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Choosing a Camcorder

 
Camcorders have progressed a lot over the last few years in terms of improvements in battery life, video compression and sensor technology, which mean that consumer camcorders are now taking very good videos.

So if you are thinking of purchasing your first or a new Camcorder what things should you consider? The following will give you an overview of some of the features and points to consider when choosing your Camcorder as well as giving you some ideas of the Best Buys for Camcorders in each of the different categories.

High Definition (HD) or Standard Definition (SD)

The first thing you should probably consider is whether you want to record your videos in ultra-clear super-detailed i.e. in high-definition or in standard definition. So if you never plan to watch your videos on a HDTV, you would not need an HD camcorder. However, never is a long time and the likelihood is that eventually you will own a HDTV, so as your video memories will be priceless to you perhaps it would be a good idea to go for a HD Camcorder now if it fits your budget. Even though you may not have a HDTV currently most HD Camcorders will connect to either an HD or a standard TV, you will just not see the extra detail in your HD video on the standard TV.

Video Format / Video Media

Another big decision you will need to make is which recording format/media to use. There are four video recording formats/media currently to consider and each has its own pros and cons, these are Tape, DVD, Hard Drive and Flash Memory.

Digital Video (DV) Tape.

Digital Video (DV) tape is a very robust format and it records the highest quality pictures. DV Camcorders are cheaper than other types.

MiniDV tape holds a fixed amount of tape such as 60 minutes of standard-definition video. If you use that same tape in your HD Camcorder the compression technology will also record 60 minutes of high-definition video.

A thing to remember about tape is that transferring video to your computer for editing requires a FireWire connection which is something that most PCs usually do not have as a standard feature, but can easily be added. The video upload from your Camcorder to your PC happens in real time so a 60-minute tape will take 60 minutes to transfer to your PC. Also the linear nature of tape precludes you from deleting a random scene from a tape.

DVD Discs / Mini-DVD.

DVD Camcorders use the same DVD discs that can be used in your home DVD player, making it easy to play your videos at home. The cameras are a bit slow to start up however, and the discs can scratch easily.

Mini-DVD Camcorders record onto a small DVD disc of 8cm diameter compared to the regular DVD's which are 12cm in diameter. The great advantage of DVD Camcorders is the ability to burn a copy of your masterpiece to standard DVD, so is the smaller disc size such a good idea. Also it should be noted that a full-sized single-sided, single-layer DVD holds 4.7GB, whereas a similar mini-DVD only holds 1.4GB. That means you'll only be able to get 20 minutes of standard-definition video, or 10 minutes of high-definition video at high quality on a Mini-DVD.

Hard Drive.

Hard drive Camcorders are now reasonably common they are more expensive feature for feature, but the lack of a tape or disc loading bay means they can be shaped better to fit the grip. Hard disk capacities on standard-definition Camcorders currently range between 30GB and 60GB (gigabytes). At maximum quality (about 9Mbps) this storage capacity is good for around 430 and 860 minutes respectively. The high-definition hard-disk Camcorders currently have between 40GB and 120GB. This storage capacity for HD is good for about 290 and 880 minutes respectively at 1920x1080i 16Mbps. Some high-definition cameras can record at 26Mbps which would mean you could only get 600 minutes of top quality recording onto a 120GB disk.

Solid-State Memory.

The latest Camcorders can record directly to solid-state memory such as flash memory like an SD card. You may already be familiar with this format as Mobile/Cell phones and digital cameras have used this storage format for a while, but the video in these devices is usually highly compressed to fit onto the small storage cards and as a result image quality in these devices is not that good. However, consumer magazines have started to give flash-based Camcorders high marks in their tests due to new video compression techniques like AVCHD and MPEG 2 TR, which do a good job of squashing HD video onto all types of media, including normal DVDs, without losing too much picture quality.

The Flash memory format is compact and frees the designers' hands somewhat which means that not only are flash-only cameras smaller than other formats, but they can be shaped differently too.

Currently Flash memory format is nowhere near as cost effective as the hard-disk format. This isn't much of an issue for standard-definition Camcorders, but can be problem with high-definition Camcorder as a 4GB SD card or Memory Stick holds a just less than half-an-hour's worth of top quality footage.

Also you should note that not all memory cards are the same. To keep up with data being saved to it, SD/SDHC cards used with Camcorders should be rated 40x (6MBps) or above.

Hybrid Camcorders

A Hybrid Camcorder is a Camcorder that allows you to record video on two types of media. The first set of hybrids combined both hard-disk and mini-DVD media. Nowadays this term is used almost exclusively with Camcorders that use flash memory and either hard disk or mini-DVD. Most of the new hard-disk and mini-DVD models released this year are able to record video to removable flash memory, typically either SD or Memory Stick cards.

ZOOM

Once you have chosen your recording format, the next thing to consider is zoom. A 10x optical zoom is common, although some Camcorders are going as high as 50.

As well as the optical zoom figure, many manufacturers will quote large figures for their digital zoom, but as with stills digital cameras, a digital zoom only makes the pixels of the picture bigger so the quality of the picture will be reducing the more you digitally zoom. Also the further in you zoom, optically or digitally, the more your wobbly shot is likely to render your video unwatchable.

Stabilisation

To remedy wobbly images most Camcorders feature some kind of image stabilisation.

The best is optical image stabilisation, which allows the lens or the sensor to move to counteract your shaky hands and the results can be very good.

Electronic image stabilisation is not as good as it only works with the image once it has been captured, leading to jerking, smearing and loss of clarity.

To help get the right part of the shot in focus, some camcorders even come with face-detection technology, which can spot a face and then focus and expose for it, regardless of what else is in the frame but this technology is still not 100% reliable, but can help.

Other Factors to Consider

For better colours in your shots, go for three charge-coupled devices (CCDs) instead of one.

Get a Camcorder that uses a LCD screen for a viewfinder. Using a camcorder LCD screen rather than an eyepiece can be more practical as video is often shot while a person is moving and watching a viewfinder screen  allows you to still see where you are going. You can also shoot from angles high above your head or low down to the ground and still keep an eye on the action as you video if the LCD screen can be tilted.

If you want a quick shooter to catch those spontaneous moments, go for a hard drive or flash camcorder, so you do not have to fumble around for a tape or disc.

The more buttons you have on your Camcorder, the easier access you will have to important controls, instead of going through layers of sub-menus on your touch screen to get to the option you need, this can really make filming a much more pleasant experience.

Also check out the battery power consumption for the Camcorder and make sure that it will let you record continuously for at least 1-2 hours before recharging.

There are other factors to consider when choosing the right Camcorder but generally if you are prepared to pay a bit more, you do get better functionality.

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