Tech and Gadget Wars of all Time

7. Betamax vs VHS (Video Tapes)

Sony's Betamax video standard was introduced in 1975, followed a year later by JVC's VHS. For around a decade the two standards battled for dominance, with VHS eventually emerging as the winner.

The victory was not due to any technical superiority because Betamax is arguably a better format by several factors. Exactly how and why VHS won the war has been the subject of intense debate. The commonly-held belief is that the technically superior Betamax was beaten by VHS through slick marketing.

In fact the truth is more complex and there were a number of reasons for the outcome. VHS was not only cheaper but it provided two hours of recording time on each tape, compared to Beta’s one hour of recording capacity. The huge success of VHS spelled a rapid death for Betamax by 1988 conceded and began producing VHS player.