Introduction
This page explains how many programmes you can record on a DVR with a given disk size, for each Recording Mode.
Disk Capacities
DVDs come in two sizes - 4.7Gb and 8.5Gb. HDDs come in several sizes, and are getting bigger as time goes by. What you really need to know is how many hours of programmes does this mean? That depends on the Recording Mode - the higher the quality of the recording, the fewer hours of programmes you get.
Below is a table showing how many hours of recording time there is on a particular size disk, in a particular Recording Mode.
Note that you'll probably find SP Recording Mode acceptable, but not LSP down to SLP. We find that SP worked well playing back on an old TV, and that HSP is good on a new Widescreen LCD TV. So the key rows to scrutinise are HQ+, HQ, HSP, and SP.
The first column is for standard "single layer" DVDs, such as DVD-R or DVD+R. The second column is for the newer and more expensive Dual Layer DVDs.
The following columns are for HDDs. 160Gb is typical today, with 250Gb readily available at sensible prices. 80Gb is a bit passé now. You can easily see how an HDD dwarfs a DVD, making DVRs much more usable than DVD Recorders.
| DVD SL | DVD DL | HDD 80Gb | HDD 160Gb | HDD 250Gb | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
HQ+ |
- |
- |
10 |
20 |
31 |
HQ |
1 |
1¾ |
16 |
32 |
50 |
HSP |
1½ |
2¾ |
23 |
46 |
72 |
SP |
2 |
3½ |
30 |
61 |
95 |
LSP |
2½ |
4½ |
36 |
77 |
120 |
ESP |
3 |
5½ |
46 |
93 |
145 |
LP |
4 |
7¼ |
62 |
124 |
193 |
EP |
6 |
10¾ |
93 |
187 |
292 |
SLP |
8 |
14½ |
124 |
249 |
389 |
Summary
We've shown you how many programmes you can record on a DVR with a given disk size, for each Recording Mode.
