Tech - News The Real Reason Betamax Lost The Format Wars By ELI SHAYOTOVICH

The skirmish between Betamax and Video Home System (VHS) began brewing in the 1970s, but it wasn’t until commercial videotape players became affordable to the general public that the war erupted. Sony was convinced that its Betamax tape format was a far superior quality recording — and it wasn't wrong. { "selector": "[data-custom-animation-id=\"fly-in-top-0-0.65\"]", "--x": "0", "--y": "calc(-100 * 1vh - height())", "animations": [ { "duration": "0s", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"} ] }, { "delay": "0s", "duration": "0.65s", "easing": "cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(0, 0)"} ] } ] } { "selector": "[data-custom-animation-id=\"fly-in-bottom-0-0.65\"]", "--x": "0", "--y": "calc(100 * 1vh + height())", "animations": [ { "duration": "0s", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"} ] }, { "delay": "0s", "duration": "0.65s", "easing": "cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(0, 0)"} ] } ] } Read Full Story

Sony's format had an overall better image with more vibrant colors, remained more stable when fast-forwarding or rewinding, and was physically smaller. Betamax also had better resolution, clocking in at 333 x 486 with 250 lines of horizontal resolution compared to VHS tapes at 320 x 486 and only 240 lines. { "selector": "[data-custom-animation-id=\"fly-in-top-0-0.65\"]", "--x": "0", "--y": "calc(-100 * 1vh - height())", "animations": [ { "duration": "0s", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"} ] }, { "delay": "0s", "duration": "0.65s", "easing": "cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(0, 0)"} ] } ] } { "selector": "[data-custom-animation-id=\"fly-in-bottom-0-0.65\"]", "--x": "0", "--y": "calc(100 * 1vh + height())", "animations": [ { "duration": "0s", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"} ] }, { "delay": "0s", "duration": "0.65s", "easing": "cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(0, 0)"} ] } ] } Read Full Story

Betamax tapes initially could only record up to one hour, while the VHS format allowed up to two hours. Sony was convinced that no one would need or want to record longer than an hour because it had been a television standard for so many years, which turned out to be wrong. { "selector": "[data-custom-animation-id=\"fly-in-top-0-0.65\"]", "--x": "0", "--y": "calc(-100 * 1vh - height())", "animations": [ { "duration": "0s", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"} ] }, { "delay": "0s", "duration": "0.65s", "easing": "cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(0, 0)"} ] } ] } { "selector": "[data-custom-animation-id=\"fly-in-bottom-0-0.65\"]", "--x": "0", "--y": "calc(100 * 1vh + height())", "animations": [ { "duration": "0s", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"} ] }, { "delay": "0s", "duration": "0.65s", "easing": "cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(0, 0)"} ] } ] } Read Full Story

In addition, Sony wouldn’t allow its videotape players to be made without direct oversight. This decision ultimately helped lead to the demise of the Beta format as it fostered competition between the various companies making the VHS players and, in turn, eventually drove the prices down to a level far more affordable than Sony's high-priced machines. { "selector": "[data-custom-animation-id=\"fly-in-top-0-0.65\"]", "--x": "0", "--y": "calc(-100 * 1vh - height())", "animations": [ { "duration": "0s", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"} ] }, { "delay": "0s", "duration": "0.65s", "easing": "cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(0, 0)"} ] } ] } { "selector": "[data-custom-animation-id=\"fly-in-bottom-0-0.65\"]", "--x": "0", "--y": "calc(100 * 1vh + height())", "animations": [ { "duration": "0s", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"} ] }, { "delay": "0s", "duration": "0.65s", "easing": "cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(0, 0)"} ] } ] } Read Full Story

Tech Malfunctions That Changed The Course Of History The Best Smartphones Of 2021 Ranked Hidden Android 12 Features You Probably Didn't Know About { "selector": "[data-custom-animation-id=\"fly-in-bottom-1.5-1\"]", "--x": "0", "--y": "calc(100 * 1vh + height())", "animations": [ { "duration": "1.5s", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"} ] }, { "delay": "1.5s", "duration": "1s", "easing": "cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(0, 0)"} ] } ] } { "selector": "[data-custom-animation-id=\"fly-in-bottom-1-1\"]", "--x": "0", "--y": "calc(100 * 1vh + height())", "animations": [ { "duration": "1s", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"} ] }, { "delay": "1s", "duration": "1s", "easing": "cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(0, 0)"} ] } ] } { "selector": "[data-custom-animation-id=\"fly-in-bottom-0.5-1\"]", "--x": "0", "--y": "calc(100 * 1vh + height())", "animations": [ { "duration": "0.5s", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"} ] }, { "delay": "0.5s", "duration": "1s", "easing": "cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(0, 0)"} ] } ] } { "selector": "[data-custom-animation-id=\"fly-in-bottom-0-1\"]", "--x": "0", "--y": "calc(100 * 1vh + height())", "animations": [ { "duration": "0s", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"} ] }, { "delay": "0s", "duration": "1s", "easing": "cubic-bezier(0.2, 0.6, 0.0, 1)", "keyframes": [ {"transform": "translate(var(--x), var(--y))"}, {"transform": "translate(0, 0)"} ] } ] }

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