JVC gz-HD10 worth it?

BradShort · 16-08-2009, 3:11 PM

Hi Guys

Been doing some research for a camera just to record memories for our new arrival coming in September.

This looks ok

Play.com (UK) : JVC GZ-HD10 HD Camcorder With 40GB Hard Drive And MicroSD Slot : Electronics - Free Delivery

But at a budget of £300 would anyone recommend anything else or maybe cheaper? I've seen the Sanyo Xacti VPC-FH1 HD for around the same priceThere are a lot of cheaper ones on the market now like the Samsung R10 and these gun-grip types. I'm usually the "Go to" guy when it comes to tech, but these HD cams have got me foxed!

All advice greatly appreciated! If it was your £300 would you go for the JVC?

BradShort · 17-08-2009, 8:04 PM

bump! Any advice guys?

BradShort · 18-08-2009, 9:00 AM

ajex · 18-08-2009, 10:54 AM

I used JVC laser touch and did not like it at all...

I would put my money on Panasonic hdc-sd9 ,bit dated and has been superseded by sd-20 but sd9 has 3 ccd!!!

I am sure if you are patient u can find it for that price somewhere with warranty or for sale forums on this site..

Ajex

BradShort · 18-08-2009, 12:54 PM

Cheers. This is all i need, suggestions, tips and the like. I will then have a pool of recommended CAMS to choose from.

That looks a good cam, although the price is somewhat above £300 at the moment with warranty

ajex · 18-08-2009, 1:52 PM

Well another camcorder which is very highly rated by ccinfo is Sanyo Xacti VPC-HD2000 but it's appearance and handling may not be to every one's taste..

Ajex

lurcher · 18-08-2009, 3:18 PM

There was/is a Panasonic HDC-SD100 for sale in the classified section , 3mos/viewfinder/manual focus ring , may be worth a look.

Julian

Hangerhead · 19-08-2009, 8:57 AM

I would have similar requirements also (our first arrival is this december)

I would like the low-light performance to be reasonable (as I would anticipate filming indoors/evenings).
Never used a camcorder before but I am a keen photographer, well used to manual settings and so on.

I'd want HD - not fussed if it's flash based or HDD or simply removable storage like Compact or SDHC.
The ability to take high res photos is not important as I have a camera for that.
Also, I would prefer Optical Image Stabilisation (preferred over EIS but anything better than nothing)

Anything else (onboard LED light, or accessory shoe, face detection, etc) would be icing on the cake but not essential...I would consider 2nd hand also but with a budget in total up to £350.

Cheers,

Hangerhead

ajex · 19-08-2009, 10:23 AM

I had similar requirements to you guys but lower budget so have picked up Panasonic HDC sd1 for 250 with spare battery and memory card and all.

I am quite pleased so far with low light performance and OIS..

It's bit antique but has probably the largest sensors on consumer cam corder 3 ccd each 1/4 inch , I find SD1 rock solid ( May because it is Made in Japan and the lens and the zoom is awsome)...

If I had more money to spend would spend it on panasonic hdc-sd9 ,I played it for a while and found performance excellent and it has 3 ccd unlike the new sd-20 though both probably have same resolution.

And all this learning after returning JVC GZ HD300 for poor low light performance

Hope this helps...

Ajex

BradShort · 20-08-2009, 8:06 AM

Cheers for your input Ajex

jwramsay · 20-08-2009, 11:24 AM

Currys and PCWorld are doing the model up from this for £279.97, so it is discontinued.

It had a 60G HDD and you can select either HDV or AVCHD encoding!

BradShort · 20-08-2009, 12:24 PM

What model number mate? If its HD30 its only available in certain stores

jwramsay · 20-08-2009, 8:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vegauk

What model number mate? If its HD30 its only available in certain stores

Yeah sorry, GZ-HD30

I got one on Sunday from my local Currys as my beloved Sony HC3 has developed a fault on the LCD and I reckon could be more expensive to fix than I paid for this JVC number.

(I'd also wanted one that didn't have tape as a medium as my HC-3 was hitting me with condensation warning when bagging munros - one of the reasons that I bought the blighter!!)

Phone Currys and get them to check the stores local to you for stock.

BradShort · 21-08-2009, 7:42 AM

What are your impressions of the HD30 then?

jwramsay · 21-08-2009, 8:40 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vegauk

What are your impressions of the HD30 then?

I think for the money it's great to be honest!

60G HDD, takes 8G micro SD cards too (although won't record HDV to microSD).

I've set it to HDV just now so that I can combine footage with that taken from my Sony HC-3 in the same timeline. It was easy to import the HDV into Sony Vegas, quality looked OK. Haven't looked at any on my Plasma yet, early days yet.

Will get out with it at the weekend and let you know how it compares with the Sony, but I'd say for the price it really is a no brainer.

Only have a Core2Duo PC so not going anywhere near AVCHD just now, but great to have the flexibility of using it in the future.

There are not many around, you need to start hunting for them using the product code which is : 958064

BradShort · 21-08-2009, 5:28 PM

WEll I managed to get one from Stratford, so thats one thing off my list. For 280 i'm sure it will be fine for my needs as i've never used a vid camera before.

Thanks to all who helped.

jwramsay · 21-08-2009, 7:16 PM

Well done that man. Just been looking at some footage via HDMI and it's most acceptable!