

Sony also introduced two machines (the VP-1100 videocassette player and the VO-1700, also called the VO-1600 video-cassette recorder) to use the new tapes. Its cartridges, resembling larger versions of the later VHS cassettes, used 3/4-inch (1.9 cm)-wide tape and had a maximum playing time of 60 minutes, later extended to 80 minutes. The result, the Sony U-matic system, introduced in Tokyo in September 1971, was the world's first commercial videocassette format. Sony demonstrated a videocassette prototype in October 1969, then set it aside to work out an industry standard by March 1970 with seven fellow manufacturers. Cassettes intended for home use were encased in black plastic, and could be rewound by a home recorder, whereas rental cassettes could not be rewound, and had to be returned to the retailer in order to be rewound. The format never became widely popular because recorders were expensive (retailing for $1,350 (equivalent to $8,899 in 2022)) and players were not available as standalone units. In 1972, videocassettes of movies became available for home use through Cartrivision.
Sony video recorder movie#
The development of the videocassette followed the replacement by cassette of other open reel systems in consumer items: the Stereo-Pak four-track audio cartridge in 1962, the compact audio cassette and Instamatic film cartridge in 1963, the 8-track cartridge in 1965, and the Super 8 home movie cartridge in 1966. It was the first fully transistorized VCR. The half-inch tape Sony model CV-2000, first marketed in 1965, was its first VTR intended for home use. An original Telcan Domestic Video Recorder can be seen at the Nottingham Industrial Museum. It recorded in black-and-white, the only format available in the UK at the time as color broadcasts were not available until BBC Two began broadcasting in color in 1967. However, there were several drawbacks as it was expensive, not easy to assemble, and could record only 20 minutes at a time. It could be purchased as a unit or in kit form for £1,337 (equivalent to £29,785 in 2021) today. It was developed by Michael Turner and Norman Rutherford. The Telcan (Television in a Can), produced by the UK Nottingham Electronic Valve Company in 1963, was the first home video recorder.

In 1963, Philips introduced its E元400 1-inch helical scan recorder, aimed at the business and domestic user, and Sony marketed the 2" PV-100, its first reel-to-reel VTR, intended for business, medical, airline, and educational use. It was first implemented in reel-to-reel videotape recorders (VTRs), and later used with cassette tapes. In 1959, Toshiba introduced a new method of recording known as helical scan, releasing the first commercial helical scan video tape recorder that year. Due to its high price of US$50,000, the Ampex VRX-1000 could be afforded only by the television networks and the largest individual stations. It became the world's first commercially successful videotape recorder using two-inch (5.1 cm) wide tape.
Sony video recorder professional#
The history of the videocassette recorder follows the history of videotape recording in general.Īmpex introduced the quadruplex videotape professional broadcast standard format with its Ampex VRX-1000 in 1956. Top-loading cassette mechanisms (such as the one on this VHS model) were common on early domestic VCRs.
