Popular Videotape Formats

Are you constantly amazed at the speed with which technology moves? Did you used to have an early Amstard PC and wonder at the fact that you had more computing power on your desk than NASA had forteh first moonlanding? Now look at your dual core PC and think again!

So what about video recording technology. I've got two PVRs sitting under my TV that can record hours of digital TV. Particularly impressive is the Humax HDR that can even record BBC HD via the Freesat service. I don't pay for SKY!

But thinking back to when I first started working with videotape and VHS had just won the format wars and players weighed as much as a small car. Camcorders? perhaps a camera with a cable to a portable recorder that hung from your shoulder.

Here's my list of formats that have come and gone since then. In no particular order!

Format information.

Mini DV
These tapes are the smallest of the video formats. They take and maintain crystal clear images because of the nature of a digital format. Editing enthusiasts benefit from Mini DV as well, since copying between two units is done with no quality loss. That means edited or copied video looks and sounds every bit as good as the original footage. Mini DV tapes are available in 30, 60, and 80 minute lengths.

8MM
These camcorders often have many of the best features found in higher priced HI-8 units, including image stabilization, strong optical and digital zooms and innovative special effects. Regular 8mm tapes are the exact size and shape as their HI8 counterparts, but record video at a lower resolution level, and therefore, are less expensive than camcorders which product better image quality. 8mm can record for up to 2 hours and has a resolution of 270 lines

HI-8
These camcorders record their signal at about 400 lines of resolution, slightly less than Mini DV, but substantially higher than 8mm or regular VHS formats. Most often, HI-8 camcorders record sound in hi-fi stereo. Slight quality loss is suffered when copying or editing from HI-8, but a better than average image is maintained.
Tapes from HI-8 camcorders generally must be played using the camera as the source, which means the user often must connect cables to their television or VCR. HI-8 tapes can be bought in 30, 60 and 120-minute lengths.

DIGITAL8
This is a format that is far superior to HI-8 or 8MM. Sony was the first to introduce this format and has done a great job. It is backwardly compatible, meaning that the new Digital8 camcorders and VCR's will also play your 8MM and HI-8 tapes. You do not have to buy special tapes to record in Digital8. A regular 8MM or HI-8 tape will record up to 60 minutes of digital video and audio. Because of the design, using regular tapes is not a problem, but it uses twice as much tape. A 2 hour HI-8 or 8MM tape will record 60 minutes when in the Digital mode and records up to 500 lines of resolution.

VHS and VHS-C
Record at a slightly lower resolution than 8MM. A standard E180 VHS tape has a recording time of 3 hrs, and the resolution is 250 lines. Their appeal, or course, is the convenience of easy playback. The large VHS camcorders are almost a thing of the past at this point. There are still a few models available, but their substantial size and weight make them a difficult sell against smaller camcorders. VHS/C compact models, on the other hand, remain a popular choice, offering many of the same key features as 8MM camcorders, at an equally affordable price.

Super VHS
Super VHS, a full-size format with resolution similar to that of HI-8, is virtually out of the consumer camcorder market. The format still is a strong player in the industrial market, but its future may be bleak with the release of newer and better digital formats. This format is used for videographers mostly for shooting and editing. The S stands for super, as the resolution jumps from the VHS standard of 250 lines to around 400 lines. Unfortunately, most VCR's will not play a super VHS tape.