A per-tape VHS price, with the output still to agree
Pixave publishes VHS to DVD conversion at £15.00 per tape, priced per tape. That gives you a concrete figure to discuss when counting full-size VHS cassettes. Before booking, ask whether that figure applies to your recordings and what the final charge includes, including any tax, delivery or additional output costs. The published figure alone does not settle those details.
DVD is the output named in the VHS price entry. If your main aim is watching on a computer or uploading a home video to a family archive, ask specifically about an MP4 file for full-size VHS. Pixave lists DVD or MP4 on its camcorder conversion page, but that is a separate service description. Agree the VHS output directly rather than assuming that every tape service has identical options.
Keep camcorder cassettes in their own group
Pixave says it can process most types of old video-camera tape, including VHS-C, Hi8, Video 8 and Digital 8. Its camcorder details state pricing per tape, any length of tape, and DVD or MP4 format. Those details are useful if a collection contains the smaller cassette that once fitted a camera as well as tapes that played in the lounge.
Read the format printed on each cassette rather than judging by its size. Give each tape a simple number and record its label, any remembered event and visible damage. A photograph of the cassette can help with an enquiry if the wording is unclear. Ask Pixave about cracked cases, loose tape or suspected mould before trying to play them; do not attempt a repair just to find out what is recorded.
Photographs can fill gaps around the moving pictures
Pixave also publishes scanning prices for still images. The listed 600 DPI photo scan is £0.11 per photo, described as suitable for larger prints. For 35mm slides, its prices list £0.18 per slide at 1200 DPI and £0.30 per slide at 4800 DPI, with the latter described as 35mm positive film slides. For 35mm film negatives, it lists £0.20 per image at 1200 DPI and £0.30 per image at 4800 DPI. These are scanning figures, separate from tape conversion.
The site says images are scanned as JPEG or TIFF. Discuss the choice in relation to your plans: everyday browsing, sharing with relatives or retaining files for later image work. You could select photographs that explain a video, such as the people at a wedding or the location of a holiday. Keep envelopes and handwritten notes with your inventory so that useful context survives the scanning.
Arrange the handover for the materials you actually have
Pixave describes free collection and delivery within its free collection areas, appointment-only visits to drop off photographs, and posting photographs using a tracked service. Its published return description also refers to photos: collected work is brought back, or photographs are posted on a tracked, signed-for, fully insured basis. These statements should guide a photo-scanning enquiry, without being treated as a confirmed tape-handling policy.
For a mixed order, ask how both photographs and cassettes should be handed over and returned, whether your address qualifies for collection, and when completion is expected. Keep a copy of the inventory and agree how numbered items will match the resulting files. This is particularly useful when several relatives contribute materials and each person expects their originals back.
Check a few memories before putting the originals away
When the files arrive, compare them with your inventory. Watch the beginning, middle and end of each recording, listen to the sound, and check that filenames identify the right tapes. Open scanned photographs too, particularly those whose backs or accompanying notes carry important information. Raise missing material or playback problems promptly, with the relevant item number.
Keep the originals and make a second digital copy on a separate device or storage service. Before renaming everything, retain the delivered folder structure as a reference. Invite a relative to help identify faces and dates; someone else may recognise a place or occasion that the cassette label never mentioned.
Bring the converted collection into a private family archive
Memrial is a separate private family archive for digital memories after conversion. It does not convert tapes and is not part of Pixave. The free allowance is 2.0 GB shared across an archive, with no card needed. You can organise photographs and home videos into albums and invite relatives to add comments and stories.
Timeline accepts exact or approximate dates, so a recording remembered only as a summer in the 1990s can still be found by year. Live Watch Parties synchronise an uploaded home video with host play, pause and seek controls plus voice and text chat for relatives nearby or far away. Free Watch Parties include three hours per month and up to six participants.
For a family reunion, Event Memories provides a secure occasion contribution link. Contributors sign in but do not need archive membership; their photos and videos go into the event album. Closing the link retains the memories already gathered.