Camcorder help....Some extra $$ and thought it would be....

[TnTWalter]

nice to get a newer camcorder. Ours is old and bulky. I want to spend under $400 if possible. Any tips, recommendations, etc. DVD, Digital, Mini-Dv?? I don't even know the difference. Website recommendations also appreciated. Thanks.
Trish

 

[TnTWalter]

Come on...:O)

 

[klj27]

Two years ago we bought a Sony digital camcorder. I think we paid about $400 at Circuit City. I am sure you could get something comparable for about $300 now. We just got it out last week and the camera part is not working. The VCR portion is, but that doesn't help us too much. I am trying to decide if I want to buy another one now or wait.

I read on another thread that the mini dv don't hold a lot of footage on them.

I like the new JVC that uses no tapes/discs, but I think it is around $900! I am sure if we wait a few years we could get it for much less.

I am interested in what others have to say also.

 

[waspnest]

We got a Sony Mini-DV one a couple years ago. Love it. We ended up going with that standard, seemed like it's popular enough, moreso than digital-8. Sony had *just* come out with a DVD model, but it was very new and expensive. I'd think Mini-DV is the way to go for an economical choice, but it's been a couple years since I did the research. Look at Consumer Reports at the library. I'll look at mine and tell you when the last time they reviews camcorders was. Check out C-Net camcorder reviews for reviews and recommendations.

You might also find some info on www.dpreview.com - that's mostly digital still cameras, but I think there's some camcorder stuff on there.

 

[etwinchester]

I've been researching camcorders since June to purchase one for my DH for Christmas. I decided on the Sony DVD-92 (Circuit City for $499) for a couple of reasons:

* 20x zoom - great for DH since he is a hunter
* night vision mode was rated excellent by customer reviews
* easy to use according to customer reviews
* holds mini dvd's - the record time is only 30 minutes but we don't mind that. Who wants to sit through hours of video at a time. If we need more we'll just pop in another disk.

I've considered the ones that hold tapes but then it has to be hooked up to the tv to watch or to burn to dvd's. DH would have no idea what to do and it would be a pain to hook it up each time.

Our other camcorder is over 15 years old and I was afraid to purchase one for fear it wouldn't be the right one. Well, I've researched these and probably know more about them than he does. If for some reason he wants a different one, we can just exchange it but I think he will be totally happy with it.

 

[ChristyJ]

Before you buy from a reg. store, check out www.buydig.com My husband bought my digital camera through them (and I think he just bought me a digital camcorder for Christmas through them too ). Their price was by far the lowest-he bought me a Nixon Coolpix 5900 for around $250 when they were going for around $350 in Sears & Best Buy!!

 

[TnTWalter]

responded because I wasn't getting emails. Glad I checked. ;o)
Trish

 

[tmarquez]

I just had to buy a new camcorder. It was a last minute emergency so I didn't have alot of time to research, but ended up buyng a Panasonic GS19 for $329. It's a mini-DV. I really wanted to get one of the dvd ones, but they are more expensive and this was an unplanned purchase.

Some features that I like:

it takes the miniDV tapes and an SD card so you can use it as a digital still camera too.

cool "burst" feature...takes rapid still photos (always a good shot in there)

you can video and take still pictures at the same time

$20 rebate!

The only thing I dislike so far is that it's small (guess I have large hands) and for me a little awkward (I'm used to an older, larger 8mm camcorder).

One important thing I noticed while shopping...

Alot of models are pretty much the same except some come with the cables and software and others don't (if you want to use it with your computer). I saved about $50 by buying the model without the cables and software (software can be downloaded off the Panasonic website, and my Canon digital camera uses the same type of cable) so I didn't need them.

 

[klj27]

We unexpectedly bought one today. Our other one stopped working and we wanted to have it for the holidays. After researching, we went with the same type we had before, a Sony digital-8. We didn't want to spend a lot and we already have a lot of the digital-8 tapes. I look at camcorders at something that has technology that is always changing and the next time we can get a dvd or the kind that doesn't take any discs or tapes. We paid $284.99 at Circuit City.