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Japan Will Make Its Last-Ever VCR This Month (mentalfloss.com)

Posted by msmash on from the good-bye dept.

An anonymous reader writes: Most of us stopped using video cassette recorders a very, very long time ago. By 2008, DVD had officially replaced VHS as the preferred home media format, and the glory days of the 1980s -- when VHS and Betamax battled it out to be the number-one choice for watching and recording movies and television at home -- were very much in the rear-view mirror. So it might surprise you to learn that VCRs are still being manufactured -- at least they were until this month. Funai Electric, the last remaining Japanese company to make the units, has announced that the company will cease production on its VCR units, due to declining sales and difficulty acquiring parts. Their VCRs are made in China and sold in many territories, including North America, under brand names like Sanyo, but last year's figures reported just 750,000 sales worldwide.

3 of 131 comments (clear)

  1. What by sexconker · · Score: 5, Informative

    "Japan Will Make Its Last-Ever VCR This Month"
    "Funai Electric, the last remaining Japanese company to make the units, has announced that the company will cease production on its VCR units, due to declining sales and difficulty acquiring parts."
    "Their VCRs are made in China and sold in many territories, including North America, under brand names like Sanyo, but last year's figures reported just 750,000 sales worldwide."

    So China will make its last VCR under contract for a Japanese rebrander.

  2. Re:VCR didn't compete against DVD by Dorianny · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Most people myself included, get a new VCR because the old one is acting wonky and they still have a large library of tapes, much of it old home movies that they haven't had the time or inclination to transfer to digital. As the equipment gets harder to find and the film on the tapes degrades, eventually I will have to force myself to tacked the mammoth task of converting it all to digital

  3. kinda sad by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    750,000 sales isn't enough to be interesting these days :(

    No one can just make money anymore, you have to make MORE than you made yesterday or you're a failure :/
    (Wonder how that will work out for Nintendo next year...)