which of these two ??..DVD camcorder

13-09-2004, 7:29 AM

Hi,

Just wondering if anyone can offer any pros or cons ?

I’m trying to decide between the Sony DCR-DVD-201E and the Hitachi DZ-MV550.

I know Mini DV is more versatile and better quality…but reason for DVD instead of MiniDV is that I’m not into editing in a big way….I just want to shoot and view/send

Main reason for DVD recording is so I can post DVDs abroad for the family to view video of my recent baby daughter.

Sony is DVD-R/RW, 10x optical, uses the disc for both video and stills…whilst the Hitachi is DVD-RAM, 18x optical, uses SD card for stills and is a slightly larger unit

Cheers

Mike

MarkE19 · 13-09-2004, 11:19 AM

Where in the world are your family that you want to send these disks to? If they are in the USA then the chances are they wont be able to play your disks anyway. In the UK our TV system is PAL (along with Australia and most of Europe) but the USA and a lot of the Far East use NTSC. UK TV's & VCR's can normally handle (with afair loss of quality) NTSC recordings, but most USA TV's and VCR's can't handle PAL. I assume USA DVD players would be the same.
The other problem is that if you record to a DVD then send to family they will have the only copy of that recording. If you record to DV tape etc then you can just create a DVD/VHS copy and keep the origional. If you make copies of the DVD then you lose theadvantage of the DVD cam.
Also DVD cams use 8cm disks and not the normal size disks that everything else tends to use. Some DVD players can not play these small disks.
DVD disks for these cams are quite expensive and are not too easy to get hold of on the high street.

Mark.

Kevo · 13-09-2004, 11:45 AM

Also, I've heard that these DVD Cams are not very good when the camera is moving and recording at the same time.

26-09-2004, 10:30 AM

If you have firewire or usb.2 on your PC you can get software that does 'Direct to DVD' ie Sonic software or DVDsanta. You could then buy a cheaper dv camcorder but with better features than the ones you are thinking about and get a DVD writer. And you will also be able to choose which format PAL/NTSC and save money.

Just an idea.......

13-09-2004, 7:29 AM	#1
m_felstead Guest Posts: n/a	which of these two ??..DVD camcorder Advertisement Want to Advertise? Hi, Just wondering if anyone can offer any pros or cons ? I’m trying to decide between the Sony DCR-DVD-201E and the Hitachi DZ-MV550. I know Mini DV is more versatile and better quality…but reason for DVD instead of MiniDV is that I’m not into editing in a big way….I just want to shoot and view/send Main reason for DVD recording is so I can post DVDs abroad for the family to view video of my recent baby daughter. Sony is DVD-R/RW, 10x optical, uses the disc for both video and stills…whilst the Hitachi is DVD-RAM, 18x optical, uses SD card for stills and is a slightly larger unit Cheers Mike
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26-09-2004, 10:30 AM	#4
Centurion Guest Posts: n/a	If you have firewire or usb.2 on your PC you can get software that does 'Direct to DVD' ie Sonic software or DVDsanta. You could then buy a cheaper dv camcorder but with better features than the ones you are thinking about and get a DVD writer. And you will also be able to choose which format PAL/NTSC and save money. Just an idea.......
	Quote