Video Reviews

I get mine this week and i test it recording some tv programs, and the result was amazing.
For the person to ark for GART ist only the AGP driver for the motherboards, but if you install all the drivers for your mainboard's CD, yo cant expect any problem.

Nice vcard... has many features some you may never use some you will use quite often. Comes with decent video software also. This card is somewhat better in terms of features & power compared to the AIW 9600 PRO, and can still keep up with new DirectX 9.0b games like FarCry or Halo! Buy it if your in need of an upgrade... nice looking card and installation isn't too difficult either. Be sure to delete all your old vcard drivers & associated software otherwise you will encounter problems, which I did at first having a Sapphire Radeon 9000 PRO previously installed & not uninstalling the drivers assuming ATI drivers will work for all regardless! For more installation, accessaries, and using all the capability of this card read the detailed manual on the included ATI driver & software CD. Very good card indeed...

WOW! This card is worth the money, for what it comes with and the things it can do. Now I have a graphics card that supports dual monitors, HDTV and has the ability to capture. When used with the new DVD drive, my PC is a home entertainment center. This is the card to get. It installed in one shot, and the remote is amazing.

My only problem is the documentation is somewhat sparse, not listing install process for new machine, or giving great detail on all features. What is with the GART?

New System:
ASUS A7N8X-E Deluxe
AMD 3200 XP
1 GB Crucial PC-3200
AIW 9600XT
Audigy 2 ZS Platinum
16X DVD
Plextor CD Burner
Windows XP Pro

I am glad i waited six years to upgrade, from a PII machine.

As many camcorder fans, I was excited by the Canon Press Release about Canon Optura 40 Camcorder, pre ordered it and received it late May. After opening the box, the camera looks great: compact, slick, nice looking lens. However, after a couple of time trial shootings, all these nice impressions were gone for good! A few Major disappointments:
1) Poor video image. The video image has too much "digital" jaggies both in regular daylight and lower light environment shooting. When you play back on the TV, you see the "fluttery" effect all the time. When you pause the image, the jaggies are very obvious and horrible. This is even worse when you shoot in the low light environment.
2) Noisy zoom lever. The zoom lever on the top on the camera body was not a well made (or designed) part. When you zoom in & out using the lever, the noise is very obvious and annoying. This noise was clearly recorded heard from the tape when you playback.
3) The still camera quality is less than a regular 2.0 MP digital camera.
4) The strap that holds your hand of video filming is not in the right position to make your hand comfortable.
5) The 2.5" view LCD screen has too much info displayed and this made the small 2.5" LCD very noisy.

I contacted the Canon USA for my questions. No clear answers were given about the image quality. I compared Optura 40 with Panasonic PV-GS200, the Panasonic has far more better video image quality. Big disappointment for me.

Most of the negative comments I read about the camera are from people that don't know how to use the camera. It takes a little time to go through the menus and read the cryptic (non-detailed) manual. And, not all the features are described in the manual.

- The camera does very well in low light indoor situations if you put it in "Indoor" mode.

- I barely noticed the camera motor noise during quiet scenes. I think the only reason I noticed it is because I was listening for it.

- The camera fits very nicely in my hand, with the strap and zoom switch in just the right positions.

- This is my first digital camcorder and it was very easy to learn how to use the basic features. Some of the advanced features took some trial and error to figure out.

- My only disappointments were that it did not come with a tape or firewire, the manual is poor, and the included 8MB card is ridiculous (buy a 256 or 512).

I did a lot of research before selecting this camera, and I am confident I made the right choice. I would have given it 4.5 stars if I had the option.

The Optura 30/40 has two default settings that need to be changed. The first is that in Easy and Auto modes, shutter speed can be a slow as 1/30 second. This causes video to blur, ghosts with fast movement, and blur (grain?) in low light. Go to Auto Slow Shutter (A.SL.Shutter and turn it OFF). The shutter speed will be no slower than 1/60, creating much sharper video.

The second is that audio is defauted to 12 bit. Change this to 16 bit for better audio.

