VCR’s vs. DVD Players

Since the late 1970’s the video cassette recorder has dominated the home entertainment market. However, about 5-7 years ago we began to see a new competitor enter this highly competitive arena - The DVD. On the surface the DVD appears to offer everything the VCR can and more, yet the VCR has yet to die out. We often times see hybrids of these devices that offer the best of both worlds. In this article we will examine the variety of compelling arguments for each side and attempt to determine a winner. The categories for this discussion are based on features offered, recording ability, and quality.

The average consumer doesn’t really care for all the marketing lingo that goes on in promoting a product, they just want to know that when they put in their media not only will it play, but it will work properly and have good picture/sound quality. However, we want to take it a big step further and really discover what separates the mediocre players you see in your local electronics store to the ones reaching astronomical prices.

Many of the features you can find in your low end Video Cassette Recorder and Digital Video Disc player include fast forward, rewind, and pause. This is pretty standard and offers for good usage. However as the price increase VCR’s begin to offer features such as video tracking, video stabilizers, and slow motion playback. While these features are nice they do not even scratch the surface as to what DVD’s offer. Today even in your base model DVD player you can get a zoom feature. This really takes on the literal meaning of getting up close and personal with the actors. Additionally if you enter the next level of DVD player’s you begin to see a feature known as progressive scan. While salesmen always market this feature, consumers really have little knowledge as to what this actually does. Progressive scan is a superior method of presenting a video image. Conventional TV pictures use an interlaced scanning method, which means you have two alternating images. So what is actually happening is your TV is only displaying half the information at any given point. As a viewer you do not notice this happening since this process happens back and forth about 60 times per second. What makes progressive scan so appealing is that it paints the entire image completely at twice the rate of one that is interlaced. This yields for stable and quality dvd playback.

If that wasn’t enough to convince you, DVD players are now portable. This is a feature you do not have in VCR’s due to their size and playback ability. At a about the size of a first generation portable CD player equipped with an LCD screen you can watch DVD’s comfortably on a business trip or lounging in your backyard.

The VCR didn’t really put up much of a fight in this round. The DVD proved to be far superior in all aspects of features offered.

One of the main reasons people bought VCR’s was their ability to record. However what allowed VCR’s to really take off was that it did it very easily and it was pretty user friendly. It didn’t really take much to work a VCR. Consumers were able to quickly grasp the process; however some to this day still haven’t figured out how to stop the time from flashing 12:00am. The process is as simple as going to your local convenience store, buying a blank VHS tape, popping it in the VCR and hitting record; and you were able to capture your favorite sports moments or soap opera. When it became possible to pre-program the VCR to begin recording at a set time and date, VCR’s began flying off the shelves faster than the Ricky Martin single, Livin’ La Vida Loca.

DVD’s on the other hand proved to be a bit more challenging. It wasn’t until the last year or two where it became affordable for the average consumer to get DVD-R (DVD-Recorder or DVD-Writer); even now a set top box with this capability will cost you a couple hundred dollars. Many consumers have resorted to purchasing DVD-R and DVD-RW (re-writable) devices for the computer instead, since they are relatively cheaper. However this does require a strong understanding of computers and it is not a fairly straight forward process like the VCR. Additionally this will tend to alienate the baby boomers since this is more of a generation X and Y phenomenon.

It is essentially a 3 step process from the time you want to record your favorite show. The DVD-R / RW technology still has a long way to go before it can offer the convenience of the VCR.

With features such as progressive scan working in conjunction with today’s latest televisions; the DVD player is able to deliver stunning picture quality that rivals your local cinema. When paired with a great home audio system and Dolby Digital Surround, you will soon remember what a hassle it was to go to the theater. No more babies crying or having to adjust for the 6’10 monster that decides to sit directly in front of you. The DVD player is truly changing our home theater experience.

You can’t really go wrong with DVD technology when it comes to features offered and the overall quality you get.

As consumers we are more demanding than ever before; we want our money to go that much farther, and DVD’s offer that in many ways over your standard VCR. Quality and features aside many DVD movies offer deleted scenes and extra feature’s that really connect you to the actors and almost make you feel as if you were part of the movie. However, in order for DVD’s to continue to flourish they have to make it easy to record. Additionally many people have a significant collection of VHS movies. While it is possible to convert VHS to DVD it is not something that many people know how to do. This makes the VCR/DVD hybrid a viable option since it offers the best of both worlds.