Digital-Camcorder Reviews

Watch out before you buy this or any of the other Handycams. At the time I am writing this, no stores have the 1.4GB dvds that they use to record. Even Sony doesn't have them. Make sure you can find a supply of thier recording media before you buy any of these products. I bought the Sony DVD-100 and I am stuck. The Handycam comes with 1 DVD-R so when that is used up your done. Think about this before you purchase a $1,000.00 camcorder that you will be only able to use for 30 mins until more disks are available. A fact I wish I was aware of while I was making my decision to purchase it.

OK! I read all of the reader reviews I could get my hand on, and then took the plunge. SONY has done it again (my opinion). This camcorder replaces an old VHS-C off-brand which I thought was pretty good. I love the DCRDVD300, and am glad I opted for the "300" because I love the larger screen. I find all controls handy, and the system is very user-friendly. I only regret that I will never likely use all of the great features. I really just want a camera that will be ready to grab and easy to use when the grandkids do something memorable. This is it. With less than an hour of using the "300", I was comfortably using it.

I have found the Discs VERY difficult to come by, so I am happy that I bought 2 3-packs when I picked the camcorder up. That would be my ONLY complaint - that SONY was not prepared with having more discs available. The official SONY website is also out of stock.

I very happy owner!
George

If you're starting to go crazy shopping for a digital camcorder, read on. Bundles of format types, odles of brands, countless models to choose from, what a mess! The answer is the Sony Handycam 300 (or the 100 or 200 if your budget is tighter). My wife and I have twins and have no time to learn the complexities of digital camcorders and returned a Canon and a JVC camcorder after looking at the owners manual. HOWEVER, we essentially figured out how to use the Sony 300 by just playing with it. The menus and options work pretty much like our DVD player and in less than 30 minutes (after charging the battery) we were filming like crazy, taking pictures and having a great time. And the resulting DVD played perfectly in our home DVD player and looked wonderful.
Conclusion, don't get confused by all the critiques saying one camera is too heavy, another is noisy, the next one vibrates too much, blah, blah, blah. Buy a handycam 300 and start making movies.

the DCR-DVD100 is the "value" entry of the recently released line of miniDVD camcorders from sony. other models in this line are the DCR-DVD300 and DCR-DVD200. the main difference the three camcorders in this line are LCD size and CCD resolution:
- DCR-DVD300: 3.5" LCD, 1MP CCD
- DCR-DVD200: 2.5" LCD, 1MP CCD
- DCR-DVD100: 2.5" LCD, 640K CCD

pros:
- records dolby digital stereo.
- carl zeiss lens.
- 10x optical zoom.
- video quality almost at par with miniDV camcorders (at slower recording modes).
- Super SteadyShot image stabilization system - and sony's system really helps.
- three low light shooting modes: Nightshot, Super Nightshot, and Color Slow Shutter.
- great connectivity options: firewire, USB 2.0, S-video, headphone, mic input, etc.
- USB 2.0 support for fast downloads.
- the convenience of DVD navigation - simply select the scene and you're there!
- supports analog-to-digital conversion.
- hot accessory shoe with lots of optional accessories.

cons:
- inferior CCD resolution vs the DVD200 and DVD300.
- expensive - as with most sony products, you pay a premium, plus you pay for DVD convergence.
- average low light performance.
- no memory stick support; if you want to take a still picture, it is saved on the DVD.
- mic picks up DVD spinning noise in quiet environments.
- finalizing a DVD takes upwards of 10 minutes, and it can be a confusing process.
- don't expect much from the still images recorded.
- no pop-up flash for taking stills and no built in video light but you can get a flash/video combo light for less than a hundred bucks.
- smaller LCD (2.5") vs the DVD300 (3.5").
- no manual focus ring.
- getting video into editing software (e.g. Final Cut Pro) is harder than it should be.
- not Mac friendly.
- poor battery life with included battery so add $$ to your budget to buy a higher capacity spare.
- compared to current release camcorders, this is a pretty big one at 3.1 x 3.8 x 5.6" weighing 1 lb 6 oz.

this is a nice, solid effort by sony and i give them points for dvd convergence. however, in my opinion, the DCR-DVD100 is too big, not easy to use, and does not use the 1MP CCD that the DVD200 and DVD300 have. it's expensive for the feature set but the alternative to this dvd camcorder (a miniDV tape camcorder and DVD recorder combo) is even more expensive. i already have a dvd recorder so for me, a smaller and easier to use miniDV camcorder makes more sense. if this is your situation as well, i would recommend a panasonic gs-70 or sony's pc-105, both miniDV camcorders. otherwise, if you want a finalized DVD straight out of your camcorder, consider the DCR-DVD100.

a final note. if you have decided you want to record directly to a DVD, which camcorder should you buy? DCR-DVD100 or DCR-DVD200 or DCR-DVD300? i highly recommend spending the extra ... bucks (street price) to get the higher resolution CCD of the DVD200/DVD300. if you want a bigger 3.5" LCD, it'll cost you an extra ... bucks to go to the DVD300. i think this is a fair price for the upgrade too.

i hope this helps you with your buying decision. peace.

