Do you remember the precise time that you finally stopped buying VHSs and switched to buying DVDs?

Having been born in the early '90s, I was buying and using VHS tapes my entire childhood. I remember when VHSs and DVDs were being sold side-by-side, but I'd always get the VHS because I didn't have a DVD player at the time. It wasn't until 2003, when I was 12 years old, when my family finally bought a DVD player and we started buying DVDs.

I currently own a DVD/VCR combo in my room, with which I play a mix of both DVDs and VHS tapes (I mostly watch DVDs, though). I used to own a large collection of VHS tapes of Disney movies I had bought during the course of my childhood, but my dad decided to be an ass one day and give them all away to Half-Price Books a few years ago.  >:(

I've been considering purchasing more VHS tapes for nostalgia value, but, sadly, they won't have the same nostalgic value as the VHS tapes that I actually owned.  :(

My parents first got a DVD player in 2002 and I got my own in 2005. But we didn't buy any new VHS tapes after 2002 with our new DVD player, which makes sense as between 2002 and 2004 was when the big stores stopped offering VHS tapes. And now digital downloading is the future of home video, meaning even Blu-Ray may be on the way out starting in 2011, though it will probably be a more gradual transition than the VHS phaseout which lasted only a couple years, as DVD and Blu-Ray has cover art that digital downloads lack (or you can just buy the movie's poster).

Whatever year Dickie Roberts came to DVD.  That was the first one that I ever bought

About 2001.

Never did.

As a cheap-ass college student, I still buy a ton of used VHS at the thrift stores for a buck each.

Plus I've had an arsenal of perfectly functioning VCRS that the neighbors have thrown out  ;D
I used to have a circa 1987 NEC VCR that I garbage picked in 2005, and not kidding it had near-DVD quality picture (I think it had 4 heads instead of the usual 2). Sadly it finally died earlier this year, but luckily I have another, a 1984 Hitachi, that I picked this year. With a high quality old-school machine, the picture quality really isn't too bad.

I do of course get newer movies on DVD...

A couple of years ago but the problem is what do I do with all the VHS tapes I have saved over the years,I don't have many DVDs on my shelf.

A couple of years ago but the problem is what do I do with all the VHS tapes I have saved over the years,I don't have many DVDs on my shelf.


Try to sell some on eBay as there is a growing nostalgia market for VHS tapes just like there is today for vinyl records. Of course they're not worth much today, but some rarer copies may be worth more (not Jane Fonda's original workout, there were millions made and are only worth about a buck or two today!)

The day my 1 year old son decided to put rocks, crayons and legos in the VCR.  ;D ;D

Try to sell some on eBay as there is a growing nostalgia market for VHS tapes just like there is today for vinyl records. Of course they're not worth much today, but some rarer copies may be worth more (not Jane Fonda's original workout, there were millions made and are only worth about a buck or two today!)


I've got over 70 Wrestling tapes from the past 20 years,porn tapes and music tapes.

You can probably try selling them at a flea market or something, or donate them to salvation army/goodwill (though they won't accept the porn tapes, obviously)

My family switched 2003 or so

The last time I remember my family buying movies on VHS was in early/mid 2003. I think we got a DVD player that same year.

When I was forced to, when the stores stopped selling VHS tapes.

I cannot remember when that was.

I got my first DVD player in 2003 when i was 11, but i didnt actually regularly start watching dvds until 2004. And i totally gave up my VCR in 2006 when i got a dvd recorder.

You can probably try selling them at a flea market or something, or donate them to salvation army/goodwill (though they won't accept the porn tapes, obviously)


Ok,I'll talk to my Father about it,maybe he'd like to donate his tapes too.

It's funny that a lot of us are saying 2003 cause that's when my parents got our first DVD for Christmas of that year. As a kid we had VHS for most of our childhood and then when I was around 10 was when we started getting more DVDs. We had a video player in our van so we could watch movies during a road trip as kids and then when we got a new car in 2002 or 03 we had a DVD player in the car. I kinda miss having the option of choosing between VHS or DVD.

VHS tapes must've died out in the late 1990's when DVDs started going on sale.

