DVR suggestion?

That is strange not having a usb port or built in cd/w.. It says removable HD.. what does that mean? 99.9% of the DVR's I see in the marketplace have a usb port right on the front, or a built in CD burner.

It uses a pretty standard removable IDE drive sled for its main storage drive (no internal drives). As you can see from the picture, there's no additional drive bays for an RW, and no, no USB or flash-card slots. That's why I'm hoping for suggestions for something else. Unfortuantely all those I've seen so far with these features are significantly more expensive.

Unfortuantely all those I've seen so far with these features are significantly more expensive.

Save a dollar now or spend two later.

Number One Failure We've noticed with the new crop of cheap DVR's.. fans to small to keep those large hard drives cool. heat will kill the HD in short order.. We average replacing the HD's about every 9 months..

go with the more expensive units with the large air flow fans.. the USB or CD-RW is nice but the court system around here requires a VHS tape for video evidence, so the VCR is still needed.. (When you live in the Hills you have to do what the redneck hillbilly judge says..)

RTS

The courts require VHS because they don't have the means to play a CD? I'm confused... Do they realize anyone can alter the image on a VHS tape? At least most DVR's will watermark the digital image to ensure it hasnt been tampered with during the transfer process.. That really sounds Hillybilly..

Well, the drive carriers in these things are a generic off-the-shelf sled-and-rails unit with a built-in fan... and I know those don't last all that long, as I've used numerous identical removable bays in 3D rendering stations... ugh.

Yeah, unfortunately it's not my call... I'd think it would be an easier sell for this customer, given that the VCRs simply aren't available anymore, but they just don't seem to get the real differences between these things and the "next level" that start at double the price *sigh*.

Of course, they also don't want to spend a whole $100 to add a UPS to protect the VCR/MUX or DVR on every site, despite having to drop anywhere from $200 to $2000 or more to repair or replace these units - on some rural sites, as often as every 6-8 months - anytime there's a serious power glitch.