Digital-Camcorder Reviews

I just opened my TRV-460 and after charging the FM-30 battery that Sony sent along, I set the date and shot about 7 minutes of video and the battery died! The Sony Manual doesn't even recommend an FM-30; but they chose to send it along anyway. I replaced the battery with another FM-50 (Off-brand from nations largest store) and the camcorder powered up, gave a message that the battery was not a Sony and powered down. Appears you need to use a Sony battery only, as their is some new chip technology that won't let others copy their over-priced batteries anymore. The 3-Watt, LED light does nothing for the video. The video does look bettter than HI-8 when played back on a 32" TV. There is no media shipped with the unit. Be prepared to spend alot on batteries, memory stick and tapes.

First off, I can state without hesitation that while the name SONY typically equates with expensive, it always equals QUALITY. What's great about this camcorder is that you have the QUALITY without the expensive price tag. I paid $399 at Circuit City.

I almost bought a JVC MiniDV which was a few bucks cheaper, but since I have never had a problem with any SONY product I have ever owned (cd players, TV's, etc), I went with the Sony. Plus, I am by no means a video buff, so the reality is IF there truly is a difference between MiniDV and Digital 8 picture quality, I am sure I would not be able to notice. A plus for 8mm camcorder owners, you can use/view those tapes on this model!!

That being said, the beauty of the product is it's ease of use. My wife is completely confused by technical gadgets, and she was able to use the camcorder using the EasyCam setting out of the box. There are enough video tricks and editing features to satisfy the most creative amateur videographers.

Also, contrary to what other reviewers have stated here, the battery life of the InfoLithium battery has been pretty good for me. I get about 1hr on a full charge, though I have not filmed for 1 continuous hour, just a few minutes here and there.

So allow me to move on to my only CONS:
- SIZE - if this is an issue for you, go with MiniDV, however the smaller you go, the more hand shakiness becomes an issue, even with image stabilizing technology. The size of the TRV460 is a tad large for today's camcorder, but definitely not bulky or too heavy. Mainly due to tape size.

- MOTOR HUM - When recording or playback, there is a distinct hum that comes from the camcorder. I hadn't noticed in Circuit City, so I went back, checked a few other models and soon realized most camcorders make a slight hum when the tape is active. I learned to live with it as the "hum" sound does not get picked up by the microphone when recording.

Overall, I highly recommend this VERY affordable QUALITY Sony camcorder as it more than capabale of fulfilling any family's video needs. I am very happy with my purchase!

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I bought a Camera two years ago JVC DVF31 that I have used so far without problem. One month ago it began to have a problem that doesn't already allow me neither to reproduce a tape. When putting a tape in the videocamera it leaves me a legend: "different formated type! ". At the beginning this problem began to make it intermittently and it was solved taking out and putting again the same tape into the camera.
Now already it makes it permanently and it doesn't allow me to use it.
In the JVC official service of Argentina they answered me almost without to revise it that the problem is the motherboard and an the cost of repair [was a lot of money]!!!!!
This legend that appears in the finder "different formated type! " it cannot be for another cause? Help me.
I don't want to leave this camera like old museum piece and to think that it was a very bad purchase.
Excuse my not well written English.

This is my first and only camcorder. I wanted to get good quality still shots, which is one reason I went with the JVC. From what I read it had the best suite of software. I had no problem installing the software and getting the camera connected to the computer with the provided serial cable.

Capturing pictures is easy and fairly quick. (If you would like to see some sample pictures, go to www.pipeline.com/~vtfcu/car.htm). The tape does not start in the same spot after a frame capture, I find this annoying.

The playback controls on the camera do not allow slow motion play. The remote does, but it is at their preset speed. If you have your computer connected, you can also advance one frame at a time. This is necessary to get the exact frame you want to capture on the PC. The camcorder will only play back in slow mode for 2 minutes (I assume to protect the tape).

The camcorder has to be turned off when going from play to record. I find this makes it difficult to queue the tape to the exact spot for recording.

It seems the tape does not disengage when in one of the record modes. In other words, the tape is engaged when monitoring or leaving the camera on and ready to record. I don't know why this would be if you can only watch in slow mode for a short period of time. But it also seems to stay in pause mode for a long time, so maybe the head is not wearing away the tape when in pause during playback or record.

