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Circuit City Phases Out VHS
Rashan writes: "Video Business Online is reporting that Circuit City is becoming the first of the mass merchants to state its intent to discontinue sales of the aging video format."
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Just as we have seen record stores phasing out tapes over the last few years, we know start to see the same with VHS. And it's about time. VHS tapes degrage horribly over time.
Their sales people work on commission (at least they seem to) and are always pestering me when I shop there. Generally, I'm quite informed about what I'm looking for, and don't really want them buzzing around me trying to point me at things I'm not interested in.
About 5 years ago, I was looking for a new cordless phone to take back to college with me. 900mhz was the thing to buy (spread spectrum baby!), and the salesman was like "Wow, that's a powerful phone, you don't need that." and I was like "Yes, yes I do. I live in a dorm with many people with many cordless phones and I need one with more than a handful of non-encrypted channels." and then we had a big fight. So anyway, I didn't buy the phone there. I went to Best Buy, and this "too powerful" phone is the one I still use, and it still kicks ass (now in an apartment building.)
that this article is about phasing out pre-recorded VHS tapes. It doesn't say that it will phase out VCRs.
Buy yourself a replaytv and you won't even have to fast-forward through commercials. Now if i could only get the fucking think to work with my satellite reciever...
Linux is dead.
LU
It happened with audio cassettes (vinyl was killed)
:-)
Really? That's strange. I could have sworn that last time I was in the Virgin Megastore in central London they dedicated at least 10% of their total floorspace (including CD/DVD/games etc) to vinyl. I must have been imagining it.
Note to the unwise - vinyl sales are on the up, they have been for 5 years. At least 50% of the major single releases each week are available on vinyl. 100% of dance oriented ones are. The vast majority of dance music (the biggest selling sector in europe) is ONLY available on vinyl.
And turntables regularly out-do guitars in the annual christmas gift surveys
---- Den ene knappen er powerknapp, den andre er Bender voice knapp "Bite My Shiny Metal Ass"
Except that all the good DVD playing software for Linux is illegal.
Finding God in a Dog
but aren't 8mm vidoecams Beta?
No. 8mm videocams use 8mm or Super8 or Hi8 (I think they are all the same?)
I forget the size of the tape in the Beta format. I don't think beta cameras were ever really marketed to the end user. They are mostly used in video production, indie films and the like. The going rate for a betacam camera (not to be confused with betamax) in Canada is currently around $20,000, and probably used at that. Definately not something being sold at Circuit City.
Is that a real poncho? I mean, is that a Mexican poncho or is that a Sears poncho?
The one thing I see that might be a problem is movie rentals. vhs tapes do ware out, it takes a while.. and sometimes you can get a bunk tape. DVD's can't ware out, no matter how many times you watch them, but they do get scratched. scratched rather easily, 7 out of 10 dvd's I rent are scratched to the point that they skip.. and jump back or ahead. its from all rental stores too. If VHS is phased out (which it will be) I can see this to be a problem where rental stores are replacing costly dvd's (rental stores play upwords of $100 for a new release), or you just wind up having movies that skip all the time.
call your cable company ask for one of the cable decoder boxes. Ive got a Scentific-Atlanta Explorer 2000 cable box. It has cable in and out (cable out just sends the current tuned channel out on channel 3). Its got composite and S-video out, stereo and coax digital audio out. The box itself supports the features you want (fav channels, last channel) and has an on screen guide (tv listings) if you have digital cable. I dont think i'm paying for the one i have now, but if i wanted another Time Warner quoted me ~ $3/month to rent one.
Yes, dance music and vinyl are always entwined because of how dance music is DJed. Yes, dance music is much more popular in Europe than here in the states. Yes, vinyl sales are up over the last 5 years.
Now the bad part:
Vinyl sales are down 90% from 1989 and probably much more from 1979, but I can't find good numbers pre-1989.
If you were to walk in to any major chain store in the US and ask where they kept the LPs, they would look at you like you were from another planet.
-B
woah there, they aren't getting rid of them first off and second they are getting rid of movie releases. you can still buy a vcr and record tv shows, and you still will be able to 10 years from now. (just like I can still use a casette player to record audio, but buy new music in CD form. Also can buy it on tape, but it'll be harder to find.)
just because they are favoring a newer, higher quality, digital format over aging VHS in MOVIE RELEASES doesn't mean the worlds over.
go to a place like Suncoast, or heck even Best Buy, and take a look through their DVD sections. You'd be amazed at what they are releasing out on DVD. I'm in the process of buying tons of bad 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's horror flicks. Like Corpse Grinders, 7 Doors of Death, Zombie, and other cools stuff. Heathers and the Breakfast Club are already out on DVD, those are actually pretty popular cult films. You'd actually be surprised what makes it onto DVD.
There only appear to be getting rid of pre-recorded ones, and I say more power to them.
"People that quote themselves in their signatures bother me" - athakur999
It makes sense to phase out the pre-recorded VHS items since the primary pre-recorded rental/sale market is obviously tilting to DVD.
It would make no sense to phase out VHS hardware or blank tapes since those are still (and will be for the foreseeable future) the primary means of recording material in the consumer space.
In fact, CC has started carrying blank D-VHS tape. I don't know that they carry the decks yet, but there's always Best Buy for that.
* As is generally the case, my opinions do not reflect those of my employer.
So I guess video capture cards, like the ATI TV Wonder series, are all useless. Silly me.
Seriously, spend $50 on a tv wonder VE, connect your VCR to that, you're in business. Perfectly reasonable.
I'm the stranger...posting to