Author Topic: Is there a way to play old VHS tapes into a Mac (Read 18064 times)

Xairbusdriver · « **Reply #15 on:** November 19, 2009, 05:14:02 PM »

QUOTE

Create a gift of video memories for family and friends this holiday season!

Does anyone notice that ones slide shows/videos are not nearly as interesting to others as they are to ourselves? I'm just sayin'...

jcarter · « **Reply #16 on:** November 19, 2009, 05:40:56 PM »

Yup, our grandkids could not be bothered, though our kids would love to pore thru this stuff.
Jane

Highmac · « **Reply #17 on:** November 20, 2009, 01:42:03 AM »

QUOTE(Xairbusdriver @ Nov 19 2009, 11:14 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Does anyone notice that ones slide shows/videos are not nearly as interesting to others as they are to ourselves? I'm just sayin'...

Yup - have sat through several hours (it might only have been three) of someone else's visit to Australia. I now know Sydney Opera House, and most of the continent's other attractions, from every possible angle and no longer feel the slightest need to visit "down under".

Frances144 · « **Reply #18 on:** November 25, 2009, 05:22:55 AM »

I did it by attaching a camcorder to the Video recorder and taping the output direct. Then I uploaded the camcorder's contents to my iMac (firewire lead) and using iMovie, I turned it into a dvd. A long laborious process but it worked fine.

jcarter · « **Reply #19 on:** November 25, 2009, 06:36:25 AM »

This link that we looked at earlier,
http://www.roxio.com/enu/products/easy-vhs...c/overview.html
was reviewed in the latest Mac|Life magazine, I think we will go with it.
Thank you all for the help with this, now to find the time to do it.
Jane

jcarter · « **Reply #20 on:** November 29, 2009, 03:06:24 PM »

Update on the old movie to DVD situation,
We have a page in our local paper for recommended businesses and stuff like that, and there was a letter today who recommended a service that did this recording highly.
I called the guy and he explained it all out to me, and he figured at $20 per tape, that he could do all ours, we have 15 to do, for about $300. But then he asked me if the tapes were full, fully recorded, and they arent. So he said that he could get probably 3 or 4 of my tapes onto one disk, bringing the cost down a lot.
He has a studio all set up with Macs, and said I could bring the tapes up anytime, and go thru some of them, to see what is on them timewise. He could give me a closer price then.
I dont want to do any editing myself, though he said I could sit at his desk and do that if I wanted. Its an hour drive from our house, so I think I shall just send him the tapes, or we can drive them up there, and let him do the work.
Its worth that to me to have them done correctly. And I would have to buy the Roxio software and a connector box or cables, and our camera is toast, so I would have to borrow one from my brother, and his is just as old and bad as mine. I think it would cost me more in stuff to buy or borrow, and in time and trouble,,,,,,,so I think if I can get them all done for about $200 I will go for it.
What do you think?
Jane

krissel · « **Reply #21 on:** November 30, 2009, 12:39:35 AM »

If you don't anticipate any more tapes needing transfer in the future, I'd say it's worth the money to save the time and aggravation of doing it yourself. If you really wanted to edit the tapes you could always rip them off the DVD, work with them and burn new DVDs.

Highmac · « **Reply #22 on:** November 30, 2009, 02:34:27 AM »

If the tapes are valuable (if it's only sentimental value), I'd be tempted to deliver them personally rather than risk mailing them. No matter how reliable your postal service, it's always the most important or irreplaceable things that lose their way....

And it gives you the chance to meet the guy face to face... you could maybe sign him up to TeeEss too!

jcarter · « **Reply #23 on:** November 30, 2009, 07:12:11 AM »

Thats what he said also, he would prefer us not to mail them, and wants to show us his studio. He said we can edit a couple of them if we wanted using his fast equipment. But its a long drive, we will have to think about it.
We would have to bring Lilly.
Thanks,
Jane

ClayEM · « **Reply #24 on:** December 01, 2009, 02:33:26 PM »

QUOTE(jcarter @ Nov 16 2009, 02:24 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

We have a lot of old VHS tapes, movies, classes, concerts,,,,,that we would like to be able to play on our new large screen Macs. Not the TV.
Is this possible?
Thanks,
Jane

Jane,

I'm a little late with this, but back in 2004 I wanted to do the same thing you're wanting to do and purchased an analog to digital converter (Hollywood Dazzle) and converted a bunch of VHS tapes by connecting them to Dazzle and feeding them to iMovie on my computer. I then was able to edit them to my heart's content.

I no longer have a use for this equipment as I now use a VHS to DVD converter for this king of stuff.

If you haven't resolved your project yet, maybe you'd be interested in taking the Hollywood Dazzle off my hands. It's been in storage now for close to 5 years and for shipping and a pittance you can have it.

Clay

jcarter · « **Reply #25 on:** December 01, 2009, 03:13:01 PM »

Oh, that would be great if the old cameras worked, and I think our VHS recorder is toast too, as the grandkids couldnt get it to work last week.
So I still would have to rent, borrow, or somehow get an older videocam, and find a VHS machine.
But thank you anyway.
Its probably easier to just send them to this guy and have him do the work. I have never used iMovie, so it would be pretty time consuming for me to try to learn to edit stuff.
Jane

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Author Topic: Is there a way to play old VHS tapes into a Mac (Read 18064 times)