Various ‘all in one’ devices and USB devices are available from several on-line stores to allow you to transfer your old videos to a digital file. The units can cost between £60 to £150, however the results appear much the same between them.
I could add affiliate links to this page to earn commission when you purchase one, however I would rather you save your money (and possibly hassle returning the item) and get the job done properly.
Remember you will also need a working VCR or Camcorder that does not chew tapes to use one of these devices.
Here is a video I put together comparing both DIY devices and our service. The videos have been captured and displayed together ‘as is’ with no sharpening, colour correction or exposure adjustments applied, to either video! You may notice that the all in one device video is zoomed in a little and a slightly stretched, this was done by the unit itself and nothing I could change to correct it when capturing.
The original video was shot in standard definition, 4:3 aspect during July 2004 at Anglesey Race Circuit. (Please excuse the microphone wind noise)
If you do want to create a DVD to view, then once you have obtained your poor quality footage using one of these devices you then need to create a DVD using more software and hoping the captured file is compatible, as you are often restricted or have limited options to change it without further conversions on a PC or MAC.
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