5 comments about Sony DCRTRV840 Digital8 Camcorder w/ 3.5" LCD, USB Streaming, Memory Stick, and Mega Pixel Video/ Still.

1. The TRV840 is like a M1 tank in several ways:
   1)When you shoot a subject, you get great results.
   2) It can use a variety of "ammo" (plays Hi8 and 8mm tapes also).
   3) Weighs "a ton" (stable but rough on the hand after a while).
   4) Reliable and sturdy.

   Summary: Exceptional video, excellent sound, 1 MP digital stills (Great for email or web posting). Able to convert any video to digital, 8mm inside the camera or other video by pass through. A great feature if you have old videos you want to digitize. Just make sure your PC is up to the task!

   For my specific needs of great digital video and the ability to digitize old tapes, I can overlook the excess bulk. Videos should be short and sweet anyway, so I'll just put it down when my hand starts to ache! If you need the same features, the TRV840 can't be beat.




2. This is a great camera! It is very easy to use. It takes very clear digital video, and for 1 megapixel CCD takes good digital pictures. It has many neat features. It has a large LCD screen for easy reviewing.

   It records Mpeg files on the memorystick for display on computers. This is a great feature although the files recorded are a little grainy. This is great for e-mailing vacation movies back to family members.

   The quality of the digital video is great. The bad thing is that you don't get much recording time on one tape. It uses 2 hour analog tapes, but when you record in digital mode you only get 1 hour on each tape.

   The picture taking feature is wonderful for vacation. You don't have to carry both a still camera and a video camera around with you. The pictures are only 1 megapixel, but they show up on a computer screen great. We were very pleased with the results of the pictures.

   The battery life is very long. We purchased a separate quick charger for our batteries which was a great addition. It doesn't take much time to charge and they last quite a while compared to our old Minolta camcorder.




3. This is a very nice camcorder for the money. I love the larger view screen, and the battery lasts quite a long time. The picture quality is very good, but there is considerable noise from the motor that gets recorded on the tape. If you're taping a birthday party or sporting event, the noise isn't too bad, but if you're using it to record the birds chirping on a quiet morning, forget it; the noise from the motor will drown out anything you'd be able to hear, it's that loud. Lastly, I have had several old 8mm tapes from my old camcorder that will not play on this camcorder. They will play on my neighbor's 8mm Samsung camcorder, but not on this Sony. I was a little upset by this.



4. All the characteristics of this camera are great. The still digitals to mpegs, but I had to buy a Canon for this particular camera to be compatible with my G4 Mac. I bought the camera before I bought my G4.



5. hi
   i m intersted in 2 pieces. how do i contact you? what are the payment methods for it?
   thanks

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1. very pleased with the product but i could'nt find the sd card that was supposed to be included.

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5 comments about Canon Optura 50 MiniDV Camcorder w/10x Optical Zoom.

1. We have been using the Canon Optura 50 miniDV camcorder for almost a month now and we are very pleased with its performance. The picture quality is very good, it is easy to operate, and the digital camera is easy to use with good quality pictures. I have not yet tried the software to burn DVD's, but if that works as well as the camera it should be a breeze. I highly recommend this camera to others.



2. I own any number of Canon products (printer, film camera, Rebel XT, Powershot A40...), and I'm done. Their business model is just set up so that you just have to keep on buying, and it's driving me nuts (for example, the printer only works well if you use the premium Canon paper, and it has 6 ink tanks, only 3 of which I can ever find in the stores, so I'm forced to buy extra inks that I don't need in a "pack" so that I can get the photo cyan that I actually need -- at a cost of $70. Next time, I'm just buying a new printer. The A40 was ok, but is now broken (just this morning I was considering buying the A60 as a replacement, but when I found out that I still need to buy a whole bunch of stuff to get the video I took onto my computer, I decided I'm going with Nikon.)).
   
   For the camcorder, the whole purpose of buying a DIGITAL camcorder was so that I could transfer to the computer, edit, burn to disk, etc., without having analog loss issues. I've read as much as I could, but NO WHERE did I see that if you don't have a firewire connection or a special video card, you can't transfer with this camera. I actually have the video card, but it stinks (which is why I wanted to upgrade from my existing analog camcorder to a digital one), so you end up with a horrible transferred picture. The included USB cable, as well as the "DIGITAL VIDEO SOLUTIONS" disk are not for VIDEO solutions or transfers, they are for STILL IMAGE transfers (of the 48 pages in the "video" solutions software manual, only 5 relate to "video" transfers -- they deal with how to install the driver, and are for the Optura 60 and 500 only -- the rest is dedicated to the relatively useless still image functions, how to download those, use direct print or something, etc.). How the frig' someone can sell a DIGITAL VIDEO device with NO means of transferring to a computer or doing anything with the video is beyond me (even if you do have a firewire connection, they don't include the firewire cable). Note that the Optura 60 includes all the same cables, etc., that the Optura 50 has, but for some reason video transfer with the (same) included cables is enabled for the Optura 60, but NOT for the Optura 50. I was already on the fence about getting the 60 or not, and had I known I might have picked up the 60 instead. But now I'm just stuck.
   