I first used DVD back in '99, my parents got me my first laptop then and it had a DVD drive pretty big deal then. From 1999-2002 I used both, by late 2002 I switched to DVD full time though I still used VHS to record TV until 2004 or so, then we got a DVR.

It's funny that a lot of us are saying 2003 cause that's when my parents got our first DVD for Christmas of that year. As a kid we had VHS for most of our childhood and then when I was around 10 was when we started getting more DVDs. We had a video player in our van so we could watch movies during a road trip as kids and then when we got a new car in 2002 or 03 we had a DVD player in the car. I kinda miss having the option of choosing between VHS or DVD.


I was going to mention how much the majority of us as mentioned 2003. Now that I think of it, that was probably the last year I remember hearing movies advertised as "Coming soon on DVD & VHS".

DVD's first came out in 1996 in Japan then 1997 in America.

But even then it took until 1999 or 2000 for it to become 'popular' at least in the US.

I think most people had a DVD by 2002 or 2003 if I'm guessing right.

VHS was still very popular in 1999, but by the mid-00's they slowly started selling only DVD's.

By 2001 DVD was becoming a common term in our pop culture!

Ok,Here's another question. When did you switch from cassettes to CDs? ???

Ok,Here's another question. When did you switch from cassettes to CDs? ???


The first CD my family bought was in 1993 and by 1996 we had switched fully to CD's.

The first CD my family bought was in 1993 and by 1996 we had switched fully to CD's.


I think it was the late 1980's when I switched from cassettes to CDs.

MYy family always had VHS tapes from the early to late 90s.  We went to DVD in late 2001.

Ok,Here's another question. When did you switch from cassettes to CDs? ???


I vaguely remember buying a casssette tape with my mom in either 1995 or 1996. The tape included a song that we really liked.

Ok,Here's another question. When did you switch from cassettes to CDs? ???


I remember my parents having cassettes. I never owned one, but my mom brought me my first CD player in 2000.

I vaguely remember buying a casssette tape with my mom in either 1995 or 1996. The tape included a song that we really liked.


I still have boxes and boxes of cassettes and after 20 years,they still work,Well,most of them and some of them are a bit warped from age.

In the case of cassettes to CDs, they coexisted for a while, mainly due to many automobiles not having CD players until the mid-90s (along with people usually buying a new car about every 5 years or so), meaning that during the late '80s and early '90s, there was a nice mix of cassettes and CDs around. My parents first bought a CD player in 1988, but continued to buy cassettes with the CDs until around 1995-96, partly because cassettes were cheaper than CDs in most instances; similar to how vinyl was still common with cassettes well into the '80s since it was cheaper as well plus it was without the hastle of rewinding/fast forwarding. MP3s in most cases however have everything that a CD has (except for cover art), plus more (such as no physical disk). Even though newer MP3s can prominantly display the album image and liner notes, it ain't got the same soul as a non-digital image!

I am also going to post a "When did you switch from CDs to MP3s/digital?" thread as well in the board.

Ok,Here's another question. When did you switch from cassettes to CDs? ???


When I was a kid in the 90's, I remember my family owning and playing more cassettes than CDs. I'll always remember how much my mom would blast a Bob Marley cassette tape multiple times a day and my first cassette tape came with a Working Out Barbie doll in the mid 90's. I played that tape like crazy. We didn't start switching over to CDs til the early 00's. I remember getting a CD player in the early/mid 00's.

When I was a kid in the 90's, I remember my family owning and playing more cassettes than CDs. I'll always remember how much my mom would blast a Bob Marley cassette tape multiple times a day and my first cassette tape came with a Working Out Barbie doll in the mid 90's. I played that tape like crazy. We didn't start switching over to CDs til the early 00's. I remember getting a CD player in the early/mid 00's.




I still have boxes and boxes of cassettes that most of them are still listenable,I wonder if they still work? ???

Early 2000s, though I still have VHS tapes.

Early 2000s, though I still have VHS tapes.


Do you watch them? ???

Do you watch them? ???


Sometimes, I have some anime shows on VHS.

Sometimes, I have some anime shows on VHS.


I have over 70 wrestling tapes on VHS in my closet. And this was from the past 20 years.

I have over 70 wrestling tapes on VHS in my closet. And this was from the past 20 years.


LOL, I used to collect wrestling figures.

