Dazzle DVD Recorder Review
Today we’ll take a look at the Pinnacle Dazzle DVD Recorder. This inexpensive device takes a signal from a video source and converts it to a PC compatible signal to a USB 2.0 port. What could be simpler, right? Well, sometimes simple doesn’t always work that well you might hope.
Review Continued Below…
As usual, let’s take a quick look at the specs for the Dazzle DVD Recorder. The first thing you’ll notice about it is that it looks like a kid’s toy with the bright red case and flower on it. The inputs include composite video and S-Video ports and there is an attached USB cable. You will need to buy extra cables for the video connection since they aren’t included in the box. Video files can be saved in AVI, RealVideo, Windows Media and MPEG files and video can be written to DVD and Video CDs if you have the appropriate burner on your PC. Converting for devices like the iPod or Sony PSP require that you buy upgraded software from Pinnacle.
Pinnacle Studio 10 QuickStart and Instant DVD Recorder software are bundled with the Dazzle DVD Recorder. As you might suspect, the software doesn’t work under Mac or Linux. Vista support isn’t in the box but Pinnacle does have new drivers for Vista available for download. However, several consumers have reported problems with them. All in all, the software provided with the Pinnacle Dazzle DVD Recorder seems to be rather troublesome, generating a lot of dislike for this device.
The weak link in the Dazzle DVD Recorder is the software and drivers. The hardware portion is straight forward and works as it should. However, the software is constantly mentioned as a source of aggravation by many users. People who stick with the basics and who don’t have any conflicting drivers on the PC seem to be happy with the device. My recommendation is that if you want something beyond the basics, spend more and you’ll be happier with your choice. I would also recommend doing some research to find out if your PC’s brand and hardware configuration has been mentioned as having problems with the Dazzle DVD Recorder software and drivers.
The bottom line is that the Dazzle DVD Recorder is a way to get your video onto your PC at a low price, that is if frustration with it’s sub-standard software doesn’t make your regret your ’savings’.
Im surprising these devices are still around I had a similar device to the Dazzle DVD Recorder when we had a non-digital video camera - to do the conversion - it was painful and slow I can tell you! Get a new video instead of a Dazzle DVD Recorder !
It is disappointing that you will need to buy extra cables for the video connection since they aren’t included in the box. I have also heard of TV convertor boxes being sold without the required cables. What’s up with that?
My husband and I are IT, Web Development people…. so this is to say we know a bit about computers… This is by FAR the absolute worst piece of hardware I have ever used…. EVER!!! My husband and I both agree this is the most worthless product we have ever purchased! I can’t even believe they can sell this to people!! We took it back once and got a new one, thinking it was just a product defect. But, no. This thing just simply sucks! Please, please don’t waste your time with this product!!!! I want the 7 hours of my life back that I spent reading FAQ’s on this thing and talking to Dazzle tech support… which also sucks. And they have no manual for this product. What? This product is anything but simple. We both have nearly brand new computers, one w/ XP and one w/ Vista… one a notebook and one a desktop… neither of which we could get to work w/ the Dazzle! We ended up buying a dual VHS/DVD player and now THAT is simple! We ended up using the desktop itself and just plugging it in and using particular software that comes with Vista to record cassette tapes. So, Dazzle did absolutely nothing… and now we have a VHS/DVD recorder that we can record TV with!!
I hope this helps somebody out there… then my agony won’t be in vain.
That’s how technology usually works nowadays. If setting up the hardware doesn’t get you, activating the software will.
I suppose it’s better than having a difficult time putting the hardware together only to find that the software is incompatible…
I tried hooking up my computer to my new inch LCD TV as I noticed it had the necessary ports on the side panel. After spending a good half hour unhooking the wiring on my tower and plugging it into the TV, it told me that my version of windows was not compatible with the screen I had hooked it up to.