Which format

[maarten1]

Hi, I am new to the forums and new to Camcorders. I am thinking of buying one in the next few weeks as a present for someone. When I went into the shop I was told by the salesman that the best one to buy now (for a newbie) was one with a DVD and that tapes were old technology. Considering that there will be very little editing done to the recorded film and the budget will be around £400 what format would you recommend? Thanks in advance.

[redsox_mark]

Firstly tape based camcorders (DV or HDV) give you the best quality in general, so what difference does it make that it is a technology which has been around for a long time (in the case of DV). Sales staff tend to push DVD and HDD as "newer technology"; they have some advantages but aren't neccessarily better.

I'm not a fan of DVD camcorders. The advantage is you can shoot, finalise, and stick the discs in a DVD player. So that is easy, especially if you don't plan to edit. But I've seen too many reports of discs failing to finalise or play.

For £400, I'd either go with DV tape (Panasonic GS320, under £300, is excellent), or HDD. If you don't want to edit on a PC, HDD is probably easier,
look at the Panasonic H250.
http://www.pricerunner.co.uk/pl/8-86...Compare-Prices

Do you have a set top DVD recorder? That is an easy way to make DVDs... if you get one with DV-input, works well with a DV tape camcorder.

[maarten1]

Thanks for your reply Mark. Looking at what you have said I feel much happier buying a DV based camcorder.

[dejongj]

then again I have my Sony DVD camcorder for two years now and never lost any footage. Quality wise it is very good and my reference is the classic Sony TRH 900 as used by the BBC for personal re ordings.
Editing is no more difficult either when required.

However would I buy one again? No not unless it is a bluray model. I could not recommend a standard definition camera to buy for anyone at the moment. I mean most people keep a video camera for quote a while. And you can't shoot a special moment ever again. So I would buy into hugh definition since many models are available at very reasonable prices.

[rhubarbe]

Sound like about time for a plug for the Canon HV10. HDV and you can buy a refurb with a year's warranty from the Canon Outlet on eBay usually for £430 most weeks.