   The main reason I went with the Optura line is that, all else being equal, it takes the same batteries as the XT, and I already had two of those batteries, with a portable charger. So now I have three, which was convenient on our recent trip. Of course, the $50 I saved on being able to use my extra batteries is going to be more than eaten up by having to buy/install a firewire card and cable, as well as having to buy video editing software. I'm not looking for anything fancy, just something basic to capture the video and let me burn it to a DVD. But Canon doesn't even include that.
   
   As to the merits of the camera itself, with the exception of trying to get the video to some other device, it is pretty easy to use. I can't speak to the quality of the video just yet -- I've spent most of our first day back trying to figure out how to get the video to the computer, and then went nuts when I realized that I just can't with my current configuration and what they include. Most reviews I read before purchase said the zoom range wasn't that great, but it wasn't that bad, either. I tend to disagree -- I really would have liked a little extra room on the wide range in particular -- filming family (young kids) on the trip I found myself continually having to back up to fill them all in the frame (admittedly, they are young kids, so they were getting pretty close -- if you have a more compliant subject this may not be an issue). In keeping with their business model, though, you could get a wide angle attachment for "only" $120. One of the function buttons gets hidden by the screen if you tilt it -- a pretty stupid design, since most people hold the camcorder slightly below eye level, and tilt the screen, and that's when the button is blocked.
   
   The other feature that distinguishes this camera from others is the steady shot (optical on this one vs. digital on most camcorders). I thought this feature worked relatively well, but nothing spectacular.
   
   All in all, I wouldn't buy this again, and I'm done buying Canon products. I just can't help feeling like I'm being nickel and dimed. If you are interested, consider the additional costs of cables, DV cassettes (at least I knew those weren't included ahead of time, and was able to compare accordingly), video capture/editing software, and possibly the wide angle attachment. Even with all those issues solved, though, the limited zoom range is the killer (the attachment shifts the entire zoom range, so it's still only 10x, and doesn't get as close on the tele end, unless you have the action stop and then go back and forth putting it on and taking it off -- too much of a hassle, if you ask me). As for me, I'm done with them.



3. The Optura 50 certainly isn't perfect and there are any number of higher-priced cameras which outperform it. However, the feature-set and performance for the price make the Optura 50 an excellent value.
   
   The automatic white balance on the Optura 50 is more easily fooled in difficult lighting than rival cameras so you may frequently find yourself manually choosing a white balance setting. It's not a huge problem since the controls are easily accessed but it's something to be aware of. Low-light is not this camera's strong suit due to image noise.
   
   A more serious issue is that a minority of units exhibit higher than normal tape transport noise. Several people including myself have had to exchange cameras that were much louder than they should have been. I haven't heard of anyone who got two bad cameras in a row though.
   
   Strengths:
   Optical Image Stabilization (unheard of at this price-point)
   Easily accessed controls
   True, high-resolution 16:9 widescreen mode
   Microphone-in port with manual audio level control (unusual at this price-point)
   Accessory shoe (cold)
   Tilting, extendable viewfinder
   
   Weaknesses:
   Other cameras provide a better image in low light
   Automatic white balance could be both more accurate and more consistent.



4. i'm a mac user who wanted a family camera so i can input footage into the mac and edit the footage. after spending way too much time researching video cameras online and at brick & morter stores, i purchased the canon optura 50.
   
   the optura 50 has firewire which is needed to have the footage transfered from the camera into a mac and have the mac edit software (imovie/final cut express/final cut pro) "see" the camera. this aspect has worked flawlessly.
   
   the optura 50's specs are decent. it has the largest chip size of any 1-chip camera. now u can graduate to a 3-chip panasonic but this generation of panasonics does not come with firewire (see above).
   
   the optura 50 also has knobs and buttons to access menu settings. i much prefer this to the sony's touchscreen menu system which maybe fine for setting up a camera but interferes with the camera when in operation.
   
   the optura 50 also has jacks for an external mic and light. all camcorders at this level have so-so on-board mics so the ability to add an external mic is a cheap solution to an obvious problem. but not all camcorders have an external mic input.
   
   the optura 50 produces quality video outside. its color rendition is excellent. indoors it pays to offer all 1 chip camcorders as much light as possible. when that is done, the canon optura 50 does as well as others in this price class. the kid's birthday parties have been fine, bringing the dog home was great, a surprise party for a friend all caught on tape.
   
   for the price and the results i've gotten, i'd buy the optura 50 again. just one person's experience.



5. This is an outstanding single chip camcorder. They don't make them like this anymore unless you are willing to spend upwards of $2,000. It has excellent automatic features but the value lies in the manual controls for shutter, aperture, standard/widescreen, white balance and audio. What makes this camera stand out from today's consumer camcorders are features like accessory shoe, mic input, headphone output and top loading. Great camera!

1 comments about JVC GR-SXM37U Compact S-VHS Camcorder w/25x Optical Zoom.

1. This camcorder was purchased as a gift for a beginner, works fine, would only wish for longer battery life, although I believe longer life batteries are available.

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