I recently bought the DCR DVD 100 and had my first chance to use it at a family gathering. At the end of the night, we were all enjoying the video without having to use any AV cords or other hookups! I really enjoy using this product. Although it is larger than some of Sony's smallest MiniDV and MicroMV camcorders, I don't think it is by any means bulky or uncomfortable to use. Although I was afraid that the discs would not play in our 3.5 year old DVD player, there was no problem at all. And it's becoming pretty well known that most camcorders should not be depended on for high-quality stills. Therefore, I would suggest going for the DVD100 and using the money saved from buying a 300 towards a good 3.2-4 MP still camera.

Ok, Ok, I got duped into this buy due to "improving, but degrading" technology.

I have been using Digital-8, and I wanted a new mini-DV, but this year (2004) Sony decreased the chip (imaging sensor) size to 1/6" in the mini dv tape models. First reviews from camcorderinfo.com are not enthusiastic (smaller chip, higher noise in the image, degraded low light performance and some color saturation issues) this packing more pixels into a smaller die size problems are true in digital cameras (the smaller more dense sony 8mp digital camera sensor), as well as in "new, improved, more pixels" camcorders.

So after reading of this "improvement" and browsing the other reviews I discovered:
1) the sony DCRDVD100 has the largest chip (1/4") size (vice 1/4.7" for the 200 and 300, and 1/6" chip (same as the 2004 mini dv tape model) for the 2004 dcrdvd101 dvd camcorder)
2) the test reviews from last year (100 vs 200) said the 200 "drops from the abilities of the DVD100" in video performance. (you don't EVEN want to read how poorly the new even smaller 1/6" chip in the 101 does compared to those two!)
3) there were still some 100's available as of mid-may this year.
4) all professional (broadcast quality) camcorders are on the verge of going tapeless this year or next, eg the trend will only make dvd camcorders more common.

So here was the cheapest dvd camcorder sony made last year, outperforming it's more expensive brethren and even the

"degraded" model for this year! Yep, wasn't planning on it's purchase, but sure didn't want lose video performance by waiting for one!

Gripe 1, the 100 takes lousy still photos. Ok, so you can take a megapixel still pic with the 200 and 300. 1mp is still lousy in the 8mp era of digtal still cameras. And any camera phone can do a better photo easier. So I am not willing to trade the superior low light, low noise capabilities on video in the DVD100 to gain (still) mediocre still picture performance in the 200 or 300, which I will never use.

Next gripe, there are no mini-DVD's available, and the price is too high! Standard complaint with the introduction of every new technology. I paid $8ea. for the first Maxell 120 VCR tapes back in the mid-eighties, now that buys 10 of them! Froogle mini dvd-r and you may find a bundle of 25 mini dvd-r's for $1 ea. (on sale) like I did in mid-may. Next year at this time they may be 50 cents each, regular price. NOW compare that to the price of mini-dv tape!

S'hows it look? I can't see any difference on playback between the DCRDVD100 and my 3 year old TRV-730 digital eight camcorder, but the convenience is a thousand times better. The mini-dvd's play on my tv dvd, they play on my pc dvd, they play on the camcorder dvd. try that with mini-dv or 8mm dv! I can make mini-dvd duplicates using the camcorder and PC and send these mini-dv's to any relative to share our videos with. I never had the patience to transfer 8mm to VCR, not to mention the bulking up factor of VCR duplicates.

ok, so the time is down to 20 mins per disk. About the same amount of relevant footage I get off a 1 hour 8mm tape, in which I just stick the 8mm camcorder in a corner and let run at parties, too bulky to carry. savings too, since the 8mm tape is still $4ea and I've got that full coverage using 3 mini dvd-r's at $1 ea.

And bless sony for keeping the same battery, charger and flash accessories as in my 8mm dv! Now I have the same batteries to run my cd-r digital camera, the 8mm camcorder and this dvd-r video camcorder. a real dollar savings!