The snapshot mode is not what I expected. When the snapshot button is pressed, the tape continues to run and record the same picture for about 5 seconds then taping continues as normal. I was very impressed with the ability to focus up close. It even focused on the lint on the UV filter attached to the camera.

I'm not too sure about the sound volume yet. The quality seems quite good.

First, the 1-hour battery supplied will last only 20 - 25 min, if you are using a lot of zooming or built-in light. So, if you don't want to be interrupted by "battery low" messages, purchase 2-hour battery (BNV214U), which is compatible with the supplied AC adapter/charger. Still the better investment will be buying 8-hour battery, the only two problems: it's very expensive. . . and needs a special charger.

They included the editing cable to capture your video on computer, however, it connects to COM1 port, which might be already in use (by your mouse). Besides this, the COM ports are the slowest ports on computer systems, so the quality of editing process is questionable.

If you hope to do a lot of editing, purchase a video capture card with all cables supplied (Pyro ProDV will do fine, Pinnacle DV200, 500 are also cool, but much more expensive).

Unfortunately, JVC doesn't supply any tapes with this GRDVF-31 unit, which means you should purchase them yourself, especially if you wish to test your camcorder immidiately after shooting.

The technical manuals are not very good (and surely the worst I've ever seen). All text is printed, using almost the same typefaces and sizes, so it's very hard to extract information you need quickly and switch between general instructions and technical details. It's also very poorly organized (description of all dials and buttons on your camera is at the end of the book!)

The reason I gave this camera five stars is that all problems stated above are easy to solve. Just purchase additional batteries, tapes and capture card, and you have pro-style video studio right at your apartment for the lowest and most reasonable price ever.

We purchased this camcorder specifically because of its dual function as a camcorder and digital camera. I'm not really going to comment on the camcorder aspects because I agree with most of the other positive comments that people have made.

As for the digital stills, pictures taken outdoors look fine, but indoor pictures are VERY grainy and pixelated, even in a very bright room. In my opinion, the quality is just unacceptable. The Memory Stick with USB output is an incredible technology that makes downloading pictures to your computer so EASY, but this benefit can not make up for the bad pictures that it takes. (I did not try to capture stills from the tape because I do not have the ieee adaptor needed to do this, so I do not know if stills taken in this way may look better than those taken on the memory stick)

If you are just looking to take video, then this camcorder is probably fine, but I see no need to pay for the extra memory stick capabilities because they are not worth it.

My fiance and I just purchased this camera and boy was I impressed! This is our first camcorder but not the first one I have used. It's light weight make it easy to handle. And the steadyshot works quite well. My hands are quite shaky but you could never tell by watching something I taped! The picture quality is good, but I am only using the standard A/V cables. Once I get the S-video cables I should see a dramatic upgrade in picture quality. The battery it comes with isn't the best, only about 90 minutes fully charged. I particularly liked the nightshot feature. Although the images come out in a green tone the picture quality is outstanding. I was fooling around with it in a pitch black room and you could see everything clear as day(green of coarse). The LCD is exceptionally smaller than the 530 but it is still big enough to fit most people's needs. Of coarse if you want to save battery power just don't use the LCD. The only thing I can't comment about is the still picture option. I just spent a large sum of money on a straight up digital camera so I don't need to use that option. So I am sorry I can't help you out there! Overall the camera is excellent and I would suggest it to anybody looking for a new camcorder.

I've been looking around at prices and i'de say this is the best price I've found. I was checking out other cameras and found one for $500. It was not as good as this one and cost more. Its worth your cash and the specs are nice! Like the 25x optical zoom is crazy. The digital zoom doesn't really make a difference after u get over 200x zoom on that. So dont think that 700x zoom makes much of a difference. I'de say buy it asap.

