In recent years, many people have been interested in following what I like to call retro culture. Retro culture is essentially an interest involving objects and media of the past, such as video games from the 1980s and 1990s, as well as collectible record vinyl for music. However, one aspect of retro culture that I have a large appreciation for is the vhs video format. You may be asking to yourself right now: why would someone want to downgrade from the high definition digital media of today to a format that has become nothing more than fodder at yard sales? For me, personally, there are many other factors in why I enjoy collecting vhs tapes in this day and age.
The first of which is a very visual one, as I am someone who loves to display and take pictures of any collection I own. To me, the large, thick plastic cases (commonly nicknamed "clamshells"), look very nice on a shelf versus the more modern formats of digital media. Dvds and Blu-rays, for example, have much smaller cases due to the disc format being significantly smaller than tapes, and as a result, they tend to not stand out nearly as much on a shelf versus a clamshell vhs case. With the larger size, they not only make the collection stand out, but also add a sense of size to make the overall collection feel larger. I really find them to be a nice thing to see together on a shelf, due to how they stand out as well as how large they are; the large letters are also a plus, so you can easily find the movie you are looking to watch.
Another huge benefit to collecting VHS tapes is how simple they are in regards to watching them. Dvds and blu-rays are plauged with many menus of options that make it even longer before you start watching the content contained within. On vhs, this issue does not exist, as you simply pop one in and the movie begins. Sure, they can be worn out if watched too much, but when's the last time you found a huge scratch in one that prevented it from playing at all? The durability of vhs tapes is yet another benefit versus more modern formats, as the actual tape reel that needs to stay in good condition in order to work properly is protected safely by the outer plastic layer. It is way too easy to break dvds and blu-rays, due to how the back of the disc can be easily damaged if they are even smudged once. On tapes, you just need to avoid the inner reel and you're good to go!
However, the one really important reason that keeps me buying tapes is the current price range. Many tapes are very cheap, usually ranging from 25 cents to a dollar at flea markets and goodwill stores. For example, I have purchased some tapes at a local salvation army, and they were a dollar a piece. What a bargain! Compare this to other formats, where they usually range from 10 dollars to even 25 dollars for one movie. The fact that I can obtain more movies I want to watch for less really sells me the idea of maintaining a retro vhs collection.
There you have it, those are the major reasons why I still adore the vhs format. Although I may be sacrificing some stronger audio and visual quality by going old school, the gains not only from a collection standpoint as well as bargains outweigh this negative for me. I highly recommend everyone to give vhs a try, if they want a taste of some cheap, old school fun.
