Electronics : Philips DVDR3505/37 1080i Upscaling DVD Recorder with Built-In Tuner |
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Rating: - * still works great after one year ... No complaints. It plays well, records well, and is easy to use (for me). The tuner works fine. I would buy it again. Rating: - * Great feature set, poor execution ... I bought this at Wallie World for $167 and was disappointed immediately. It's VERY slow to operate commands or read a disc. When you first load a disc it takes several minutes to format. When you record a program, it takes a minute or so to complete writing before you can access anything. Even entering the menu to select a recorded show to play takes too long. I've never seen a DVD player so slow to read data. Worst of all was the time record function. It worked fine for the first couple of weeks and the quality was pretty good - though it certainly was not comparable to the original signal as some have stated. But soon we started getting a "Disc Full" error, even with a new disc in. Or a disc would work a couple times, and then suddenly say the disc was full even though we had one 30-minute recording on it in SLP mode. I tried calling Philips customer service and was answered by a poorly-qualified customer rep. After about 30 minutes of her trying to give me different advice (much of which contradicted the manual and didn't work), we were either disconnected or she hung up on me (I honestly believe it was the latter). So I returned the device and got a basic DVD player for $47 that responds much, much faster than the Philips recorder/player. Then we picked up a digital recorder from our cable company that records 50 hours of video in HD quality to a hard drive and does SO MUCH MORE than the DVR and so much better. Finally, TV viewing is fun again! Rating: - * You Can Do Much Better ... I bought this DVD recorder several months ago, but returned it because it had bugs. It is an okay product, essentially the same as a VCR of 20 years ago except with better picture quality and a digital tuner. The bad news: 1) it can not use the best recordable DVD format for time-shifting (DVD-RAM); 2) while the tuner is digital, the tuner will not output a high-definition signal for use with an HD-ready HDTV (Like my 3 year old model. Also, no DVD can record or play back a high-definition picture.); 3) it has no electronic program guide to identify or record upcoming programs. My advice: Do what I did. After returning this and a highly-rated Samsung DVD recorder, I signed up with Dish Network and got their newest high-definition (hard disk) DVR, the 722-something. The cost was reasonable and the DVR is 20 years more advanced than any DVD recorder I am aware of. Very easy to use and can record a hugh amount of TV. Truly a great product. Direct TV and TIVO make similar products, but I think that Dish Network's is the best and best value. Rating: - * Super Performance ... After many different DVD recorders on the low end of the scale and one dissapointment after another I purchased this Philips. I got the firmware update from Philips and everything works great. The tuner is good quality and it is fairly easy to program. If you are looking for a decent priced reliable unit this is the one! Rating: - * Very Impressed ... I have a 32 inch HDTV, and I do all my TV viewing OTA (no cable or satellite). We enjoy watching PBS, and other broadcast stations. But the VCR could not record any of the digital channels. So I started looking for a DVR. My HDTV does not have a video out port, so I could not use a tunerless DVR. So I bought this DVR mainly because it has a digital tuner, thinking that the quality would not be so good because it does not record in HD like a Tivo. But I was wrong. The quality of recording is so clear, I can't tell a difference between the original HD broadcast and DVD playback. You can record at different quality settings. The higher the quality of recording, the less stuff you can fit on the DVD, because the higher quality recording takes up more space. At the highest quality setting, you can fit one hour of shows. At the next highest quality setting, you can fit 2 hours. At the next quality setting, you can fit 2.5 hours. And so on and so on all the way to a 6 hour disc capacity. I recorded snippets of HD broadcast shows such as "CSI" and "Without a Trace" just to test out the DVR, and I must admit, I was impressed. At first, the screen was too dark, but I just had to go into my HDTV's options and adjust the brightness. With my Sony HDTV you can adjust the brightness of each input channel independently of the others (which, by the way, is a very useful feature). So after I got the brightness up to normal, the quality of the recordings I made was really good. In fact, I couldn't tell any difference between the original show and the playback. Also, I couldn't tell any difference between the highest (1-hour) and second-highest (2-hour) quality settings. They both looked great to me. So I am really impressed with this DVR. It is pretty slow executing commands and stuff, but that doesn't bother me. I just really like the fact that I can record shows now with such good picture quality. I think I am going to get a cheaper upconverting DVD player for daily playback, and just use the Philips for recording only. You can get an upconverting DVD player for only a few dollars now (even a region-free one). My HDTV has 2 HDMI inputs, so I can just have each DVD come in on its own HDMI channel. So that seems like a good way to go. |


![]() The nüvi 360 comes with hands-free bluetooth wireles technology. See side view. |
![]() Browse your stored pictures with an easy-to-use JPEG viewer. |
![]() The device sports a handy MP3 player, letting you play songs stored on SD memory cards. |
In addition, you can easily look-up and dial numbers from your personalized phone book or from your phone's call history log. Don't know the phone number for your destination? Simply find and dial it from nüvi's database of more than six million points of interest -- including hotels, restaurants, stores, and attractions.
