At first glance, you might think that the Marantz DV7001 is a bit of a King Canute - a DVD player failing to stem the tides of HD DVD and Blu-ray. Maybe DVD's days are numbered - but thanks to players like this, it's not going to go down without a fight

Long train journeys can be a real chore, but not when you've got one of these bad boys on your lap. Toshiba's top-of-the-range portable DVD deck not only plays DVDs and CDs, but also DiVX, MP3, WMA and JPEG files

Until relatively recently, the idea of a disc spinner that could take virtually anything we had lying around was a catch-all solution we were really keen on - especially since brands such as Marantz then added upscaling of DVDs to near HD quality

The latest HDD/DVD recorder combi to roll off the Panasonic production line is the gorgeous DMR-EX87. It has a 250GB hard drive, can record onto any type of blank DVD, and delivers fantastic results at whatever it turns its hand to

There's been an explosion of interest in digital recorders of late, and hybrid models that feature the flexibility of both DVD and hard-drive recording have proved the most popular, but the market still has space for standalone recorders

You may well wonder why anyone would pay £600 for a DVD player when you can pick up a high definition HD DVD player for considerably less money. The answer is that the Marantz DV7001 is optimised for DVD playback and will deliver a superior picture

Sub-£100 DVD decks are all well and good, but often light on features. If you can raise your budget a little, you get more for your money - as shown by this £130 DV-696AV. Its credentials include DVD-Audio and SACD playback

The design of the £150 DVD-1730 is classy and solidly bolted together. Despite being chunkier than most other decks it's much lighter than you'd expect. There's plenty of connections, including an HDMI output

Unlike the lively, 'which is better: CD or vinyl?' debate of the 1980s, there can be no such discussion about DVD and HD. Hi-def is four times sharper, end of discussion. So how can it make sense to spend more money on an inferior format?

Sony's top-of-the-range HDD/DVD recorder combi has a bulging spec sheet, headlined by a generous 250GB hard disk, allowing an impressive maximum of 387 hours of recording

The main claim to fame of this DVD-RW/DVD-R recorder is an HDMI output with video upscaling to 720p and 1080i, which makes it a great machine to go for if you already own an HD Ready TV

Despite the advantages of DVD/HDD combis, disc-only recorders still have an important role to play. Users upgrading from VHS may be more comfortable with the idea of using removable media as opposed to an integrated hard disk drive

With the great analogue switch-off getting ever nearer, a DVD recorder should feature a built-in Freeview tuner as a matter of course. Amazingly, many do not, but Sony is not about to fall into that trap with the RDR-GXD360

On paper, the Samsung DVD-R145 looks like it may well be a sturdy enough DVD recorder. For starters, it features excellent disc compatibility, being able to record on all types of DVD media, including dual-layered DVD plus-R and DVD-R discs

In a diversion from the standard flip-top design, the Xoro HSD 7500 portable DVD player uses a slot-loading disc drive and flat tablet design. This slim-line design means that the supplied Freeview tuner is an additional, clip-on device

For ultimate editing power you would probably want an HDD/DVD recorder combi, but if you're just looking to replace that trusty old VCR, this is a contender. Choose your recording modes carefully and you'll have every reason to consider this a bargain

Looks like we've a cocksure DVD recorder on our hands here. Straight off, the Panasonic DMR-EZ25 confidently ticks all the right boxes for connections and flexibility, then nonchalantly serves up a wealth of extra features for good measure

I have an irrational mistrust of internet-only products. You can't audition them before purchase. They often come from far-flung countries, so returns are difficult to arrange. And they rarely look or behave as the respective website claims.

Looks like we've a cocksure DVD recorder on our hands here. Straight off, the Panasonic DMR-EZ25 confidently ticks all the right boxes for connections and flexibility, then nonchalantly serves up a wealth of extra features for good measure.

We're seeing plenty of upmarket DVD recorders with hard disks, integrated Freeview tuners and so on. But what if you don't need these features? You might, for example, live in an area where Freeview reception is iffy

Video upscaling is one of the key selling points in DVD's arsenal now, a stop-gap measure until Blu-ray and HD DVD take over. This Pioneer model performs the visual magic via its HDMI output, but this is no one-trick pony.

With the great analogue switch-off getting ever nearer, a DVD recorder should feature a built-in Freeview tuner as a matter of course. Amazingly, many do not, but Sony is not about to fall into that trap with the RDR-GXD360

When a £100 DVD recorder pops onto the test bench, I tend to expect a mixed bag in terms of performance and features. With Lite-On's latest budget model, an unadorned front fascia doesn't give much away...

If you want a digital recorder that keeps things simple, then Toshiba's keenly priced D-R160 could be for you. It's a standalone DVD recorder without a hard disk, and on paper it seems ideal for on-the-fly TV timeshifting