Sony has always won the low-light full color indoor camcorder shoot-out contests, but with the new reduced-size imaging chips for the 2004 models , they apparently have slipped a notch backwards. So if absolute all-round video performance is the most important thing for you, I encourage you to run, not walk to locate the DVD100, before they are all gone. Or wait until the model 102 for 2005 is introduced!

other pros: storage size of completed videos
instant useability/exchangeability with other machines besides the camcorder, no tape drive mechanisms to wear out and eat your prized videos years down the road. dramatic decline in cost of mini dvd-r media compared to micro-dv, mini-dv and 8mm dv tape.

cons: no firewire connection to allow direct digital duping, I'd love to use the sony mini-dvd-r's to download my digital SLR camera's images into a permanent file while I am traveling, but guess that will have to wait until 2005?

I like it, recommended.

I have owned 3 JVC camcorders or similar type DVM3, DVM5 and DVM50U. I have loved the size, capability and quality of video image, but all 3 have had significant and expensive repairs. So much so that I gave up the DVM5 because the repair cost was more than I could buy a new and more recent model. At the moment the DVM50U is in the shop after about 5 months ownership and the DVM3 has troubles holding selected zoom mode. I have also owned 3 JVC VCR's and 2 JVC televisions. One VCR bombed out with expensive repairs that dis not correct the problems, but the others have been great. I am not sure I would buy another JVC camcorder.

I loooove the small size! Because of that, it gets more use. HOWEVER, had to send it for repairs 3 months after I bought it. Warranty covered the expense, (but not the shipping), and I'm afraid of the next time it will break, since the warranty has now run out. I would recommend some other brand with a better repair history. I don't recommend purchasing extended warranties, since it's damn near impossible to make them pay.

I was shopping in the camcorder industry for about two months when JVC released the GR-DVM50u I thought the price was absurd. But when I found it at a price I thought was good I had to have it. I have not had any problems with the camerea in the nearly 2yrs I have owned it. The quality is incredible and the ease of use is outstanding. The only obsticle that I have ever found with this camera is the size of the lens mount is 27mm this is very small compared to industry standards. I found in order to purchase any attachments it FAR FAR cheaper to buy a 27mm-37mm stepping ring and then buy the filters lenses etc.. there are TONS of items in the 37mm size for the camera and it makes worh the extra price it costs. This camera should be rated as a PRO-sumer unit because of its quality and it functionality. My wife was hesitant at first because of all the doodads but don't let all the features scare anyone. It has a completely automatic mode that works pretty well. TONS of features and effects. Plus (with a not included firewire card and cable) this thing makes awesome videos on the computer. I am darn happy I purchased this thing.

I got this with my computer and used it for about a year until I got a new camera. This camera was easy to set up, but the picture quality is horrendous. If picture quality isn't a big deal to you, the Intel Easy PC Cam pack will work for you; but if you like having quality images, save your money and invest in a better webcam (like the Intel Pocket PC Cam).

If you can find one of these you won't be disappointed. The video is crisp and clear and, unlike some webcams, sending video does not slow your computer to any noticeable degree. Installation is simple and the swivel mount makes aiming easy. One small problem - the camera does not work with CUSeeMe software for some reason. But it works great with NetMeeting, Paltalk, Yahoo, ICUII that I know of. They are tough to find - don't know if they are out of production or what. Far better than several others I've tried.

I love this camera! Let me start by saying that I have had expiriences with other PC Camera's under 100$, and they were all dissapointments. This was the only Camera I was satisfied with (at that price), and I'll tell you why. With other camera's the lighting was always off. For instance if a light in the room was on, then the camera would appear very bright, and if it was dark in the room, You couldn't see anything. Although with this camera it uses new lighting technology, so that it senses the light in the room, and workes with it so that you get the best lighting you can get, and I think that that was the greatest advantage this this camera had over the others.

We bought our camera new and thought it was GREAT! We took pictures with it mostly and did take some videos of holidays and our kids' programs, ect. Now 2 years and only 6 mini-dv tapes down the line we get an error message stating "head cleaning needed". Well we went out and bought the "needed" head cleaning cassette and ran it through. The next time, and every time since you get into taping about 5 minutes and that same message pops up. JVC's customer support is terrible. All they can say is, "take it to an authorized service center apparently your heads are bad. Well for us the closest one is 120 miles away. Add that to the cost of $50-$100/hour labor plus parts to get it fixed, are you nuts? You can probably buy a new camera by the time your done. As others have stated in their reviews, the software compatibility is also another issue they won't help you with. Just keep searching on the net and you'll eventually find someone that can help you with that problem. I am very disappointed with JVC and I wish people would wait a while before they write these reviews. People writing them a month or two after having their product is good to explain all the nice features, but how is it working now a few years down the road?

