VHS camcorder for iPhone
Some moments
deserve tape.
Pick a camcorder. Press record. The clip comes back already played: tape hiss, tracking slips, the blinking REC and the date burnt into the corner. No sliders, no editing afterwards.
- 23 retro cameras
- 16 fps Super 8, for real
- 20 tape soundtracks
Tap a camera under the viewfinder.
Developed through REC · tap a frame to see its camera
The camera bag
23 machines,
each one as it was.
Every camera is a whole machine: its frame rate, its resolution, its colour, its sound and the display you frame through. 10 camcorders, 3 film looks and 10 oddities.
VHS The '80s home-movie tape 30 fps · 4:3
VHS-C Compact tape for '90s handycams 30 fps · 4:3
Hi8 Sharper tape, cleaner color 30 fps · 4:3
D8 Tape look with a digital edge 30 fps · 4:3
MiniDV Bright, sharp 2000s home video 30 fps · 4:3
VX-1 Fisheye skate-video deck 30 fps · 4:3
Beta Soft broadcast-era color 30 fps · 4:3
G-7 Crisp pocket vlog camera 30 fps
Digi Y2K pocket digicam video 30 fps · 4:3
AX-1 2010s action cam 30 fps · 16:9
8mm Grainy family film reels 16 fps · 4:3
16mm Rich documentary film stock 24 fps · 4:3
Kino Widescreen cinema grade 24 fps · 21:9
CCTV Grainy surveillance feed 12 fps · 4:3
Night Infrared night vision 24 fps · 4:3
Glow Dreamy toy-cam bloom 30 fps
Thermal False-color heat vision 9 fps · 4:3
Webcam Blocky early-2000s video call 15 fps · 4:3
PXL B&W toy camcorder on cassette 15 fps · 4:3
GB Cam 2-bit dithered handheld cam 12 fps · 1:1
Flip Blocky '05 flip-phone clip 12 fps · 4:3
Bodycam Chest-worn patrol camera 30 fps · 16:9
Trail Motion-triggered trail cam 15 fps · 4:3No sliders. A real camcorder never had a "70% VHS" dial.
Want less tape? Pick a cleaner machine. Hi8 instead of VHS, MiniDV instead of Hi8. The picture, the frame rate and the sound always belong to one machine, which is why it looks like the real thing and not a filter.
Tape sound
The sound is old too.
Most retro camera apps stop at the picture. REC runs your audio through the same machine: band-limited like a real tape track, constant hiss, wow and flutter as the transport drifts, mono where the era was mono. A clip that looks like 1994 and sounds like 1994.
VHS keeps 110 Hz – 8 kHz; everything outside is gone.
- Channels
- Mono
- Hiss
- 34%
- Saturation
- 35%
- Wow · flutter
- ±11 · ±5 cents
A short synth loop played in your browser through the same numbers REC uses. Switch machines while it plays.
Finish it like tape
The date in the corner. The REC that blinks.
Date stamps, light leaks, running dust, and the deck's own battery and counter. All live in the viewfinder.
- The date stamp in the seven-segment orange every camcorder burnt into the corner.
- The camcorder HUD: blinking REC, battery and a tape counter that keeps running across takes. Each machine has its own: Betacam shows broadcast timecode, CCTV names the camera, Super 8 shows nothing, because it had no electronics.
- Print it or don't. Battery and counter can go onto the tape exactly where they sat.
- Change your mind later. Date, leak and dust stay editable on every clip in your library.
Compile Tape
A day on one tape.
Pick takes in your library and they're spliced onto one cassette, seams and all. Where two takes meet, the picture tears for a moment, the way every real compilation did.
- Birthdays, trips, a whole summer: one video instead of twelve clips.
- Each take keeps its own date and effects; the tape gets the seams.
- Saved to Photos, ready for TikTok, Reels or the family group chat.
Take 1 of 4
1
2
3
4
All of this, built in
Shoot, finish, splice, share.
Front and back camera
Selfie takes go through the same machine.
