1 of 1- RadioActive
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Did Anyone Ever Use This VCR System?
Back in the Dark Ages, when we all used a VCR to record our TV shows, they introduced something called "VCR Plus+."
It was a system supposedly designed to make it easier to program your recordings. So instead of entering channel number, date, frequency, and on time and off time, you'd simply enter a sometimes long string of numbers and it would record the show you wanted.
Some of my VCRs had this feature, but I never really understood what the point of it was. The numbers would be a long string of digits in a completely random order, which to me, was a lot more complicated to enter than just setting it normally. Make one mistake and you get nothing. (The examples given in the ad below are typically very short compared to what you really had to enter.)
But a ton of manufacturers jumped on this bandwagon, which I'm sure at the time was aimed at an older demo who couldn't figure out how to record otherwise. (I also can't believe they had a 900-number (at 95 cents a minute!) to call if you had a problem with the program.) TV Guide and Star Week were among those who printed the numbers alongside their listings and a lot of publications bought into it.
But did anyone here ever actually use this thing?
Fortunately, the only "DVR+" that exists was the name of an actual machine made by Channel Master to record over-the-air digital broadcasts. I have two of them and they're fantastic machines. And there are no numbers involved in programming it!
- Tomas Barlow
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Re: Did Anyone Ever Use This VCR System?
I had it briefly and you just entered that string of numbers rather than the date, start time, end time and channel. If you were recording a large market US station the numbers were shorter. Late additions to the schedule sometimes didn't have a number listed or it was incorrect sometimes.
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Re: Did Anyone Ever Use This VCR System?
I had it on one of my VCRs shortly before I switched to a PVR. I didn't use it much because it wasn't flexible in adding time to programs but probably useful for the few who found programming the timer on a VCR an insurmountable challenge. The programming number appeared in the printed TV mag beside the show. I still have a VCR kicking around to digitize tapes with and I think it has the feature. I actually find Ignite to be similar in a way because it confusingly will only allow maximum 1/2 hour on some programs and a full 1-1/2 on others extra time, mainly sporting events. In fact there's a couple of features that my VHS did better than Ignite does now.
Last edited by SpinningWheel (October 4, 2023 9:28 pm)
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Re: Did Anyone Ever Use This VCR System?
I wonder if this add-on actually worked and if anyone ever went for it?
I have to say, even if this was legit, they made it sound pretty shady. Notice the part of the copy telling would-be buyers to 'Call "Mr. Shelton" Person To Person Collect.' (Check out the strange quote marks around the name "Mr. Shelton." What does that mean?) What an odd way to sell something. 
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Thread Starter- Montreal Radio
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Re: Did Anyone Ever Use This VCR System?
SpinningWheel wrote:
I had it on one of my VCRs shortly before I switched to a PVR. I didn't use it much because it wasn't flexible in adding time to programs but probably useful for the few who found programming the timer on a VCR an insurmountable challenge. [...] I actually find Ignite to be similar in a way because it confusingly will only allow maximum 1/2 hour on some programs and a full 1-1/2 on others extra time, mainly sporting events.
I remember when this feature came out, but I never had a VCR that could use it, so I never was sure if it worked well.
I wonder if the main feature would be to allow you make sure to record a show you wanted, especially if it was pushed forward to start later due to a breaking news event or a playoff game that went into overtime. Letterman would be pushed forward by CBS during the NBA playoffs.
I would have loved that feature in the early 1990's when I set up a cheap VCR I had to record the movie "The Sting" that I had not seen as a 9-year-old when it came out & not until that point. I worked overnight & the movie was to start at midnight & go to 2:AM. So I recorded it while I was at work & was going to watch it the next morning.
But unbeknownst to me was the fact that my local CTV station packed these movies after midnight with much longer commercial breaks.
The next day, I rewound & watched 2 hours of "The Sting" (with commercials) only to have the actual "Sting" operation in the last 15 minutes of the movie turn to a snowy screen.
From that point forward, I learned my lesson & added an extra hour or half-hour of recording time to be safe.
- SpinningWheel
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Re: Did Anyone Ever Use This VCR System?
I wonder if this add-on actually worked and if anyone ever went for it?
I have to say, even if this was legit, they made it sound pretty shady. Notice the part of the copy telling would-be buyers to 'Call "Mr. Shelton" Person To Person Collect.' (Check out the strange quote marks around the name "Mr. Shelton." What does that mean?) What an odd way to sell something.
I had a vcr that I believe eliminated commercials by detecting the change in sound levels or detecting the silent gap in between the program and the ad, but it did so by rewinding at the end of the program and forwarding through the tape to place some kind of marker so the tape automatically skipped the commercials on playback. It seemed reliable enough so it worked but I busted 2 of the machines because it took about 5-10 minutes to scan and sometimes I would grow impatient, unplug it and this resulted in breaking the vcr. I returned both of them under warranty and I had no idea I was doing something wrong nor did the sales clerk. I just thought the vcr was screwed up. After the second one I replaced it with a unit that didn't have the feature. The VCR also kept missing the first 5 minutes or so of the next program because it was still scanning after the last one ended. A flawed technology for sure, it didn't last long.
Last edited by SpinningWheel (October 5, 2023 8:00 am)