We got this 3 yrs ago. For the price we paid, it was packed with features and performed well for the most part. We didn't bother with the included software since we had Pinnacle. A year ago (2 yrs after purchase) we had blotches and blackouts on tapes when viewing previously taped DVs. Went through and scratched up bunches of tapes before trying out the head cleaners. Things were ok until few months ago. The motor to eject and receive the cartridge started to get stuck. After jiggling few times, even brute force, it would be ok. Now this past weekend, after we tried to use it to tape our son's birthday party, it degenerated to the point where it's 'eating up' tapes and it takes several minutes of coaxing to get the tape to go in or out. Time for a decent burial me thinks.

This is a replacement over a Sony 8mm camcorder I owned, which was broken mechanically. So I was not a Sony fan when choosing a replacement.

JVC 505 camcorder certainly meets my expectation when price and performance are considered. For its basic function, the video taken is very clear and colorful, with very little distortion. It amazed me in responding to sudden change in background lighting very quickly, which was not the case with Sony 8mm. Video stabilizer kicks in when you are shooting on moving feet. Sound quality is reasonable. Battery life comes close to book value, if you refrain from zooming or using LCD. Digital still camera works like a charm, making us wonder if we should buy any more films for our Canon SLR camera.

Speaking of its outlook, it's not the smallest in size, but definitely light in weight.

Over all, 505 certainly qualifies as a family camcorder. With the price in the lower range of its class, you get good value for your money.

--- Below is an update on 1/1/2002.
After I upgrade my computer from Windows 98 to Windows XP, the Multimedia Navigator program that you need to download pictures to PC stopped working with a "connection error". Searching for JVC's website returned for only one unrelated item in the entire "software update" catagory, and FAQ specifically says no software available for NT, which XP is based on. If you know a working software for NT/2000/XP, please let me know.
I give one star downgrade as a result.

...

I've only had this camera for a week now, but I'm very pleased with what I got for the price. I have a degree in cinema & photography, so I like to think I know a few things about cameras.

PROS

Nearly all the controls can be manipulated with one hand, thanks to the scroll wheel. Pushing it in brings up the menu, and scrolling the wheel allows you to select the menus and features you want to change. Another push of the wheel selects the menu item you want to change. This is a great feature that pretty much sold me on the camera, as the Sonys rely on a touch-pad LCD. The trouble with that is you must have the LCD screen out whenever you want to alter a setting, and therefore you have to take the camera away from your eye and use both hands. You also use up your battery twice as fast, and you'll eventually wear out the LCD screen and get it dirty. No thanks, Sony.

It also has a built-in LED light for low-light shooting. This doesn't compare to the infra-red of the Sonys, but then again infra-red gives you a green "night-vision" picture. If low-light shooting is important to you and you don't mind the greenish video, then go with infra-red.

It uses a separate SD memory card for digital stills (card not included).

The viewfinder is color, not b&w like some camcorders.

Analog-to-digital pass-through for converting your old analog tapes (VHS, etc.)

Remote control included! Big plus in my book.

It has a bigger lens than the Sonys (but still not as big as the Canons). This should result in better picture quality; however, it does make the camcorder slightly larger and heavier than the Sonys.

The optical zoom is 16x, versus 10x on the Sonys. (Canon even has a camcorder with 22x zoom.)

JVC bundles MovieWOW software for editing your videos. I haven't used it yet, but it's a freebie so it's worth trying out. You can also download Microsoft's Movie Maker software for free if you don't like MovieWOW.

At less than $400 it's the best value out there. (...) CONS

The viewfinder doesn't tilt up -- strange that JVC wouldn't incorporate this feature, as it would be a big plus. I'm over 6' tall, so when the camcorder is mounted on a 5' tripod I have to stoop to look through the viewfinder. (Yes, I can pop out the LCD screen and angle it up to view the picture instead, but this eats up battery power as I said. I could also get a 6' tripod, I suppose.)

There's no hot shoe on top to mount an external microphone or flood light -- another oversight on JVC's part.

No included SD memory card for digital stills. Oddly, you can only select "tape" or "tape & SD" for capturing stills, so either way it's going to record the still to tape. Why JVC didn't give you the option of writing stills strictly to the SD card is beyond me. No matter -- the stills any camcorder takes are low-resolution, so if you want good digital stills then buy a digital still camera instead.

