If you were recording any home videos in the ’80s or ’90s, chances are you have a collection of old camcorder tapes gathering dust somewhere in your home. Years of birthdays, family vacations, and weddings with no way to view them in today’s digital age.
Wouldn’t it be great to relive these priceless family memories? The good news is that you can. By converting camcorder tapes to digital, you can preserve these memories for future generations all while sharing and viewing them with friends and family.
Unless you still have a working camcorder and the correct cables to connect it to your television, you’ll find it difficult to view these memories on your own. Even with the correct equipment, you run the risk of damaging these old videotapes by attempting to play them in just an old camcorder you may have laying around your house.
Camcorder tapes become brittle and deteriorate over time, increasing the chance of tearing after sitting dormant for years. Another reason why it is so important to preserve these aging video cassette tapes before it is too late!
Why Convert Camcorder Tapes to Digital?
When Sony introduced the Handycam video camera in 1985, 8mm camcorder tapes became wildly popular in the consumer market. Because you could now hold this video camera in the palm of your hand, it made it much easier to capture videos inside and outside of the home. While recording on these new 8mm tapes were more convenient than recording on VHS or Betacam, these revolutionary tape formats were never meant to last.
- Lifespan
8mm camcorder tapes have a limited lifespan. Even if they have been stored in optimal conditions (a cool and dry environment), these tapes naturally degrade over time causing issues such as video signal loss, shedding, and tape wear. By waiting to convert your camcorder tapes to digital, you run the risk of your tapes becoming unplayable, making it impossible to preserve the family memories stored on them.
- Working Camcorder Equipment is Scarce
Just like camcorder tapes, camcorders themselves degrade over time. Not only that, but the last camcorders to support the Hi8 and Digital8 video formats were discontinued in 2007. While you can still find old camcorders second-hand, you may find that a large portion of these are simply being sold for parts and are not in working order.
- Digital Files are More Versatile
The main drawback of having a large collection of old camcorder tapes is that they can only be viewed on an old camcorder. If you don’t have one, or the one you do still have is no longer functional, then you will find it difficult to obtain one in proper working order. This is no longer an issue when you convert your tapes into digital formats such as MP4 video.
Digital video files are extremely versatile, and make viewing and sharing your old 8mm camcorder tapes a breeze. You can save and view digital files on all of your modern digital devices: phones, tablets, computers, and you can watch them on your home smart televisions.
Converting camcorder tapes to digital also gives you the option to edit your home movies on your home computer if you choose, or, simply take them with you on the go with the help of a USB thumb drive. You can think of the whole process as future-proofing your memories.
Options For Converting Camcorder Tapes to Digital
Once you are ready to preserve the memories on your aging camcorder tapes, it is next time to decide which method you will choose: the DIY approach or handing the project off to a professional video transfer service.
The DIY Method
For the tech-savvy individual, converting old camcorder tapes to DVDs and/or digital files at home is a viable option. Already having the needed equipment, cables, and patience should make the overall process relatively painless. A few things to consider:
- Cost
If you do not already own the required equipment (camcorder, cables, video capture software, analog-to-digital video converter, etc.), then you will have to incur some initial setup costs before you can even begin the process of converting your old camcorder tapes.
Depending on the type of equipment you choose to purchase, these costs can easily pile up to be hundreds of dollars. Not only that but there’s no guarantee that you will be able to find the most important piece of equipment needed: an old camcorder still in working condition!
- Time
While having just a few tapes can be a simple weekend project, a larger collection of old camcorder tapes will chew up a large portion of your time that you may not be willing to give up.
8mm camcorder tapes can hold up to about 2 hours of footage each. Since these tapes have to be converted in real-time, the time to convert just one will take as long as the footage stored on it. You can see how attempting to convert a large number of 8mm tapes to digital yourself could easily chew up days, or even weeks of your time.
- Risk
Attempting to digitize camcorder tapes yourself can also have some unforeseen consequences. 8mm tapes deteriorate over time and can become brittle after having not been viewed for years. Attempting to view an aging tape like this in an old camcorder can very easily damage the tape itself. If the damage is severe enough, you risk losing the memories stored on your tapes forever.
Professional Video Transfer Services
Letting a professional video transfer service like Nostalgic Media convert your camcorder tapes to digital is the most convenient option. Leaving the hard and tedious work to trained professionals is also a smart choice.
With over 30 years of professional experience in video production and photography, Nostalgic Media has the expertise required to safely and efficiently preserve your lifetime of family tapes.
Not all video conversion companies are the same though. There are some important factors to consider when choosing a transfer service:
- Experience
How long has the company been around? A company with a thin background in video conversion services may not be the best choice to trust with your collection of priceless family videotapes.
- Equipment
You want to make sure the company can successfully convert the videotape formats you own. Some companies can only convert basic videotape formats, such as VHS and Hi8 tapes. Nostalgic Media handles not only all consumer format tapes, but also special broadcast formats that other labs can’t handle (Beta, U-Matic, PAL/Secam, S-VHS).
- Safety & Processing Times
Turnaround time varies widely between video transfer services. This is because some conversion services may actually contract your tapes out to a third party to be converted. This not only increases the time before you get your precious tapes back by weeks, if not months, but also adds an increased risk of your tapes becoming lost or damaged during the digitization process.
- Customer Service
How difficult is it to contact the company and talk to a real person? If you have questions or concerns about your video cassettes, open communication is important to have with a company. Having to wait days or weeks for a response wouldn't inspire confidence that your tapes are being well taken care of.
Nostalgic Media Video to DVD and Digital Transfer Services
When you choose Nostalgic Media to convert camcorder tapes to digital, you are choosing the best in all of the categories listed above. We have over 30 years of professional experience in video production and photography. Our specialized transfer equipment allows us to handle tape formats that other labs simply can’t.
Nothing ever leaves our facility. All work is done in-house by our team of highly trained technicians here in our Atlanta, GA lab. Because we do everything in-house, our average turnaround time is much faster than other conversion services: 7 business days. You can actually pick up the phone and talk to our digital conversion specialists, which may not be true for other big-box transfer services.
We accept orders shipped to us, and you can also drop your tapes off in person for VHS to digital conversions in Atlanta, GA.
Whichever route you choose to go, it is important to act quickly. Your tapes won’t last forever, and the equipment needed to preserve them is scarce. By converting your camcorder tapes to DVDs and digital files, you are ensuring your family’s memories will be kept safe for future generations to cherish and enjoy.
