Camcorder - we need a new one - What to buy ?

[pooh2001]

3 months and counting till we go to WDW.

Our Camcorder from 9 years ago "died"

Could anyone recommend a camcorded for us to buy ?
We have many large stores in our area (BJ's, Best Buys, Ciruit City, Walmart, .....).

We would like a compact size Camcorder with the flip out screen we always see people using.
This way we can view what we are taping - even though the Camcorder is above our heads.

We would like it to have it's own lighting - without many attachments.

$500 - $800 range (less would be wonderful)

Suggestions ?

 

[cdntowdw]

If you search for posts by me, you will see that I had some wonderful responses to a similar question a couple of weeks ago. The same as you, our camera of 10 years has died. When we decided to take a trip in to the States (we're from Canada) I started to check into models and prices to compare. I found I could save over $200.00 by buying over the boarder. After a little research and advice from helpful Disers, we settled on the Sony CCD TRV68. It is a Hi8mm (our old one was 8mm, so the tapes are compatible). It has the flip out screen and all the features we could want. You can check out the specs at any of the stores on-line that you mentioned. Well, I made the big purchase last Monday at Sears in Erie. The regular price was $399 but with the 10% special that week it was $359.00 and only 6% sales tax.

I love it. I used it throughout our holiday and got some wonderful pictures with my kids at the Pittsburg zoo. We're not ready for a digital camera yet - too much money, and extra fuss to download pictures. I like to keep it simple. This camera has everything I could want.

 

[pooh2001]

Thank you !
My friend also said to buy a SONY. You must have the up-to-date one.
She has a SONY TRV65 HI8mm, 72x digital zoom.

I'll start hunting our local stores for one.
Thanks for the price quote too !

 

[B3LM]

We also bought the Sony CCD TRV68 several weeks ago. We've been very happy with it. We found it at Sears. At that time, they had it for $399 and it came with a free camera bag, Hi8MM tape, and an extra battery. If you have some time, you might want to start watching the ads for a similar deal. We watched the ads for a couple of months before we bought ours.

Good luck!
Beth

 

[elgerber]

If you want to spend a little more I would highly recommend a Sony Digital 8. The picture and sound quality are amazing, and you can easily edit them on your computer. We are on our second Sony Digital 8, we sold the first and got a 2nd, because they added some new features. They are coming down in price all the time, I think around $700-$800 now. More expensive than a traditional 8 mm, but I think the quality is worth the extra money.

Erika

 

[Michele]

We got our Sony TRV46 about 2 years ago. We love it.

 

[phins_jazy]

Had to pull my camcorder out of the bag to see what it was!! We've got a sony ccd-trv37 we bought it last year around income tax time. I love it!!! It has the flip out screen and a light on the front of it if you need more light. It's got so many features I don't even know them all!!!! We got ours at Best Buy. I don't remember the price but I believe it was in the $350-$400 range. I've always noticed that best buy prices (at least around here) are always a little bit cheaper than circuit city. And make sure to buy the extended warranty. It gives you free cleanings every year. Good luck in your search!!!

 

[kecall]

Sony is the way to go! When buying a camera, by as "high end"as you can afford. What I mean by that is that the technology is constantly expanding. If you buy a low-end model, it will quickly be outdated. Spend the extra bucks and get a nice one. The digital 8mm are wonderful! WE can do so many things with our camera. And with the "Memory Stick", you can take digital photos (though not the highest quality, but still pretty good), and quickly download them into your computer to email or print. It's a neat little feature.

Because the market is soo competitive anymore, the best thing to do is first go shopping to find the exact camera that you want. Go someplace that has knowledgeable sales people.
Find out everything you can from them. Then you can narrow down your search to the right one for you. -- After deciding on a model, then go shopping for the lowest price. Even check out online....Places like Circuit City and Best Buy are always having sales, so you just have to shop around to find the best price.

Have fun!!

 

[KLR-wlv]

Hi

I just bought a JVC digital one which is great - but I would recommend going to Yahoo and doing a search under "Camcorders" and put in the model you want and you can do a search to compare all yahoo merchants. The price difference is amazing! My camera was $300 cheaper at a dealer (DBuys.com) than at Amazon. They rate the vendors too so you may not want to buy from the absolute cheapest if they aren't rated high (I found the cheapest prices tended to be "refurbished" cameras if you checked the specifications). But if you know what model you want - I'd recommend a price check there before buying.

 

[robinb]

I also own a JVC DVM90U and it is awesome. It's small and lightweight. It's also very pricey. Luckily, I read that Sears price matches anyone, including the places on the internet. I found the best price I could and printed it out including shipping. I took the printout to my local Sears and they sold me the camera . I had to pay sales tax on the purchase, but it was worth it to have the camera in my hands 2 days before going to Disneyland.

You can check eopinions for other people's thoughts on different cameras:
http://www.epinions.com/elec-Video-Camcorders-All/tk_~TB003.1.9

 

[Dr. Happy]

Wow! I'm absolutely amazed! Nine and ten years for a camcorder???? We're lucky if we get 3 years out of ours! We, too, have the Sony CCD-TRV37 and love it. Bought it at Wal-Mart for about $360. It has an LCD color viewfinder screen with sound, very sharp and precise auto focus, infolithium battery (tells you how much power you have left), nightshot for filming in very dark settings, built-in light source, oodles of special effects and titles, and fits in the palm of your hand. We looked at the Digital 8s but the cost, for me, is prohibitive. Also, if you don't plan on editing your videos on your computer, why bother? The price you pay for the additional picture quality is not justified in my mind. Besides, the Sony CCD-TRV37 HAS a digital zoom that is very sharp; you get virtually the same picture quality for a lot lower price.

What I would also definitely recommend is a good camera bag. With lots of padding because you willl be amazed how much abuse it takes in your travels.

 

[Bennet]

I got a Sony tvr 130 $599. Digital 8. Has a light. Works very well.

There is a review at http://www.dvspot.com/

It is Sony's low end digital 8. No digital still to a memory stick. I didn't want the tv camera to be my digital still camera so I didn't pay extra for the feature since I wasn't going to use it.

I would get the camera well before you go and practice with it. Also get tapes at home Mickey get top dollar for blank tapes.

 

[SheDaisy0088]

We actually bought ours online!! It is a Panasonic PVL-750. It has 300x Digital Zoom. It takes digital picutres and has a viewfinder so that you can watch what you are taping when you tape it. In the stores it was listed for $700. We bought it online for $450. We have taken many pictures with it and are very happy!!

www.beachcamera.com