Obsolete Technology--Super-VHS Tape

Super VHS (S-VHS) tape introduced in 1987 by JVC Corporation of Japan. It was marketed as an improvement to the existing VHS standard, capable of displaying recorded material at a vertical resolution of 420 lines. This was the result of an improved magnetic tape oxide coating that recorded a higher-quality luminance signal to the tape, which was the same size as a regular VHS tape. The recording format for S-VHS was viewable on S-VHS equipment, as well as on VCRs with a special added feature that enabled S-VHS playback. However, the same tape could be recorded upon in VHS mode, and played back in any VCR, so the media itself was backwards-compatible. VHS tapes could be played back on S-VHS equipment--however, the image quality still looked like VHS.

This technology innovation yielded a 60% improvement in image quality over VHS, which could reproduce images at 240 lines under optimum recording/playback conditions. It competed favorably with the analog laser video disc in terms of picture quality, although it still lacked such capabilities as freeze-framing (without damaging the tape) and searchable chapters.

As the NTSC television standard displays of the time were capable of 525 lines of vertical resolution (and most broadcast signals were sent out at about 330 lines of resolution), this improvement was initially well-received. VHS had created the ability to "time-shift" broadcasts to fit the consumer's schedule, and the ability to record and play back one's favorite shows had made the VHS video-cassette recorder a standard part of many households.

However. analog laser disc technology was beginning to emerge (and quickly morphed into DVD technology), VHS had won the "Format War" with Sony's Betamax format, and consumers were ambivalent about upgrading their VHS technology for an improvement that was better, but not compellingly so. Sony took sufficient notice of this technology to introduce a potential competitor, ED-Beta, which delivered slightly improved video quality and actually competed with their own professional Betacam format. However, when consumer acceptance didn't happen, Sony quickly discontinued their competition and a format war 2.0 was avoided.

S-VHS recording got limited acceptance and use in the consumer market. In the professional market, it had a slightly longer run, as the tape was not excessively expensive, and the recording quality allowed for the capture of images that could be edited and copied onto VHS tapes at a higher resolution than VHS was capable of displaying, giving the best possible video image. The tape did not lend itself to reuse, as its condition would deteriorate quickly once it had been re-recorded over several times. However, TV and news organizations used S-VHS as a medium for fast and cheap acquisition and editing purposes until digital tape became affordable and available.

S-VHS recording was replaced by digital video standards such as D-VHS, DV, Digital S (D-9), Digi-Beta, Beta SX, DVCAM, DVCPRO, and DVCPRO-50. All of these recording media used a digital encoding system of recording, and would reproduce a standard-definition image that ranged between 450-850 lines of resolution. Beyond that point is considered high-definition, and the modes and technologies change substantially.

Reference

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S-VHS

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