Placeholder Content Image

Digitise those VHS tapes, the VCR is officially dead

<p>If your wedding was recorded on a VHS tape and is collecting dust in the attic, time to get it digitised and uploaded to the cloud. The last maker of video cassette recorders have finally ceased production.</p> <p>Japan’s Funai Electric Company churned out VCRs that played the tapes for more than 30 years, selling the machines in North America and China under the Sanyo brand. But last year, it sold only 750,000, according to Japan’s Nikkei, and faced increasing difficulty obtaining parts.</p> <p>Popularised in the 1970s, VCRs dominated home entertainment until DVDs became the technology of choice in the early 2000s, followed by Blu-Ray and ultimately streaming video. Perhaps more surprising than Funai Electric’s decision to stop making the machines was the fact that they were still being produced at all. Sony stopped producing Betamax video recorders in 2002 and their tapes, rivals to VHS, earlier this year. Panasonic halted production of VCRs in 2012.</p> <p>“I’d have thought by about 10 years ago the VCR market was dead,” said Forrester Research analyst Jim Nail.</p> <p>“The minute Blockbuster closed, where were you going to get these things? It’s mind-boggling.”</p> <p>Nail said old habits contributed to the device’s longevity. From family events, to classic Seinfeld episodes, and an older generation that couldn’t get behind new technology, it was a slow demise. Unlike vinyl records, which are enjoying something of a renaissance, VCRs won’t likely have a similar resurgence due to the low quality of the tapes.</p> <p>But that doesn’t mean some people weren’t sad to see them go. Many people remembered the devices fondly.</p> <p>“This hurts my childhood way more than any new <em>Ghostbusters</em> movie,” Marty Beckerman said in a post on Twitter.</p> <p>Just as the DVD player killed the VCR, streaming will inevitably bring about the demise of the DVD player.</p> <p>“The day Netflix opened its streaming service, the countdown was on,” Nail said.</p> <p>That will probably take several years. But if history repeats, someone somewhere will keep making DVD players long after much of the world has moved on.</p> <p>Do you still use a VCR? What do you think about this news? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.</p> <p><em>Written by Nicole Piper. First appeared on <a href="http://Stuff.co.nz" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Stuff.co.nz</span><span style="text-decoration: underline;">.</span></strong></a></em></p> <p><strong>Related links:</strong></p> <p><a href="/entertainment/movies/2016/07/6-adorably-talented-animal-actors/"><strong><em><span style="text-decoration: underline;">6 adorably talented animal actors who stole our hearts</span></em></strong></a></p> <p><a href="/entertainment/movies/2016/06/favourite-musical-films/"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><strong>Our favourite musical films</strong></em></span></a></p> <p><a href="/entertainment/movies/2016/05/7-actors-children-who-became-actors-too/"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><strong>7 children who followed in the footsteps of their actor parents</strong></em></span></a></p>

Movies

Placeholder Content Image

Your old Disney VHS tapes could be worth over $10,000

<p>Most VHS tapes in you collection have probably gone the way of the Dodo at this stage, but if they haven’t there’s a chance you might be sitting on a goldmine. </p> <p>Rare VHS copies of classic Disney movies like <em>The Lion King</em>, <em>Aladdin</em>, <em>Cinderella</em> and <em>101 Dalmatians</em> are currently being sold online for thousands of dollars.</p> <p>In one case a VHS copy of<em> Beauty and the Beast</em> sold for a cool $US 9,000 (which works out to be over $NZ 11,000) on eBay. Now that’s better than a poke in the eye!</p> <p><a href="http://www.scoopla.com/" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Scoopla</strong> </span></a>did some research and put together some of the more outrageous asking prices for VHS copies of movies and assembled a graphic which you can view below.</p> <p><img width="415" height="946" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/26775/vhs-cheap-copies.jpg" alt="VHS-Cheap -Copies" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"/></p> <p>Do you own any of these movies on VHS? Might be time to sign up to eBay!</p> <p>Let us know in the comments. </p> <p><em>Image credit: Scoopla</em></p> <p><strong>Realted links:</strong></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><a href="/news/news/2016/08/julie-andrews-response-to-mary-poppins-casting/"><strong>Julie Andrews’ charming response to the new Mary Poppins casting</strong></a></em></span></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><a href="/travel/cruising/2016/08/cruise-line-to-bring-disneys-frozen-to-the-high-seas/"><strong>Cruise line to bring Disney's Frozen to the high seas</strong></a></em></span></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><a href="/news/news/2016/07/grandpa-builds-disneyland-inspired-backyard-theme-park-for-grandkids/"><strong>Grandpa builds Disneyland-inspired backyard theme park for grandkids</strong></a></em></span></p>

