Unfortunately, I have decided to return my Toshiba RD-XS32, but not without a lot of thought and experimentation. First, the good news....

The XS32 is a great DVD Recorder by itself. It has numerous features that many other units do not have. The picture quality of the recordings I made on both HDD and DVD discs was excellent when you play them back on the Toshiba even though I only used the default SP setting which gives you about 2 hours of recording on a DVD-R, DVD-RW or DVD-RAM disc. You can adjust the bit rates up and down if you want more space or better quality.

The XS32 has so many adjustments and settings that some people may find the unit intimidating. However, I personally liked the extra features and amount of control that you have with this recorder.

I came close to buying the Sony RDRGX-7, but I was told by more than a few people that I should get a recorder with a Hard Drive. They were correct, and having the 80GB HDD on the Toshiba... Read more

I was on my way to best buy to get the Pioneer DVR810-HS as I really wanted a HD unit that would record DVD-R and DVD-RW (Didn't want DVD-RAM, as the price of the discs are too high).

I was not crazy about Tivo, but didn't think I had a choice. When I got there, they had just gotten this Toshiba unit in (that day). Though they weren't able to answer many questions about it, since they had just gotten it, I figured I would give it a shot, and return it if I didn't like it.

Well, the only thing I can say is WOW!!! You can choose to record on the HD (no Tivo needed) or the disc directly.
The choices of record quality is HUGE! Anywhere from extreme quality (less than 1 hour per DVD), all the way to Low quality (over 6 hours per DVD) and everything in between. Best part, it will record on DVD-R, -RW, and RAM as well.

Even at the lowest quality recording, it still records at higher quality than my VCR. The built in noise reductions is awesome (you can turn on or off as you wish),... Read more

I've had this unit for about a month now, and here are my observations:

1) The manual needs to be re-written. It's not horrible, but it definitely needs work.
2) Note that the RF Out (to the TV) only passes on the original channels; you will not see any of this unit's output on it. In that regard, it differs from a typical VCR.
3) Note that the remote control has a hinged section at the bottom. I searched for over an hour to find the "setup" button. This was shown in the manual, but never caught my attention.
4) I've not noticed the problem with the black level that other reviewers have noted.
5) There are about three different ways to do anything. Sometimes it can get confusing, but you figure it out after a while.
6) The remote's not bad. Inputting names is tedious, but not overly so. You can get very good at skipping over commercials.
7) It doesn't replace a TIVO or ReplayTV, but does give you about 90% of what they do, and no subscription... Read more