[PJ-Comix]

I remember that the VHS format was pretty much dead by the end of 2004 but what was the first year that DVD surpassed VHS as a format?

[Snickering Hound]

First Sony DVD player was $1100.

[KC_Conspirator]

Interesting.

[Zarro]

Informal poll: who still owns a VHS player? I do!

[Dilbert San Diego]

I remember how video stories started getting DVDs. They switched from VHS. But I never understand why video stores went out of business entirely.

[Quality_Not_Quantity]

Bonus question: What do the letters in ‘DVD’ stand for?

[Responsibility2nd]

I remember video stores. Then the DVD’s replaced VHS tapes and now? No more video stores.

[Dalberg-Acton]

The video compression used in DVDs has been improved on a lot in the last few years, and the resolutions are much higher.

[IYAS9YAS]

When I bought my first DVD player in 1998, it cost me the princely sum of $400 plus tax. The store (Fred Meyer in Coeur d'Alene, ID) was giving away a free promotion with every DVD player purchase. A VHS copy of "Titanic"... I still have the first DVD I bought with the player - "A Christmas Story".

[stylin19a]

too funny here

from 2001 - touting VHS over DVD

http://www.adequacy.org/stories/2001.8.24.112921.289.html

[Larry Lucido]

I remember LP-sized Laser-discs at Blockbuster back in 1994.

[ADemocratNoMore]

A few folks have posted about Laser Disks. I had an MCA Discovision player in the early 80’s and it was the high definition video format back in it's day. It was much better than VHS and given the right source material the picture was the the 80’s equivalent of 4k today.

I have two Japanese demo disks that were shot on film and high-end SD video equipment as well as the experimental NHK analog HD video cameras down-converted to SD and the images were, and are still stunning. While obviously not having the resolution of even a standard DVD there was something about the analog video signal that, to me has not been matched until the 4k revolution.

The best thing about DVDs and BDs IMHO is that they are recordable and playable in stand-alone home hardware. 4k still has a few too many flavors for me to consider a homebrew disk to be playable on every type of monitor.