ARS Video’s video transfer services help you access the precious memories you’ve saved without damaging the tapes. While larger institutions such as Costco or Walgreens offer their VHS conversion services to convert VHS to digital, your videos represent your memories and your history—both of which deserve special consideration when deciding where to take your tapes. Costco for example, unknown to most customers, does not do their video digitization process in-house but farms-out their work to another company off-site. ARS Video concentrates on converting VHS video tapes to digital – as well as other video formats such as VHS-C, Hi-8, miniDV, and BetaMax. This is our specialty, not just an add-on service. 

Choosing ARS Video for Converting VHS to Digital Video

The technology used to record home videos has undergone many advancements and changes over the past few decades. Many people still own old VHS tapes, as well as cassettes, 8mm film, Betamax, VHS-C, and camcorder tapes, and it isn’t easy to find machines that can still replay those formats. Often, the content on these tapes is more valuable now than when it was originally recorded. Fortunately, these memories are not lost to time; they simply need to be converted into a format that can be saved onto a hard drive and played on your computer or modern television. Enter media digitization!

A.R.S. started as a labor of love, much like many of the videos we convert for our customers. Our family-owned company started after we bought a video conversion machine in the late 1980s. We quickly used this digital converter to start a business that modernized memories as a part-time business. To this day, we take the process personally, whether we are converting 8mm tapes, or, more commonly, VHS tapes, to digital files that can be viewed on computers or televisions and even uploaded online for viewing on tablets and phones where ever you are. Converting VHS to digital makes access and playback simple and enjoyable for all viewers!

Why Trust ARS Video to Convert Your VHS Tapes to Digital?

Customer Service has always been central to our business and we stay on top of our game by keeping up with the most modern technological advancements. Today our equipment is capable of transforming video formats such as VHS, VHS-C, Super VHS, S-VHS-C, Hi-8, and BetaMax into high-definition digital files. We can also transfer videotapes from standard definition to high definition. Once the transfer is complete, each customer is provided with a flash drive formatted to be easily used on a computer or television, as well as returning the original video format to you. If you still prefer a digital copy in DVD format, we can provide it in addition to a USB drive.

Costco VHS Transfer Services

Many well-known organizations offer VHS Transfer Services, each with their own process. Costco, for example, has a service that will convert VHS to digital DVDs – this is an outsourced service to a third-party company. Accordingly, Costco mails VHS tapes to Georgia to be converted and returns them to customers once they have been shipped back to their store. Much of Costco’s conversion process is done offsite.

Walgreens VHS Transfer Services

Having VHS tapes converted at Walgreens is also a unique process. Some stores have photo and video kiosks, but they aren’t available everywhere. Most often, it takes between three and five weeks before you receive your new DVD. Like Costco’s conversion services, they often ship the original tapes offsite.

Convert Your VHS Memories with ARS Video Today

Conversion services for VHS tapes and other video formats are limited across the country. Many organizations that provide digital conversion services can’t work with older video tapes if they are too outdated at all.

You want to keep close tabs on your memories and family history. Chances are, this is a big reason you are taking the time to convert your old VHS tapes to digital in the first place – so that current and future generations can enjoy home videos of their relatives. You don’t want to risk your tapes getting lost, and you want to be able to keep tabs on the process with a digitization company that cares about the service they are providing, the way that you care about your recorded memories. At ARS , we are determined to make your experience worthwhile, and our customers strongly appreciate the conversion & transfer services that we provide.

Contact us today so that we can get started protecting your precious memories, or visit our process page to learn more about how we convert VHS to digital formats. We look forward to using our skills and technology to convert your VHS tapes to digital format for the long haul of the 21^st century!

Sean McCreary

The post Convert VHS to Digital Format with ARS Video appeared first on A.R.S. Video.

Regarding the legality of converting Disney VHS tapes, this can be quite tricky. Individual tape owners can typically only convert a Disney tape to DVD or MP4 format if they legally own that tape, the movie is out of production and not available for purchase in any alternative form, and they will not be distributed in any method. This is a very rare set of conditions, and as a result most of the time the truth is that the conversion of these tapes is most often legally prohibited.

Here at ARS Video, we are often asked if we can convert Disney tapes, and the ultimate answer is no, unfortunately, we cannot, due to these copyright restrictions. We are more than capable of converting any home-recorded videos that you may own, whether on VHS, 8MM, or any other camcorder tape. So, if you have any home-recorded videos that you need converted, please do not hesitate to reach out to us.

What is Macrovision Copy Protection?

One of the reasons why you may have issues converting a Disney VHS cassette to a DVD is that there is something called Macrovision copy protection on the videotape. This is a major barrier that needs to be overcome without damaging the tape in the process.

Macrovision copy protection is the most common type of video protection in the world. When a tape is played on the video player, there is a signal that goes from the player to the television. Macrovision is used to insert pulses or spikes into the signal which may not be seen by the individual watching the tape. On the other hand, if a tape is actually copied to another file, then the spikes might render the film unwatchable.

Even though Macrovision will not actually stop you from obtaining a copy of the video, it may make the content unwatchable. This was inserted on VHS cassettes to prevent people from illegally pirating VHS tapes when this video format was popular. On the other hand, if you are simply trying to convert a VHS to a DVD, this may seem like an unnecessary barrier.

What is PAL Video?

PAL (Phase Alternating Line) was developed in Germany and is the analog TV color system used in Europe and compatible with European VHS and DVD players. Here in the US, we use NTSC (National Television Standards Committee.) These two formats are not compatible with each other so if you have a PAL tape or DVD, you need to have it converted to NTSC before you can use it in a player purchased in the US. If a relative form Europe sends you a VHS or DVD, chances are you won’t be able to view them on your players here. ARS Video has the equipment to make the necessary format conversion so you can enjoy them.

When purchasing Disney VHS or DVDs online, make sure that you are buying them in NTSC format. If you purchase them in PAL (of which there are many) you will not be able to view them on your players.

Get Professional Help with Your VHS Tape Conversions

If you are looking for help with your personal VHS cassette conversions, then we are here to help you. We are ARS Video, and we have an unparalleled level of experience when it comes to converting tapes to more modern video formats, such as a MP4 video files. We are going to work with you closely to make sure that we protect your memories and personal videos as we complete this process. Additionally, we will keep you updated every step of the way and will provide you with the original material back.

Don’t let your memories fade away in outdated formats. Give us a call toll-free at 844-353-2255 or contact us by filling out the form here and discover how we can help you convert your personal VHS tapes and more. We’re excited to assist you in preserving your cherished videos – let’s bring your memories back to life!

Sean McCreary

The post Can You Convert a Disney VHS Tape to DVD? appeared first on A.R.S. Video.