Handycam - Video Camera

[whiterussian]

Please could someone point me in the right direction - im looking for a handycam, but i dont know anything about them, and dont want to buy 'last years' technology. Is there a thread on TV that i can post to?

I see them for sale between 10k and 24k in Big C...

Are there any out there that are the best bang for the bucks... but not in the upper price bracket?

Do i want DVD or solid state? or something else, I want the camera for WEB video, not TV. ie: HD res not required (i think)

thank you very much.

[Bard]

Depends what and where you want to go with the camera to be honest with you. If you just want to make snappy web videos and not put down lot's of creativity into it most cameras will do just fine.

If you want lot of bang for the bucks for a camera which allows you to be creative the Panasonic NV-GS230 is a pretty decent option, it uses digital tapes though, but is one of extremely few cameras in it's price range which allows you to plug in external microphone and headset while you shoot. It also has 3 ccd which gives very nice colors. They are normally never in stock so you can order them at Best Buy with a week delivery I think. If not look for external mic and headset option, it will allow you to play with a very important aspect in video... Sound...

[whiterussian]

thank you, i hadnt thought about the sound fully. Good point, appreciate that.

It looks like after years of wanting and waiting, video cams have finally come down to a reasonable price level.

Digital tape? what is the new benchmark for handycams? mini DVD's or solid state?

thank you so much...

[Bard]

It is different media available, for normal digital video (non-HD) the only uncompressed media is DV tape, then you have DVD recording, Hard disc recording and solid state. Solid state is pretty limited in size so they normally use heavy compression.

Often it is benchmarked to the DV tapes which is uncompressed and gives highest quality with lossless recording and also the largest file size, you use the software to cut and make your movie then export as a compressed movie in your selected format.

The other formats use different technology for compression and you can select the recording quality on them to more or less loss in details.

Benefit with DV Tape is that it is lossless and cheap tapes are easy to carry or buy so you are pretty unlimited in recording

Negative side of DV Tape is large files to work with, you need a good system to keep track of your tapes

Benefit with Hard disk is you can record a lot into the drive and connect it as an external hard drive, makes it easy to work with

Bad side is when your disc is full you cannot record more unless you empty it to a computer so it's limited for trips, need to be a bit more careful with the camera when running to avoid killing clusters

DVD recording, sorry but I see no benefit in expensive small special disc which often don't work well in computers other than you can buy more disc's on a trip.

Solid state, very durable often used for stunt recording, small compact cameras often pocket sized.

Normally heavy mpeg 4 / DivX / Xvid or similar compression, limited in recording by the card, expensive to add more cards and very easy to loose the cards by misplacing them. (Not valid for pro cam's)

Please note above is biased by my personal opinion and could very well be different from others or your own, so you need to feel out what fits your needs and habits.

Cheers Bard

[whiterussian]

You star Bard! thank you very much!

DV tape it is then!

I really appreciate your taking the time to write such a lengthy reply.

I wish you a very happy Loy Kratong!

Very best wishes

A