Few people have heard of it, yet many consider John Blankenbaker's KENBAK-1 to be the first commercial personal computer.
Did you know the first VHS camcorder was bright red?!
By James Grahame
OK, manufacturers. Why is it that the first VHS camcorder was a wicked shade of bright red, but everything you trot out these days is matte black or silver?! I know Canon's experimented with a few muted shades of metallic blue on their consumer lineup, but we need color! Bring on the deep blues, the British Racing Greens, and even a shade or two of lilac if you dare. There. Got that out of my system...
When JVC unveiled the VHS videotape format in 1976, they also introduced a pair of bulky video cameras that could be connected to hefty a 16.5lb shoulder-slung video recorder. The portable video revolution had begun, although the weight of the system ensured that Uncle Nordbert tired quickly at family get-togethers. Sony countered with its own 2-piece portable Beta-format system a couple of years later. Because of the awkward and heavy 2-piece design, early recording systems were too user-hostile for all but the most dedicated videophiles.
Things really began to heat up on June 1, 1982 when JVC announced the new Mini "VHS-C" format. Technically the VHS-C tape was identical to its big brother, except crammed into a case that was about 1/4 the size. They achieved this apparent miracle by reducing the length of the tape to a mere 30 minutes. Even though Sony beat them to market with the first all-in-one camcorder, JVC released their first VHS-C camcorder -- the GR-C1 -- in 1984.
The format proved amazingly popular because you could insert the little VHS-C tapes into special adapters to play them in a standard VHS video player. Believe it or not, twenty four years later JVC still offers a sizable lineup of low-cost VHC-C camcorders. I'm amazed that there are still a few analog holdouts out there!