I think it's only fair for potential buyers to know about the bad/poor things about PC100e : 1) If your travel a lot and do not need a digital camera function, this one is not for you 2) Most buttons are too small. Function such as fading/overlaping arent easy to activate once you are recording. They will cause you to shake the camera. Sony should design bigger button or allow pre-defined function before recording begins. 3) Photo capturing button is so small and next to yet another button. It is confusing and you will need to use your index finger to press, which will tilt the camera. Unless you use 2 hands...but why shall we? Sony should have designed to use the same button as the camcoder REC button, afterall when you switch to "Memory"=Digital Camera mode, one can only capture digital still image. This design will also allow them to save production cost for the extra buttons. 4) Should allow direct PC/Camcoder connection for still images ether using UBS/Serial connection like the Panasonic. Instead, Sony gives us bulky serial adapter for the memory stick which requires yet another separate power supply. Imaging that many things to carry. 5) When you use the DV tape to record still images, it only allows you to store 640x480 resolution. This is no mega pixels. Sony never mentions that until you buy the unit and read the one liner in the manual. BEWARE! 6) Lousy manual. First the terms Sony uses for each function are so confusing. Then Sony combines English and Greek (I think) into one manual. Sometime you can see 1 page with 2 languages sharing the same diagram. I wonder why they want to save a couple of pages. 7) A cheap camera these days come with a bag. Why Sony does not give a less than ($) bag with their top rage DV Cam? 8) The power supply for the camera is so big it's amusing to me. Sony should know people travel with at least the AC Adaper! Though light but size still matters.

May be all the rest of the DV Cams will have the similar problems, but my advise is if you travel a lot and do not care about the "still" image resolution at 1 Mega (Sony PC100's 1Mega offer so so quality anyway), save your money but the cheaper Sony 5E or Panasonic DC55/99 which offer 0.8 Mega Pixels still image camputuring capability. They offer just the best quality of video images at a much cheaper price.

My general comment on Sony is they have good engineers to design quality solid built products, but once come to design for ease of use or see what people really need, .... My fitt Sony is a DVD player which comes with almost similar problem. After this Camcoder, I swear there will not be another Sony in my life. Life should be easy!

the Camcorder Box and Spec says it is good for 1 MegaPixel photos. It is a lie. The image quality is like magnifying a 640 x 480 to 1 Megapixel. The result is coarse pixelation of the photo... I called the Sony customer support and they told me, "if it looks good on the view finder, then Sony's job is done." What [a lie]. Sony, wake up and don't tell lies!

Nine months ago, I had to upgrade my old (but clunky) Video-8 camcorder. After a lot of research, I almost didn't settle for this camera, because although most owners loved it and it seemed to have the best image quality in the class, it is rather expensive. Looking at my savings account, and remembering that the Video-8 didn't get used much because of its heft, I took the plunge.

The small size makes this an excellent camera to bring with you in a sport jacket pocket, briefcase, or even jeans pocket (if you're into those large raver-style pockets, that is). While many of the buttons are small, I don't mind much, because the few I use (start/stop, exposure control) are logically placed and easy to push. I don't use any of the digital effects or fade functions, because I transfer the video digitally to my computer and edit tape there -- something I never got around to with the old clunker.

I also don't use the still image capture much at all, because I have a separate Kodak digital camera for that, and the memory stick reader that comes with this camcorder is S-L-O-W (because it's serial-only). If you have one of those VAIO machine with a built-in memory stick reader, I suppose it would be OK. Transfer of video using the built-in FireWire (1394, i-Link, DV-gate, ...) port works very well, and I haven't had any problems getting this camera recognized by my computer.

The battery life is also amazing. The standard (slim!) battery lasts for more than two hours -- the larger medium-sized battery (which I use most of the time) gives you FIVE HOURS of running time. If you can *at all* afford this camcorder, and don't need the extra image quality of an (expensive, bulky) three-CCD camera then get this one.

I've been wanting to get a new camcorder for about two years now. I've put it off until recently when I saw the TRV27. It had pretty much what I wanted in a camcorder. Digital, large LCD, usb and firewire connections and i'm partial to Sony anyway.
After about two weeks of messing around with it I can certainly recommend this camera to anyone willing to spend the money for it. There are comparable cameras out there so it comes down to personal taste and affordability.

I can only give this 4 stars though because of a few things.
1. The included PixelView DV editing software sucks. I downloaded a trial version of Ulead Videowave and it had more features and was easier to use. Sony should've included better software to compliment their equipment.

2. Filming in low light is almost useless. The film comes out near total black. I would recommend a video light.

and lastly,
3. The still shots at standard settings aren't the greatest. The still shots are at 1.0 megapixels so to get the best output you need to have those settings at the highest resolution and hightest quality. That takes up space on the included 8 meg memory stick. If you are planning to use it as a digital camera for still shots, I would recommend the 128meg mem. stick.

Other than those concerns I'm completely happy with my purchase and having a good time learning video editing.

I've used the DCR-TRV27 for almost a year and a half now. Excellent image quality, light weight, great battery life, data flows through FireWire to computer very well.

