If you used a video recorder to document family memories in the 1970s, 80s, and 90s, you need to digitize those memories as soon as possible. Not only will it get harder to find a compatible player to watch them, but if you keep your VHS tapes, the videos will deteriorate over time. Modern technology can preserve and enhance your VHS tapes, but you need to take the first steps to digitize your family memories before it’s too late. Here are a few reasons to digitize videotapes, whether it’s on your own or through a video transfer service, and why you should start this project now.
1. VHS Tapes Degrade Over Time
Your VHS tapes will not keep forever. Even if you store your tapes in optimal conditions (placing them in a cool, dry place with controlled humidity) they will break down over the years. Most VHS tapes lose 10-20 percent of their quality over 10 to 25 years. This deterioration might not be noticeable at first, but if you have videotapes from the 1990s and earlier, they will be more fragile and have a lower quality viewing experience today.
Now is the time to digitize videotapes before they break down more. The sooner you send us your VHS tapes and other recordings, the sooner we can preserve them in digital format so the quality remains the same for years to come.
2. Your Tapes Could Unexpectedly Get Damaged
There are two ways for you to lose your video memories: they can wear out over time or they can get damaged unexpectedly. While no one wants to think about a natural disaster affecting their home, you can never be too careful. Even if you have a hurricane evacuation plan or tornado shelter, your home could sustain damage from Mother Nature. Unexpected home problems ranging from severe house fires to simple plumbing leaks can also damage your family memories.
When you digitize videotapes and other memories, you can store the content on the cloud. No matter what hardware or boxes get damaged in your house, your memories will be safe.
3. VHS Players are Harder to Find
Another reason to consider digitizing videotapes is so they are easier to access. Most TVs on today’s market don’t come with VHS technology built in. You will either have to use an existing VHS player that you own or you will have to buy one. As DVD usage and video streaming increase in popularity, it gets harder to find VHS players each year.
Even if you do keep your VHS tapes, you can’t rely on VHS players to watch your family memories forever. This option makes it hard to share your memories with other relatives – especially those who live outside of your city. If something happens to your VHS player, it could actually damage your videotapes.
By taking the first steps to digitize videotapes, you can guarantee that you will always be able to watch the content with modern video tools.
You aren’t just digitizing your memories for yourself. You are also starting this project so family members and friends can see the footage again. If you have held on to these VHS tapes since you first made the recordings, it’s possible that some family members haven’t seen the footage in years – or even decades. By digitizing videotapes, you can easily send the footage to anyone who would be interested in seeing it.
There’s never a bad time to tell someone that you love them. Sharing memories allows you to reconnect with friends and family members through the video footage. Seeing these videos again might create a bright spot in their world that they need right now.
5. Digitize Videotapes to Declutter Your Home
When you digitize videotapes, you have an opportunity to create space in your home. While our team at Memory Fortress will always return the VHS tapes and original recordings you send us, it’s your choice whether you want to keep them once you have your digital files. Some people digitize their memories so they can throw out their old VHS tapes and declutter their living areas.
Now could be a good time to digitize videotapes if you need to sell your home and move. If you are downsizing, or simply don’t want to move boxes of tapes from one house to another, you can store the videos on a USB drive or in a cloud-based file. Even if you aren’t planning to move, think about how much space you could free up if all of your VHS tapes were stored digitally.
Use Memory Fortress to Digitize Videotapes
The easiest way to digitize videotapes and other family memories is to ship your VHS tapes to Memory Fortress. We have a variety of digital tools to scan and preserve your video content. We will return your VHS tapes to you while preserving your memories in the cloud, on DVDs, or on USB drives.
Memory Fortress can handle any digitization project, no matter how big or small. Whether you have a handful of VHS tapes to preserve or need to digitize hundreds of videos, we’ve got you covered.
Start your order to tell us how many videos we should expect. For only $29 down you can take the first steps to digitize videotapes and protect your family memories.
We digitize everything right here at our facility in metro Atlanta, processed by US citizens.