combo VCR-DVD recorder

I've seen combo VCR-DVD recorders for sale for as little as $250 at Target.
Do any of these have the ability to copy commercial video tapes to DVD,
bypassing macrovision encoding? I have a ton of videos in my collection that
spans nearly 20 years, many of which are not available on DVD yet, and I
would like to convert them to DVD+R.

sleepless

"sleepless" <> wrote in message
news:_GIzc.45909$
> I've seen combo VCR-DVD recorders for sale for as little as $250 at
> Target. Do any of these have the ability to copy commercial video
> tapes to DVD, bypassing macrovision encoding? I have a ton of videos
> in my collection that spans nearly 20 years, many of which are not
> available on DVD yet, and I would like to convert them to DVD+R.

No. There are ways to defeat Macrovision but that's not one of them.

And you can get a combo unit for much less than $250.
--
Buford T. Justice

FAQmeister

FAQmeister wrote:
> "sleepless" <> wrote in message
> news:_GIzc.45909$
>
>>I've seen combo VCR-DVD recorders for sale for as little as $250 at
>>Target. Do any of these have the ability to copy commercial video
>>tapes to DVD, bypassing macrovision encoding? I have a ton of videos
>>in my collection that spans nearly 20 years, many of which are not
>>available on DVD yet, and I would like to convert them to DVD+R.
>
>
> No. There are ways to defeat Macrovision but that's not one of them.
>
> And you can get a combo unit for much less than $250.

I have one of those units. Panasonic. The reason is because so many of
my video tapes are deteriorating and I'd like to salvage them while I
can. As in your case, some are very old. I have not yet come across
any problems concerning macrovision.

I posted somewhere earlier here that I don't have the money to go out
and replace these tapes with DVDs. This seems to be the only way I can
preserve some of my classics.

And before anyone gets their shorts tied up in a knot, these are
strictly for my own personal use. I never loan my movies out.

Now I do have a question. What do I do with my old tapes? Do I keep
them and let them continue to rot, or should I donate them to a nursing
home or library or something like that? What are the legal limits here?

Thanks much!

Marci

"Marci" <> wrote in message
newslKzc.110720$Ly.17419@attbi_s01...
> FAQmeister wrote:
> > "sleepless" <> wrote in message
> > news:_GIzc.45909$
> >
> >>I've seen combo VCR-DVD recorders for sale for as little as $250 at
> >>Target. Do any of these have the ability to copy commercial video
> >>tapes to DVD, bypassing macrovision encoding? I have a ton of videos
> >>in my collection that spans nearly 20 years, many of which are not
> >>available on DVD yet, and I would like to convert them to DVD+R.
> >
> >
> > No. There are ways to defeat Macrovision but that's not one of them.
> >
> > And you can get a combo unit for much less than $250.
>
> I have one of those units. Panasonic. The reason is because so many of
> my video tapes are deteriorating and I'd like to salvage them while I
> can. As in your case, some are very old. I have not yet come across
> any problems concerning macrovision.
>
> I posted somewhere earlier here that I don't have the money to go out
> and replace these tapes with DVDs. This seems to be the only way I can
> preserve some of my classics.
>
> And before anyone gets their shorts tied up in a knot, these are
> strictly for my own personal use. I never loan my movies out.
>
> Now I do have a question. What do I do with my old tapes? Do I keep
> them and let them continue to rot, or should I donate them to a nursing
> home or library or something like that? What are the legal limits here?
>
> Thanks much!

One option might be to wait until the movie you want is on cable (preferably
a commercial free pay channel) and record it. The quality will probably be
better than the copied VHS tape.

sleepless

FAQmeister, says...
> And you can get a combo unit for much less than $250.

That records to DVD, not VHS? Example, please. Maker, model, and web
site selling it, if you don't mind.

Mark Spatny

"Mark Spatny" <> wrote in message
news: k.net...
> FAQmeister, says...
> > And you can get a combo unit for much less than $250.
>
> That records to DVD, not VHS? Example, please. Maker, model, and web
> site selling it, if you don't mind.

I think he misunderstood. I would be surprised if they were "much less than
$250" anytime soon.

I'm guessing they'll break the $100 barrier in a couple years, no less. By
then, most people won't care if it has a VHS unit in it.

sleepless

On Tue, 15 Jun 2004 20:08:26 GMT, "sleepless"
<> wrote:

>I've seen combo VCR-DVD recorders for sale for as little as $250 at Target.
>Do any of these have the ability to copy commercial video tapes to DVD,
>bypassing macrovision encoding? I have a ton of videos in my collection that
>spans nearly 20 years, many of which are not available on DVD yet, and I
>would like to convert them to DVD+R.
>
My guess is it will not directly record macrovision protected
commercial VHS tapes. There are ways to defeat macrovision using an
external box of some sort and feeding the DVD recorder with an
external VCR. Here's a search from the Videohelp site on defeating
macrovision to get you started:

http://www.google.com/search?domains...UBMI T=Search

Gary E
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