Match each cassette to the published price list
Digitize Denver publishes a VHS price of $25 per tape for up to 2 hours. Hi8 also appears at $25 per tape for up to 2 hours. VHS-C, Mini DV, and Betamax are each listed at $25 per tape, without a duration cap stated in those individual entries. Keep those distinctions when estimating a mixed collection; the two-hour wording attached to VHS and Hi8 should not be silently added to every format.
For VHS recordings you know are within two hours, the listed rate gives you a useful starting estimate. Before authorizing work, ask for the total covering your actual tapes, including any longer recordings, taxes, output media, and other applicable charges. DV is named among the supported video formats, but the published prices described here do not give it a separate rate. Include that format explicitly in your request.
Choose DVD or MP4 around the way you will watch
The company offers DVDs or MP4 video files for family and home-recorded tapes. A DVD may suit someone who already uses a disc player. An MP4 is useful when you want to keep a file on a computer, make additional backups, or upload a home video to a private family archive. Ask how the files will be delivered and whether your preferred output affects the quoted total.
Consider the people who will actually watch the recording. A relative who wants to replay an entire birthday may have different needs from someone hoping to identify faces in a short section. Explain those aims before the transfer and ask how recordings will be divided into files. Choosing an output is easier when you have a specific viewing habit in mind.
Keep film reels separate from the tape estimate
Digitize Denver also advertises transfers of 8mm, Super 8, 16mm, and Super 16 movie film, with DVD or MP4 output. This is useful to know if your family collection includes reels as well as cassettes. The tape prices above are not film prices; request a separate estimate for the reels so the two kinds of work remain clear.
Make a short inventory before arranging the job. Give every item a number, copy its label, and note anything you know about its contents. Photograph labels that are fading. If a tape has a cracked case, visible contamination, or a history of getting stuck, describe the condition and ask whether it can be assessed. Avoid opening or attempting to play a damaged cassette just to fill a gap in the inventory.
Plan the handover and the first playback
The contact page lists store hours Monday through Friday, 8:30am to 5:30pm. Confirm how to arrange your handover and request an expected completion date for your collection. Opening hours describe when the store is open; they do not tell you how long a transfer will take.
When the digital copies arrive, compare them with your inventory. Open each file or disc and check samples near the beginning, middle, and end for picture and sound. Flag a missing recording or unexpected gap while you can still match it to the numbered original. Keep the tapes, retain an untouched copy of the transferred files, and make another backup on separate storage before editing or renaming your working copies.
Let relatives put dates and names back into the videos
After conversion, Memrial offers a separate private family archive for digital photos and home videos. It does not convert tapes or form part of Digitize Denver’s transfer service. Its free plan includes 2.0 GB of storage shared across the archive, with no card needed. Check your file sizes when deciding which recordings to upload first.
Invite relatives to add comments and stories. Memrial’s Timeline uses exact or approximate dates, helping you find memories by year even when a tape only says “summer vacation.” An approximate year is a useful starting point; someone else may recognize the house, a school uniform, or a family milestone and help refine the date.
Watch an old gathering and collect the next one
A Live Watch Party synchronizes an uploaded home video for relatives near or far. The host controls play, pause, and seek, while voice and text chat let everyone discuss what they see. Free Watch Parties allow 3 hours per month and up to 6 participants.
For a new reunion, Memrial’s Event Memories provides a secure occasion contribution link. Contributors sign in but do not need archive membership; their photos and videos collect in the event album. Closing the link keeps the memories already collected, so the reunion can sit alongside the older recordings.