at 480i/p, 720p, 1080i/p, or you can just choose Auto mode. As long as the difference in the picture is noticeable, especially on VHS, don't expect miracles. The world's best upconverting can only simulate HD, it can't produce non-original information. To watch HD movies, we still need Blu-ray. I have one and it's amazing. If your TV's HDMI port supports Viera, the Panasonic remote control can control limited functions of your TV. You no longer have to manually program the remote to make it work with your TV! Smart features ensure that your player turns off automatically when you turn off your TV. However, my Vizio doesn't support Viera, so it doesn't work over HDMI. On pages 68 - 69 of the manual you can program the remote control with the buttons. As you can see in the product description, this player supports a wide range of discs. A long-awaited favorite is the ability to record to DVD +/- R Dual Layer. DVD-RAM is great because playback supports 1.3x playback when [Play] button is pressed again. Press [Play] again to return to normal speed. Now you can record your favorite shows in digital quality (analog only on VHS), skip commercials and watch faster on DVD-RAM. Upconverting means you'll rarely miss an HD broadcast. In addition, you have the option to copy VHS to DVD and vice versa, which offers copy protection. One of my favorite features that this device lacks is "segment reduction". He easily allowed to cut commercials, but leave a video file. With the "splitting program”, on the other hand, you can shorten commercials and then delete them. This takes a little longer and leaves a fragmented video file. This does not affect playback as it simply jumps to the next block of video. However, the Merge Chapters feature only works with the "Chapters" you create and does not merge segments of the cut parts. So I have to agree that it's a bit tricky to use and you'll need guides and even cross-references to some pages. This time is well spent as you don't learn anything from repeated use. This isn't rocket science. You'll be a pro in no time. Although I wished for a hard drive and HD recording, I cannot rate the product as this was not what the developers wanted. Possibly next year's model. I'm very picky about what I like and I'm VERY happy with this player. This is a great way to add a digital tuner to an old analog 4:3 TV and keep it for a few more years. In addition, you can receive more digital channels than analog! But only HDMI supports up-conversion. Even with some shortcomings such as a standard definition digital tuner, this player does it all and does it very well. My two biggest complaints that make me wish I'd never sold my GoVideo analog combo. The finished DVD-R will NOT be copied to VHS. Only an unfinished DVD-R will be copied unless the material is copy protected. I can't copy some normal DVDs to cassette anymore. Maybe there are tricks. But my need to copy to tape is not as great as I would like. So life is. To learn more about this product, download the manual and firmware updates from the Panasonic website.