Anyone prefer VHS over DVD?

[Alan Smithee]

I can't  fathom ANYONE preferring to buy VHS movies over DVD. Unless they can't afford a dvd player, which the price has gone down considerably over the years. But allegedly, there are still people buying VHS.

The only time I'd by a movie on VHS is if it a rare import (from EBAY) or that it's not on dvd and shows no sign of appearing on dvd anytime soon.

Anyone here, god forbid, prefer to buy VHS over DVD?

Hell, a good dvd can cost as low as $10 these days.

You can buy a cheap, yet reliable dvd player, under $100.

Anyone who loves movies, and can afford the cheapest of dvd players, but sticks to VHS should be kicked in the crotch.

[nobody]

My parents recently bought a ton of DVD players for the various bedrooms in their house- and not a single one cost more than $75. I can't remember what I bought my current VCR for (back in 1994 or 1995) but I doubt it was that cheap.

I just picked up a new DVD player for my bedroom. It's a Sony. It was on clearance for $100.

At this point, you're right. There's really no reason to buy VHS tapes anymore if buying the DVD is an option. Even my collection of bad movies on VHS has been replaced by DVDs.

I own 15 VHS tapes, total!

[Menard]

I would buy VHS tapes for my mother as she had Parkinson's disease and could neither handle the DVD discs nor, due to the medicine's affects on her mind, figure out how to operate the unit. If you somehow feel that I should be kicked in the crotch for that, I suggest you should consider what you are asking or it could well appear to be stupid.

[Scottie]

I'll spend hard earned money on VHS tapes over DVDs because I can almost be certain that in 7+ years I'll be able to watch them with very little loss in original picture quality. They don't get scratched, they have a hard outer casing, and it's analog. Heck, a VHS tape can take a good drop on the head and keep on trucking. A DVD is so fragile, sometimes a single drop will ruin 20 minutes of the middle of the movie. Not only that but digital technology is unreliable. It's been shown that the coating of a DVD is liable to fall off after 7 years which renders it as useless as a coaster, plus DVD format is being outdated by newer technology every day. Now with HD being the flavor of the month and DVD format proving to be incompatible with it, all of your DVDs are going to become obsolete while something else takes the market.

It kills me to hear people say they don't own a VHS player because there are so many movies out there that could be gotten for so much less. Thanks to DVD, VHS prices have plumeted and that's fantastic news for a collector like myself. I could clear out a used VHS shelf for $100, or a closed down video rental store for just a bit more. The format is still compatible since RCAs are still being used, and it stands up marginally to a wide screen projection.

DVDs are good when you want to do lots of exhibition, but as for my collection, I'll stay with VHS

[Master Blaster]

Kick me in the jimmy!

I hate DVDs because I usually rent vs. buying. The damn things are always scratched and they dont last worth a crap if they meet with any sort of abuse. A VHS tape costs next to nothing now days and seems to have a much longer shelf life. Still I do own both DVDs and VHS.

[Dr. Kobb]

I'm a video-slut.  Not too picky about which format, as long as I get ahold of a flick I'm after.  Some good points about both analog and digital from both sides of the fence.  I love to trade dubs of movies with others, and I'm currently capable of making copies all-which-ways(tape-to-disc; disc-to-tape; tape-to-tape; disc-to-disc).  Mainly because--I have over 2000 movies on VHS.  I have neither the time nor the energy to convert them all to disc(many still play perfectly fine fifteen years after I bought/traded for them).  Also, I trade with some folks who are getting on up there in years, and they have told me they simply aren't going to bother with the newer technology, so it's nice that I am able to still make VHS copies for them.

I heard that ***Mart is going to completely phase out VHS by year's end.  As the world's biggest retailer, that will be something of a coffin-nail for analog, I reckon...

[Alan Smithee]

To the person whose mother has Parkinson's disease: that's different. You know damn well I wasn't referring to those who were too sick to handle dvds. I'm talking about those that have all their faculties but are too lazy or could care less about dvds. No need for the kneejerk reaction, please.

[Alan Smithee]

Although there is something nostalgic about renting a movie from tthe 80's on VHS..
All  the 'pops' and 'hiss' give the movie a certain glow.
There's a video store near me that has 1/2 of its inventory on vhs, probably because some of it is not on dvd.
There is a certain charm of watching 'Ice Pirates' on videocassette...
...but still, given the choice of dvd or VHS- DVD takes the cake.

