Do you ever watch movies on VHS anymore?

The unfortunate thing about getting a hold of a VCR in this day and age is that they're not being made anymore and new ones now go for $400+. So that just leaves the used market and who knows how long a used one will even last for.

Perhaps it's just as well. Since VHS movies degrade over time, it's already becoming somewhat difficult to find tapes that still have relatively good image and sound quality. Every time I buy a batch of tapes, i always find that at least half of them are basically unwatchable. But when I find a good one, it's a fun time to relive the VHS experience.

That's interesting that it's a regular thing for you.

Are you finding that it's getting harder and harder to find tapes that actually can still produce a good image and sound?

Just yesterday I picked up Lawrence of Arabia (still factory sealed!) and Driving Miss Daisy from the library. Both were busts. The quality was so poor that after a few minutes I just popped them out and threw them away.

The problem with streaming, for me, is twofold:

1. You never actually own the movies and your access can be taken away at any time.

2. You don't get access to all the special features that you get on the disc, and I like the commentaries, behind-the-scenes stuff, etc.

Of course I do stream stuff. But I want to be able to own the movies that I really love and I want all the bells and whistles that come with the home video releases.

I find that if you have a tape that is still in good shape it's not too bad. But if the tape is degraded--as is often the case with VHS movies today--the quality goes off a cliff pretty quickly.

I've bought VHS movies recently that were still in the shrinkwrap and the quality was terrible. Then on the other hand I've bought uses tapes that look like they've been through the ringer and the image and sound quality ends up being pretty good. It's weird.