Boxing Day/Camcorder Deals thread

[mingsi]

Planning to get one, eyes on Canon Eulra 100, wonder a few things:
1 Will the price of camcorder drop significantly next year? Due to like new models up, etc.?
2 What kind of price range would be expected during boxing day?
3 Also thinking about Canon ZR500, seems they are different in media type, which one is better?

Ok, let's start. ;)

[JMWarren]

I'm also looking but haven't seen anything good...

[tasamy]

anyone knows about visions hitachi camcorder ?

[paaji]

I am looking for Camcorder too.

Which one should be better compared to Hard drive vs Dvd vs mini dv. If someone owns it please let me thanks

[neilc]

I was looking too, but decided not to buy. For me, my price limit was $400.

I was looking at the Hitachi DVD Camcorder on page 1 of the Futureshop boxing day flyer ($350). I'd rather have it record to 8cm DVD's (smaller than regular DVD's) than to MiniDV tape, simply because I don't have a firewire port to transfer the files over to my computer, and it's a hassle to convert from MiniDV's AVI format to MPEG-2 if you are going to burn a dvd for a relative.

Of course, electronics always gets better and cheaper, including camcorders. I read an old post from 2005 where someone was complaining they couldn't find a DVD camcorder for under $1000.

Note that Zeller's is having $100 off the regular price of camcorders (excluding Canon, I know, that's the one you want) on boxing day, but no rainchecks. So if you can't find a deal you like, you could try Zellers.

According to the reviews I've read, it seems like to really do get what you pay for if you spend more for a higher end model. Better picture quality, better low light performance, etc.

Good luck, and happy hunting on boxing day!

[cavanagh]

It's not an amazing deal, but I decided to get the Sanyo HD1a from Dell ($100 off) for $699. It has 5.1 megapixel pictures and 720p Video (HDTV size video) which is no as good as high end camcorders but for me it is plenty. The biggest selling point for me was the size.

[jacobs]

Hi all,

I am looking for a good deal on a hi def hdd camcorder... I was really hoping FS or BB would have one, but looks like the only have minidv HD and standard def HDD... anyone have any suggestions?

[kcotoulas]

Camcorders dont seem that impressive right now. I am planning on buying a lower end camcorder.
Bestbuy
JVC $499 save $200
Sony 40GB $750 save $200
Samsung $250 save $150 http://www.bestbuy.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?logon=&langid=EN&sku_id=0926INGFS10086400&catid=20044
was interested in the Samsung since it is a relatively new model for a very cheap price until i read this review http://www.modsynergy.com/review158.htm

FutureShop
Canon SD memory 720p $350 save $200
JVC 30GB $399 save $200 http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?logon=&langid=EN&sku_id=0665000FS10084004&catid=23053

Interested in the canon until i read a review stating that it is more of a camera than camcorder. Looking into the JVC now.

Costco also had a couple of Camcorders are reasonably prices but i thought that there would be better boxing day sales. so i didnt write down the model numbers. i think there was a Sony Camcorder with free bag for $350 or so. i wish i remembered more. if anyone visits Costco, please write down model number for me.
thanks

Edit: just reading customer reviews on the JVC Everio 30GB HDD Camcorder (GZ-MG130U) on futureshops website don't seem very positive at all

[007craft]

I am looking for Camcorder too.

Which one should be better compared to Hard drive vs Dvd vs mini dv. If someone owns it please let me thanks

Hdd is the best, because you get tons of space (get 40gb or larger) and never have to change tapes. Next best would be mini-dv. These tapes hold roughly about 11GB a tape once you transfer the video to your computer. DVD is bulky and terrible at only 4.5gb (I dont think they make these anymore). miniDVD is more sleek and elegant but at only 1.5GB a disc, its useless. Stay away from memory cards as well.

nows a tricky time to buy a camecorder. Tape and hdd based camcorders are very affordable now, but with the HD era here, you really want a 720p camcorder. Unfortunetly, those cost $1000+ still for the good hdd built ones. The $600 ones are garbage and only record to like mini-dv or memory cards, giving you little recording time. :(

[kcotoulas]

i think i will wait.

[ChemicalBoy]

For anyone looking at hv20, b & h still has the best price.
$ 709.95 + 25 gift card, better than fs and best buy, vistek etc
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/481076-REG/Canon_2059B001_HV20_2_96MP_CMOS_HDV.html

[magmazing]

What camcorder you buy really depends on what you plan on doing with footage.

Here's some of my pros and cons of the current 4 main formats

MiniDV:
Pros - Reliable, media is relatively inexpensive, Record time only limited to the number of tapes you have, Basically all editing software recognizes mini-dv camcorders, optical zoom on these cameras tend to be higher (16X and up on some)

Cons - Tapes can get eaten by the camera deck, camcorders are slightly bulkier than other formats, footage needs to be digitized to computer in order to edit.

personal note: I kind of swear by MiniDV as


DVD camcorders:
Pros - You can watch your footage on a dvd player right away

Cons - Editing footage is a pain, the dvds aren't all that cheap, dvd's don't hold much footage, hard bumps can cause the burner to skip when recording messing up footage

personal note: I HATE dvd camcorders. Most useless format ever! Only suckers who think "Oooh I can watch my shaky home video on my dvd player" buy this format.


Hard Drive camcorders:
Pros - Can fit hours of video on the hard drive, footage already digitized into files for easy editing, cameras are small

Cons - Optical zoom rarely above 10X, Risk of hard drive failure after a major bump or dropping the camera. When the drive is full you can't swap hard drives like tapes etc. Compression codecs on some models can cause minor issues. Some editing software won't recognize some codecs

Personal note: This technology is promising. It just may need a couple more years to be perfected. Larger hard drives, increases in optical zoom, better shock absorbtion to protect against hard drive failures, full support by all editing software.


Flash Based camcorders:
Pros - Everything is ultra compact (camera body, flash media),

Cons - Media isn't very cheap. A 4gig SDHC card holds approx. an hour of video depending on which brand/model of camera you get, so you'll need quite a few cards if you plan on recording a substantial amount of footage at once. Compression is also an issue. Optical zoom is relatively low (up to 10X for the most part). Some editing sofware do not recognize some codecs. Can't really add much of anything for peripherals (external mic, light, etc)

Personal note: Another promising technology if only for the ability to record HD footage on such a small piece of equipment. (great for sneaking into concerts) Should not be your main recording device... but decent backup. Another technology that needs further development for a couple years. Bigger media, price drop, more features



I've been watching the increase in hard drive cameras and have thought about switching, but I still think it's still in it's initial stages, so I'd stick to MiniDV for now. By next year, I think hard drive cam and flash media cam technologies will really take off. That's my 2 cents

[kcotoulas]

getting tempted by the JVC 30GB. boxing day is just to tempting. anyone own this recorder and can give thoughts on it