LOL, I used to collect wrestling figures.


me too,had Doink The Clown,Andre the Giant And Hulk Hogan.

me too,had Doink The Clown,Andre the Giant And Hulk Hogan.


I had, wait, still have Stone Cold, Ken Shamrock, Undertaker, and maybe a few others.

I had, wait, still have Stone Cold, Ken Shamrock, Undertaker, and maybe a few others.


still have them? ???

still have them? ???


Yep, in a box with a ton of other old action figures. I have stuff like Predator, Robocop, Metal Gear Solid, tons of figures.

In 2003 we got our first DVD player, and I'd say if anything, my family was a little late in making the transition. 2001-2003 was when it really started to change, and I'd say that by 2004 the VHS was totally out.

Well, I am 21, and in 1999, when i was 9, my dad got a Windows 98 computer with a DVD-Rom Drive. So, we've had DVDs since 1999. However, the DVD player was only on the computer. We still didn't have one on the TV for a while. So, my dad would buy his movies on DVD, my sister and I would get out stuff on VHS. Around 2005, DVD's stopped being made altogether, for the most part. I remember before that, it would be "available  for video and DVD". We even brought Spider-Man 2 on VHS in 2004. But in 2005, I remember we were going to buy "Star Wars-Episode III: Revenge of the Sith" on VHS, and was told it wasn't released on VHS. Blockbuster, and other video places started mass selling the last of their VHS tapes. So, Christmas of 2005, we finally got a DVD player for the TV. But, like I've said, I've had one in the house since i was 9. I was pretty much the only kid in the late 90s watching The Matrix on DVD  ;D

in 2002 when i was13. :)

2000. (But not "officially" until 2002.)

When the VCR broke down.

When the VCR broke down.



then it was replaced? ???

then it was replaced? ???
Not replaced, a new machine for DVD was brought in it's place.

Christmas of 2002 was when I made the switch.

Not replaced, a new machine for DVD was brought in it's place.
I now due remember the first DVD movie I purchased, it was "A Clockwork Orange" which was released in 2000.

It was in the summer of 2002. Same time that we got our first computer with a modem/internet access. (So far behind!)

My family got our first DVD player in 2000, though my parents didn't start buying most of their movies on DVD until 2001.  I, being a poor junior high student, stuck with VHS tapes for longer when I wanted to buy a movie I really liked or something.

VHS tapes are so cheap, you can get them for almost nothing now. A couple summers ago someone in my neighborhood had all theirs in a box at the curb marked "FREE". Its great when you're on a budget.

VHS tapes are so cheap, you can get them for almost nothing now. A couple summers ago someone in my neighborhood had all theirs in a box at the curb marked "FREE". Its great when you're on a budget.


Do they still have VCRs somewhere? ???

1998... paid $300 for it and it came with 12 free rentals at Blockbuster. Once I used those up my brother went and bought the same player and we got another dozen free rentals. Haven't stepped foot in a Blockbuster since either, worst rental store I ever went to.  I stopped buying VHS at that point, though I still pick up music video collections on VHS when I can't find a DVD collection with the same material (which is most of the music video collections out there). 

Neal has only watched Star Wars on VHS up to this point, though I do have the original Star Wars trilogy DVDs as well (the non "special edition" ones). He also watched Wallace and Grommit on VHS until the tapes died. I gave away my tapes as I replaced them on DVD, but I still have about 100 of them left that I can't replace on DVD. I could probably cull more of them if I spent some time checking the remaining ones. Electric Dreams is apparently still not on DVD.

Do they still have VCRs somewhere? ???


You can still get DVD-VCR combos anywhere. Standalone VCRs haven't been made since the mid 00s.

I love old school 80s VCRs. They're built like tanks. I had a 1987 NEC VCR that lasted me until last year, and currently have a 1984 Hitachi. Both came from the curb. My uncle still has one of those top loading ones, I think its from 1981, and it still works. They don't die!!

  God, I remember when we used to rent, along with the VHS flicks, the VCR itself.  So we rented some flick at Blockbuster and the VCR to watch it, and, lo and behold, someone left a copy of Backdraft in it!  I swear we felt as if we'd won the lottery!  Hey, I was broke, what can I say..?

