VHS is dead. Long live VHS!
Filed under: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle
It's official. The video tape is officially dead. But then you knew that already.The last manufacturer of VHS tapes shipped out his last truckload of them earlier this week, according to the Los Angeles Times.
"It's dead, this is it, this is the last Christmas, without a doubt," Ryan Kugler, 34, a Burbank businessman told the Times. "I was the last one buying VHS and the last one selling it, and I'm done. Anything left in warehouse we'll just give away or throw away."
Give away or throw away? Wow. What a dramatic devaluing. Remember when a movie on VHS would set you back $80? Am I totally aging myself here? In any event, with Blue-ray the wave of the future, it might indeed be time to do something with all those old tapes taking up space in the garage or closet. If you're a parent of grade school kids in particular, you've got stacks of old Blues Clues, Teletubbies and Sesame Street videos stacked up there in the attic.
Give them away, maybe. But throw them away? Never. Despite the pronouncement of its death, there are still plenty of people out there with a VCR and a proclivity toward using it. Try donating your old videos to the local public library. Women's shelters and doctor's offices might be grateful to have your old kids' videos.
Consider joining Freecycle.org, a nation-wide, non-profit group devoted to keeping the detritus of modern life out of the landfills by recycling.
If you had an esoteric collection, consider calling a video store (they still call them video stores) that specializes in the artsy and hard-to-find film, many of which have never made it onto DVD. Le Video, a well-known cineast's paradise in San Francisco, Calif. (where else), has been known to buy collections of the truly rare. Of course, don't bother trying to peddle your VHS version of "Beverly Hills Cop"; Le Video, like every other video store, is aggressively selling off its VHS collection of standards.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
12-28-2008 @ 11:40PM
melissa said...
Donating the tapes is a fantastic idea - and one that mayn't even have occurred to Mr. Kugler. Life is so busy, even the kindest hearts don't always recognize when a chance to give is right in front of their eyes.
You should definitely email him your suggestion. A quick Google turns up his business's contact info - http://www.dva.com/home.htm. He could even get a tax write off if it's a charitable donation.
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1-02-2009 @ 9:51AM
Ray said...
I am really surprised there aren't still enough people using VHS to keep the tapes on the shelves. Many older people are quite comfortable with them.
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1-02-2009 @ 10:05AM
beninabox said...
What about blank VHS tapes for recording? TIVO and DVD recorders are still expensive.
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1-02-2009 @ 10:32AM
C said...
I still use VHS for recording only. I don't have TIVO or a DVR because, as someone already said here, they are expensive.
I recently discovered hulu.com where I can watch some of the shows I record but not all, like Big Bang Theory. Anyway I guess I'll go buy some new blank ones.
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1-02-2009 @ 8:42PM
midgkey814 said...
The preschool I work in accepts donations. It;s great for the preschoolers to see something different then what they have at home.
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1-02-2009 @ 10:51AM
Char said...
I still use VHS tapes. I find them very useful if I'm unable to watch something at the time that it airs, I tape it. Then once I watch it, the same tape can be used over and over. With a DVR, once you record something, it can't be used again, as far as I know. Have a DVD/VHS combo. I don't know, have they come out with a DVD that once used, can use again to record over?
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1-02-2009 @ 2:40PM
SciFiOutdoorGuy said...
Yes, they make a re-writable DVD, just like CDs. Look for DVD/RW in the name it means Re-Writable DVD. You can erase it when you are through using it.
1-02-2009 @ 6:18PM
ME said...
DVR's have a hard drive in them. Whatever you record can be viewed as many times as you want, til u delete it or record it on VHS or DVD . Plus, there's a nice feature allowing you to set it to record every episode of your favorite show(s) !! And it really is not that expensive..usually $100. Plus your usual cable/satellite bill with a $ 5-$7 monthly fee, which is normal for a receiver fee for satellite anyhow.
1-02-2009 @ 11:09AM
MeLynda said...
I have boxes and boxes of VHS tapes that I am hoping to transfer to DVD. We are getting ready to have a grandbaby and don't want to have the space taken up that VHS takes up, but I don't want to get rid of the content on those tapes either. Last year when we had about five VCRs we gave one to each of the kids at Christmas time as well as a DVD recorder so they can transfer all their VHS tapes over to DVDs as well. I like the idea of giving the VHS tapes to a charity though. Charities are not getting a whole lot with the economy in the situation it is in right now. I should know, I am president of one and it is a difficult time right now.
MeLynda
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1-02-2009 @ 11:29AM
Steve said...
This comment is mostly for Char. I work at The big "Mart" store, in the electronics dept., and yes they do make recordable DVDs. There are DVD+R, for recording onto once, and DVD+RW which you can erase and "re-write" onto them, hence the "RW", but like MeLynda said, you need a DVD recorder. Our store sells combination VHS & DVD recorders that have one-touch dubbing, for transferring VHS tapes to DVD, but they are a bit pricey, the two models my store sells are $150, and $180. each. Hope this helps.
Steve
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1-02-2009 @ 12:11PM
JOHN FORTE said...
I STILL HAVE SOME GREAT CLASSICS ON BETA .
I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN A STEP BEHIND. ATARI OR NINTENDO?
8 TRACK OR CASSETTE? VHS OR BETA? I HAVE ALWAYS PICKED THE WRONG ONE
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1-02-2009 @ 12:29PM
JOHN FORTE said...
THE LIBRARY IN TOWN SELLS THEIR BOOKS ON TAPE (CASSETTE) NO LONGER USED IN THEIR SYSTEM AND VHS TAPES NO LONGER USED FOR .50 EACH.
I HAVE A CD/CASSETTE PLAYER IN MY CAR, SO I CAN BUY THE CASSETTES AND GIVE THEM AWAY WHEN I AM DONE
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1-02-2009 @ 12:26PM
Flapjack said...
My VCR still blinks 12:00
Never could figure that thing out LOL
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1-02-2009 @ 12:33PM
Jay said...
There is no E in Blu-Ray. Nice fact checking Julie Tilsner.
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1-02-2009 @ 1:07PM
Jacqui O said...
How do I transfer the contents of my VHS tapes to a DVD without having to purchase a VCR/DVD combo? I have a lot of family gatherings etc. that I would like re-live with my grandchildren and I'm afraid that by that time they would not even know what a VCR is!
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1-02-2009 @ 1:26PM
A girl from a place said...
It's really a sign of the times!!
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1-02-2009 @ 1:51PM
ALeX said...
damn gunna miss those VHS days
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1-02-2009 @ 3:14PM
Stephy Sugarcookie said...
VHS IS KEWL!!!!!!
RAAAWR!!!!!!
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1-02-2009 @ 4:45PM
wendygoerl said...
"Donate to the library"? Our library just dumped its audiocassette collection a couple of years ago, my guess is the VHS tapes will be gone within three years. Why does everyone thing the library wants everything? Most of them can't afford the space for old formats.
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1-02-2009 @ 5:36PM
bethany said...
my hubby has been recording our vhs tapes onto dvds and then giving the movies to his uncle...
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