I am extrememly pleased with my Optura 40. It's great in low light, is user friendly, stabilization works well in both 5:4 and 16:9 modes, and the 14X optical is all I'll ever need. The quality of the video and audio is great. It's comfortable in my hand and feels "solid". I like it being a top loader since I use both a monopod and tripod when I can.

Negatives include: In 5:4 mode, tele isn't wide enough (but is fine in 16:9), the cover for the S-video jack seems cheap, and I wish it had optical stabilization. However, it does have better stabilization than my Nikon Hi8 camcorder that has optical stabilization--so it has excellent electronic image stabilization. Also, the 34mm filter/adapter size is unusual. However, step up rings are available (e.g. 34mm to 37mm)and with the fast selling Opturas 30/40 and Eluras 60/65/70 having 34mm filters, I suspect that they're be plenty of 34mm filters available shortly.

After installation, some functions worked, but was unable to download digital still photos. Finally went to Logitech WEB and downloaded latest software, performed Drive Image prior to installation of downloaded software and executed download. Now able to download digital still photos successfully. Software that came with WEB cam doesn't perform, even crashed my system. Logitech should also provide Technical Support Numbers for frustrated customers in the User Guide. Logitech also put disclaimer on 'latest download software', which didn't give me a warm fuzzy...but I was doing a Drive Image, so I have a fall back position.

I bought this product from ...[price] based on the reviews and the editor's choice .... The outstanding features of this camera is 1. Easy to use, you can take pictures on the way home since batteries are included. Built in microphone, you don't need an extra cord for microphone. 2. Quality is ok for indoor shooting. 3. Price is acceptable. However, there are some shortcoming: 1. No flash, that make your pictures look too dark and no details. 2. No good for outdoor, this camera tend to misjudge the sunlight so most pictures are worst than ones took indoor. And also no good for objects with distance.
After think carefully and did some study on the internet. I decided to return this product. Because most of the time I would use it to shoot as a digital camera. Maybe only once a week doing some video conference. I found one which can meet my need better---"Fujifilm FinPix A101... These are my experience looking for a "not expensive" but quality more than acceptable, "pc-cam" feature, flash light. Hope this review would help those who has similar needs.

The Logitech Traveler is a great web cam! I saw a $1500 Sony Mavica used as a web cam The immage was not as good as this little gem. I took it to The Hoover Dam. Some of the Pics were really good and some were not but who cares. U can snap so many, Just click and then u can delete the junk. I have had so many compliments on the quality. I operate on a 1 gig Athlon with 384MB or memory dial up with Windows ME. Yes the Photos taken at your PC are really great. I have never had any problems with the software . After reading the reviews I am afraid to download any new Upgrades. I see other people on cam. They ask me the brand name because they say the immage is such quality!!!! Thumbs up Here

I searched around and found the least expensive place to purchase cartridges for my Olympus P10. I bought enough for 200 4x6 prints.The price per 4x6 turned out to be app. 42 cents per print. I can go down to my local Walgeens and get prints for 29 cents. I'm not certain about quality yet, but at 42 cents, one has to be careful, or the whole thing can cease being fun.

I bought this for my wife to supplement our P-400 (8x10). We went digital almost 3 years ago with the Olympus C4040 and P-400 and I was looking for something to do 4x6s w/o having to cut 8x10s down all the time. I've always been partial to Olympus, having worked extensively with the OM-1 as a photographer in the early 90s. We were very happy with the results we received from the P-400 and I have to say the prints from the P-10 are stunning, if not better. The cost per print is about 39¢, which is a bit more than taking it to some of the local pharmacies (though we live in the middle of nowhere, we'd more than make up for it in time and gas). Plus there's something to be said for the convenience of printing at home. Print time is reasonable, what you'd expect from a dye sub. The greatest benefit to me is that you don't get the diffusion dot patterns you find with the ink-jet "photo" printers. If you want "photos", dye sub is the only way to go -- and the bottom line is the P-10 gives the quality I want at a reasonable price.

