Advice Needed on Purchasing Camcorder

Bluscreendream

Hi

I'm looking for advice on purchasing my first camcorder. My budget is €400 and there are a few models which come in under this price. Basically I don't have much experience in this area so I'm looking for advice in choosing a camcorder within this price range which has the best resolution/picture quality. I've done a bit of research and the Canon FS10 Camcorder seems to be a favourite within this price bracket but I read the below CNET review which was quite negative.

http://reviews.cnet.com/digital-camcorders/canon-fs10/4505-6500_7-32786398.html

I've looked at a few other camcorders on Komplett in this price bracket (listed below) and to be honest I don't if any of these would be better than the Canon FS10 in terms of video quality.

http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.aspx?sku=346257 Sony DCR-SR35E, 30GB HDD recorder

http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.aspx?sku=347313 JVC Everio GZ-MG330, 30GB HDD recorder

http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.aspx?sku=349132 Panasonic SDR-H40

http://www.komplett.ie/k/ki.aspx?sku=353087 Toshiba GigaShot K80H

If anyone could advise on the best model for this price I'd greatly appreciate it.

Thanks guys

m83

Haven't used that model but Canon are usually great. I'd say its probably the best choice for that price range.

Bluscreendream

Thanks M83!

6th

m83 wrote: »

Haven't used that model but Canon are usually great. I'd say its probably the best choice for that price range.

Have to agree.

Bluscreendream

Thanks again guys!

marielouise

Hi I am actually selling a brand new Sony DCR SR55,hard drive camcorder with carlzeiss lens that I bought and have used once before but need the money at the moment I saw your posts just now about buying a camcorder.
It has a touchscreen lcd and photo stills ability.
No need for DV tapes as these new top of the range models have inbuilt memory which connects to computer via usb and you can record up to 40gb (27hrs of footage). This is perfect also for travelling also as you needn't carry around tapes and the 40gb harddriv ensures you'll have enough space also 25x optical zoom / 2000x digital zoom .
I would be willing to sell for 380euro with adaptor,software etc Hama pack waterproof bag incl. which is worth 40euro itself. Its a new model and is currently selling in electrical/camera shops in the price range of 470euro and upwards.
If you'd like anymore info just let me know

m83

Just for the record, hard disks aren't better than tape when it comes to picture quality. I'd take a tape system any day of the week for numerous reasons.

decob

+1

i've had nothing but hassle any time i've had to deal with footage from a disk based camera. mpeg2 video, ac3 audio. have to transcode it to another format just to work with it. missing xml files, not in original folder structure. gah. Give me a tape anyday.

chris1970

anyone used the canon hc10 ,is it worth it, how would quality compare to dv tape?