We were fully prepared to start harshing on VHS as a dead-end technology that never went anywhere during its time in retail (as a joke, of course), and out of nowhere, a bona fide tear slowly ran down our left cheek. Today, friends, is a day worth remembering. Today truly marks the
end of an era, as so far as we can tell, JVC really was the only company still producing
standalone VCRs. Of course, the outfit will continue to serve customers with a need to play back VHS tapes by offering up
DVD / VHS combo units, but those looking for a shiny new slice of retro in 2008 will be out of luck after remaining inventories dry up. All told, over 900 million VCRs were produced worldwide, with 50 million of those boasting a JVC label. We simply couldn't think of a more fitting way to put the iconic VCR (which
just turned 30 in 2005) to bed than by hosting up a poll (
over on Engadget Classic) and soliciting your input -- here's hoping the videocassette lives on in your domicile in one form or another, even if it's just the resident dust collector.
[Via
Impress]
posted Dec 23rd 2008 at 2:10AM 