Image stabilization is disappointing, but that's true with all the camcorders I tried out. It's somewhat helpful, but it's certainly not going to turn your camcorder into a Steadicam. Use a tripod when at high zoom levels, or keep the lens as wide as possible when hand-holding to smooth out your tilts and pans.

Night vision mode slows down the shutter speed, making your video a bit choppy.

OTHER ADVICE

Go to a camera or electronics store and try out the different cameras before making a decision. You might be surprised by the features you hate and the ones you love. This is what steered me away from the Sonys and to this JVC model.

Turn off the digital zoom -- it's worthless (this is true of any camcorder).

Make sure you add on a UV filter, if only to protect the lens. This should be standard issue for all camcorders.

Also consider a polarizing filter for sunny outdoors shooting -- makes a big difference.

A flourescent filter is a good idea if you will be shooting indoors where flourescent light dominates (office or industrial settings, for instance).

If zoom is important to you, consider adding on a 2x or even 3x telephoto multiplier. This will turn your 16x zoom in a 32x zoom, or 48x zoom, respectively. But be warned -- at those zoom levels, you'd better have a rock-solid tripod to keep the picture as steady as possible.

You need a firewire connection to your computer to get the best transfers. If you don't have firewire on your commputer, you'll need to buy an add-in card.

Enjoy!

After researching online and trying out several brands and models, I chose the JVC GRD72. I purchased it at Costco for $400.

Low light performance, the remote control, and analog input were the main reasons I purchased this camera and they all work very well. I have also found the 16x9 squeeze mode and LED light to work better than I expected. I have had no trouble capturing video on any computer via firewire.

This camcorder does not take very good still photos, and provided software is only fair. You should look at another camcorder if these features are important to you.

Overall the performance has been better than expected and I am very happy with the purchase.

I spent over 20 hours researching my recent camcorder purchase. The best site was camcorderinfo.com. In fact, they just posted a thorough review of the GRD72 and also have reviews of one model down (D33) and one model up (D93) from this one. Also be sure to check out the competing models' reviews (Sony and Canon).

What I was looking for in a camcorder, was, surprise surprise (!) good video performance in a range of lighting conditions. I had read that low-light performance on ALL so-called consumer camcorders was very poor. The D72 (and D33) have the best low-light performance of ANY camcorder priced $600 or less! That's saying a ton considering these models sell for almost half of that! Seriously, check out the Sony HC20, 30, or 40 and the D72 beats them all! Plus it has decent still image capability, includes LED lights, and has analog-to-digital passthrough. Can't be beaten! What a deal!

Super easy to use and great video - what more could you want? Some of the other reviews on amazon for the D72 seem bizarre and based only on the software that comes with the camera. You likely won't use the software that comes with ANY camcorder you buy. What do you want out of your camcorder? Good video performance, versatiliy, and ease of use are the only criteria that matter! Dig around on the Internet for reviews of other models to convince yourself, but if you take this reviewer's advice alone, you'll save yourself a dozen hours of work! :-)

I was gifted with Ezonics pc camera with registration no 5H-EX54-3497 and password SNOW-BANJO and I found the camera is not giving clear video pictures inspite of doing settings as per the guideline given in help menu.The frames are not continuos and i could not find in the web whom to contact with ezonics.com. I feel that these chinese goods are not having service facility or help through web.

I puchased this USB camera after getting my father a parallel port version of a Logitech Camera - the difference is night and day! If your computer is old and doesn't support USB, get a PCI USB card ($30) - I can't even begin to explain the difference. The picture from this camera is at least 10 times more clear, not to mention the increased sound quality during video-conferencing. A PCI USB card is PnP and required no additional configuration and the camera plugged right in, perhaps the easiest peripheral I've ever added. I was video conferencing with my father, who lives in California, within 10 minutes.

We're getting him a USB PCI card and this camera ASAP. It's a pain to switch the cables back and forth and rebooting the computer so the printer will work, the transfer of data is highly increased through USB, and USB takes up less system resources. I greatly underestimated the value of USB. With the rebate, I bought the PCI card and this camera at the same price as his Parallel Port Logitech camera, but they're not the same in terms of quality. This is a must have!

I bought two EZ-302 cameras so that my daughter can communicate with us from college. It's perfect for this. The picture is clear, the setup was easy and the price is reasonable (especially after the rebate). My cable connection makes this a great way to stay in touch.

