Tale of the Tape

Blog fan Gina, in her kind message on yesterday's post, brings up an interesting subject that I was debating over Thanksgiving.

Way back in the day, my family bought one of the first VCRs on the market. It cost around $1,000, was made of all metal parts, and had a remote control that had to be attached to the unit by a cord. No one was even sure if the VCR would be a wise investment, since the Betamax platform was also popular. In addition, there was only one tiny store in Savannah back in the pre-Blockbuster days that rented videos, and you had to pay a member's club fee to join.

Fast forward to more modern times. VCRs, made with cheaper, plastic parts, cost under $50. Even if it's a VCR/DVD combo, it's still under $100.

Of course, VCRs are becoming more obselete with the rise of DVRs and Tivo. My brother has joined the DVR revolution and often chides me for not joining the 21st century.

But the DVRs aren't the be-all and end-all of recording TV. At least, not yet. My brother has sometimes missed a program because a football game or other show preceding the program may run long, and you can't change the time settings on a DVR; all you can do is tape the program after the one you want to record as well.

On occasion, members of my family have been unable to record programs on their DVRs for a variety of reasons. When they miss a show, they inevitably call me, knowing in all likelihood my old reliable VCR has it on tape. And unlike a DVR, I can drop the video in the mail and send it to them in a couple of days. If I miss something and a family member has it on DVR, I have to wait until the next time I visit in order to see it.

My DVD/VCR combo cost about $80, and the videotapes within the machine are cheap. Things like Tivo are more expensive, and DVRs usually require a monthly fee with your cable company.

I'm certain at some point I'll likely break down and get a DVR, but I won't deep-six my trusty VCR in the process.

In a side note, Gina, if you don't have a VCR or DVR, you still have some options. First, NBC will undoubtedly re-air episodes of "Heroes" (and other shows) during the holiday break to let new viewers catch up before the show returns with new episodes in January. In addition, most networks now put their episodes online. If you have a high-speed internet connection, you can easily view an episode with pretty good picture quality and limited commercial interruptions.

Also, many networks will re-air their first-run episodes on the weekend or on a sister network. NBC Universal owns the Sci-Fi Channel, and has shown "Heroes" reruns from the previous week on Fridays at 7 p.m. and Mondays at 7 p.m., so you can catch up with the previous week's episode before watching the new one on Monday.

THURSDAY'S BEST BETS: Thankfully, there are still some first-run episodes being shown before the holiday reruns and specials air.

NBC has an hour-long "My Name is Earl" starting at 8 p.m., followed by new episodes of "Scrubs" (9 p.m.), "30 Rock" (9:30 p.m.) and "ER" (10 p.m.)

CBS counters will all-new episodes of "Survivor" at 8 p.m., followed by "CSI" and "Shark."

Fox airs a first-run episode of "The O.C." at 9 p.m., while The CW gives viewers new episodes of "Smallville" and "Supernatural."

As for reruns, people who have heard about "Ugly Betty" (ABC, 8 p.m.) but haven't had a chance to catch this great series can catch the re-airing of the pilot episode tonight.