Self-timer
Prop the phone up and get in the shot.
Exposure control
Brighten or darken before you press record.
Screw-on lenses
Prism, fisheye, star and halo, on any camera.
Import videos
Develop clips you already shot, up to 5 minutes.
Share to Instagram
Straight to Stories and Reels.
No watermark
Clips save to your Photos without one.
iCloud backup
Your library, backed up and restored with your Apple account.
35 app icons
REC screens, transport buttons and every camera.
No account
Nothing to sign up for. Your videos stay on your iPhone.
Pricing
Your first take is on us.
Free
$0
- Your first take or import, free
- Every one of the 23 cameras
- Tape sound, HUD, date stamp, leaks and dust
- Saved to Photos with no watermark
REC Pro
$9.99/year or $2.99/week
- Unlimited takes and imports
- Every camera, lens and effect
- Compile Tape
- iCloud backup and restore
- 35 alternate app icons
US prices. Prices vary by country and are shown in the app before you buy. No paid packs, no per-camera unlocks. Cancel any time in your Apple account settings.
Questions, answered.
What is REC?
REC is a video camera app for iPhone that simulates 23 retro cameras. Pick a camcorder, press record, and the clip comes back already played: tape softness, colour bleeding sideways, tracking slips, the blinking REC and the date burnt into the corner. The sound goes through the same machine, so a clip that looks like 1994 sounds like 1994 too.
Is the VHS effect live, or added after recording?
Live. The same filter that renders the finished clip runs on the viewfinder, at the machine's own frame rate, so a Super 8 preview judders at 16 frames a second and CCTV stutters at 12. What you frame is what you get. The date stamp, light leak and dust can still be changed on any clip later in the library.
Which cameras are in REC?
10 camcorders (VHS, VHS-C, Hi8, Digital8, MiniDV, a fisheye skate-video deck, Betacam, a vlog camera, a Y2K digicam and an action cam), 3 film looks (Super 8, 16 mm and a modern cinema grade) and 10 fun machines (CCTV, night vision, glow, thermal, webcam, a toy camcorder, a 2-bit handheld camera, a 2005 flip phone, a bodycam and a trail cam).
Why is there no intensity slider?
Because a real camcorder did not have one. Every camera in REC is the machine as it was; if you want less tape, you pick a cleaner machine (Hi8 or MiniDV instead of VHS), not a weaker VHS. That is also why the look holds up: the frame rate, resolution, colour and sound all belong to one machine.
Does REC change the sound too?
Yes, on most cameras. VHS gets one mono track cut off below 110 Hz and above 8 kHz, constant hiss and slow pitch drift; Super 8 sounds like the magnetic stripe on the edge of the film; the flip phone sounds like a 2005 speech codec. Hi8, Digital8, MiniDV and Betacam stay cleaner, the way they were. The vlog camera, Glow and Kino leave your audio as the iPhone recorded it.
What is Compile Tape?
Pick several clips in your library and REC splices them into one video, with the picture tearing for a moment at every seam, the way real tape compilations did. The finished tape is saved to your Photos.
Can I use videos I already shot?
Yes. Import a video from your library (up to 5 minutes) and develop it through any camera, sound included. Takes recorded in the app can be up to 60 seconds each.
Is REC free?
REC is free to download, and your first take (or import) is free with every camera and effect. After that, REC Pro ($2.99 a week or $9.99 a year, US prices) unlocks unlimited takes and imports, iCloud backup and the alternate app icons. There are no paid packs and no per-camera unlocks.
Is there a watermark?
Not on the clips you save: they go to your camera roll without a watermark. When you share straight to Instagram Stories or Reels, REC adds a small mark to that copy.
Does REC take photos?
No. REC is a video camera. For still photos with a film look, use a photo camera app; for VHS photos, a frame from a REC clip works well.
Is there an Android version?
No. REC is for iPhone on iOS 18.1 or later, in 33 languages.
Press record.
Download on the App Store