Im in the States .....

and looking to use the dollar rate to cash in on a new digital camcorder - I have a budget of around £500, £600 tops, which is around $1130 I have an NTSC capable TV so thats not going to be a problem. Some conditions

- needs to be reasonably compact as I travel with enough bits of technology already
- needs to be good at shooting both inside and ouside (ie poor light)
- not concerned about capturing stills - I have a digital camera already
- I reckon MiniDV format - probably the easiest to get off onto my XP system but Id be willing to listen to the record direct to DVD or hard disk offerings. (I already have an Archos AV380 with the camera module so can at present record direct to the Archos HDD but the quality isnt great)
- I want to in the end play the movies either (a) direct on my (or another) PC, on my modded XBOX or from a DVD

Also on a side note Im actually in Houston so if anyone has a good idea of the best place to tech shop in this area the that would be good as well.

Nige

 

IMHO - DON'T DO IT!!!!!

This question on buying a cam from the USA to save money is being asked on a fairly regular basis at the moment. Do a search on the forum and you will see the many reasons why you should buy a cam from the UK. It really could end up costing you more money in the long run if you do buy in the USA.

Mark.

 

Take your money back here and price match at JEssops

 

Im sorry but I have long been someone who bought stuff in the USA - IPODS, cameras both still and digital video, consoles and not yet had a problem ... when i see cameras going for $1000 over here that in the UK are £750 - thats a pretty decent saving and certainly will mean I wont worry about the "what if if breaks" question. If I had worried about that in the past then I wouldnt have half the gadgets I have now, or would have spent a heck of a lot more.

Those who have said "DONT" - have you ever bought from stateside and actually had problems ?

 

There are a lot more potential problems with buying a camcorder in the USA than the 'what if it breaks'. As I suggested before you should do a search on this forum for the 'other risks' and then decide if it looks to be worth the risks to you. As I said, IMO it is not worth the risks and therefore I have never bought a camcorder from the USA. I don't think the savings are that good once you compare to some of the better internet prices available, and as Martin says Jessops have always offered a pricematch when I've asked for it.

Mark.

 

Camcorders are different.

With US you get lower picture quality (NTSC), NIL resale price, and they are cheap in the UK I paid £600 for my TRV33 when it was a brand new model.

As far as I was concerned this is what it was worth and was a good price.

IF you do shop around to get that low price off the internet than price match at Jessops to get the best service you are on to a winner