£500 budget but no idea what to buy !

[rege0039]

Hi,

Although very technical I have no experience of miniDV camcorders. I used to have an anlogue Canon, but that had so much tape motor noise I don't want another Canon.

I have about £500 to spend and am looking for something that will be used in well lit indoor rooms.

Any recommendations ?

I was looking at

Panasonic (cos I like there other stuff!) NVG233B

JVC GR-d73

Sony - something - don't know any of there models !

Can you get extra lights (flash type thing ?) for camcorders ?

Any help will be much appreciated !

[MarkE19]

I have read so many different threads on this forum about camera noise from the Canons, and even on the modern DV ones so a good idea to steer clear of them IMHO.

I have always owned Sony camcorders and on this forum they also tend to be the most popular choice. You do pay a bit of a premium on the price for their cams, but they are well worth it IMO.
I don't know about the new models as I am not in the market for a new cam at the moment but a very popular choice on here is the TRV-33 or the slightly cheaper 22 & 19. I'm not sure if any of these have been replaced with newer models so will let others advise on that.

If doing a lot of filming indoors etc with lw light then yes you can add a video light to a camcorder. These range in price and obviously quality and you could pay from around £30 up to several hundred. Some will take their power from the camcorder and some will have their own battery.
Take a look Here for a fair range of video lights.

Mark.

[mjw123]

Add the better JVC model to your list - GRD93.

You can get it for £395 delivered (check with pricerunner.com)...u may have to select all camcorders then 'jvc' to find it.

I don't think for sub £400 their is a better all rounder.

[rege0039]

I looked at the JVC 93 but wasn't certain if I could plug an external microphone into it ? Is there a way to do that ?

[MartinImber]

If you can find a TRV33 you will be happy

[rege0039]

Been looking and most people don't seem to have a trv33 anymore, just the newer Sony's that don't seem as good. Those that do have them seem to want a lot more for them ( seen one at £700 !!

Any ideas where to get one from ?

[John F]

I may be selling my trv33 its got about 16 or 17 months guarantee left at John Lewis mint condition with box & all original packaging etc, used for about 3 hours in total will be looking for £435 including delivery if I decide to sell.

[dan76n]

Try using http://www.consumerreview.com I found it to be very handy when i Purchased my camcorder, I chose a sony digital 8,
these cameras are a bit bigger than the mini dv style but i wanted somthing with good optical zoom (25x) so i had no other option.

[den9112]

sony all the way , anyone with a budget of around £300 / £500 with the carl zeis lens you cannot go wrong . my opinion only .

[den9112]

anyone want a copy of this software , i purchased this and found it a bit difficult to use .

[Rubble]

Hi I have a
Sony DCR-PC101 DV camcorder with carl zeis lens very small and compact with endless features. DV in & out, can be viewed first if required

Comes complete with box, charger, manual, all PC leads and Carry case which is worth £35.00

All for £300

[Badabing]

I'm also looking for a camcorder in the same price range and from looking around the sony DCR-HC40 is looking good @ £475, anyone have any comments on it?