Is This Just My DVD Recorder or Can They Not Record Widescreen Without Bars?

[EdwardGein]

Can someone please tell me when they record widescreen TV Shows on their DVD Recorder if the recording has bars on the top & bottom? I rarely use my DVD recorder for TV but just noticed this now when I recorded off my DVR 2 shows for my sister. At first I thought, oh their must be an aspect setting I didn't set but when I read the instructions for this model it said widescreen recordings will have the bars. I am totally infuriated and will be sending a nasty letter to the company about this if that's not typical with all DVD recorders as there was no mention whatsoever about this on the box or by any of the fools who reviewed this (Pending their response I am going to revise my reviews). The only good news is the recorder was so cheap & now I see why. This to me is beyond comprehension.

[N. Abstentia]

Are you saying the bars are NOT there on the original broadcast? The DVD recorders...adds black bars to whatever you record?

[EdwardGein]

Are you saying the bars are NOT there on the original broadcast? The DVD recorders...adds black bars to whatever you record?

Yeah this is the most ridiculous thing I ever heard of. I felt surely I must have not done a setting or something but it states that in print in the instruction book. As I don't copy that much stuff from my DVR to DVD except for mainly 4:3 channels like History, TCM & Bio, this
isn't really worth me losing sleep on, but its hard to believe this company would have the balls to sell something like that without at least the consumer knowing before he purchased it. Having said that, a year ago I bought the worst scanner in history from HP & I still can;t believe they would sell garbage like that- known software problems, the actual scan was terrible, etc.

[N. Abstentia]

So what does the actual picture look like? Are the top & bottom cut off? Is it squeezed to fit in the bars?

[EdwardGein]

So what does the actual picture look like? Are the top & bottom cut off? Is it squeezed to fit in the bars?

There gray bars on the top & bottom like a letterbox movie. I'm not sure if its stretched or what not. This problem which this idiot company didn't see as a problem only exists for widescreen TV shows. Any 4:3 TV shows are fine. These idiots at the company didn't think anyone would care? Maybe they figure that anyone who buys a cheap recorder for $90 doesn't care about this stuff. Well I do!