I'm thinking of getting a new camcorder. I mostly use it to record basketball and volleyball games (I'm a coach).
I have a Sony DCR-HC96 Mini DV Camcorder, after transferring the video to the computer, the picture quality is pretty good when viewing it on a computer monitor (could be better). However, when viewing it on a 56" plasma, it looks like crap. Also, I'm getting tired of all the DV tapes and the slow transferring process. So I have three questions.
1) will a hard drive camcorder (non Hi Def) have better picture quality than a mini DV camcorder?
2) how much better is the picture quality of a Hi Def camcorder, is it the same gap as SD and HD television programming? Let's say something like
This.
3) I see
these type of camcorders getting really popular, is the quality on par with the Sony I linked to above, or is it worse? What's the reason for it being less than half the price?
Thanks.
Posts
The difference between a standard def camcorder (480i) and an HD camcorder (usually 1080i) is HUGE. Especially if you are planning on playing the videos on an HD TV. Totally worth it if you can afford it. Even if you're compressing the video and putting it on a website you'll notice a big difference.
The reason the Flip is cheaper is that it has no useable zoom and no image stabilization. Those are two pretty big things to do without in a camcorder, but if you're just taking brief videos of relatively well-lit, stationary scenes, then it's a good choice.
That is cheap and mobile. They can actually record for a reasonable amount of time as well.
Do you want something that you can fit in your pocket for a day trip?
Or do you want something a little more professional to carry around in a bag?
Satans..... hints.....
?
The HD in a camcorder is just a laptop drive.