I bought the JVC DVL520 and I took it back next day. My main complaint was in low light conditions, there were vertical lines appearing on the screen. It wasn't overly obvious but very distracting nontheless. I tried to correct it by manually adjusting each individual settings but nothing worked. The picture quality was not too bad in bright conditions, but in darker conditions i was not prepared to just accept it. After all I spent AUD$1450 on a camera and I'd better get what I pay for. It was a shame because the size and shape of the 520 was really good plus some nice features too. Anyway I took it back to the shop and bought the Sony TRV18 instead. Sure it was a more expensive camera but truly worth it. Pictue quality was almost DVD-like but no vertical lines at all -even in dark conditions (perhaps a little grainy). I wouldn't recommend the 520 unless you will be taking videos outdoors exclusively.

The JVC DVL520U digital video camera is the central camera in the JVC 320U, 520U, and 720U line. Each of these cameras offers the same basic technology with varying features. The 520U shares the same remote as the 320U. The 720U remote contains more functionality. The 520U remote contains all the usual basic capabilities, including rewind, fast forward, playback, record, etc. The 520U also shares the same memory card as the 720U, which is 8Mb in size. The raw technology of all these units is essentially the same. What differentiate them are the features JVC activates and implements in each model.

The 520U specifications are as follows:

- 680,000 pixel CCD (1/4")
- 110,000 pixel, 2.5" LCD monitor (270 degree rotation)
- F1.8 lens
- B/W viewfinder
- Night Alive full color low light recording
- 10x optical zoom
- 700x digital zoom
- PCM stereo audio
- 16x9 squeeze mode
- 1024 x 768 digital stills
- Picture stabilization
- SD/multimedia card
- USB interface
- DV input/output
- S-video and A/V output terminals
- Audio dubbing
- Numerous fades, wipes, and effects

The 520U provides very good features and functionality for a miniDV camera in its price range. Not all features work as well as other manufacturers. Picture stabilization, for instance, is much better on the Sony models than this camera. Night Vision is also not that useful for moving images in very low light conditions. I tried shooting a fireworks display using the Night Vision feature. An image was accumulated and stored by the CCD about every 1/2 second, making the outcome choppy and unusable.

The software bundle provided with the camera is excellent and a USB driver is provided. It's very easy to transfer pictures from the camera to the computer. With the proper editing cable (not supplied), video can be edited on a computer with excellent results. An audio/video cable is provided, which enables viewing and transferring video. A USB cable is provided to transfer images from the video card to a computer.

The 520U is capable of storing pictures to either a memory card or video. A snapshot button enables the shutter to operate. If you're new to this capability, be aware that at this time pictures obtained using current video technology do not match the quality you will get from a digital camera. Likewise, digital cameras cannot match the quality of video recorded on a miniDV camera. You buy a video camera for quality video, not snapshots. You buy a digital camera for quality snapshots, not video.

Regardless, the 520U delivers adequately usable snapshots. I like being able to add a picture collage in the middle of my videos. For example, I took a walk on the beach and recorded it. In the middle of the video suddenly you hear the sound of a shutter click and there's a picture of a seagull wading in the water; another shutter click and a picture of a dog bounding out of the water; another shutter click and a picture of a child building a sand castle, etc. Each shot stays on for about 5 seconds or so and whatever sound occurs in those five seconds is also recorded. Later, you can dub audio of your favorite song over the collage before going back to the video action of your family enjoying a boat tour the following day. The creative possibilities are endless!

Pictures directed to the video will be stored in the middle of whatever you're taping. You can also select to have pictures saved on the memory card, which provides the best quality. From the memory card, they can be transferred to your computer. This is a very nice feature. If you don't mind the limited image quality, it's quite handy to have video and picture capability in one small camera.

Where this camera really shines is in video quality; it's exceptional! The miniDV format provides 520 lines of resolution. Color balance is very nice and the internal settings enable you to take manual control of the white balance or set it to automatic.

Another nice feature I haven't seen on all cameras is the ability to correct for backlighting. Let's say you're in a room with many windows on a sunny day. Many cameras will meter the windows and you end-up with the room appearing too dark. The JVC has a backlight button that corrects for these conditions and it works quite impressively.

The BN-V408U 800mAh Lithium-ion battery supplied is the smallest battery available for this camera. Using the LCD display, you will get only about 30 to 45 minutes of record/playback time. I'd strongly suggest purchasing the BN-V428U 2500mAh battery, which can be purchased on eBay for about $30 with shipping (search for "JVC BN-V428U battery"). I get about three to four hours of use with this battery.

