Gotta tape the latest episodes of Mork and Mindy.

How amazing that Betamax has lasted this long.

think plenty thought it was very dead

And it's not even Wednesday yet.

I'm sure the info's out there, but I'm too lazy to look it up right now.

at least until digital finally became the standard. Much higher quality.

VHS won out because consumers valued length over quality, which was Sony's mis-bet for the consumer market, but pros ran beta for years. VHS was like a sad sister, quality-wise.

Professional-grade Betamax cameras, on the other hand, enjoyed a much longer life in the news industry.

They could have had the whole market to themselves just offering a 6 hour low-quality picture. They could have sped VHS demise with an 8 hour practically sound only. But, no.

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

foreshadowing things like the move from land lines to cell phones (not merely as travel phones, but as landline replacements), or choosing to listen to music as MP3s.

But Sony would never have beaten VHS in playing time... the VHS cassette was bigger and simply held more tape.

A two hour tape did fine in each of them, the Beta being a little better visual quality, more TV lines, and quicker responding not having to find those diagonally lain magnetic lines. The very same 2 hour tapes could be slowed to 4 hours of play, and VHS just slowed it further to 6 hours. The quality was awful at 6 hours, but the sound was nearly perfect especially when they put it with the video making it CD quality. 20-20,000Hz in stereo. (MP3s are even better.) I recorded my radio programs with any old channel of broadcast TV. TV off. Stereo system on. Listen to 6 hours of uninterrupted sound.

That tape that held two hours for either, held even more information in Betamax. All it would have taken is for someone to say: Do it. And, Sony would have had 6 and even 8 hour play times.

People would have gone to Detroit's Highland Appliance and listened to them say that either will do 6 hours, but Betamax has better quality in each mode. SOLD!

Instead, it was marginally better quality versus much more recording time. Making it more versatile, cheaper to use. Six hours on the same expensive tape. SOLD!

Finally, with everyone buying the cheaper more versatile machines (VHS), everything from movies to porn had to distribute to the most number of machines out there.

From wikipedia (I know),

Worked with all 3 and while Type C was primo sweet, Beta was convenient, housed securely and superior to VHS.

sad to find they are pretty much toast as well.

Having followed the tape market during the 70s and 80s, VHS won the war simply because Deep Throat, Debbie Does Dallas, Behind the Green Door and other "classics" could be put on one VHS tape vs 2 Beta tapes. I remember reading a study where the first three tapes bought along with a VHS player were the above mentioned titles.

It was all over for Betamax.

Plus, VHS machines were cheaper than Betamax players.

VHS tapes recorded 6 hours.