[Menard]

If you want someone to know 'damn well' (your words) what you mean, then state what you mean. It would also be helpful if you actually addressed the user to whom you are referring rather than 'to the person whose mother has Parkinson's Disease'.

[Menard]

I like them if they are cheap. Yes, I have bought an occasional $20+ DVD, but I really like that you can get old TV shows and a lot of public domain movies on dollar DVD's. Heck, it's even cheaper to get a DVD player now than it is to get a VCR. I still have a collection of about 500 VHS tapes, with many hard to find titles which have not made it to DVD yet and will still buy the occasional VHS if it is hard to find or cheap enough.

[peter johnson]

Yeah, you caught me . . .
I'm really Menard, too . . .
* * * *
Anyway, the one reason I own so many VHS tapes still is that there are STILL movies I want to see that have never been put on DVD, just as there are vinyl LPs that have never been put out as CDs.
Vermin knows whereof I speak . . .
Now I continue to buy VHS tapes because they're cheaper than renting -- I go to the Video Station, and they have them on sale, like "4 for $10".  I can easily find 4 marginal titles that I've sort-of always been meaning to watch, but just never got around to it.  
I picked up a barely played Brothers Quay animation collection the other day for $2.  Almost to "arty" to even rent, but to own if for $2 -- shoot, I'll watch that sucker a dozen times now.
peter johnso/denny crane
I have no idea what I mean either . . . what do you mean?

[Susan]

Most people still buy VHS because movies are still released in VHS, are cheaper and alot of people have built their VHS collectiosn and don't want to start another one. It's like when they phase out DVD's (which will happen very soon i'm sure), those of us who have built up a big collection will probably still buy dvd's, i wouldn't want to have to get a new system and start another collection

there are some vhs tapes i buy once in awhile because the stupid studio's haven't put the movie on dvd yet and i can't wait around forever.

the brilliant part of dvd's is the first time i rented one i was so excited i didn't have to rewind

[Dr. Kobb]

Rewinding never bothered me too much, as I own a freestanding rewinder gizmo.  I love how you can jump ahead through chapters with DVDs!  I don't like how some discs won't let you fast-forward until they've shown all the title cards and FBI warnings and such.  Sometimes, this takes up 2 or 3 minutes, whereas, with a VHS tape, I could already be FF'd an hour into the movie(if I was looking for a particular scene or something).  Minor quibbles, granted...

[Mr_Vindictive]

I first jumped in on DVD when the technology first broke the sub-100 dollar market.  My first dvd player was about 80 bucks and I picked it up at the local walmart during one of the huge day after Thanksgiving sales in 2000.

Now, five years later, I don't know what'd I do without a DVD player.

My DVD collection now far outshadows my VHS collection.  I'd say I have apx. 200 or so DVDs in my collection - mainly horror flicks.  I've found it to be pointless to go buy a VHS for 5 bucks when I can rummage through the 5 dollar DVD bin at wal-mart.  Hell, the digging is half the fun.

The quality of a DVD is much better than VHS, and I'm a huge fan of commentaries and special features.  Sure laserdiscs had the capability back in the day, but the discs were too damned large.

Now, someone on this thread said that they like VHS better because they last longer.  That's....well....not quite true.  Yes it is true that DVDs will scratch, but that's to be expected.  My big problem with VHS is that over years, they get almost unwatchable.  It's common knowledge that unless a VHS is stored correctly and is standing correctly on a shelf, that some of the information of the tape can eventually "fall" off.  Conditions have to be just right for a VHS to last a long time.  

With a DVD, just don't scratch it.

The only problem that I can actually see with DVD today is the invention of new DVD mediums.  Right now, conglomerates are working on two new types - BlueRay Discs and DVD-HD discs.  Both have better quality and can hold more info, but that means that we'll have to buy all new DVDs and players due to the fact that the new players won't be able to play standard DVDs.

[Susan]

scratched dvd discs don't necessarily effect the quality - i watch scratched discs from the library (some are scratched up all too hell) but play in vivid color and sound without a single freeze or blip