What the £11 tape price lets you plan
RTVision’s published charge is £11 for each tape transferred. The stated delivery is a link containing the video file, which you can download to your own device or USB stick. If you are comparing quotes, this is a helpful distinction: the advertised outcome is a file you can keep, rather than a stated disc package.
Use your tape count to frame the enquiry, then ask for the complete order cost. The published details here do not establish duration limits, tax treatment, postage charges or how tapes with little recorded material are charged. A short description of your collection will make that conversation more useful than asking for a price without saying what you have. For a mixed collection, list the different cassette types separately and ask which are accepted.
Choose between downloading and an agreed-price USB
RTVision also says it can supply a USB stick for an agreed price. Treat that as a separate option to discuss, rather than something included automatically in the £11 tape charge. Downloading may suit you if you already have a computer and somewhere to store the files; a supplied USB may be useful if you prefer a physical handover of the digital recordings.
Before choosing, ask about the video file format, approximate file sizes and how long the download link remains available. Check whether the files will play on the device you actually use, such as your computer or television. Being able to copy a file onto a USB stick does not by itself establish that every television will play it. If a relative will handle the download for you, agree who will save the first complete copy and where it will be kept.
A focused first conversation with RTVision
The contact page gives a telephone number, 07967 288007, and the email address [email protected]. Use that first conversation to establish the practical arrangements as well as cassette compatibility. The listing area is United Kingdom; that is not a confirmed visiting address or a promise of nationwide collection. Confirm whether you should deliver or send your tapes, and obtain the correct destination before packaging anything.
Describe any known problems honestly: a cracked shell, loose tape, damp storage or a recording that previously stopped playing. Ask whether assessment or damaged-tape work is possible and whether it changes the quote. Also request an estimated completion time and confirmation of how your originals will be returned. Those answers are especially useful when you are working towards a birthday or family gathering.
Keep the tape labels useful after conversion
Photograph each cassette and its handwritten label, then give it a simple reference number. Keep a matching list with whatever you know about the recording. A label such as “holiday, probably early 1990s” is still useful, even if nobody can supply an exact date. Avoid opening a cassette or attempting repairs yourself; describe the concern when you enquire.
When the converted files arrive, compare them with that list and check the beginning, middle and end of each recording. Listen to the sound as well as watching the picture. Keep the original delivered files, make a second copy in a separate location and retain the tapes while you check everything. Relatives can help identify people and occasions, but record uncertain recollections as approximate rather than turning a guess into a definite date.
From delivered files to a private family archive
After conversion, Memrial provides a separate private family archive for digital memories. It does not transfer physical tapes and is not part of RTVision’s service. You can bring photos and home videos into albums, invite relatives and add comments or stories. The free allowance is 2.0 GB shared across the archive, with no card needed; check your video sizes when deciding what to upload first.
Timeline accepts exact or approximate dates, helping relatives find memories by year even when a tape label is incomplete. For a family anniversary, Live Watch Parties can synchronise an uploaded home video, with the host controlling play, pause and seek while relatives nearby or far away use voice or text chat. The free allowance is 3 hours per month with up to 6 participants.
Event Memories offers another way to gather the anniversary’s photos and videos through a secure occasion contribution link. Contributors sign in, but do not need archive membership; their uploads collect in the event album. Closing the link keeps those memories. This gives newly converted recordings a place alongside the family’s newer contributions, while your separate backups remain part of your preservation routine.