VCR

This has been in our lexicon for so long, you might not even remember what those three letters stood for: Video Cassette Recorder. First available in the late 1970s, VCRs were initially astronomically priced, but by the early 1980s, they dropped in price to the point where most families could afford one. VCRs played back prerecorded tapes of popular movies, but also allowed users to videotape TV shows for viewing at a later, more convenient time.