  Unofficially switched to DVD in 2000 when I pre-ordered Gladiator on DVD, but still rented and occasionally purchased VHS flicks.  Bought a brand new DVD player, watched Gladiator once before the player went to lunch and I had to buy another one.  Spent around $200 on DVD players at that time.  My absolute bestest, most ass-kickinest, region freeinest, multiple formattingest set me back around 65 scoots, so I bought two...

  At some point in the intervening years I dropped VHS altogether but hung onto my VCR to watch flicks which were not available on DVD - Becket, Masada mini-series, Warlord of Kayan, misc documentaries, excellent Aunt Peg collection, &etc most which are now on DVD...

  Tried to give away my last cardboard boxes of VHS tapes without success.  They went into the garbage when I was moving in 2002...

  My old, dusty 1995 RCA, hi-fi, 4-head VCR with VCRPlus still sits on the lower shelf of the entertainment center.  I refuse to get rid of it.  I like to think of it as a museum of sorts...

You can still get DVD-VCR combos anywhere. Standalone VCRs haven't been made since the mid 00s.

I love old school 80s VCRs. They're built like tanks. I had a 1987 NEC VCR that lasted me until last year, and currently have a 1984 Hitachi. Both came from the curb. My uncle still has one of those top loading ones, I think its from 1981, and it still works. They don't die!!




I wonder how much old school VCRs are today on Ebay? ???

I wonder how much old school VCRs are today on Ebay? ???


You can get them at any thrift store for like $5-10

You can get them at any thrift store for like $5-10


I had to switch from VHS to DVD but thing is I've got so many VHS tapes to watch that I didn't feel like switching at first.

I now due remember the first DVD movie I purchased, it was "A Clockwork Orange" which was released in 2000.
btw, the second DVD I brought was "Full Metal Jacket".

I remember the exact time I switched from VHS to DVD primarily.

It was the third time the VCR ate my VHS copy of Michael Jackson's history on film, vol 2, right in the middle of his performance at the 1995 VMAs. Talk about a meltdown.  I was pissed, my mom was pissed because the tape was stuck in the machine and my dad was pissed because he had to find a tiny philips screwdriver to take the thing apart and get the tape out.

We bought a dvd player on sale the next day and I ordered the dvd version of history. Still have it.  :)

http://cdn1.iofferphoto.com/img/item/169/830/348/6miN.jpg


Danmed VHS. Between the VHS and cassettes I bought from this man before I got the better cds and dvds, Michael made some serious coin off of me , as I bought 2 and three copies of his things as they broke!  ::)  Hell I bought the Bad album SIX times!

I remember the exact time I switched from VHS to DVD primarily.

It was the third time the VCR ate my VHS copy of Michael Jackson's history on film, vol 2, right in the middle of his performance at the 1995 VMAs. Talk about a meltdown.  I was pissed, my mom was pissed because the tape was stuck in the machine and my dad was pissed because he had to find a tiny philips screwdriver to take the thing apart and get the tape out.

We bought a dvd player on sale the next day and I ordered the dvd version of history. Still have it.  :)

http://cdn1.iofferphoto.com/img/item/169/830/348/6miN.jpg


Danmed VHS. Between the VHS and cassettes I bought from this man before I got the better cds and dvds, Michael made some serious coin off of me , as I bought 2 and three copies of his things as they broke!  ::)  Hell I bought the Bad album SIX times!


I only have the BAD CD and the cassettes too.

I think we switched around 2002-2003...haha I was like 8. I use VHS to record things though. :) Like award shows, performances, interviews, etc.

Electric Dreams is apparently still not on DVD.


Not yet, but it needs to be.

Electric Dreams is apparently still not on DVD.
It is over here in the UK. check out eBay.

It is over here in the UK. check out eBay.


That is a REgion 2 DVD most likely, so for it to work over here in North America, would require a multi-region DVD player, which is a whole lot of effort and cost just to watch 1 movie lol

That is a REgion 2 DVD most likely, so for it to work over here in North America, would require a multi-region DVD player, which is a whole lot of effort and cost just to watch 1 movie lol
...but it still can be watched on a computer.

...but it still can be watched on a computer.


Yes,a lot of films can be watched from a laptop or computer.

...but it still can be watched on a computer.


