Jvc has a reputation for producing goodlooking home cinema kit, and its DR-M10 recorder is certainly more eye-catching than some of the dull, silver boxes in this test. At £300, it's also one of the more expensive - but is this reflected in its performance?

The most striking thing about the DVR-530S is the meagre height of the recorder itself. This is possibly the slimmest DVD machine, recorder or otherwise, we've yet to come in contact with

Affordable DVD recorders are no longer the reserve of obscure, supermarketonly brands. Samsung's latest, the DVD-R100E, is a case in point - it offers the Korean giant's home cinema expertise for as little as £160.

Philips' DVD recorders were among the most impressive of the first generation models, but do they still impress in a market that's become more mature and far more competitive?

Since DVD recorders first appeared,Panasonic has supported the DVD-RAM format.This system had the backing of the official industry body,the DVD Forum,but it lost out in popularity to DVD RW because recorders...

With the budget end of the DVD market getting painfully crowded and debilitatingly cut-throat, some respected manufacturers are shying away from it and thinking 'high end' instead.

Fancy a portable DVD player, but reluctant to blow £800 on the Samsung DVD-L1200? For £299, this Yamada includes chic tablet styling, seven-inch 14:9 ratio screen, multi-region disc and DivX playback, carry case and more besides

For years, the home cinema catch-all of all-in-one systems was something of a misnomer; since the early '80s people have regarded their televisual entertainment in terms of a TV and a video recorder...

Aside from the fact that it comes with a separate receiver, there's also one fundamental difference between this Panasonic system compared to the rival Marantz Hollywood Take 2; it includes a DVD recorder (the DMR-E55EBS)

Another flexible recording one-box system, JVC's packaged separates setup incorporates both DVD-RAM and DVD-R/RW recording - two of the three recording formats.

Sony's flagship digital recorder, the RDR-HX1000, is able to record to both rewriteable DVD formats, DVD-RW and DVD RW, as well as the cheaper recordonce DVD-R and DVD R disks.

While the likes of Sony and Panasonic still dominate the shelves of mainstream electronics shops, budget players, made by small-brand companies, have been massively popular in online stores, supermarkets and even chemists

The DTH8005 is the second DVD recorder from French giant Thomson. Like its predecessor, it uses the DVD RW format, and although the two machines look very similar - both appear influenced by the design of Philippe Starck, who has worked with Thomson in the past - there are some obvious omissions that perhaps justify the £100 price reduction

For some time now, several companies have presented combined DVD-RW and DVD-RAM recorders and drives as 'multi-format' devices. Although that might be a fair and accurate description, these machines don't support DVD RW.

This system comes from the inventor of DVD RW. Philips was also one of the first to launch a DVD recorder in the UK, and introduced the first DVD-recording system in 2003 - so we're expecting good things...

Panasonic was one of the first to make one-box systems boasting DVD recorders. The SC-HT25R is affordable machine, and has chunky twin main units but no floor-standing speakers

The QP-F70AL stands out from the crowd in his test by virtue of being a 6.1 system. The extra rear centre speaker should create a more natural surround experience, and place overhead effects directly behind the listening area.

In the spring of 2001, Hitachi dropped a bombshell by launching a camcorder that used 'mini' DVD-RAMs as a storage medium. At that time, all other consumer cams were tape-based

It's been an ignominious fall for DVD recorders. It wasn't so long ago they were the height of exclusivity; now, they're stacked up in supermarkets. Relisys certainly isn't aiming for the high ground with this offering

The DVDR725H is the 160GB version of the 80GB HDRW720, which we reviewed a little harshly in the November '04 issue, criticising its sluggish operating system and limited editing facilities.But we couldn't fault it on looks

The DV79 can play DVD-Audio discs as well as a plethora of compressed media, while six separately buffered video DACs allow the player to output S-video and composite material at the same time

Recommending that a portable DVD player should be used as part of a permanent home cinema set-up may seem odd, but with this many features packed into this model it really is possible

The RDR-GXD500 is the first Freeview-equipped DVD recorder to be launched in the UK and is priced at a very reasonable £400. It's surprising that no one has done it before...

It has been a long wait, but Sony's first hard-drive equipped DVD combi for Europe has landed. The RDR-HX1000 is Sony's new flagship (replacing the RDR-GX7 standalone model)

Although a sub-£200 recorder may seem like an unusual inclusion in this test, there's more than enough quirks with Nissan Technology's first foray into the market - not least because it's from a firm usually associated with cars