DVD Or VCR?
SALESPERSON: May I help you, sir?
SIMON: Yes, I want to buy a VCR.
SALESPERSON: Well, we have many models to choose from here.
Do you have a particular brand you want?
SIMON: No. I only want it to be a very good one. The best.
It's a graduation gift for my son.
SALESPERSON: I see. And does your son have a VCR now?
SIMON: Well, he uses our VCR at home.
But he's going to university in the Fall, so he needs his own VCR.
SALESPERSON: Does he watch a lot of movies?
SIMON: Yes, he sure does.
In fact, he wants to become a movie producer himself.
He wants to study film at the university.
SALESPERSON: I would like to make a suggestion then, sir.
SIMON: Please do.
SALESPERSON: If your son wants to study film,
probably he will start to collect movies himself.
SIMON: Yes, I know that. So I want him to have a good VCR to use.
SALESPERSON: May I suggest you consider buying him a DVD player instead?
SIMON: DVD? Isn't that like a CD?
SALESPERSON: It is very similar. The technology is the same.
SIMON: Why is a DVD better than a VCR?
SALESPERSON: For one thing, sir, the quality of the image is usually better.
That's because it's digital.
SIMON: But isn't it more expensive?
SALESPERSON: It is a little more expensive, sir.
But there is one important advantage which your son might appreciate.
SIMON: What's that?
SALESPERSON: If your son starts to buy video tapes, he can't keep them very long.
SIMON: And why not?
SALESPERSON: Video tape breaks down after fifteen years.
So if he collects a lot of tapes, after fifteen years they will all start to rot.
SIMON: Hmm. Is that true?
SALESPERSON: Yes, it is, sir.
SIMON: Well. And what about DVDs?
SALESPERSON: This is the excellent thing about DVDs.
If your son starts to collect DVDs, they will last forever. They will never rot.
SIMON: Hmm. He might really appreciate that.
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