[jkharmer]

Hi guys,

Looking to purchase a cheapish camcorder to record my little daughter's first few weeks in this world. Do not want to spend more than £150 and would not be averse to second hand. There are so many on eBay I just would not know where to start. Not really sure what I want out of it, maybe just compact and decent enough in low light levels. Editing can be done on pc. Not bothered about still picture performance as I have my trusty DSLR for that. Perhaps going for a 2 year old second hand top of the range is better than a current cheap one??

Thanks in advance.

James

[jkharmer]

Any of these stick out as being good value?

eBay.co.uk Shop – Clearance Bargains: Search results for.

[jkharmer]

Can anyone help, please?

[A n d r e w]

Stay away from eB*y would be my advice, along with the fact that under £200 camcorders that record to mini-DV format on tape will give you the best quality results - though you'll need FireWire on your PC to import mini-DV video. Otherwise something like the Canon FS100 might do the trick - quality not quite as good as a similarly priced mini-DV camcorder, but not bad.

Bear in mind that most consumer camcorders are decidedly average in low light / indoors situations.

[jkharmer]

Thanks for that info.

Where do camcorders turn from poor low light performance into better? What sort of price point are we looking at?

Thanks, James

[A n d r e w]

Larger sensors (though still medium-to-smallish) turn up in the mid-range HD camcorders like the Canon HF100 and, a bit further up the price ladder, the Sony SR11 / SR12 - although this is quite a bit cheaper and is said to boast a fairly big sensor for the money. Some discussion of this particular model here and here.