In short, if you are on a limited budget and would like a decent beginning miniDV camera, the JVC is a very nice unit. If you have more of a budget, I'd suggest the Sony models, which offer all these features with equivalent or superior quality (depending on the feature compared).

If you decide to purchase this camera, always purchase from an authorized dealer, like Amazon.com. There are many dealers who sell this camera for a lower price, but what they don't tell you is if anything fails and the unit requires service, JVC will not honor the warranty. You must show proof of purchase from an authorized JVC dealer to receive service.

Hi,
We have been using this for 18 months now, and it's travelled continents and has give us no problems at all!

At least 3 MiniDV tapes, an extra battery, and a carrying bag are essentials.

This camcorder is excellent value. The only con is low light recording is not good, but that's the case with most camcorders.

I am in need of a user manual for my rca mini dv model #cc9360. I can't seem to locate one online anywhere!

This little wonder shines like 100,000 new pennies. (that's a thousand dollars for the mathematically challenged). Besides being a true 'palmcorder' this lightweight phenom delivers all the digital bells & whistles of equipment 3 times it's 399.00 street price.

The 400X digital zoom may seem a little eccentric, but getting on the line of scrimmage when you're in the nosebleed section is now a possibility. Miss the play? Get down and dirty with the offensive line and relive the action up close and personal. The digital image stabilization is a technilogical feat of magic.

The firewire hookup is truly the most outstanding feature. Using the CC9360 and Sony's EZ Editor is truly 'plug & play' digital video editing. Controlling the camera right from the PC is an amazing feature. Grab your scenes, lay down some music, put it all back together and voila! you're a movie producer.

For the advanced user i.e. Adobe Premiere etc., you will be happy to know that this camera is fully supported and performs flawlessly. Creating a professional, studio quality finished product is fun and easy with the RCA CC9360.

My current project is making a MTV 'pop-up video' style music video from karaoke night!

This fun and affordable DV Camcorder gets a whopping 5 star endorsement out of 5 possible. Good job RCA!

The RCA CC9360 is a really great camera. I just got mine and I am very impressed. It is packed with tons of features perfect for the amature user. You can use the qutomatic settings, or manually set things like focus, exposure, or white balance, for that perfect shot. The camera is smaller than I thought it would be, and it is very lightweight too. The video light is very bright, and it is nice to have stereo microphones. It has a very durable feel. The power switch works perfectly. I highly recommend this camera for anyone looking for a high quality low priced, digital camcorder.

The only positive thing I can say about this video camera is that it is small and easy to use. The outdoor picture quality is mediocre and the indoor quality is awful. One of the biggest problems is the fact that the auto focus takes far too long to activate and even when activated, the picture is not as sharp and in focus as I would expect from a digital video camera. This problem is even worse indoors. In average to bright indoor light, the picture is grainy and out of focus. My old Sony Hi-8 Handycam took much better videos. Unfortunately, it broke. While I would not recommend the Canon ZR25, I didn't see any other digital video cameras in the stores that looked any better. The Sony pictures looked even worse than the Canon, as the reviews here on ...(the website)support. Perhaps the consumer digital video cameras are not "ready for prime time." I would recommend sticking with Hi-8.

First I want to say I'm not very knowledgeable at all about Mini-DV, and as this being my first camera as such any opinions I express are only very amateurish and I cannot compare this camera to others as I have not had the experience of using any other DV devices, and I have not had alot of time lately to play with it. But I'll say my first impressions here of it for what they are worth.

First, I'll have to say my impressions about the Image Stabilisation, as far as I can tell. It's not much to be desired. If I don't hold the camera very steady in my hands or use a tripod the "shakes" are very noticeable. I have been using the camera to take footage of rural Alaska, on trails and mountains, and as you can probably guess it's rather hard to climb a rough trail without considerable shaking. It's not horrendous, but I really don't see any help from it. Again, I don't really know what to expect from it either, but so far, it's not been what I expected. But, it's also not the more desireable optical stabilisation as opposed to this cameras digital, and it is also better to just turn this feature completely off anyway when using zoom in extended ranges.

Also, the low light feature does work, but is very grainy when taking indoor shots especially. It seems the camera does best in bright outdoor light, and to take decent footage of indoor scenes your lighting better be good. The various options for lighting adjustment in the menu for outdoor/indoor lighting however work great, and adjust for the different conditions well.