Down sides: Sony's web site doesn't even acknowledge they ever made this camera; searching on its model number will not produce any results. So if you lost the manual, the best source to get it in .pdf form is Amazon! Also, the zoom is a little over-sensitive.

These are minor quibbles though. For the money, this camera is a bargain.

Excellent camcorder!

Was looking for TRV30 which went out of production and came across this one.

Pros: 1) clear and vibrant video picture (video 690K pixels and still 1 mega pixels CCD)
2) Fast focusing when using zoom in auto mode
3) simple to use knobs and buttons
4) Value for price
5) still photo fairly good with 1 megapixel rating
6) video looks great on TV (at least in Sony Wega TV) than the LCD screen (May be I have reduce the brightness of screen)

Cons:
1) 10x optical and 120x digital zoom slightly less than the competion JVC, Panasonic, Canon
2) Battery life is short with LCD usage
3) No memory stick holder/case supplied
4) No flashlight/ video light (have to buy separately)

Will recommend for anyone who wants good decent video with high resolution and money to spend.

I work with camcorders since 1988 - S-VHSC, Hi8, etc. No question, no matter what kind of digital camcorder you compare with an analog one, it is superior. However, I found this camcorder particularly interesting and bought it since I left the 'semi-professional' field (and being now an electrical engineer in software development). Here are my findings:
Pro:

1) Awesome workmanship: The high-grade plastic case pieces precisely fit and give the camcorder a valuable finish, the buttons have a well defined 'ignition' point and the connectors for FireWire, USB, Analog Video etc. are 'cemented' into the case.
2) Excellent cost / feature ratio: Although following the hype of marrying video with stills, this camcorder emphasizes on video (please, do buy a digital camera if you need digital stills). The outstanding optical unit with a real 22x zoom and one of the most effective image stabilizer in the market, combined with a friendly user-interface including illuminated buttons and a clean menu, this camcorder is a bargain.
The picture quality is excellent. One note here: please remember that the miniDV standard builds on 5.7 Mhz video bandwidth. In other words, no matter what the (multi) colored CCD ship is capable of a resolution, it comes down to a maximum of 370,000 effective pixels needed for NTSC video. The 460,000 pixels of this camcorder seem more than enough.
3) Accessories: Just in case you really care about the somewhat whining recorder server motors, please do buy the optional microphone - it's an awesome addition if you do semi-professional sound-recordings. Also, Canon offers wide and tele-converters specialized for the ZR series. Not a novelty in camcording in general, but a serious affordable consumer expansion if needed.
4) Internationality: Yes, there are other electrical power systems out there: the Canon switching power supply is not only very light, it also connects to almost every wall-outlet in the world with the right (optional) plug-adapter.
5) Ergonomics: Oh yes, I thought about a palm-ready camcorder, too. But think about it: the optical unit including the lenses and the CCD has to fit into half the length of a regular camcorder like the ZR 50 (Palm recorders do not have more than 10x zoom, the ZR 50 has 22x). The camcorder fits right into my hand, the zoom button can be accessed naturally without shifting the camcorder in your hand (try Sony!) and the zoom button is depth sensitive - the deeper you zoom, the less sensitive is the camcorder zoom-button. Additionally, beside so many other brands out there, the digital zoom is even useable to a certain degree. It becomes affective once the optical zoom is exhausted to a 22x. However, if you want quality video, turn it off.
6) Video Modes: Select one of the predefined video modes. One of the most impressive mode is the night-mode - if the moon strikes you, your ZR 50 will catch it. However, don't expect wonders, every serious video-grapher recommends at least 100 lux (a unit of measuring light-intensity).

Con:
I couldn't find a con so far - maybe the sound-quality the integrated microphone produces? Hm, given the size of the case, it seems reasonable...

Yeah, I am enjoying this camcorder. Canon showed once again that a camcorder design can meet almost all of a consumer-customer's needs:
Rich functionality, lightweight design, extensible through optional accessories including lenses, robust workmanship.

Recommended!

I like Sony. But 10x zoom, size and weight steered me away from them. After reading MANY reviews on this site and elsewhere, I wanted to get the ZR40. Then the ZR50 appeared in my Gold Box and I decided to order it. I'm sure glad I did!!

