Why would anyone buy a widescreen VHS? (1 Viewer)

[Joshua Clinard]

I was looking though the product page for Lord of the Rings: Two Towers, on Amazon.com and I noticed that there was a widescreen VHS under "other formats"! I was very suprised. I didn't think that the studios would still be releasing titles on VHS in widescreen, except for the directors that insist on ONLY releasing their films widescreen, even on VHS, like the Miyazaki films. But for Lord of the Rings, they are also selling a Pan & Scan VHS. This must mean that some people are still buying Widescreen videos. That sounds insane to me! Why would someone do that, when DVD is so much better? Do you know anyone who buys widescreen vidoes? If so, I'd like to hear about it. And if not, why do you think someone would buy a widescreen VHS? I can only think of one reason, and that's that they may not have a DVD player, but you can get a cheap one at Wal-Mart for 40 bucks now.

There were also a few other widescreen VHS's listed in the Top Sellers.

 

[Mike Frezon]

Hi Joshua!

I own a widescreen VHS copy of Oklahoma. But, that was before I got my DVD player. I'm also a guy who picked Beta over VHS back in the 80s. So I might give some people the benefit of the doubt that they prefer widescreen but are slow coming to the digital table. And, yes, I did upgrade to the DVD of Oklahoma.

 

[Andrew_Sch]

I guess there's a possibility that there are SOME people out there without a DVD player who still appreciate the value of seeing a film in its OAR. Why these folks haven't bought a DVD player, I don't know, but at least a few of them must exist somewhere.

 

[GabrielleG]

I have the Star Wars set on VHS widescreen. We also bought LOTR for my roommates grandparents on widescreen ( I refuse to buy the full) VHS. They have no intrest in dvds.

Gabrielle

 

[Joshua Clinard]

Well, I understand why someone would buy a widescreen VHS set of Star Wars. It doesn't exist on DVD (legal). I own the Star Wars SE widescreen VHS set myself. But for someone to buy a widescreen VHS of LOTR, which can be had for less than 20 bucks at Wal-Mart on DVD? Now that, I don't undertand.

By the way, the Widescreen VHS set of Star Wars SE must be back in print again, because I noticed Amazon has copies of it for sale again. It was out of print for almost two years I think, so all those that tried to get it couldn't, unless they purchased it used. I was looking to buy the set myself, but I got it from a member here.

 

[GabrielleG]

But for someone to buy a widescreen VHS of LOTR, which can be had for less than 20 bucks at Wal-Mart? Now that, I don't undertand.


No interest in dvd's = No dvd player = Widescreen vhs.

No matter how cheap the DVD might be at Wal-mart, if it can't be watched, it's a waste of money.

Gabrielle

 

[Jason Seaver]

It happens. My parents, for instance, didn't have DVD players until I gave them as Christmas gifts, but my youngest brother likes widescreen, so he bought widescreen VHS when he could.

Some folks just have trouble justifying any new hardware, even when it's hit the sub-$100 range DVD players have. Or they might have one, but not one in every bedroom (yet). My grandparents fit that description (of course, they don't buy many movies). There are also still a few places VCRs get used that DVDs don't so much (in-car entertainment systems come to mind).

 

[Josh Steinberg]

There are some films avaliable on widescreen VHS that have not made their way to DVD yet.

Before I had a DVD player, whenever possible, my VHS tapes were widescreen editions.

For current films: people are still buying and renting videotapes. I had a teacher in high school who was a great film fan, but as I've kept in touch with him over the years, as of now he doesn't have a DVD player. Why not? Because he doesn't purchase films, and because on average he'll sit down to watch one video every week. When possible, a widescreen version will be rented. Makes sense to me. Much the same way that SACDs are supposed to be of superior quality to regular CDs, yet most people don't have an SACD player.

 

[Tom Tsai]

Well, for people that don't have a DVD player, buying Widescreen VHS is better than buying Fullscreen VHS of LOTR.

 

[DaveyM]

I bought The Hitcher on a widescreen Vhs at K-mart last week. I couldnt pass it up, i remembered seeing the movie years ago and when i saw it was the ws edition and only cost $2.99 i grabbed it.

Davey M.

 

[Topher]

Why would you care what other people are doing anyway? It's called free will. Why do people anything? I don't understand the movement around here to have everyone doing and acting the same way. Live and let live dude.

 

[ZacharyTait]

I remember, before I found out about DVD, I bought Lawrence of Arabia and Blade Runner on VHS in widescreen. I found them in the bottom of a clearance bin at Blockbuster for $4.99 each. Best thing was, they were both still shrinkwrapped. One of the best deals I've ever come across on either VHS or DVD.

 

[Adam_WM]

Back when they were still in their own business, I used to order my VHS movies from reel.com ... in Widescreen!!!

 

[Matt Pelham]

I had a fairly extensive VHS collection (around 140ish) and probaby 1/3 of them were in widescreen. This thread brings back some memories. Back in middle school when I became aware of the WS/FS difference a Laserdisc player was just an item of fantasy, I knew I'd never own one. I used to dream about having a laserdisc and watching special features and *gasp* maybe even an audio commentary!

So I settled for the next best thing, widescreen VHS tapes. I remember that it was always harder to find widescreen VHS (commonly referred to as "letterbox") and they were usually more expensive than their Pan+Scan counterparts. New VHS tapes usually went for $12.99, the widescreen versions were always $14.99 or $16.99, which was pretty significant to a 14 year old.

The best part was, it was such a treat to watch a movie in widescreen! It was amazing; now I'm so spoiled that I flat out refuse to watch non-OAR films period. Every movie I want to see I can get in widescreen, sometimes I don't even realize how fortunate I am for DVDs!

 

[David Von Pein]

Well, I understand why someone would buy a widescreen VHS set of Star Sars. ....

I hear that that "SARS" can be deadly if you're afflicted.

"Star SARS" must be out of this world in its deadliness!

By-the-by .... I, too, can lay claim to owning a Widescreen Star Wars set. Interesting to see it's back on Amazon's shelves for sale ($39.98).

I got mine (sealed copy) off E-Bay last year for $21 (shipped). What's the going rate off E-Bay for this rare product these days?

 

[Patrick McCart]

Widescreen VHS is a wonderful thing.

I got to see Lawrence of Arabia on VHS first since the DVD didn't come out for another year when I first saw it. Should I have settled for the pan & scan, unrestored tape?