When did you get your first VCR?

[tvguy]

I’m pretty sure my father was using his 8mm movie camera into the early 70s before he upgraded to Super 8.

He and I would splice those 5 minute films into longer reels of about 30-45 minutes. He had an at home device to do so and edit out crappy scenes.

His brother was also a home movie nut and there are so many scenes of him and his brother filming each other.


I had about a dozen of those longer 8 and super 8 films transferred to VCR in the early 90s.

I suppose I could look into having everything digitized.

Surprised he didn't just skip Super8 since by the 1970s videotape cameras were the "thing". My High School had a video camera when I graduated in 1975.

 

[wenrob]

Thanks for reminding me about the 2-4-6 hour part. I'd forgotten about that. But you reminded me that I always recorded at 6 hours, because I discovered the joy of recording "General Hospital" all week while I worked, then sitting down on the weekend to watch all week's shows. Until the week something screwed up, my VCR somehow reset to 2 hours, and I only recorded Monday and Tuesday. And of course, this was way before Hulu or computers.

Yep, if you missed an episode you just missed it. No chance of a rerun with Soaps. I seem to remember my station airing Days twice in a day for awhile, the regular time and then around 3am. I’d set my VCR for both just in case. Then the Soap Network came along. Now THAT was innovation.

I don't believe any of mine had any mechanical problems per se. When it blew a fuse, there was likely an electronic short somewhere and there was zero chance I was going to diagnose it. I was just just hoping that it was a one-off event that blew the fuse.

I had a new VCR eat a tape. But after that one disaster it never repeated it.

Certainly after a while it didn't make much sense to repair a VCR when a new one only cost about $100. However, at that point DVD players were taking over although most couldn't record.

The really crazy thing was how hard it was to program one to record. My relatives' older ones had to go through a menu on small LCD display and were incredibly hard to program. Mine all had on-screen programming displays and anywhere from 8 to 12 events programmed. However, I remember when my dad needed to record something, he would just hit record on his VCR live, but if he really needed it and wouldn't be home he would ask me to program it.

My DH reprogramming both of my grandmother’s VCRs became a matter of routine. We even taped off buttons on the remotes so they wouldn’t press them.

i remember my mom winning $500 at bingo, and she got us a vcr!!! We still have a VCR, to play the hundreds of tapes we’ve accumulated

Memory unlocked! I hit a Royal Flush at the bar and bought myself a fancier VCR passing my old one onto my sister.

 

[gmi3804]

But you reminded me that I always recorded at 6 hours, because I discovered the joy of recording "General Hospital" all week while I worked, then sitting down on the weekend to watch all week's shows.

You binged before binging was a thing, you trendsetter you!

 

[disneychrista]

1988 or so

 

[Dan Murphy]

Used Super 8 mm camera for filming early Vince and Natalie. Our VCR-C camcorder in 1986, $1,600. Now, 100 times better camera, on every cell phone.

Thank the lord for TiVo, amazing programming.

 

[DVC-Don]

1985

 

[Cadiewampus]

probably mid 80's. I do remember my cousin bought a betamax machine in the 70's and it was like $1500.00