I ordered it together with the external mic DM-50. (You have to order some tape with it, too. Why doesn't Canon include a tape?) I also have a Mac PowerBook G4. Here are my findings:

1. The video quality outdoors is just great. When you play back on a TV, it looks like any professional TV program. Crisp, colors are great.

2. Optics are excellent. 22x zoom lets you fill the screen with an orange 15 ft away. Shake is no problem. Digital zoom only marginally beneficial.

3. The stills are nothing special. But even a megapixel (like other brands) is nothing special. (My first digi camera was a Kodak 1.3 Megapixel. Nice but only good enough for very small printouts. I have a 4 Megapixel Olympus for hi-res printouts today.) Quality is OK if you want to send 640x480 web images.

4. Sound: The built-in mics are better than expected. They are sensitive and omnidirectional. There is some hum from the motor. Not a lot. But the real kicker is the DM-50. It's not totally cheap but it's worth it (in my eyes). The mic is very sensitive and audio is CRYSTAL clear. I taped my wife singing about 25 ft away. She is an opera singer, soprano. Her voice in the high range is a challenge to any mic. It's sensitive enough that I could hear her muttering with the organist, her pageturns. And yet her singing did not distort. The quality exceeds my 2 semi-pro mics. People only 10ft off to the side definitely sounded off mic. And even people right behind me were softer on tape than people in front 20ft away.

The DM-50 has also 2 stereo settings that are more omnidirectional. I haven't explored them yet.

5. Connection to the Mac is absolutely a breeze. Just plug in the firewire and load iMovie and you have the camera image on the computer monitor. You can record/import the camera image directly to hard drive w/o hitting record on the camera. iMovie also controls the camera to load the edited movie back onto the camera tape.

6. After the first 15min of taping I got a message that the heads would be dirty?? I ignored it and kept going. No problem. Maybe there was some residue on the heads from the factory? (The handbook says to clean the heads every 20 h.) 3 h of taping later, the message still hasn't come back.

I'm so glad I got the ZR50. 22x zoom and DM-50 are worth it!

i've had my zr50 for two months now, and i love it!! when i was shopping around i considered the zr50mc and elura 40mc. i'm a mac user so, i had to make sure i bought a camcorder that supported mac os x, imovie and iphoto. after reading the consumer reviews on both camcorders from a few different sites, including the reviews on amazon.com, i opted for the zr50 and have not been disappointed.


i read a lot about the motor humming noises, but truthfully i don't know what humming noise was being referred to. the recorded movies are sharp and crisp; the colors bright.


i do agree with the "night mode" feature being a bit lacking, although the camcorder will record in low-light environment just fine.


no complaints on the battery life and required charging time.


the analog pass through feature is awesome...allows me to edit older movies recorded from an analog camcorder on my ibook!


i was also surprised by the quality of still shots taken on the zr50's photo (digital camera) feature...crisp, vivid colors, not too grainy. after reading some of the reviews, i didn't expect much from the still image feature.


bottom line -- the zr50 is a great buy, and it's affordability can't be beat. works fabulously with mac os x (and jaguar) and compatible with imovie and iphoto...

April 2002

I found this camera ...on Amazon six months ago and was amazed with the picture quality and comfort of use of this camera at the price. I am giving the camera a full thumbs up after more than 6 months of use!

I like the no viewfinder concept... (I wear glasses and it is a pain to look thru viewfinders!) You also center the frame well - what you see in the LCD is what you get!

The camera has a IR remote and a reversible viewscreen which allows me and my wife to take our pictures without anyone elses help. Just turn the camera towards you and you can see yourselves on the small LCD screen and use the remote even to zoom upto 10X. (It has digital zoom, but a purist like me cannot use digital zoom!)

I bought a Inland Firewire Card (which came with a ULead videosystems Videomaker software)...and am very pleased with the quality of the home VCD that I made from it. Of course, I had an old AMD K6-350 Desktop running Windows 98 - which meant downloading patches for DV editing from inlandfaq dot com site and buying a Maxtor 40GB Harddrive ... to upgrade my old and shaky compaq PC!

I am finally happily creating great home movies with lots of special effects at a premium price .. and recommend everyone to do the same. Do not waste money when you can save! DV quality is within your reach...P>As for still pictures, I find grabbing the DV frames at 780x640 resolution using the DV software is the best way. You really donot need a memory stick or more resolution, it prints upto 5x6 prints, even 8x10s look great if printed on a laser printer... Your pictures look great as 10x zoom lets you take great closeups of just the face! I find my pictures better than ones taken on 2megapixel still cameras as the closeup really makes up for lower resolution esp in natural light conditions.