The camera seems VERY well built. I have knocked it around considerably on the trails, thrown it in a bag and out without overdue care, and subjected it to high winds, mist, and rough handling. No problems. It feels very solid in the hands and does'nt give me any impression of fragileness. The LCD door clicks open and shut with certainty, as does the battery. The covers for the DC jack and S/DV in-out jacks are'nt though, they are made of rubber and do not seem to be very reliable, and hang by a thin rubber strip when open. They also don't seem to want to stay closed alot, and I'm always afraid of ripping them off when opening them for access. Otherwise, the cam seems very solid and able to withstand abuse. The camera fits snugly and comfortably in the right hand using the supplied strap, and it also comes with a neck strap for additional security. The controls are easily accessible considering this cameras very small size, though the main power switch is hard to move due to it's extremely small center lock button. The footage/shutter stop/start button is very nicely located and can be quickly found with the thumb. Same is true for the zoom rocker with the index finger.

The Optical zoom (10X) is superb. No degradation in image quality whatsoever either all the way up to 40X in the digital zoom. This thing is like a telescope, I can zoom in on things the naked eye could never pick up even past the 40X. However......past the 40X, the image gets grainy, and is practically worthless past 100X. It gets so pixelated past 100 that I turned the option off and only use the 40X digital zoom option. Again, it is best to turn stabilisation off when using zoom past 10X optical.

The image quality so far is excellent. Very clear, the colors are accurate and vibrant, and noticeably improved over Hi-8 when dubbed to a VHS tape. The zoom is smooth, and very fast/slow according to how much pressure you place on the rocker swith.

The DV out/in works flawlessly with my firewire terminal, and I've been using MGI Videowave 3 for editing and compression. BTW, I can also highly recommend that program, very user friendly and works great. I may someday want to graduate to a more robust application, but for now it's awesome. I also called their tech support for a question I had regarding capture (I was being an idiot, enough said of that!) and the support person was very friendly, patient and helpful.

The ZR25's battery life seems excellent. I have not yet ever completely depleted it using the included Li-ion BP-512 pack, even using the LCD constantly. Canon has available a higher capacity pack as an accessory, but I see no need for it for my uses.

The LCD quality is not what I expected. According to specs, it's 2.5 inch LCD is approximately 112,000 pixels. I'm not sure how that compares to other screens in it's class but I'm sure it's low. I always have to keep in mind that my footage is going to look 3X better than what I'm previewing on it. It's also terrible in sunlight (I imagine this may be common with most DVcams, but the LCD on my Kodak digicam spanks it big time). The viewfinder however is more than adequate. Nice color, and seems to be accurate according to the actual footage taken. It also swings up and away from the battery pack for easy replacement of the battery, and it's angle is good for comfort of use when extended.

Overall, though the CCD is admittedly of lower resolution compared to the Allura's, (1/4 inch CCD, approx. 460,000 pixels, approx. 290,000 effective) but the quality of footage is so far excellent and more than satisfactory to me as long as the lighting is adequate. I have not yet tried the still image mode, but I did not buy this camera for that feature as I have two digital cameras for that purpose (Kodak DC-4800's, which, by the way, I can personally highly vouch for, they take superb images, have a full range of manual exposure settings, and offered with optional lenses with lens adapter accessory). I'm pleased with it more than not.

I'll write more on this camera as I gain more experience with it, and I hope this somewhat helps others who might be considering purchasing this model.

The ZR25MC is a great camcorder and camera. The pictures do not have the resolution that you would find on your digital cameras. It only supports still pictures up to something like 640 X 480 (this is true with most DV camcorders). Everything is absolutely great about this camera except for indoor recording. It's VERY grainy and doesn't have near the quality that it could have. Outdoor shots are awesome. You can tweak so many settings on this thing it's unreal. Manual focus is a bit bogus because it is done with a small scroller thingy on the left side of the camera. This should be done with the lens or somewhere where your right hand (which is already on the camera) can reach it. You can fit about 50+ pictures on the memory that comes with the camera (8 mb). Taking pictures is SLOW. Once a picture is taken, you must wait 5+ seconds for the camcorder to do something about it (i.e. Save it). To transfer the pictures from your card to your computer, you must do one of two things.
1. Buy a Multimedia card reader
2. copy the images from the card to the tape and capture the tape onto your computer. Once it is captured on your computer, you'll have to grab the frame and save it.

I know that most of the things I've mentioned here are negative, but I must emphasize that this is a good camera otherwise! Now, I just need some creative people around so that I can make some movies!