How to Use a Computer to Get Rid of the Dinosaur on Your Shelf
The dinosaur I am talking about is your VCR.
VCR's have gone the way of cassette tape players and 8 track tape players before them.
If you are too young to remember either of those then this article probably doesn't apply to you because you probably don't have any VHS tapes lying around anyway.
However, if you are keeping that dinosaur on your shelf just so you can play some of those old VHS tapes read on because I will show you some ways to keep what's on the tapes but get rid of the tapes and finally gain back that shelf space being taken up by that VCR.
Directly from VCR to DVD Perhaps the simplest way to convert from VHS to DVD is with a combination DVD and VCR machine.
There aren't even any wires to connect.
If you have one of these use it but I wouldn't recommend buying one just for this task.
You will still have a VCR if you use this method.
A DVD recorder is just a DVD player that is also a DVD burner.
This method is a little more advanced than a DVD and VCR combination machine because you must connect the two machines with wires.
There are only three wires to connect and they are color coded to make it simple.
Going this route will enable you to get rid of your VCR and keep just the DVD player.
From VCR to Computer to DVD Many computers have inputs that allow you to connect a VCR directly to the computer.
To tell if you computer has this capability look for composite video, component video, S-video or HDMI inputs on your computer.
This is the simplest method because there is nothing to install on your computer and less devices to connect.
Many digital camcorders will let you connect your VCR to the camera and then connect the camera to the computer.
It has to be a digital camcorder because the analog signal from the VCR must be converted to a digital signal.
A third way to transfer VHS tapes to your computer is a video capture device.
These devices plug into your computer, usually via a USB port, and have inputs to connect to your VCR and will convert the analog signal to digital.
You can buy devices designed solely to capture video from another source like a VCR or camcorder or you can use a USB TV Tuner.
Hopefully this article has inspired you to finally take action and digitize your VHS tapes to preserve your memories and get rid of the dinosaur on your shelf.
If you are worried about cost, video capture devices cost under $100 and you can use free software like Windows Movie Maker (or iMovie on a Mac) and you can transfer unlimited VHS tapes to DVD.
VCR's have gone the way of cassette tape players and 8 track tape players before them.
If you are too young to remember either of those then this article probably doesn't apply to you because you probably don't have any VHS tapes lying around anyway.
However, if you are keeping that dinosaur on your shelf just so you can play some of those old VHS tapes read on because I will show you some ways to keep what's on the tapes but get rid of the tapes and finally gain back that shelf space being taken up by that VCR.
Directly from VCR to DVD Perhaps the simplest way to convert from VHS to DVD is with a combination DVD and VCR machine.
There aren't even any wires to connect.
If you have one of these use it but I wouldn't recommend buying one just for this task.
You will still have a VCR if you use this method.
A DVD recorder is just a DVD player that is also a DVD burner.
This method is a little more advanced than a DVD and VCR combination machine because you must connect the two machines with wires.
There are only three wires to connect and they are color coded to make it simple.
Going this route will enable you to get rid of your VCR and keep just the DVD player.
From VCR to Computer to DVD Many computers have inputs that allow you to connect a VCR directly to the computer.
To tell if you computer has this capability look for composite video, component video, S-video or HDMI inputs on your computer.
This is the simplest method because there is nothing to install on your computer and less devices to connect.
Many digital camcorders will let you connect your VCR to the camera and then connect the camera to the computer.
It has to be a digital camcorder because the analog signal from the VCR must be converted to a digital signal.
A third way to transfer VHS tapes to your computer is a video capture device.
These devices plug into your computer, usually via a USB port, and have inputs to connect to your VCR and will convert the analog signal to digital.
You can buy devices designed solely to capture video from another source like a VCR or camcorder or you can use a USB TV Tuner.
Hopefully this article has inspired you to finally take action and digitize your VHS tapes to preserve your memories and get rid of the dinosaur on your shelf.
If you are worried about cost, video capture devices cost under $100 and you can use free software like Windows Movie Maker (or iMovie on a Mac) and you can transfer unlimited VHS tapes to DVD.