Navigation and Entertainment with Ease
For starters, the nüvi 360 includes a high-sensitivity integrated GPS receiver that offers exceptional performance and reception. The unit's flip-up antenna includes an MCX-type connector for optional external GPS antenna connection. Preloaded software features maps of Europe or North America, and it includes automatic routing, 2D or 3D map perspective, turn-by-turn voice directions that speak street names, and a fingertip touch screen interface -- making navigation as easy as it gets.
But navigation is just the beginning. Like the nüvi 350, the nüvi 360 also includes many entertainment and travel tools including an MP3 player, audio book player, JPEG picture viewer, travel alarm, and currency converters.
The nüvi 360 features a bright, 2.8 x 2.1-inch TFT display with white backlight for easy readability. At 3.87 x 2.91 x 0.87-inches (WxHxD) and just 5.1 ounces, the unit is small enough to be placed on the dashboard with the included suction mount, or into your pocket for easy transportability. The unit also features Garmin Lock -- an advanced anti-theft feature that disables the unit from performing any functions until you type in a specific four-digit PIN or take the unit to a predetermined location. A built-in lithium ion battery will give you up to eight hours of power, and an included 12/24 volt adapter cable will let you run the navigator off your vehicle's power. An AC battery charger is also included.
A built-in Travel Kit that includes sample MP3s and audio books will get you started with entertainment, and with the unit's SD memory card expansion slot you can add optional software, such as language and travel guides. A USB port is also included for loading and updating data.
What's in the Box
Gamin nüvi 360, Preloaded City Navigator NT North America or Europe (full coverage), vehicle suction cup mount, AC charger, 12/24 volt adapter cable, dashboard disk, USB interface cable, carrying case, owner's manual, and quick reference guide.

![]() This pocket sized personal travel assistant has a super bright, sunlight-readable color screen. See side view. |
![]() Easy control via the simple touch screen. |
![]() Weather reporting available with bright, colorful graphics. |
Speaking of keeping you safe, the nüvi 680 lets you make hands-free calls so you can talk freely during your worry-free driving. By integrating Bluetooth wireless technology with a built-in microphone and speaker, you can pair your nüvi with any compatible Bluetooth phone and talk hands-free while staying focused on the road. You no longer have to fumble with your phone's handset to answer a call or dial a number, just tap the 680's screen and you're instantly connected. And with 1-touch dialing for your POIs, you can quickly and conveniently call ahead to make reservations or get needed information.
![]() Simply insert a memory card to enjoy pictures, songs, and audiobooks. |
![]() You can also use the mini-USB port for tranferring files directly to the memory card. |
In additional to all this functionality, the nüvi 680 includes many must-have entertainment and travel tools such as an MP3 player, an audio book player (subscription to Audible.com required), and a JPEG picture viewer so you can take your favorite music and pictures with you wherever you go. This unit also features a world travel clock with time zones, a currency converter, a measurement converter, and a calculator so that wherever you travel it will be easy to know what you are getting and keep track of your costs. The MP3 player lets you browse music by artist, album, and/or song, while the optional audio books may be purchased from Audible.com which features over 70,000 hours of audio programs. What's more, the nüvi 680 allows further customization via optional software such as a travel guide, savings programs and language translation on plug-and-play SD cards for all your travel needs.
The Garmin nüvi 680 comes with a built-in, high-sensitivity, WAAS-enabled GPS receiver, and lets you view and operate it via its bright, LCD TFT touch-screen, wide-screen display that measures 4.3 inches (diagonal) and has a resolution of 480 x 272 pixels with 64,000 colors and a white backlight. As a whole, the nüvi 680 measures 4.9 x 2.9 x 0.9 inches (W x H x D), and weighs only 6.2 ounces for easy portability. This unit provides you with from three to seven hours of battery life (depending on use) via its rechargeable lithium-ion battery, and comes with Garmin Lock, which is an anti-theft feature to protect your investment. While you can add software via the SD card slot, the Garmin nüvi 680 also lets you interface via high-speed USB for loading data, though users should note that, like most USB mass storage devices, this unit is not compatible with Windows 95, Windows 98 or Windows Me.
![]() The nüvi 680 comes ready to go right out of the box with preloaded City Navigator NT street maps, including a hefty points of interest (POIs) database with hotels, restaurants, fuel stops, ATMs, and more. |

