VHS

Full-size VHS tapes (left) and compact VHS-C tapes (right)
A typical VHS VCR

VHS (short for Video Home System) is a system that uses a videocassette tape to record video and sound, which can be watched on a television. A DVD/VHS combo can record (write) on VHS tapes, read off VHS tapes, and additionally, read from DVD discs. A few can also record on DVD. VHS was so popular that during the 1990s, the terms "videocassette", "videotape", or even just "video" usually referred to the VHS format.

VHS cassettes can be recorded using a video camera. They can also be recorded with a videocassette recorder, or VCR. A VCR can use a VHS cassette to record broadcast television.

This system was created in 1976 by the Victor Company of Japan (also called JVC). VHS was a very popular way for people to record and play video at home in the 1980s and 1990s, but now DVD (Digital Versatile Disc) and Blu-ray have become more popular as they can be easier to use, the quality is higher, they last longer, and the discs and players are cheaper to make. VHS VCRs, as well as blank tapes and pre-recorded VHS movies, are no longer made, except for blank tapes that are still widely available as new/old stock.


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