Panasonic DMR-E80 for $489

[scamp2032]

Saw this today.

http://www.ecost.com/ecost/shop/detail.asp?DPNo=188259

Anyone, have you used eCost.com for a purchase. I've been looking for an E-80 for under $500.

Any info would be appreciated.

[ckdexterhn1]

Ther are several online dealers selling this for less than $500 -

http://www.digitallydiscovered.com/product.asp?sku=PANDMRE80 $479

http://www.capturepix.com/prod.asp?prodid=6TI7aUC7N3jOP27AA756GdS5fT62KPANDMRE806TI7aU...AA756GdS5fT62K $480

http://www.digitalsuperpix.com/prod.asp?prodid=PANDMRE80 $484

I'm sure there are others.

[webeye]

A source that I will prob use...6ave.
Will see after I get a S35 DVD player $80 ..free ship and $20 rebate.
Many are in the $500 range and many with free ship.

Look for auth. dealer.....brand new unit.....been in biz for a while..
Check out their policy for other Q/A

[scamp2032]

Dude - everything you posted was above $500 once you figured in the shipping.

I'm talking about $489 TOTAL.

So, as I have pointed out. . this is the lowest price I've seen yet and has anyone dealt with these guys.

[Roll Tide]

I actually bought my DMR-E80H from ecost.com. I've bought several items from them, including all my WiFi stuff, an Epson Stylus Photo 900, and ~30 MiniDV tapes (very low price). I haven't had any issues with them and they have always shipped the same day of the order when an item shows instock. They have several warehouses, including one in Memphis, which is about 200 miles away from me. I usually get my orders next day because of the close proximity. If you live near one of their warehouses, this is a big plus.

In general, their prices are very good. I've noticed they are not as competitive on camcorders, though. The only catch with ecost.com is that while they do have free shipping on most orders, they do charge a handling and processing fee, which I think is $3.95 for less than $100, and about $8 for I think $100-500 orders. I have ordered a few times when this charge didn't apply, but I'm not sure why.

Hope this helps.

[jim15800]

I ordered and received a panasonic dmr-hs2 from them. With no negative issues. They do add a small handling fee about $4.95 which I was a little upset about when I placed the order. When the item arrived I understood the charge as the item had been doubled boxed. I felt it worth the price.

[scamp2032]

thanks. Looks like I'll be ordering my DMR-E80 this weekend. Have been watching the prices fall and have all along said once I can get it to my doorstep for under $500 I'll buy.

thanks again.

[scamp2032]

Good news. They dropped the price to $469 today. That's with a $30 rebate.

Bad news. They charge CA sales tax...so I'm screwed livin in CA. Tax adds anothe $36.

Still lookin for the DMRE80 under $500 delivered to my Door!!!!!!!

[Roll Tide]

Good grief, we're talking $5 over your target. I doubt you're going to do much better any time soon, and by the time you do, there will be another machine just over your maximum. I paid $528 at ecost, and couldn't be happier. Wouldn't you rather give up $5 more and get started now?

[webeye]

[quote]
Bad news. They charge CA sales tax...so I'm screwed livin in CA.

Surprised they are not charging more.....this state is in deep doo-doo
...er dept. Actually much the same thing.

My suggestion...move to a state where u dont pay tx. :P

[scamp2032]

Just bought a DMR E80 from 6th AVE for $502. TOTAL

Shipping included with no tax. Delivery to my door for $502.

I'm happy for now.

[fscrocco]

A few weeks back, Best Buy had the HS2, brand new, not open-box, for $399. It has a smaller HD, 40 gig I think, but has a dv-in, firewire, which would be useful if you had a dv camcorder that you wanted to convert to dvd without the analog loss associated with the S-jack or RCA jack hook-up. The E80 does not have firewire in, you have to go to the E100 for that option to show up again.

[SLICK RICK]

Just out of curiosity, because I am thinking of getting one. Why do need a hard drive on a stand alone dvd recorder.

SLICK RICK

[thoots]

Just out of curiosity, because I am thinking of getting one. Why do need a hard drive on a stand alone dvd recorder.

Rick,

Just think in terms of "no more tapes" for your VCR. And then some -- "no more DVD's" for the DVD recorder. You can record hours and hours of broadcast stuff without ever touching one piece of "removable" media. Think for a minute how much more convenient "time shifting" would be if you never ever had to worry about "whoops, gotta change the tape!!" (Or DVD, for that matter.) Ultra-convenience.

And, whenever you so choose, you can dump whatever you might want to save onto excellent-quality DVD's.

Or, perhaps you want to turn that around -- your main desire isn't using the thing as a "VCR replacement," but rather, you just want to record some of those VHS tapes onto DVD's. The hard drive gives you many editing capabilities that you won't have with a DVD recorder that lacks a hard drive. Without a hard drive, you're most likely just going to "edit" your recordings by hitting the "pause" button on the DVD recorder, and then hit it again when you find the next bit of stuff you want to record. But, with the hard drive, you can record it all to the hard drive, and then rather precisely edit it -- very nearly "to the frame," and then make a more polished DVD out of it. You also have more / better options when it comes to making "title points" and "chapter points" in the resulting DVD.

That's a quick look at it -- I'd call the hard drive a very worthwhile investment!

thoots