need help picking a new camcorder

[Michelle GT]

Please help me
I am need of a new camcorder. I havent taken any movie pictures of my kids in 2 years and desparately need to before they get too old I think I would be interested in the dvd ones because they seem to be the easiest to record on. I dont really understand how the dv works. do you plug into your computer and then burn on a dvd? If anyone can shed some light I would greatly appreciate it
It needs to be easy enough for me to use quickly as I dont ever have a lot of time to fuss with things.
thanks for any help you can give.
Michelle

 

[Lanshark]

I'm interested too.

 

[Dan Murphy]

 

[Michelle GT]

somebody, please help me

 

[GailT]

I have a Sony but I bought mine in 2000 so I bet 4 yrs later they are even better. Mine is still going strong and I have no complaints with a Sony product

 

[Michelle GT]

GailT
thanks for the info, Sony gets a good review from consumer reports. Can you tell me how easy it is to get your video on to a dvd or do you keep them on tapes?
Thanks

 

[S. C.]

BUMP I'm interested in this too.

 

[LSURyan]

I believe sony maks a camcorder that records directly onto a dvd. It is a smaller disk that the ones you Disney movies are on. This camera is on the expensive side though.

I have a camcorder that records in miniDV format. Tose camereas are reasonably well priced and are all relatively simple to operate. I'd recomend either Sony or Cannon as those seem to get good reviews. Compare and contrast different models to see which has the features you will want/use.

To transfer miniDV to DVD is not that hard. You will need a firewire and a movie editing program. IMovie or Mocrosoft Movie Maker will do just fine. Then just follow the instructions on the software. You will need a DVD burner to burn DVD's, but many DVD players will read other movie formats, just check your DVD player.

 

[GailT]

Originally posted by Michelle GT
GailT
thanks for the info, Sony gets a good review from consumer reports. Can you tell me how easy it is to get your video on to a dvd or do you keep them on tapes?
Thanks

I keep them on tapes but would love to learn how to transfer them to videos

 

[ohanafamily]

Hi all, I have a Sony 101, here is a link to the page.

http://www.sonystyle.com/is-bin/INT...s_DVDHandycamCamcorders&Dept=dcc_DICamcorders

I chose to buy a DVD camcorder because I have a mental block about transferring tapes to my computer.

Pro...mainly you can take out the DVD and e-mail it straight from your comuter.

cons..if you don't finalize the Disl before taking it out of the camera then you could loose all of your pictures/video...
Another is that finalizing takes ove 10 minutes (that you can't be shooting video.
30 minutes to a DVD is another drawback.
Also, don't try to shoot a picture in the wrong mode.

That being said, if I had it to do over again, I would have purchased the more expensive one. The pictures are decent quality for what I will be using it for (mainly web stuff) and the 201 takes much better stills. Once you get used to it's quirks, it is really nice...

Other recomendations, buy the extended "if I smash it to smiythereens Am I covered warranty; esp with small children.

I really like using it for stills to; it is small, and once you take the DVD out, you can read them straight into your computer without the transfer hassles.

I chose the Sony because it had a slightly better picture than the Cannon, it was more money though. This generation is much better than the previous one; I would not buy a used or :Last Years Model". This one is less noisy, and less suceptable to the wobbles.....

I hope I've helped; My best advice would be to go to a place that sells lots of types and talk to the sales associate.....

 

[Michelle GT]

A big thanks for the insider info. I do plan on going shopping soon for the camera, but before I did, I just wanted some first hand knowledge on how they really work. I know once I get into the store they will be trying to sell me the most expensive camera they have
If it is not too difficult to burn movies to dvds then I will probably consider these the most. Although I love the thought that the dvd models wouldn't need the extra step. I wonder if picture quality is the same for both. They are both digital, right?
Well, thanks again for the help.

ohannafamily- you are so right about the warranty. we bought a nikon digital camera a few years ago. paid $500- only to drop it in the parking lot at church. it cost us $200 to have it fixed. I cant even blame my kids. It was a handoff from dh to myself.