Camorder to DVD or laptop

Trixie102

Really in need of some help. I have loads of camcorder tapes (small type think 8mm but not sure!!!) which I want to copy across to DVD or my laptop. Does anyone know how to go about it apart from sending them off and paying someone else loads to do it?

Looked on-line and it keeps mentioning firewire, except neither my desktop nor laptop has this connection.

Many thanks for any help.:D

spakkker

Have you got a camcorder that will play the tapes? Have you got cables to connect camcorder to tv or pc?
Where do you get firewire from? This is a means of connecting to pc , usually from camcorder. If you have a camcorder with firewire connection you can get a firewire card which plugs into a pci slot in your pc , like a graphics card, network card etc.-it's easy to fit

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/4-Slot-Firewire-PCI-Card-/290472030630?pt=UK_Computing_DesktopComponents_RL&hash=item43a17b71a6

Maybe you know someone with a camcorder that plays 8mm tapes ,if you don't have one?
You could use a dvd recorder straight from camcorder also.
You need a camcorder that will play the tapes in any case.

penrhyn

Are your taped Video-8 (analogue), or Mini DV (Digital)?

I have been digitising a lot of old analogue video lately.
The method I use is to copy the analog video onto my mini DV camcorder, then copy it to the PC for editing via a firewire port.
Thus I have a high quality digital copy of the original that won't degrade if I need to go back to it for any reason.

Firewire Cards are cheap and available for laptops and desktops, but we need to establish what your tapes are.

Trixie102

They are mini DV and yes I still have the camcorder that can play them. Have the firewire cables as my Mum bought me the camorder with them, thinking I had it on my PC. Can't fit a firewire card into my desktop as it is owned by the company I work for. What would it involve fitting one into a laptop as not very tech minded!! Is there any other ways apart from firewire?
Thanks

penrhyn

Plenty of adapters out there:-

http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Delectronics&field-keywords=laptop+firewire+card&x=14&y=20

spakkker

If you did fit a firewire card into "your" pc, you could simply take it out when finished.
Has your pc got a dvd writer to put the video onto dvd's? You will probably want to convert the video files so that they can be played on a set-top dvd player at some time as it's unlikely they are already in the right format and will only be watchable on a pc/laptop.