Which is how I got my copy, but it's not the same.  I'd rather have the DVD packaging.

I'm wondering how I can switch the video tapes in my closet to DVDs? ???

I'm wondering how I can switch the video tapes in my closet to DVDs? ???
It can be done, ask in a good photo shop in the main road.

It can be done, ask in a good photo shop in the main road.


Ok one day I'll do that.

That is a REgion 2 DVD most likely, so for it to work over here in North America, would require a multi-region DVD player, which is a whole lot of effort and cost just to watch 1 movie lol


  Dog, the cheapest DVD player I ever bought was a multi-region Phillips.  Looking over amazon right now, the model is pretty scarce, but a region free Pioneer is going for only 70 bucks...

  Only way I could finally get my hands on an uncut copy of Masada was to purchase a region 5.  The yankee version had cut out the part where Peter O'Toole blinks and scratches his nose...

  It's region 5...I'm an idiot... 

my parents switched sometime in the late 90s.  But we always had a VCR and a ton of VHS movies still, and today I still have a lot of VHS movies though that I like from when I was little, so I went to Goodwill and got a used VCR for $7 to be able to still use those.

Do VCRs still exist these days?

Do VCRs still exist these days?


they still make the VCR/DVD combos, but I don't think they make just plain VCR's.  The store I work at still sells a ton of VCR/DVD combos all the time. 

they still make the VCR/DVD combos, but I don't think they make just plain VCR's.  The store I work at still sells a ton of VCR/DVD combos all the time. 


I might think about getting one.

I might think about getting one.

They are pretty cheap nowadays. about under 100 bucks

They are pretty cheap nowadays. about under 100 bucks


I miss the days of VCRs,I don't my video tapes to be sitting there 10 years on my shelf collecting dust.

My first DVD player came with the PS2 I bought and that was about 2000. My first DVD was Beetlejuice.

I knew at the time that DVD was going to take off in a major way, I didn't and still don't get the same feeling from Blu-Ray. This is probably because Blu-Ray feels like an upgrade rather than a fundamental and convenient change in the way media is contained/distributed.

We bought our DVD player in 2001.

Whatever you do, don't ask johnny5alive this question :D

Whatever you do, don't ask johnny5alive this question :D


Why is that?

Why is that?


http://www.inthe00s.com/index.php?topic=38219.0

lol

http://www.inthe00s.com/index.php?topic=38219.0

lol


Ah, lol. Bless him. I wonder if he is still clinging on to VHS? I'm guessing he bought a brand new DVD player just after the launch as some formats weren't recognised then unlike now where most DVD players can recognise most if not all formats available.

It's a shame. There are so many advantages to DVD over VHS. No wasting time rewinding tape, no degradation of picture, more features available on a DVD and more screen space in conjunction with a wide-screen TV, all of which have come down in price dramatically over the past few years.

It was in 2001  :)

1999, everyone i knew bought them before 2000, worrying technology was gonna get fudgeed  ::)

In 2004. I was really forced at the time, because I coudn't buy pre-recorded video tapes anymore.

But to be honest: Till that moment, I was satisfied with my oldschool VHS recorder. It was plain and simple, but I was able to do what I want with it.

  We switched from VHS to DVD in 2002.

When I could afford the player to play the DVDs

during the early 1990's.

We were late on everything at my house. The first portable tape player I had was in 1996 for long car trips when I was in the 5th grade. My first CD's and CD player was the shortly after that at Christmas. I didn't get a portable CD player until 1998 though, and kept that all the way through high school in 2004 when I bought a new one. That same summer I bought the first DVD player we had I still don't have an enormous collection of movies, but I've got lots of CD's! I don't have a Blu Ray player yet, but if I ever buy a PS4 that would have one. I just don't see a need for one all by itself. Like it was mentioned above, Blu Rays are an update, but they're still disks, nothing new.

We were late on everything at my house. The first portable tape player I had was in 1996 for long car trips when I was in the 5th grade. My first CD's and CD player was the shortly after that at Christmas. I didn't get a portable CD player until 1998 though, and kept that all the way through high school in 2004 when I bought a new one. That same summer I bought the first DVD player we had I still don't have an enormous collection of movies, but I've got lots of CD's! I don't have a Blu Ray player yet, but if I ever buy a PS4 that would have one. I just don't see a need for one all by itself. Like it was mentioned above, Blu Rays are an update, but they're still disks, nothing new.


