mbkerk,
To my understanding, latch is same as post record. How long after the motion it will record for.
For Pre record you need to go under the schedule tab. At the top you will see an option for Pre-Record.
The closest we can get to that feature of your Brand "x" DVR is no matter what view your viewing in you can set any of the cameras to pop up full screen when motion happens. This will only work at the local interface, not through the web.
Also at the local interface, you will see a red icon pop up whenever motion happens on that camera. It looks like a running man.