I've had this printer for a couple months now and would recommend it highly for anyone with occasional, low volume printing needs. The prints are indistinguishable from lab prints when printing high resolution shots and have a high quality gloss finish. Because it's a dye-sub printer, there's no pixelation as with many dot-matrix printers. Set-up and use is easy. In fact, I keep mine disconnected and stowed most of the time. It only takes 1 minute to plug it in and connect it. My only complaints are that there's no integrated imaging software to simplify printing (I use Powerpoint with good results) and the paper and dye-sub pack are a bit expensive (equates to 65 cents per print if you order the 4x6 kit for 100 prints). But if you only need a few good prints on an occasional basis, this printer is tops.

i'm looking for a MiniDV camrecorder that will be able to tranfer video to tape or DVD and bilt-in camera still, if anyone know ,please give me an advice

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Purchased this Camcorder in January 2003. Did lots of research on comparable Panasonic and Sony models - was totally confused, finally went with the Optura Xi. Am very very happy - yes, it is bigger than the very small models. But I find it very comfortable to work with. The optical stabilizer is great - even video from a moving boat looks good. Another surprise - even though they say you won't use the still camera much on a video camcorder - I found myself using it all the time, so I was happy I had the 2 megapixels on the Optura. Not as high quality as my digital still camera - but great for web and viewing on the laptop screen. As a recent switcher from PCs to Mac - I have also been delighted with the ease of connectivity and use with my new PowerBook.

Emerson evc1595 multisystem video converter My relatives boughtby
last14th to17 april 2003. i you send me in india as 25 february 2004.so Emerson evc1595 multisystem video converter is fail.so
i want to replayes Or Repare to My Emerson evc1595 multisystem video converter.i have Emerson evc1595 multisystem video converter in india.so palese you above this meter. this Product is in india in gujart.

Don't confuse this for the analog converters that sell for $100. I have tried all kinds of converters but this one does the job! The analog converters produce jumpy video. The only way to get rid of the jumpiness is to use the vertical hold of your TV set - the same TV set you used to watch Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon, I should add!!! None of the TV sets manufactured over the last 20 years come with a vertical hold. In other words, don't waste your money. Spend a few extra bucks and get the right equipment for the job!

I bought one of these in 1999, through Amazon, and it has been a true performer! When I got assigned to Romania we debated buying a smaller screen multi-systen TV (at great cost) or taking our nice, new, 31" GE (NTSC) set and converting it. I just bought this converter and purchased a Philips VCR locally to act as my cable tuner (PAL). If you have a TV with audio/composite video in jacks, this will enable you to convert and view literally any video format with no problem. The image is sharp and clear, and it comes with plug in transformers for both 110V and 220V operation. It can be used with big-screen TVs of all types, and can output a NTSC or PAL signal for your television. A wonderful alternative to expensive multi-system sets, and as a side benefit you can use it to tranfer tapes from PAL to NTSC and vice versa!

... I have this TV/VCR combo and it is horrible. The pictureis great, and the size is great but it does not work. In the timethat I have had it, it has completely stopped working three times and Philips Magnavox will not take responsibility for defective merchandise! Save your money and buy a better product! END

If you're like me, still hopelessly attatched to the VHS format, this TV/VCR combo is a great value. It's priced more cheaply than most of it's 13 inch rivals, but it's proven to be dependable, and has a nice clear picture. If you're tired of too many remotes and cords (or even hate having to switch to channel 3 or 4 to view your film) this set is perfect. Set-up was a breeze and it's user-friendly all the way. The VCR recording options are a little limited--you can't watch one program while recording another, but if you just want a simple set with a clear television picture and a great VCR, this Phillips is hard to beat.

From the varity of TV/VCR combos out there, this one by far has the greatest picture.

I bought one of these thinking that it would somehow enance my Playstation 2, but it didn't. This is simply a ten foor long power cable with a 24k Gold plated connectors and features a much thicker cable. Nothing really worth paying the extra money for. I would have to pass this one down, and I will not purchase one of these for my next home console.

Quality item & worth paying an extra few dollars for. However, the suggested retail price for this item is $9.99 as seen on Monster Cable's web site.

