Should I import a blu ray recorder from the UK or Japan

[nec1912]

I want to record HD programs on a blu ray disc and there is no blu ray recorder in the US . The only option is get a blu ray recorder from the UK or Japan or hook up a external hard-drive to the TV to record on.

[nec1912]

Anyone?

[HDTV1080P]

Originally Posted by nec1912

I want to record HD programs on a blu ray disc and there is no blu ray recorder in the US . The only option is get a blu ray recorder from the UK or Japan or hook up a external hard-drive to the TV to record on.

The other option would be to build or purchase a desktop PC or home theater PC. You can get a BLU-RAY PC burner for around $200 and a TV tuner that has digital cable QAM and ATSC for under $100. You can then make a perfect recording on to the hard drive that can be copied to the Blu-ray burner. 1080i HD quality recordings would be bit for bit the same as the original broadcast. Also 720P and 480i recordings would be bit for bit the same quality as the original broadcast.

I would wait before importing a Blu-ray standalone recorder into the US. Some of the tuners are not setup for the United States. Also you need to make sure they operate off 110/120 volts 60HZ instead of 220/240 volts at 50Hz.
Hopefully sometime in late 2010,2011, or 2012 there will be a Blu-ray standalone recorder released in the United States. I would be very surprised if we do not see any by 2012.

[ninel]

Originally Posted by nec1912

I want to record HD programs on a blu ray disc and there is no blu ray recorder in the US . The only option is get a blu ray recorder from the UK or Japan or hook up a external hard-drive to the TV to record on.

that you can record US HiDef programs with an european or japanese mashine ?

What about warranty, if something is going nasty with the unit ?

And at the current purchasing prices, why wouldn't you wait another year or so.

[nec1912]

I read that HDMI cable and those blu ray recorders have copy protection in them so you cannot copy.

I hear that you cannot copy of cable or satellite do to copy protection.

[kingofgrills]

There are some great Blu-ray recorders with built in DVRs in Japan. I got to check out several at Sony's HQ in Tokyo while on vacation this summer.

I would really be hesitant to import one of those. I didn't catch everything, but the Sony rep said the current Japanese recorders weren't compatible to the US market right now. I wasn't really sure what he meant by that though.

If I can find them, I have some of the Sony Blu-ray recorder catalogs at home. I'll pull them out to see.

Otherwise, I'd recommend looking at either buying or building a media PC with a Blu-ray burner.

[nec1912]

Some one was saying the only thing you can record is over the air and you cannot record off cable or satellite do to copy protection .

And those Blu-ray recorders in the UK and Japan have HDMI copy protection in them.

[HDTV1080P]

Originally Posted by nec1912

Some one was saying the only thing you can record is over the air and you cannot record off cable or satellite do to copy protection .

And those Blu-ray recorders in the UK and Japan have HDMI copy protection in them.

All digital HD cable boxes you rent from the cable companies in the United States are required by law to have one working IEEE-1394 interface. Currently there are consumers making perfect bit for bit recordings of 1080I cable channels like HBO and Showtime movies if they own a discontinued D-VHS machine. All HD D-VHS machines have the I-link (IEEE-1394) interfaces. The D-VHS 1080I tape based system uses the 5C content protection that allows program providers to control and mark which programs on TV can be copied. Almost all programs on cable are marked with no restrictions or marked as copy only once. Some video on demand programs might be marked as copy never.

5C Digital Transmission Content Protection White Paper

In theory if you import a standalone blu-ray recorder into the United States that contains a IEEE-1394 interface then it will record any program off the HD cable box as long as the program is not marked as copy never.
I wish OPPO or some other company would build a Blu-ray standalone recorder for the US market. Right now consumers are only limited to 480i DVD recorders or temp recordings on a HD DVR. The first blu-ray recorders in the United States should at the very minimum have an ATSC and clear QAM tuner (also NTSC for legacy analog cable).

Satellite companies for several years now have not been placing IEEE-1394 interfaces on their boxes since they are not required by law to do so. So recording in HD quality from satellite is not possible with a D-VHS or Blu-ray recorder that uses IEEE-1394.