Advice on camcorders
A while ago before Scott's wife gave birth, Scott was hunting for a good compact digital camera. Now I find myself in a simular predictament. Trish is due in less than two months now, and while I have the digital camera aspect covered, but what I am needing is a camcorder! Pictures are good, but we will undoubtably want video too. I mean things like it crawling around or smiling, or first steps, etc.
The primary thing I want is a digital camcorder. I mean, hello, future geek dad, has to be digital. For media, I don't care too much. I am a little unsure about DVDs, since while they are ready for use, they aren't ready for use on the computer, and the media isn't reusable. MiniDV is nice, but from what I'd seen years ago, to get it off the camcorders and onto the computer, you had to like play the movie back… you couldn't just drag and drop onto your computer. Ones with a hard drive are nice, but then you are limited to the built in size and can't just swap to another disc as with DVD/MiniDV.
Additionally, it has to be name brand with a good repuation for optics. I don't need top of the line stuff, but I'd want something that I won't be looking to replace within a year or two. In general, I am in love with Canon products. But even brand name can vary, since there are so many factors. Most important is probably video quality, focus, and battery life… suppose.
Finally, I am somewhat on the rocks as far as whether or not to get HD. HD camcorders are usually more expensive, though I have seen that some like 2006 models are affordable new. Could easily get them online new even though they aren't the current model year. HD camcorders have been around for a little while, so getting cheaper, and previous model years are even more affordable. The geek part of me is hungry for HD. The geek parent is thinking "don't you want baby's first steps in HD?" But the first time parent in me is saying to be practical and to think affordable, since I'll soon be moving a good poriton of my budget to diapers.
Any thoughts or recommendations?
I bought a tape-based digital camcorder a few years ago and while it worked great for filming (lots of cheap storage space)… getting it onto the computer is a hassle and I don’t transfer videos nearly as much as I’d like.
So I’ve also been looking at the current generation of digital camcorders for something better. DVD burner camcorders have always scared me a little. I can’t help but wonder how reliable it is to burn over and over on a disc in short intervals.
I think the best bet right now are the "hybrid" models that have both a hard drive and a dvd burner. So you can record to the HDD most of the time, and burn to dvd or transfer to your computer when needed. There’s a few decent hybrid models for around $4-500.
ken
20 Aug 07 at 8:42pm
I agree, HD is just wow sharp… I would only go with a HDD model if it had a stand alone, burn to dvd accessory my wife could use… Infact that is so much better than tape because you dont "have" to trasnfer the tapes to dvd (a time consuming process) and its nice if your wife can do it… Also I would hate to miss some great shots because your HDD is full (either on the camcorder or in real life)…
I have a nice non HD sony, its small and light, and has Ziess glass… but the stand alone dvd burner is the must have feature.
Dan
ken
23 Aug 07 at 11:07pm