News

Placeholder Content Image

Wellington’s Aro Video set to close doors

<p>The end is coming for Aro Video. The only question left is when the axe will fall.</p> <p>The Wellington shop, widely regarded as one of New Zealand's best video shop, survived the switch from VHS to DVD.</p> <p>It faced down video piracy.</p> <p>But owner Andrew Armitage said the rise of video streaming sites, such as Netflix and Lightbox, "is the straw that broke the camel's back".</p> <p>"We are closing - it is inevitable where it is going."</p> <p>He could not say when the final day would come.</p> <p>"Things are so precarious financially. I'm looking at ways I can [continue] short-term."</p> <p>He also had long-term hopes for the collection of videos the store held, which included a vast array of New Zealand films. While no discussions had yet been held, he hoped it could make its way into a film museum, that had long been proposed for Shelly Bay on the Miramar peninsula.</p> <p>It is a collection he has spent 26 years gathering, starting with just 180 VHS videos in 1989 and growing to pack the two-storey Aro St building top to bottom.</p> <p>In a newsletter about to go out to customers, he suggested his collection could become part of a public or private collection.</p> <p>"I can officially declare us open to all offers and possibilities."</p> <p>Other options included moving out of the shop and focusing solely on online orders.</p> <p><img width="497" height="280" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/11524/old-video-shop_497x280.jpg" alt="Old Video Shop" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"/></p> <p><em>Aro Video in 1989.</em> </p> <p>He pointed out that his collection of 22,000 titles was up to 20,000 more than some streaming sites and he still had a loyal customer base. There just wasn't enough of them.</p> <p>"We are too busy for me to run it by myself... but we are not doing [well enough] to sustain the team and business model."</p> <p>The shop employed four part-time staff as well as Armitage.</p> <p>"My job security is important to me - I have to keep earning from somewhere."</p> <p>Internet NZ chief executive Jordan Carter said the rise in legal streaming, through sites such as Neon, Lightbox and Netflix, meant illegal downloading was dropping.</p> <p>But the convenience of being able to choose movies and programmes from home was the death knell for the humble video store, with the exception of some niches ones or others who managed to successfully adapt their business model.</p> <p>"The days of people visiting a physical store are probably a bit limited."</p> <p>Statistics New Zealand figures show that the number of video stores numbers are dropping.</p> <p>The data, which lumps video rental stores with other electronic media rentals such as gaming, show nationwide in 2005 there were 516 stores. That was down to 330 this year.</p> <p>In the Wellington region, the number had dropped from 63 a decade ago to 39 this year while in the city they had halved to just 15.</p> <p>Over the years, the Aro Video had attracted celebrity fans. In 2008, musical duo Flight of the Conchords hosted a surprise concert in the store, cramming the small space with fans. When Viggo Mortensen was filming Lord of the Rings, he would wander in with bare feet and saunter back out with stacks of movies.</p> <p>Written by Tom Hunt. First appeared on <a href="http://www.Stuff.co.nz" target="_blank"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Stuff.co.nz</strong></span></a>. </p> <p><strong>Related links:</strong></p> <p><a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/entertainment/movies/2015/12/child-stars-now/"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><strong>What your favourite childhood actors look like now</strong></em></span></a></p> <p><a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/entertainment/movies/2015/11/best-kids-movies/"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><strong>10 of the best movies to watch with the grandkids</strong></em></span></a></p> <p><a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/entertainment/movies/2015/11/hilarious-james-bond-gadgets/"><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><em><strong>The most hilarious Bond gadgets ever</strong></em></span></a></p>

News