VHS to Digital

About This Tool

Purpose-built for archivists, libraries, media labs, and individuals, this VHS to Digital planner estimates total cost, duration, and storage needs for tape digitization projects. It supports in-house digitization or outsourced services and outputs a practical plan with recommended file formats and a storage schedule.
The core logic converts inputs such as tape count, average length, rate cards, and selected formats into actionable metrics: total material cost, labor time, and per-tape vs per-project pricing. It also estimates archival-friendly outputs (e.g., lossless or near-lossless formats) and rough GB requirements based on target bitrate and duration. The tool is deterministic: same inputs yield the same plan, enabling budgeting, procurement, and scheduling decisions.
Who benefits: archival programs, community media centers, museums, and individuals with personal collections who need a scalable, repeatable method to forecast resources and avoid surprise costs. Unique value lies in combining mode selection (in-house vs service) with format guidance and storage planning in a single calculation, rather than separate worksheets. Core features include per-tape cost modeling, timeline estimation, total storage projection, recommended formats, and exportable plan artifacts. Use cases include evaluating a batch of 50 tapes at 60 minutes each or planning annual digitization for aging collections.

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