New to this! - Need advice

[ramsy66]

Hey I'm pretty new here.

I'm new to camcorders, always had a fascination with recording stuff as a kid, but I always used my dad's digital camera or something like that.

I recently got a really cheap chinese camcorder for around £50, which really isn't very good but it just makes me want a better one even more!

I have a budget of anything up to around £150. I would really like something that uses an SD card, as I have plenty of these, but if it uses Mini DV's, then I guess that's ok. I just want something that records well, with good picture, lighting settings and sound recording, in my price range.

Any advice is appreciated.

P.S. How do I use Mini DV's if I decide to get one that uses them? Can you extract the video off of them onto a PC or do you need a specific player?

Thanks!

[peekay1000]

Looks like we are in a similar position!!
I have found this link http://www.simplydv.co.uk/infobase/about_firewire.html
and other links on that website very helpful.
hope they help you too.

[redsox_mark]

For £150 I suggest the Canon MD101 (tape). Decent quality for that price, even has an external mic input.

[ramsy66]

Originally Posted by peekay1000

Looks like we are in a similar position!!
I have found this link http://www.simplydv.co.uk/infobase/about_firewire.html
and other links on that website very helpful.
hope they help you too.

Ah-hah! I have a firewire input on the front of my PC, never used it. Don't even know if it works. Thanks for the link!

Originally Posted by redsox_mark

For £150 I suggest the Canon MD101 (tape). Decent quality for that price, even has an external mic input.

I'll take a look at that, thanks.

Edit: Ah it doesn't have any USB or Firewire?? How do I get footage onto my PC using the MD101?

[redsox_mark]

The MD101 has Firewire. (All DV camcorders do).

[ramsy66]

Originally Posted by redsox_mark

The MD101 has Firewire. (All DV camcorders do).

Ah right, just read a review and they said it didn't.



I trust this forum more though, I may have to get myself one of these.

How long does a Mini DV tape last and how much are they?

[rhubarbe]

Don't forget the Vista proviso..... some PCs running Vista have problems with firewire...

[rhubarbe]

Originally Posted by ramsy66

Ah right, just read a review and they said it didn't.



I trust this forum more though, I may have to get myself one of these.

How long does a Mini DV tape last and how much are they?

60 minutes. Sony Premium cost just over a quid each on Amazon, buy 20 get free delivery.

The review maybe meant that it doesn't have DV-in. All MiniDV cams have DV-out.

[ramsy66]

Originally Posted by rhubarbe

Don't forget the Vista proviso..... some PCs running Vista have problems with firewire...

I use XP

Originally Posted by rhubarbe

60 minutes. Sony Premium cost just over a quid each on Amazon, buy 20 get free delivery.

The review maybe meant that it doesn't have DV-in. All MiniDV cams have DV-out.

Only £1 for 60 minutes? That's great. Thanks for the info!

[rhubarbe]

You shouldn't have a problem with XP, but read the manual and follow it.

Just over £1 a tape, yes. Good value isn't it?

[ramsy66]

Originally Posted by rhubarbe

You shouldn't have a problem with XP, but read the manual and follow it.

Just over £1 a tape, yes. Good value isn't it?

Sure is, I'll probably by about 10 along with the camera.

[ramsy66]

Alot of reviews are saying that the motor whirring is quite a problem. I'm not going to be too fussed about that unless it's really bad. Anybody got a clip showing how bad it is?

Edit: How is this camera? http://www.amazon.co.uk/Panasonic-NV...4721850&sr=1-2