The
videocassette recorder,
VCR, or
video recorder is an
electromechanical device that records
analog audio and
analog video from
broadcast television or other source on a removable,
magnetic tape videocassette, and can play back the recording. Use of a VCR to record a
television program to play back at a more convenient time is commonly referred to as
timeshifting. VCRs can also play back prerecorded tapes. In the 1980s and 1990s, until the VCR was superseded by the
DVD player and
PVR, prerecorded videotapes were widely available for purchase and rental, and blank tapes were sold to make recordings.
