What hardwar is available to copy cassettes tapes to my laptop

Video or audio cassettes?

With video cassettes you will need a video player and probably a USB video capture device (many include the necessary cables and software). Check the device's requirements carefully, since video capture is demanding on the computer's clock speed and USB port. Be aware that pre-recorded video tapes (movies and TV shows) often included Macrovision "quality control" rights management "feature" to inhibit copying. Retail DVDs may have similar provisions.

If the laptop is equipped with a "line in" jack you will need a cassette player, a stereo audio cable with plugs on both ends and recording software to record audio to the hard drive. You may need an attenuator from a consumer electronic retailer if your laptop is only equipped with a microphone jack. Some of the video capture devices can be connected to line out jacks on stereos and cassette players for audio capture.

Remember that use of pre-recorded material like audio cassettes and material you recorded off broadcast sources is limited to you and people listening or viewing in a private home (or privately operated vehicle) entertainment situation. In many jurisdictions you aren't allowed to retain your hard drive, CD-R or MP3 player (including Ipods) copies after your have transferred ownership of the source media to another person. There may be additional limitations to material you downloaded from online sources.