Camcorder Reviews

Was lucky enough get in on this one for $219 during last weeks Friday Sale, and good thing I did, as it didn't last long! Works great out of the box, EXCELLENT quality and deals with low light situations nicely. Can connect it to any VCR or computer with S-Video connection (or analog RCA). Still, I probably wouldn't have paid $349 normal price. But it's really nice and very comprable to DV's. And I got a free case, tripod, and cleaning kit!

This JVC is awesome for the price. My husband & I are "First Timers" with a Camcorder and this one was so easy getting started. In just a few short minutes we were filming!!! I love the 3.5 inch screen. Most cams are only 2.5. That was a great feature. There is so much more to play around with, but I'm sure we'll be pros in no time. I would reccomend this one to anyone.

I own the JVC GR-DV2000U Camcorder (best camcorder I've ever owned). The only disappointment I've had with the camera was its slight underperformance in low light conditions.

This video light takes care of this. It will come on automatically when the ambient light drops too much. A feature wich not only saves batteries but also makes for extremely easy use. You CAN set the light to always on mode (or off), but I never do.

At first I was concerned about the coverage of the light. Don't get me wrong, it is very bright but it's not going to illuminate an entire room and it shouldn't. Besides, it already sucks the batteries, any brighter and your battery life would drop to nothing. The lumination it provides is perfectly balanced for the shooting of video in low light conditions.

The final point I want to make is that this thing is TINY and it looks great mounted on the camcorder.

I've been searching for a decent case for my Canon GL2, which is an unusual shape in 'consumer' or 'prosumer' digital miniDV camcorders. I tried bags from Lowe Pro and others, and they always seemed bulky and not quite right for the GL2.

The Kata bag was one I had my eye on, and when I finally was able to see one on a trip to Seattle, I knew it would be perfect for the GL2's long body and accessories.

And it nearly is. If the bag's inner compartment was about 1 inch longer, it would be completely perfect. Fortunately, this isn't much of a detriment - the soft shell of the bag and large amounts of padding can accomodate the long body and eyecup/viewer on the GL2 without much of a worry.

The bag looks extremely cool too - it doesn't look like your typical camera or camcorder bag. It's long, has a funky shape to it, and they have a unique "trap door" design to the bag that lets you put in a false bottom (velcro secured) platform to rest the camera on, and still stick accessories, spare film cassetes, etc below the camera - which you can then access via the secondary "trap door" enclosure on the back of the bag. Makes for very quick access to stuff.

The bag also includes two end pouches for storing cords, cables, tapes, batteries, chargers, etc, and they are held very securly with a three point connection - a plastic clip in the middle and two tight 'bungy cord' loops that attach to the bottom of the bag. Again, superb design shown here.

The carrying handle is nifty - you can adjust it's height, something I've not seen on another bag.

The shoulder strap is also top quality and stays secure thanks to the rubberized portion that rests on your shoulder.

You can also wear this with an optional belt attachment, and there's places to attach a tripod or monopod. All in all an excellent design, superb usability, and it looks way cool. If you own a GL2, this is the case for you.

If you're one of the lucky ones to have a Canon GL2 camera, you probably know that case options are few and far between for this 3CCD camera. I made "do" with a generic Lowe Pro camera bag for a few months, but based on a suggestion from a friend, I went for the Kata CCC-1111 model. It's not specifically listed as being compatible with the GL2, but it really should be.

The fit is tight in the main compartment if you have the extra large eye cup and the lens shield on the dvcam, but it still fits nicely. In fact, you have a few options as to the fit and layout of the bag - there's two dividers inside meant to accomodate smaller miniDV cams, but you can remove one, and leave the multi-level divider in place, and simply place the Canon GL2 on it's side in the top.

Fit and finish are superb. The trap door access on the back for the bottom of the case is a great idea. The two side pouches are removable, but hold secure while used. The straps are first rate, everything about this bag is almost perfect for the GL2. I have the bag loaded with shotgun mike, XLR adapter, two lapel mikes, spare batteries, charger, 10w light, and even have room for a Nikon CPX2500 digicam. Highly recommended.

I love mine. It is great with my sony handicam. Really gives me a nice image, and adds so much more action to my vids. Especially in tight locations when I want to show more of the action. Or outdoor landscapes. It has great build quality. And a zoom through ability. Its lens is razor sharp through my video cameras entire zoom range except for the highest zoom in. Only the last 10 percent of the highest zoom, gets blurry. From the wide range and through most of the zoom it is great! Awesome for independant film makers using video or DV cams. Gives a nice 35mm quality - in that you can fit more on your screen. You will love it.

I did a comparison of the Kenko SGT-20Hi with the Sony VCL-R2037, and the Kenko had the superior optics. Flare and coma were much smaller in the Kenko SGT-20Hi. Looking at Jupiter at night, the Kenko was able to resolve one of Jupiter's moons to a pixel, while with the Sony the moon appeared only sporadically. Chromatic aberration was a bit less in the Kenko. The vignetting that all the telephoto lenses have when the camcorder is in its wide angle zoom was slightly greater on the Kenko.

With a Sony CCD-TR500 camcorder, some telephoto lenses have a problem of being "near sighted"---unable to focus beyond about 50 feet when the camera is zoomed. This problem occurs with the Sunpak CAL-1160 and Kenko SGT-20 lenses, but is not a problem with Kenko SGT-20Hi or the Sony VCL-R2037 lenses, which have enough leeway in the focus to even accommodate far-spectrum red lights.

Save money for other accessories by buying Lenmar batteries and chargers. They work as good as Canon's batteries in my ZR 70 and the run-time is impressive. You won't regret this purchase.

Amazon was the only place I found a battery to replace my original one with a decent price!

I have a Sony DV TRV 250 and I wanted to transfer my videos on to my computer in a painless way because the software that came with the sony camcorder just doesn't work and the picture quality is nothing compared to this. I attached this fire wire cable and within seconds I saw my videos on the PC with the help of the DVD software. The resolution and the picture quality was awesome not to forget the fact that all of this worked within seconds! I would highly recommend the monster fire wire cable to make your camcorder experience more easier and enjoyable!