Panasonic has finally stopped making VCRs for its domestic market. The company disclosed that it ceased production of the outdated tape-based recording and playback devices at the end of last year. Once its existing inventory is exhausted, the company will stop selling the players in Japan.
Distribution Video Audio, a Florida-based distributor of old, seemingly unwanted products such as unsold novels, forgotten fan boy memorabilia and, now, VHS tapes, has shipped the very last load of VHS tapes back in October. The format, which required VCRs to play and record, was first brought into homes with somewhat affordably-priced VCRs from a handful of manufacturers back in 1965. This marks the end of an era that allowed users to time-shift shows the old-fashioned way, by recording them to a video tape for watching later.
In its second major wave of CES announcements, JVC has pulled the wraps off several new camcorders, and a collection of DVD/VCR combo devices. The camcorders are led by the 7.4-megapixel Everio GZ-MG730, which holds a 30GB hard drive, and uses a CCD sensor with a primary color filter. The main feature is said to be its double-use as a still camera, since it not only incorporates flash, but also shutter and aperture priority modes, exposure bracketing, backlight and spotlight compensation, and a histogram view.