Well, Monster Cable always living up to the name. Clean looks as always, gold plated connectors, plenty of cord for everyone. It might not "functionally" enhance your 110v outlet and all of a sudden make your PS2 go 400mph or something? What do you expect? (which you are only transmitting electricity, it's not like your adding another power supply in the PS2, as if it needs it anyways!) Overall A+

I purchased this last December, harboring moderately high hopes of enjoying a decent middle-of-the-road graphics card. It proved to be faster than my previous card, but it fell rather short of its supposed capabilities. Moreover, after approximately three months of running the card with the default factory settings, it died, upon which only software rendering (extremely slow) was possible. I returned the card to ATI under the warranty, whereupon I received a replacement card with accompanying documentation indicating the other was defective.

Hmm...well it was brand new in the sealed box when I bought it, but I guess stuff happens. I've since come across a number of people and reviews who've had very similar problems with this card, and thus, the evidence seems to suggest an ATI quality control problem. ATI has seemingly allowed a great number of these cards to hit the market...which is somewhat disturbing, considering the purchase price. Perhaps I think in overly idealistic terms, but I'd expect a company to publicly own up to something like this rather than playing it off like it was a one-in-a-thousand fluke. But then I suppose that addressing each defective card one-by-one probably is more financially prudent for the company.

ATI's customer service definitely leaves much to be desired, and it's skimpy at best. They offer one lousy month of free telephone support on their products. Afterwards, it's either pay-per-minute, per-incident, or you're reduced to automated, often useless assistance via ATI's "Customer Care" center on their web site. They offer no individual e-mail support, at least none that is readily apparent, if even available at all. Their site provides forms for submitting preformulated questions and problems to which you will receive an auto-reply to via e-mail -- most of these answers can already be found on their site. Hence, their web-based support is not really support at all, but a mirage for those too stupid or lazy to find the solution on their own. If you have a specific question or problem about your card, don't expect it to get answered if its not already in their FAQs or common technical issues.

More importantly than the faulty card, ATI's customer service efforts, or rather, the lack thereof, are enough to make me go to the competition. Give me a company that lives up to the definition of customer service.

Good-bye A-T-I.

Wow, okay. There's just a little bad information going on here. :) First of all, the 9600XT is hands-down, without-a-doubt the best graphics card you can buy for the money right now. considering that the 9700Pro (what, a year ago now?) whipped the pants off the GF Ti4600, I think the reveiwer below might want to reconsider his installation steps (removed your old drivers? firmware updates? stop using synthetic benchmarks?) you obviously are missing something-- check benchmarks on any reputable online reviewer (*cough* hardocp.com *cough*). Surely you're not suggesting you run FarCry/UT2K4 on a Ti4600 with no problems? *smirk*

Really, I can't believe I saw this card with a 3 1/2 rating. It really does deserve better. No, it's not going to beat an X800XT (neither will anything else right now), but then again it doesn't cost $450-$500. Show me a better card in this price range. I guarantee you Nvidia doesn't make one. Maybe someday, but right now ATi owns the top and the middle of the market, and they deserve it.

Great card, the best value card on the market, yet you get great performance and easy overclocking.

I bought this set in an attempt to improve the quality of analog to DVD using a Canopus box. The problem was, the cable jacks were too large for my VCR's component output. They fit in the jacks, but were loose would only provide a connection when I jiggled them about. I've never had this problem with this type of cable before, very disappointing.

I've purchased a lot of cable recently including S-Video, Component Video, and Optical Cable. I purchased this short cable to run data from my progressive scan DVD player to my Denon 987. And to be perfectly honest, the stuff Sears sells in their audio/video department works just as well as Monster and costs quite a bit less. Mind you, I'm not anti-Monster, heck my house is filled with 100s of feet of 16-gauge Monster THX cable. But you can get really good cable for a lot less if you look around. Try Ebay for starters...

I used to wonder why spend the extra money. It's just cable after all. Well, I wonder no more. I have an older TV and a decent but older receiver. The sound was okay but I was wanting something better. I bought a couple of these cables, and S-Video cable and 16 gauge Monster speaker wire.

My system is AWESOME now. I was truely impressed at what a difference a $50 (or there about) investment in cables made.