Whether it’s old home video footage or an old video reel you’ve come across, here are a few ways you can see what’s on the film, even if you don’t have an 8mm projector on hand. The methods we’ll highlight are using a magnifying glass and a light source, using a digital film scanner, and using professional digitization service.
This Hi-8 Video Cassette Recorder is available over eBay and would set you back by at least close to USD 400 including shipping. The Hi-8 player comes with an S-Video out and composite stereo outputs and it has three line outs. As you may be well aware, 8mm video equipment is no longer in production.
Play Hi-8 Tapes Without a Camcorder: Quick Options
At Costco you’ll pay $20 for up to 2 hours of VHS content. At Walgreens the cost is $35 for one tape-to-DVD conversion. (Blu-rays are more expensive.) You can start your order online, then take your tapes to a local store.
How Do I Transfer Hi-8 Tapes to Computer?
Enjoy your digitized video tapes on our Forever Cloud or get a personalized keepsake USB box to enjoy. Your USB video capture device most likely came with the capture software that integrates with it. If it did not there is free video capture software out there like VirtualDub, which many of the “techies” prefer due to the number of setup options, but might be a bit difficult for a newbie. Keep in mind that when you start the conversion, the process will take about as long as the footage on your tapes. So, if you have an hour of footage, the conversion will take about an hour. If you have hours upon hours of footage and stacks of 8mm tapes, expect to spend that long converting your tapes to digital. Of course, there are some video capture cards offer good quality video capture.
Read more about hi8 to digital here.
They were designed for lightweight camcorders that most consumers could buy and use at home. But some people still have stacks filled up with these old cartridges, which are taking over much-needed space for other things. While the film is being scanned and converted, you can view the footage on the scanner’s display or connect the scanner to a monitor or TV using the provided cable. Once the media arrives at the service, you will be notified of its arrival. If any additional details are required or if there are any questions or concerns, the service’s support team will contact you to clarify and address them.