DVD or Video?

[m-jean03]

I watch videos still, myself. I watched one DVD once, at somone's house.

I imagine I'll be watching VHS for quite a while to come, though, unless I get some kind of a windfall.

Thanks! Just curious.

[lanparty]

1. DVD no question ...

I won't buy another VHS tape in my life. I have about 40 DVDs in a booklet the size of a comprehensive planner. The same VHS tapes would require a large box to store.


Besides this, DVD has a much higher resolution than VHS. VHS actually has a lower resolution than broadcast TV. This is one reason the content producers pushed VHS over Betamax (still used by TV production outfits).

In another year, DVD will be as ubiquitous as CDs. In two years, VHS recorders will dissapear in favor of DVD and Hard Drive video recording.

Video stores have responded dramatically. They are paring down their VHS collection and filling up with DVDs. DVDs don't require rewinding. They cannot be "recorded over" with XXX video. They aren't affected by strong magnetic fields.

The only downside is that DVD is physically more fragile. Scratched discs can wreck the user experience. But players progressively get better at getting around scratches in the same way portable CD players deal with skips and other anomalies.

Sony has released a newer HD-DVD standard called "Blue-Ray". They have enclosed those discs in protective shells. Something that only the DVD-RAM group has done recently. In fact, their new Play Station Portable will use a mini-DVD enclosed in a protective shell (Universal Media Disc). This will likely replace Mini-Disc eventually and likely form the backbone for portable video/audio players.

VHS is rapidly going the way of Vinyl Records. Some people will always stick by them. But the media companies are rapidly abandoning VHS due to the lower cost of stamped DVD discs that have no moving parts. In a few years, you won't be able to buy a new release on VHS.

[m-jean03]

3. One neat thing, I have never been a tape collector,

But now I am finding awesome videotapes literally for pennies at rummage sales and thrift stores, as people are switching to DVDs.

[Whitacre D_WI]

4. VHS is nothing like vinyl records.

VHS is like cassette tapes.

Betamax is like vinyl -- a superior product that was damaged in the marketplace when some jackass in marketing decided to push an inferior product over it; i.e. cassette tapes (and CDs), and VHS.

VHS is fragile, watch it more than a few times and it already starts to degrade -- just like your favorite music tapes.

DVD, however, like CD or vinyl, will last indefinitely if you take care of it.

[m-jean03]

6. Something my friend said about cassettes

referring to music cassettes, but it applies here: "You can toss them across the room to someone". . .

Versus CDs and DVDs, which are too fragile for that kind of rowdiness! :D

[Whitacre D_WI]

8. You can whip CDs and DVDs around like frisbees.

Sometimes, you can cut 'em with a knife, and they'll still play fine. Other times, they'll get a microscopic scratch you can't even see, and be permanently fucked.

That's reason #27 I prefer records to CDs: I can tell by looking if the record's gonna sound good or not.

[lanparty]

27. Marketing Vinyl

Yeah, I'm sure your one of those few people with an in dash phonograph player ... right??????

Nope, sorry but CDs are WAY, WAY superior to Vinyl. I just wish they were encased like cassettes so they could be manhandled a little more.

[jmowreader]

22. Betamax isn't used by pros

Betacam is. Same cassette, different way of recording to it.

[TheMightyFavog]

26. And even that's going the way of the dinosaurs...

A lot of TV outfits are switching over to digital now.

[cryfordawn]

2. DVD's are awesome.

I love DVD's. They are so much nicer to deal with.

[neverborn]

5. No excuse for VHS.

You can get a DVD player for $30 now.

[m-jean03]

7. That's about how much money I have in my checking account

And it's for food and emergencies. :-)

[Whitacre D_WI]

9. You could sell plasma.

[m-jean03]

10. Or you could purchase me.

:D

[Whitacre D_WI]

11. I would, but shipping would get mighty pricey.

[m-jean03]

12. Are you implying I'm heavy!

:P

[Whitacre D_WI]

13. Well, I'm implying you've over 50 lbs., that's for damn sure.

And you probably would wiggle a lot in transit. Add money for that. And you'd need oxygen, and a pressurized cargo hold....

Seriously, it would run a couple hundred bucks.

[m-jean03]

17. Oh just use your frequent flier miles. . .

Though you'd be spending at least 10 grand on me anyway, what's a couple hundred extra bucks? :D

[Whitacre D_WI]

20. Yeah -- I bet you're worth 1/10 of a 100-Grand bar.

[MikeG]

23. Make him spend more than that.

Hit all the stores.

[Kahuna]

14. Both. I don't discriminate. I'll always keep VCRs..

Because I'll always want the ability to tape programs. DVD recording has it's limitations. I can only record movies under 2 hours DVD. I can record up 8 hours on vhs. I have four VCRs and two DVD players. I can record TV programs on DVD on my computer. So I watch both formats. What could be wrong with that? :shrug:

[lyrical di]

15. DVD due to the equipment

I have replaced VCR's 10 times. Still using the original DVD player. It was a cheap Wal-mart brand and still works. No problems. I don't even have a decent VCR right now so all my VHS' are going to waste. Very frustrating.

[Donkeyboy75]

16. DVD!

I have a lot of VHS tapes from the late 80s. Sound quality sucks now, and no tracking adjustment helps. Looks like I'll have to buy Rain Man on DVD

[m-jean03]

18. WOW!!! THE WORLD HAS CLEARLY MOVED AHEAD WITHOUT ME!

Wow. I am living in the past. :cry:

[Khephra]

19. DVDS, especially since I have a DVD set-top recorder.

[Bridget Burke]

21. If you DO get a windfall (windfalls happen), consider a DVD player.

DVD's look better & sound better & some have truly excellent "extras". If you collect them, they'll last better than VHS.

If you don't want to collect--consider Netflix.

[MrSandman]

24. DVD on Net Flix..n/t

[VOX]

25. DVD is the way to go. Now, if only all those VHS titles were available...

My wife and I moved into a house last November, and, as wer were getting rid of stuff left and right, we decided to donate our VHS tapes to charity. We went through title after title, and realized that a surprisingly large number of our tapes are not (yet) available on DVD.