Recording shows from dvr to dvd?

I just went to buy a DVD recorder at Best Buy for the sole purpose of recording from my DVR to DVD's so that I can share with my mom shows she does not get. The guy at best buy said that the new generation dvd recorders are all encoded and send a block signal and although you would have no problem recording onto the dvr, recording to dvd's has become very difficult. Does anyone out there know about this or have a NEW dvd recorder that works just fine and is able to record from their DVR with no issues? I ume this is all an attempt to get consumers to buy the dvds of shows as opposed to recording them. I dont want to waste money on a recorder that wont record the shows off the tv or the dvr. thanks