Camcorder

Haggis_01

Hello my lad has asked for a camcorder for his birthday, he will be 13. i have had a look on t'internet and there seems to be about a million different formats, I was thinking that SD cards would be a good idea as they are small and transportable. Can any expert please advise and provide recommendations, thanks..

shown73

Have a look on AVForums for good advice, its more specialised, and plenty of people will be happy to help, I expect.

vansboy

I bought Canon mini dv....

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=511681&highlight=vansboy

See what they all said!

VB

loksat

I spoke to a person in jessops who has specialized in these technology. he adviced me to go for a mini DV. The explanation he gave was about the DVD , they dont have better performance and clarity. They reduce the frame per second which affects the quality. where as mini DV has no such problems and are reliable anytime. if you want readymade videos then DVD is best. If you want to edit your videos and like to play around with it, then go fo mini DV. he did mention that DVD formats have to get better and the issue needs to be resolved.

The cheap and best mini dv is the Canon MD101 Mini DV Camcorder according to him.
not sure if i explained it good enough. All the best anyway.

Marty999

My brother in law has a Sony DVD camcorder with touch screen controls, it's very smart and it's dead easy to play the chapter you want as you just touch the thumbnail you wish to play. As for me, I have a basic DV camcorder (tape) which is cheaper to buy but a hassle to find the relevant recording you want on a tape. But then again I can record up to 90 minutes on a tape and he can only get 30 minutes on a DVD.

Quality wise, the file size from the DVD camcorder is much more compressed, so would suggest a lower quality, but to my eye on the TV screen there's nothing in it.

It really depends what is important to you.

Haggis_01

Thanks for all the replies, they are very informative. :T

donnajunkie

my experience is limited. however my current camcorder is a jvc mini dv and it is good enough for me. you can get a decent mini dv camcorder for less than £150 if you shop around.
as far as dvd camcorders go my only experience of one was a canon dvd camcorder that a mate bought recently. he wanted me to help him figure out how to use it. personally i thought it was not as good as my mini dv camcorder. perhaps other dvd camcorders are better but i'ved been put off ever getting one.
there is also hard drive camcorders which store what you film in their hard drives. i dont know how good they are but they are more expensive than mini dv. some camcorders also film in high definition now but they are also more expensive. for a teenage lads first camcorder i would go with mini dv. as far as brands go i have had samsung and jvc camcorders and both have been reliable. i believe sony and panasonic camcorders are also reliable.
i personally wouldnt go for a camcorder that uses sd cards.

Haggis_01

Thanks Donna, is it possiblr to have a mini dv camcorder that takes SD cards also?

donnajunkie

i dont really know. i know some camcorders can also take still photos and some of those may use sd cards for saving photos.
i said i wouldnt get one that uses sd cards simply because filming would be likely to take up alot of room on the card and sd cards are quite expensive compared to mini dv tapes. in your first post you were worried about size. there really isnt any need to worry. most camcorders are very compact and light. you need to consider that your son will most likely take his camcorder on his travels. sd cards are more vulnerable to damage than a mini dv tape kept in a its little plastic case.
if keeping footage on a sd card appeals then there is nothing to stop you transferring footage from your camcorder to your pc and then from your pc to a sd card. although there is little need for that you could do it.

shown73

Have a look at the Canon outlet on Ebay. They are called recon, but in my experience they are as new, or at least the things I've had were, and I've heard other good reports about them. Worth a look anyway.