Yeah, we were always behind the times technologically too. We got our first stereo system with a built-in CD player for Christmas in 1997, but I didn't get my own personal portable CD player until 2002. Up until that point, I was actually still mostly buying albums on cassette tape.

Like alot of people around my age, my first "DVD player" was actually a PlayStation 2, which I got for Christmas in 2001. By 2004, the only VHS tapes I was still buying were blank tapes to record programming, as we were still years away from getting a DVR.

Like alot of people around my age, my first "DVD player" was actually a PlayStation 2, which I got for Christmas in 2001.

You didn't own a regular DVD player?

My household has never owned an actual DVD player.

Our first PC, in 1999, could play DVDs. When we got a new TV in 2008, it had a built-in DVD player, allowing us to watch DVDs on our TV for the first time!

I think I last used a VHS in 2009.

I got a hybrid VCR/DVD player in 2005, we basically never used the DVD player because we recorded shows with VHS and had a Xbox 360 to play DVD.

When I got a DVD/VHS player, which I still have but is obsolete thanks to the internet.

Yeah, we were always behind the times technologically too. We got our first stereo system with a built-in CD player for Christmas in 1997, but I didn't get my own personal portable CD player until 2002. Up until that point, I was actually still mostly buying albums on cassette tape.

Like alot of people around my age, my first "DVD player" was actually a PlayStation 2, which I got for Christmas in 2001. By 2004, the only VHS tapes I was still buying were blank tapes to record programming, as we were still years away from getting a DVR.

Now I'm mostly with the times except for Blu-Ray. Our cars are this decade new at home and each one has a USB for an iPod cord. I liked how CD's would just jump to the song number you wanted to hear rather than rewinding and fast forwarding a tape, but I still listened to tapes up until I got that portable CD player in 7th grade late in '98. If I wanted to hear my CD's it was only at home before that. I didn't get a PS2 until 2006 when I bought it off someone and now I mostly use my Xbox360 for movies.


You didn't own a regular DVD player?

But with a gaming system, you can play games and movies, it's more convenient being all in one.


When I got a DVD/VHS player, which I still have but is obsolete thanks to the internet.

I think it's better to own copies of movies rather than just files on a computer or subscribing to a website that streams them.

I think it's better to own copies of movies rather than just files on a computer or subscribing to a website that streams them.


I definitely agree with this, as despite Sony winning the legal battle with Betamax in 1984 with no appeal overturning this case, there are still lots of companies that still want to "lock up" their archives leading people to needing physical copies (if they exists) in order to view something. Last month, I uploaded an episode of The Hogan Family that I found on a Betamax tape on YouTube, and unfortunately yesterday, Warner Bros. took it down, despite the fact that show never had a DVD release (and only one VHS episode that's very hard to find) and no online streaming site! Why take down a video when you have the chance to draw more fans, both new and those who never seen an episode in 25 years which may lead to support for a DVD release than being corrupt and losing fans and causing it to fade into obscurity?  >:(

That said, I routinely convert old VHS tapes to DVD due to having less space needed and being more mobile and useful over newer formats, even Blu-Ray players. Its a good hedge against any deletion of files, as anything in the cloud can be deleted anytime by the third-party company. Also, despite the claims about VHS tape degreation, I find that any tape stored in a proper enviornment still runs just as well as it did decades ago, even some tapes I have and seen from the early '80s. The biggest danger tends to be if the tape heads malfunction and cause the tape to get stuck and often causing it to snap, not the tapes themselves.

When I got a DVD/VHS player, which I still have but is obsolete thanks to the internet.


So what will you do with the player?

But with a gaming system, you can play games and movies, it's more convenient being all in one.

just like my PS3 you can also play games and watch free movies.

I stopped buying movie VHS tapes in early 2003. I have bought my first DVD in 2004. I used VHS for recording from TV a bit longer.

We got one about early 04 late 03ish. Really started to get into DVDs in about 2006

Somewhere in 2005, but I never gave up on VHS.

In 2002, but I used both at the same time. I still use VHS today to watch shows such as Magic Adventures of Mumfie!