I want a decent video camera, but don't want to shell out too much money. Can anyone advise me?

Question

I am looking for a relatively inexpensive video camera to take on holidays with me. I know a bit about the types of cameras and stuff, but I am not sure which would be the best type (MiniDV, Hi8, DVD, etc). Could someone please explain the difference (in simpletons terms please!) and advise me on purchasing one? How much should I be expecting to pay realistically? Can anyone suggest a make and model?

Thanks very much,
Jess

Answer 1

You can get video cameras that will record to either a memory card, tape, DVD or hard disk. Some camcorders also allow you to store stills on a card, but that's a different issue, so I'll ignore it.

The ones that store video on a card are cheap, but they're not much more than toys.

Hi8 is an old format for recording to tape and has now been replaced by MiniDV. MiniDV has the highest video quality and is the best format to use if you plan to edit your video and maybe go on to make a DVD. The cameras and tapes are relatively cheap. On the down-side, it takes up a lot of space on your PC while you're editing (but disks are quite cheap now) and you can only capture your video in real time i.e. an hour of video will take an hour to capture. You also need a firewire card in your PC. These are cheap and easy to install though, so it's not much of an issue.

DVD cameras record to a mini DVD. The quality isn't great and editing is a pain (though it's not as bad as it was) and degrades the quality. You can only get about 20 minutes on a mini DVD (at best quality) and not all DVD players can play them. Assuming you can though, it's simple to watch your footage on a TV.

Hard drive cameras record to a hard drive, which will store a lot more than a DVD. You've got similar quality and editing problems to DVD, but it's very quick and easy to download to a PC. They're also quite expensive.

New models get introduced every few months, but both Canon and Sony sell decent MiniDV cameras for less than $250.

Answer 2

i do no longer understand approximately digital cameras by way of fact for purely one hundred money thats gonna be difficult yet webkins you will discover on the animal kingdom hotel at disney and downtown disney at times.... good good fortune with that digital camera i'd sell you mine even with the undeniable fact that it is purely a digital camera with video ability severe high quality nevertheless.

Answer 3

Wal-Marts had some big sales going on recently on the RCA video cameras. They seem to work real good.