Happy DV editing!

My wife and I were having our first child. My father-in-law said I should have a digital camera and a video camera. I wanted a product that would combine the two (...). I didn't know much about them when I started my hunt. I was aimed at the Sharp product from the start because of its style, no viewfinder, a simple LCD screen acts as viewfinder and monitor, also I liked how the screen and camera can twist 270 degrees from each other. Here are some things I really liked: mini-DV format; 660,000 pixel CCD, this is very important for the image size; manual control of focusing, color, etc.; ability to shoot single images (9 or 16 in group) at 1/10 second separation for fast moving sports; digital image stabilization; ability to brighten forground objects against a bright background; ease of use if you read the instruction manual; and availability of Sharp developed software and cable for image transfer to the computer. A few tradeoffs: basic battery is short lived, longer life battery is available, and AC/DC adapter provided and charging is quick; slight motor hum/whine that is picked up by microphone when recording, not serious problem because the frequency is such that any voice or other sound will cover it up and if you do not think about it you will probably not hear it; and I could not find it in any store and had to purchase over the internet (this turned out very easy and great). Conclusion, buy this camcorder and the software, for the features and the money you cannot lose. P.S.: be careful not to compare pixels in camcorder to digital camera, a $150 digital camera, 1.3 mega pixel will beat a $700 camcorder, 0.7 mega pixel. An important question to ask is what resolution will the camcorder create images at for sending on the internet? An average I found was 640 x 480, about 0.3 mega pixel.

small enough to take everywhere.....it's been all over the world and through some tough climates and still works great! Large LCD for viewing eliminates the need for a view finder, which most people don't use with todays DV camera. Functions easy to access. Takes 37mm filters. Suggest purchase of two batteries so you can cut back on down time when shooting. Liked it so much....getting one for my son in the military!! Looking for underwater case...if available.

i use this camera on win98 exclusively. you can't install it on an NT or win2000 machine (the software won't install, nor will the updated drivers); on win98, very easy to get working. you can use it with any popular videoconferencing program that you like. the included software is nice to organize photo albums or make video movies. you can also use software to create web pages, and even a web cam (download the new software from intel.com); the focus wheel is on top of the camera, which makes focusing hard if you aren't right next to it....the lens cover is nice if you want to close it and protect the lens. the base is pretty stable, and comes with a bit of sticky tape so you can firmly mount it. if you don't use the sticky tape, i recommend velcro for easy mobility to different angles, otherwise the weight of the usb cable will cause it to tip a bit if it's not firmly seated. there are two lense settings for indoor and outdoor, but i've never used the outdoor option. (it's really a setting for light balance); update your drivers from intel.com and you get the pan and zoom features, as well as fixes to some of the hue and colour balance options.

I compared this camera with the Creative Labs Web Cam 3. Intel Pc Camera shows a better and a superior image quality. The software is A+ plus, you can create videos, take photos or send cards through the internet. Dont forget the video conference capabilities (the package include two licences of Intel video phone software). But before you install this camera in your PC, go to tech customer support site to get the correct software ID number, (this is incorrectly labeled in the package). A special note; many friends are reporting configuration problems with pcs equiped with ATIs video cards or ATIs video software.

My dad left crap on my front steps, this was one of the items, it works great...

Great camera when I first got it, I felt like I had got something really good - so I should have, it cost me a whole load of cash.

Just after the warranty had expired, I find out the hard way that the whole line of Canon camcorders have a serious problem with the tape transport system causing the warning message "REMOVE THE CASSETTE" appearing in big red letters on the LCD. Camera will not function until expensive repairs have been carried out.(...)

Pros: Excellent image quality and color fidelity; 20X optical zoom; two-channel audio control; 1.7-megapixel still image capture; lightweight.

Cons: Too many controls per button; onboard microphone is omnidirectional; mediocre battery life with included cell.

