The Old vs. The New

[flamepanther]

That is one of the few advantages VHS does have over DVD, more longevity.

I respectfully disagree. Leave a DVD on the shelf (in its case) for ten years and nothing happens. Leave a VHS cassette on the shelf for ten years and the quality slowly degrades due to magnetic rot.

[Hobie-wan]

Well there's certain old things that I think should no longer exist. Cassette tapes and VHS for example, those are 100% uneeded now and I do look down on people that still use them. But I think everything else is fine. For me, it's all about quality and ease of use. VHS's are just a big, poor quality hassle

A little contradictory there don't you think? Let's think about what is needed to record sound in a portable format.

To record sounds on cassette all you need are a tape and a cheap working boom box since they all have some sort of microphone built in. Hit stop when you're done and your recording is ready. Less than $20 and you're in business with a portable recording device that will run off batteries.

To record sounds on a CD/DVD you need a blank disk, a PC, and a microphone. If you aren't using a laptop you will also need a monitor, keyboard, and unless you're an expert user, a mouse. Then you need to burn it after recording. This will probably cost you a few hundred dollars at the least for some old hardware and you may or may not be portable.

[RCBH928]

That is one of the few advantages VHS does have over DVD, more longevity.

I respectfully disagree. Leave a DVD on the shelf (in its case) for ten years and nothing happens. Leave a VHS cassette on the shelf for ten years and the quality slowly degrades due to magnetic rot.

exactly, I like VHS
but truth is that it dies just being in storage,
and from my experience...bad tape ruins the VCR too
unlike a dvd, a scratched DVD does not ruin your player

I am amazed though at the quality of videotapes in my local TV station. I know for sure they have stuff stored on tape, yet the quality is till crisp and clear. I know these recordings they show are from 25-35 years ago.

[Bully]

as a collector of old school Kung Fu flicks some stuff you can only find on VHS and I'm not gonna pass up that movie just cause its on a "Dead" format...especially when I have the means to watch it. From a Technical aspect DVD and CD technology is better than tape formats and given the fact that the are readily available at a reasonable price it makes since to to chose one over the other but my point is why pass up on something you want to experience just cause it "could" be better on a different format. Master of The Flying Guillotine is awesome in any format...trust me!

[flamepanther]

I am amazed though at the quality of videotapes in my local TV station. I know for sure they have stuff stored on tape, yet the quality is till crisp and clear. I know these recordings they show are from 25-35 years ago.

The magnetic tape used by TV stations is a completely different beast from VHS. It's designed for extended storage and archival, so it's a much higher grade of magnetic film. It will still eventually degrade as well, but will take considerably longer. Hypothetically, DVDs will eventually decay also, but it's expected to take several decades.

[MrPopo]

as a collector of old school Kung Fu flicks some stuff you can only find on VHS and I'm not gonna pass up that movie just cause its on a "Dead" format...especially when I have the means to watch it. From a Technical aspect DVD and CD technology is better than tape formats and given the fact that the are readily available at a reasonable price it makes since to to chose one over the other but my point is why pass up on something you want to experience just cause it "could" be better on a different format. Master of The Flying Guillotine is awesome in any format...trust me!

See, now that's a separate issue. If something is only available on one format then sure, you shouldn't let the age of the format prevent you from checking it out.

[BurningDoom]

That is one of the few advantages VHS does have over DVD, more longevity.

I respectfully disagree. Leave a DVD on the shelf (in its case) for ten years and nothing happens. Leave a VHS cassette on the shelf for ten years and the quality slowly degrades due to magnetic rot.

I have never seen such a thing happen. I have VHSs I've had since I was kid. I've owned E.T. as far back as I can remember. It still works.

If the actual film is protected from the elements by a large plastic casing around it, how does this happen?

[flamepanther]

I have never seen such a thing happen. I have VHSs I've had since I was kid. I've owned E.T. as far back as I can remember. It still works.

It doesn't happen that fast in all cases, and even when it does, it is often subtle enough that many people don't really notice.

If the actual film is protected from the elements by a large plastic casing around it, how does this happen?

In some cases, the adhesive that binds the microscopic magnetic particles to the tape breaks down, allowing parts of the data to come loose. In other cases, the influence of the magnetic particles upon each other causes the data to lose its definition gradually. The same things eventually happen to hard drives, floppy disks, and any other magnetic medium.

[darthmunky]

Well there's certain old things that I think should no longer exist. Cassette tapes and VHS for example, those are 100% uneeded now and I do look down on people that still use them. But I think everything else is fine. For me, it's all about quality and ease of use. VHS's are just a big, poor quality hassle

A little contradictory there don't you think? Let's think about what is needed to record sound in a portable format.

To record sounds on cassette all you need are a tape and a cheap working boom box since they all have some sort of microphone built in. Hit stop when you're done and your recording is ready. Less than $20 and you're in business with a portable recording device that will run off batteries.

To record sounds on a CD/DVD you need a blank disk, a PC, and a microphone. If you aren't using a laptop you will also need a monitor, keyboard, and unless you're an expert user, a mouse. Then you need to burn it after recording. This will probably cost you a few hundred dollars at the least for some old hardware and you may or may not be portable.

Yes, you are quite correct but I was speaking from just a listeners point of view. I just hate cassette tapes, always have. They're probably the lowest audio quality of all media types. IMO, Vinyls and digital FLAC files are where it's at.

That is one of the few advantages VHS does have over DVD, more longevity.

I respectfully disagree. Leave a DVD on the shelf (in its case) for ten years and nothing happens. Leave a VHS cassette on the shelf for ten years and the quality slowly degrades due to magnetic rot.

Not to mention, they simply wear out from usage. DVDs do not. If they are scratched to hell, you can get them fixed for practically nothing. My Star Wars VHS's are all worn out at my favorite parts...

[CRTGAMER]

Okay here is a big plus one for VHS.

My elderly Mother-in-law was in the hospital for about 2 weeks stuck in a hospital bed. She is Filipino and although can understand English, felt isolated at times, because of the language barrier. I had my brother-in-law record some random videos off the cable box of the Filipino channel. Took the spare retro "obsolete" VHS player to the hospital room. The video provided something familiar from home that helped Mom's weakened state while getting treatment.

Turns out my brother-in-law recorded the video in EP six hour mode. Hospital TV is only 15 inch so the video still looked great. Six hours of game shows and soap operas in Mom's native language! Some of the staff were amazed what a difference something like this made. Because its VHS, a low theft risk and convenient compared to lugging a DVR back and forth. One tape at the hospital and another dumping the next days six hours worth of videos. No fancy setup, just press the record button and trade tapes. Same two tapes used over again a few times.

Mom now out of the hospital now recuperating.