With the arrival of the Internet within televisions, the need to record one's favorite events was felt less and less, since most of the episodes and films are available on-demand or by visiting the broadcasters' websites. But for those who do not want to lose the habit of recording episodes and films broadcast on TV channels, they can count on the features offered by the new Smart TVs, which can effectively replace the old VCRs with a simple USB stick or external disk. We see in this guide how to record episodes and films on Smart TV, without necessarily having to acquire an external DVR or other expensive devices. In the guide we will first see how to understand if the recording functionality is included in the TV, what type of peripheral we can connect and finally how to start the actual recording, also using the EPG and programming.
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1) Check the compatibility of the Smart TV
Before we can proceed, we will have to make sure that our Smart TV allows you to record TV channels.
First of all, check that there is a USB port on the back or on the side of the TV: it will be used to connect a USB storage device in which to store the recordings.
We can identify it with the USB 1 or USB HDD label; on some televisions there may be a specific port for recordings called USB REC .
If the USB port is present on our TV, the last check to be carried out is the presence of the REC button on your remote control.
The key can be identified as REC or with a red dot. If the REC button is also present, there is a good chance that the TV in our possession has the recording functionality. The last check can be done only on the user manual or on the Smart TV packaging: if there are instructions or logos indicating the recording skills, we can continue with the rest of the guide.
2) Hard disk for recordings
In order to record live television events, we will have to connect a sufficiently large external HDD via USB port, since recordings can last even more than 2 hours. We recommend that you focus only on external disk models from 500 GB and up, and if possible, use disks with support for USB 3.0.
The best external USB drives to use for recording on Smart TV are as follows:
- Maxtor External HDD, USB 3.0, 1TB (44 €)
- Maxtor Seagate External HDD 2TB (58 €)
- Western Digital Elements Portable USB 3.0, 2 TB (71 €)
- WD 4TB My Passport External Hard Disk (110 €)
If, on the other hand, we already have hard drives taken from notebooks, we can recycle them for recordings using HDD Enclosures, such as those available below:
- AUKEY External Hard Drive Case 2.5 "USB 3.0 (11 €)
- Inateck Box External Case USB 3.0 to SATA (12 €)
- UGREEN Case Hard Disk 2.5 '' USB 3.0 (€ 13)
We avoid using simple USB sticks, as their writing and reading speed may not be suitable for use on TV (which requires a disk with good data access speed). Before using the hard disk on the TV, make sure to format it from a PC so as to delete any data present inside.
The TV will use the space in NTFS to save encoded files that can only be read by the TV itself, so make sure there are no other types of files on the disc. For more information on how to format a hard disk, please refer to our guide -> How to format a disk in Windows .
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3) How to start recording
After formatting the hard disk, connect it via USB to the TV and turn on the latter; usually nothing strange should appear, given that the disc is ready for use. As soon as the program, film or TV series that we intend to record starts, press the Rec button on the remote control; the TV should display an on-screen warning about the start of recording and its duration (usually until the end of the broadcast program).
All we have to do is confirm the start of the recording by selecting the Record button. From this moment on, the TV will create an encrypted video file on the hard disk, while we continue to watch the channel: the recording will end at the end of the program, as indicated by the EPG. If we want to stop recording early, simply press the REC button again, so we can choose whether to stop and save or cancel the recording . Registration will end, as will writing to the file; to access all the recordings we have to identify the menu or the Recordings app in the Smart section of the TV.
From this menu we will be able to start all the recordings made, with the possibility of pausing and sending back and forth as if we were playing a video file on the PC.
NOTE: recordings made with the TV are encrypted and readable only by the TV itself; therefore we cannot view the recorded contents by connecting the disc to the PC or other televisions.
4) How to schedule a recording with EPG
If we want to schedule the recording of a future TV event, we can rely on the EPG to schedule the TV.
First we look for the EPG or GUIDE button on the remote control, wait for the timeline to load, then use the directional arrows to select the channel and the program to be recorded.
Once the timeline of the program to be recorded has been selected, simply click the Record button or the Scheduled recording . The TV will schedule future recording so you won't miss the start of the program.
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