Summary: An ok camera, just not what I expected. I own a Sony VX2000 and PD-150 we use in video production of homes for sale. We bought the GL2 because of the fact it was about a half pound lighter and a little smaller than the Sony cameras. The first problem is when you attache the small 3 watt Canon light, the drain on the battery is too great and shuts down the camer before the battery is one half way drained. Even with the biggest battery that Canon makes the battery life is short with their fill light. The second problem was when the telephoto zoom button failed after 70 minutes of use, making the auto zoom function useless. Now I must send the camera back to Canon only after 20 days of use. The mail order place would only take it back within 15 days. The third problem is the low light noise is a little worse on the camera when compared to the Sony VX2000 or Sony PD-150. It is not a big difference, but it is noticeable. I never had a reason to mail in a Sony camera for repairs, even after years of use. It's a dissapointment to have a new camera fail in so many ways

I own this camera, and it's my best friend. Well not really, but it's the most amazing camera I've ever had. You get what you pay for, and you get a lot from this camera.

This is however, NOT a camera that the general public should buy. It's far to expensive, and really wouldn't be worth it to someone who will be using this for filming say a birthday party. There are many features on this camera, which make it as wonderful as it is, but these features would likely be unused by someone new to video cameras. So if you are in this boat, save your money and get a different camera.

What's great about it? The image quality is better than anything I've seen before. With 3CCD, it's good. Unlike the XL-1S, the GL2 has a 2.5 inch color LCD. However, I rarely use this. It takes up more battery power, and you can't see it when there's sunlight. I love the audio controls, and how it's not only stereo microphone, but you can control the levels of your left and right audio, right there, on the camera. I love to convert analogue video into digitial video, and it's almost too easy using the GL2. It's great for getting your older stuff into a digital format, and being able to easily get it onto your computer.

What's bad about it? Really not a whole lot. The 1.7-megapixel photo mode is really uneeded. 1.7-megapixels really isn't that good. The included 8MB card for these pictures isn't enough. If you're going to want to take digital pictures, then get a digital still camera, and don't use the GL2 as a still camera.

But I can't stress enough that if you aren't going to use this for more professional projects, then you really shouldn't get this camera.

Earlier this year, I purchased this camera for a Win98 machine, and was very pleased. I had it up and running in five minutes, and for the price, the clarity and performance under less-than-optimal lighting conditions were remarkable. The bundled software was a good value, too. So then (the plot thickens) I bought it for a Win2K machine, not realizing the camera, in August of 2001, wasn't Win2K-ready. The website provided Win2K drivers which allowed the camera to work (I tested it with Netmeeting and a demo version of Webcam32), but the performance was greatly disappointing. The camera flickered like a dying monitor, and the focus was muddy. I reluctantly returned the camera (feeling at loose ends due to the negative reviews on Amazon of nearly every other webcam except the discontinued 3Com!).

The Intel website notes that the software package for Win2k will be available on Sept 17. I liked this camera so much on the Win98 machine that if the software really does become available, I might buy it again from a company with a respectable return policy (like Amazon), and hope that the flickering was truly a mechanical problem and not a permanent Win2K conflict. I may also look for an updated video-card driver, just in case an old driver compounded the performance issue.

Conclusion? If you have Windows 98, go for it. Excellent quality for the price, and a no-brainer to set up. If you have Windows 2000 and you're interested in this camera, wait til Intel delivers on producing its software bundle for the Win2k platform, then buy it from a place that has a consumer-friendly return policy.

I just purchased the Intel Delux PC Cam from this site and I was very excited about it. I have a boyfriend and a best friend who live out of state, so I thought this camera would be a good thing while talking to them on the computer. At first I was a little distraught to find out that the CD did not come Windows2000 compatiable. Since the CD didn't work on my computer, all I had to do was go to the Intel site and download the program for free... no big deal. The only complaint I had was that it took FOREVER for me to be able to connect to the site to download it, and it took about an hour to download. But once it did, it was relatively easy with the step-by-step installation process. It was easy to understand how to work the programs when I got it started. Talking on netmeeting is only as good as the price you pay for it, but I must say the pictures in the snapshot section come out crystal clear! They are very amazing snapshots along with clear videos. I definitely reccomend this product to someone who doens't want to pay too much for a camera, but doens't want to get anything too cheaply made.

I bought this camera in 2001 when it was $70 and it has not failed me yet. It's very small (fits in your palm) and has a detachable stand which you can stick to a table or on top of your computer. You can record short movies with sound. The software is awesome and I have yet to try out the post card feature among other things (no image editing).

The only down side is it is not portable and once in a while, the color is "off" depending on the lighting.

Definitely worth the price!!