Way back when my kids were smolls (94 to 96/7) I had a video camera, Korean make I cannot remember that took the equivalent of my Dad's cine film on 8mm cassettes. They're branded as video 8.
Got maybe four or five cassettes of either 60 or 90 minute duration. Been trying to work out how to view and/or digitise/edit them.
The camera itself is kaput. Charged up the battery (NiCad) loaded cassette ant turned on but it wouldn't load and emitted considerable quantities of smoke.
ISTR there were adaptors to play them in a domestic VHS player - I have one in the loft if it works but any attempt to find such an adapter sends me down a rabbit hole of analogue (which mine will be) and digital formats.
Any attempt to locate a stand alone player sends me to 8mm film formats. I've load of that stuff too that came from Dad but that's another question for another day.
Has anybody else had the same issue and what solutions have they found?
TIA - Simon.
Last edited by: Bromptonaut on Thu 23 Nov 23 at 15:18
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...back in the day I had a VHS-C camcorder. The tapes from that certainly worked (via an adapter) in a standard VHS recorder/player, I'm not sure that Video8 would have been compatible, though.
Whilst we still had a working player, I digitised the tapes to DVD via a conversion kit, and subsequently I've 'ripped' the DVDs to the PC on HDD.
Given the uncertainties, the potential cost of any kit to make it work, and the fact that it appears that you have a small number of tapes, would it make sense to use a specialist conversion service? (once digitised on DVD it's not difficult to do further work on them). There are a number of services around at not significant unit cost.
(We had some of my FiL's 8mm film converted thus some years ago, and whilst it lost some quality it was worth it as an archive - now on HDD).
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If you don't know anyone with a working camera to transfer to a computer, there are people who offer transfer services for around £15/tape.
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Further reading suggests that the video 8 to VHS adapter is a myth or a misremember. There were compact VHS tapes as referenced by TnE but vid 8 was technically completely different to VHS.
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I used to use a sony Hi 8 camera that I bought in about 1998, (I was working with Sony at the time - the staff discount was delightful) The quality was fab, (even by todays standards) and I still have a box of film on hi 8 cassettes. I managed to digitise them with a dongle, about 10 years ago.
Working Hi 8 players are now at a premium on ebay. You are right, there were things called video 8 to VHS adaptor carts, but they not actually for the Video 8/ hi 8 cassette. No idea how they got that name.
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Video 8 Cassettes - tyrednemotional
