One thing that a lot of older generations have a lot of still is print photographs, slides, and video tapes. Not so common with younger folks who predominantly take photographs and video with their mobile devices or, if really getting into photography or film, doing so with digital devices, print photography was still very much a standby up until the late 2000s. As a result, a good number of folks, realizing they want to share their family history or at least preserve them better than the quickly fading examples they have, are moving to bulk digitizing. Legacybox has been a big name in this field, advertising the ability to digitize entire collections of all types and return them with a full digital format, including touch-up and improvement if asked for. That said, send a sample to Legacybox and test their service, it is not the only game in town.

Is Legacybox Owned by Kodak?

In a word, no. Kodak actually competes with Legacybox for the same services. Yes, the famous camera and film company is still around. In fact, it got a huge infusion of funding with government support to produce chemicals needed for COVID vaccine development. However, the company still plays in the photography business. While you won’t see yellow Kodak film boxes everywhere these days, Kodak is still available for mail-in photography development services. In fact, the company was in the business courier development long before the Internet. They just retooled their operations to go the other way, converting existing prints, film, and negatives to digital copies now. They handle everything from audio tapes to medium format film and prints. All you need to do is order a pre-paid container, fill it to the brim, ship it out to Kodak’s receipt address, and the work begins converting the whole collection to digital.

Kodak provides a very competitive job too. They cover the gamut in helping with shipping, including packaging materials, and they deal with all major film and tape formats. They even deal with VHS and Betamax. The turnaround on an order is usually a month to two months, depending on the work, which is directly comparative to Legacybox. And, to add a competitive edge, Kodak is slightly cheaper in cost for its prepaid development service. Not by much, but it’s enough to wrinkle Legacybox’s marketing nose.

Is Southtree the Same as Legacy Box?

Another in the market of digitizing family photos, Southtree could easily be compared to Legacybox in terms of service type. The company generally offers multiple format conversions from physical form to digital files. Similar to Legacybox, Southtree also arranges for the shipping after the order is confirmed and paid for by the consumer. That comes in the form of a shipping box with lots of marketing pizzazz and plenty of website content support. That said, every order and package sent in goes to one place, the main processing plant in Tennessee. To compete with other players like Legacybox and Kodak, Southtree tries to play the price war and offer its services at a cheaper price point than the competitors. However, they really do end up supporting the old phrase, “you get what you pay for.” Their profile on Yelp somewhat speaks for itself in terms of a high number of less-than-stellar ratings. Their locations, web sites, and DVD labeling look uncommonly similar.

Is iMemories legitimate?

The company does operate legitimately, and iMemories goes a bit further than other competitors by combining digitizing services with image repair as well. Folks will realize as they go through old photographs, many are faded or they are damaged physically by folding, tears, stains, or physical damage. This repair service is also extended to film and video resources to be converted to digital as well. That’s not something other services automatically offer.

The company has a bit of a performance record under its belt. Some 35 million images have been processed and digitized by iMemories, and users have a significant amount of flexibility with the service to review, watch and share their images via the Internet with others through the service as well. The company also touts its safety record in never having lost an image or damaged one either. That’s not something other competitors can immediately compare to, like above.

IMemories made a point of partnering with FedEx for all of its incoming and outgoing shipping right from the start, as well as using a high-density box design that provides incredibly sturdy protection in shipping. Instead of stories with packages crushed, banging or damaged, all iMemories shipments have been fully tracked from send to destination as well as arrived in solid, top condition as well. And the end product is provided in Blu-Ray disc, DVD, and similar high-storage digital formats for convenient archiving and transfer.

How Much Does It Cost to Use Legacybox?

A single order for Legacybox will cost a prepaid charge of about $50 in most marketing messages. However, that’s only the base cost to get started. It generally pays for two items, which are either one film, one video, or a small package of 25 photo prints. This price is normally $59.99 for the processing, but the company is discounting it to $30. Sounds like a deal, but then there is the fee for how you want to access the product. That’s right, you only pay for the processing; a customer actually has to pay extra for the actual access. An additional $6 charge is applied for every option of one-time download, an annual access download, a thumb drive, or a CD disc set. By the time one is done with a robust conversion, the cost is more like $200-$600 for a full collection conversion, which most families typically have. Budget-conscious consumers end up having to filter their memories for just the particular photographs and video or two they want to convert at a time.

ARS Video, Inc Digital Conversion Service

First off, ARS Video is family-owned, so there’s a perspective in the company that matches the nature of the customer. You’re digitizing images to save memories for your family and to share them with future generations. ARS management fundamentally builds and maintains its business model around this important premise.

In terms of initial delivery and review, there is no mail-only relationship. They answer their phones. ARS Video can receive collections in person or via courier, including tracking and updating on when the materials are received and when they will be shipped back. There is no prepay nonsense; ARS reviews the package and then contacts the customer with a real quote what it will take to produce a high-quality digital conversion. This customizes pricing to the customer specifically. The customer only pays at pickup or when complete and ready to ship back without any surprises.

All film and video content are converted to high definition 1920×1080 digital files to match modern displays and computer viewers. The storage format of either a flash drive that plays on your TV and PC or DVD is included in the price. There is no extra ala carte charges or surprise fees. The digital files are also backed up onsite for future copies at no additional cost. Videos are costed by the hour, and physical film by the foot. ARS also provides discounted pricing for bulk orders as well, providing additional savings for big collections.

ARS is not a fly-by-night either. The company has been dealing with film transfer work since the late 1980s, naturally migrating to digital conversion as it became the primary mode of storage. Based in the Ohio Valley, ARS continues to serve customers and memories faithfully, providing a very viable alternative to unknown shipping companies and poor-quality digitization. They are also members of the Society of American Archivists and can provide archive level quality. When your memories matter, ARS is ready to help. Call them, they will pick up the phone.