VHS To DVD 4.0 Plus

This is just an update to my first review below.I completed my conversion project - over 35 video tapes (8mm, VHS-C, VHS) and this device worked every time - the cost for local commercial conversion would have been around $25 per tape. I was very happy with the quality, these were analog tapes, some of them 25 yrs old. However, I did not use the software included, and I used Freemake to burn the CD's.There are lots of variables as to how well these converters work, like the operating system, computer video capture hardware, computer speed and memory, DVD burner, media used, etc. so it is possible to get devices that do not work well for you. But for around $45 this was the perfect solution for me and I knew I could return it to Amazon if it did not work.Before buying this I reviewed a lot of other similar products, most of which got mixed ratings. Based on the good reviews here I went with this product as the cost was also fairly reasonable.I have Win XP SP 3 on a dual core 2.1 computer, 2 GB ram.The DVD 4.0 software installed easily and then I plugged in the USB, it was found OK and I did a test conversion from my VCR, worked fine and created a useable DVD.But, I found the software not so easy to use or understand, and the documentation gives few clues.Since I have used Microsoft Movie Maker in the past, the next time I just opened it up and clicked on "capture video", it found this input device fine and I was off and running. (This is the Movie Maker that came with Win XP) (Movie Maker sometime crashes when you are doing more heavy editing, but all I wanted to do was delete some clips and add a title at the beginning.) MM creates a WMV file that I then used input to a Roxio product for burning DVD's.By the way, my media included VHS tapes with converted 8mm movie film transferred to it a few years ago, reg VHS tape and VHS C tape and also 8mm analog tapes from a camcorder. Do not expect to get HD quality from any of these, but the conversions were still fine (some on the 8mm movies were from 50 years ago)and a great way to preserve many memories. You might want to keep all your converted materials, like WMV or MPG files as well as any DVD's you make so you can covert them to a future format/media when all these become obsolute.Finally, converting tapes takes a long time, it is done in real time and you might want to use Y connectors to feed the transmission into a small TV during the process although Movie Maker and probably others do have a preview screen, but sometimes you cannot hear the sound during the capture. Also, regardles of what software you are using, be sure to go through the whole process for a couple of conversions and check out the results before doing a big batch.

This was my first run with this type of software and I thought my research was pretty good. I liked the idea of the interface since I don't have a TV card on-board my computer. This portion worked fine for transfering the VHS signal from the VCR to the program via the computer.Here is what I wish I had known before I purchased this product:The software is EXTREMELY basic. Editing is possible but it's clumsy and non-intuitive. There are only two choices, Basic or Advanced editing. Basic editing is point to where the video is and hit BURN, that's it. That's fine if that is all you need. In Advanced you have a few more choices but they are very basic, very clunky and very frustrating. I had transfered different chapters and didn't realize that I had more than the capacity of my 4.7 gig DVD so tried to eliminate chapters to meet the limit. Never could figure out how to do it. I tried to delete the title page after making a mistake and couldn't. I'd delete chapter after chapter, save it, close it, re-open it and it would still not burn showing I STILL had 5.3 gigs of data. I had to dump all record of the project and re-transfer it.This stuff will work for most beginners, I'm no expert but this was just too limiting for me. I will say that the software loaded well and seems to work within its limitations. I'd recommend taking a look at Cyberlink Power Director 8 for an option that gives a little more control and seems to be more predictable. Good luck!

I highly recommend this product. This product works with Windows Vista 32-bit for advance mode or easy wizard mode. Naturally the easy wizard will transfer the VHS tape as is, but to be able to edit or add to your video you have to use the advance mode. There is a user guide, but it could be more informational. Sometimes I would have to hunt and peck on how to edit, add text, or add title. I am still in the learning stages, but I still love this product. The videos turn out great. If it doesn't matter to you in regards to edit, titles, or such, the easy wizard works great by itself. We have several family VHS tapes that I would like to transfer to DVD as to preserve our family memories. If we had to pay someone to do the work, it would cost a fortune. However, I bought this from Amazon for $44.00. Also, I can customize/transfer my tapes to my specifications. The DVD's I have been using are single layer and they will hold a little over 1 hour of video. Next time I buy blank DVD's, it will be double layer. The only reason I didn't give it a 5 star rating, is because the user guide wasn't as user friendly as I like.

I ordered this product Sunday at 11:00 p.m. and it arrived Tuesday - thanks, Amazon.Install and use:I installed software and drivers, connected composite cables from my cable box to VIDBOX (supplied with 4.0 Plus), plugged supplied USB cable into port on my HP Windows 7, launched VHS to DVD, used Easy Wizard Mode, and copied from DVR to PC. Used default settings and burned a DVD. Total time - 15:00 minutes. Nothing could be easier.Edit: I used Advanced Mode and was able to edit out commercials fairly easily and I am NOT a video editor. The user guide leaves a bit to be desired but after a bit of diddling I was able to make it work. Total time less than 2 hours.All in all, I am impressed with this product (even more so considering its price). I made one call to customer service - not a problem call, just to ask about ordering another VidBox, and was also impressed with the service I received. Net result is a 5.0 but had to go to 4.0 if only for documentation. I would recommend VHS to DVD 4.0 Plus to anyone looking to transfer VHS to DVD, basic editing, and as a plus, copy from DVR. Great product.