VHS ---> DVD help?

[LikaNui]

I'm not a 'techie' at all, but it's finally time for me to switch from VHS to DVD. (Guess I'll throw out that 8-track along with the Beta cam too.) I've got a ton of VHS tapes I want to transfer to DVD, mostly taped broadcasts of Hawaiian music shows.
In the collective wisdom of ye who haunt this section of HT, where's the best place to get a VHS/DVD player/recorder? Circuit City? Radio Shack? Sears?
Any special features I should look for in the unit? I'd love to be able to edit out the ads, but.
Sorry for bothering you folks with this simple request...

[damontucker]

Re: VHS ---> DVD help?

Here lies the problem lika...

If your trying to dump vhs to DVD by Burning the DVD's... I already wrote about how "Burnt" DVD's will only last about 5-10 years max.
http://www.hawaiithreads.com/showthr...ghlight=burned

You will have to continually re-burn it if your are trying to preserve something for a long time.

[scrivener]

Re: VHS ---> DVD help?

Lika, tell us about your computer. It might be a better way to go than the VHS-->DVD recorders, especially if you'd like to get the commercials out.

There is degradation of all media. Your magnetic media, just sitting on the shelf, is not only slowly demagnetizing but is susceptible to moisture and mold, as people who live in Hilo can tell you. There is no such thing as any media that last forever, because even if there were, there's no guarantee that the technology to read it will still exist.

There have been enough DVDs sold in the last ten years, though, that you'll probably be able to find something to re-burn your DVDs someday, and maybe whatever the new media is at that time will be even better. Sure, you run the risk of losing stuff, but you were running that risk anyway.

I've decided to keep all my commercials, but to put them all a the very end. I figure my kids will get a kick out of the old commercials some day. One year for Christmas, I got my friend a copy of The Star Wars Holiday Special, and the person who edited the video thoughtfully put a bunch of commercials at the end, and they were hilarious. I believe one was the Danon commercial with Rita Rudner (rowr!), the one where she keeps tapping her plastic spoon on her hips.

[Hellbent]

Re: VHS ---> DVD help?

depends on how you want to do it. is it worth converting all of those videos? if they are movies, it might be better to just buy the dvd as you get extra features. if they arent replaceable, i bought this unit called instantDVD a few years back. its rather simple and doesnt have advanced features other units have. its a box that you plug your vhs/camcorder into and connect to the computer via usb. it comes with software to capture, edit and burn to dvd. you can even make menus. besides instantDVD, there are other brands. you dont even have to burn to dvd, you can just keep the file (rather large 1+gb each movie, unless you compress to divx) on the pc. keep in mind hard drives typically last 3-5 years tho.
if your looking for a stand alone unit that does it for you, i think they are still kind of expensive. i think costco may have some.