What to look out for when buying a HD camcorder?

[shin89]

Hi everyone!

My family is heading out for a holiday this year end to the States and my Dad has always been the videoman for our trips, but our last camcorder was a mini-DV 1MP Panasonic camcorder.

So I decided to get a new one for our trips after so many years, but I have no idea what criteria to look for when comparing cameras.

What should I look out for when buying a new camera?

1) 1920x1080 - most HD cameras have this resolution right?
2) AVCHD / H.264 (MPEG4) ?
3) FPS - How much is considered ok? 60 fps?

It would help if anyone can recommend a HD camcorder below the $900 range too.

Appreciate it guys!

 

[Sgdevilzz]

The first to look out for is "in build camera stabilization". I assume your father is going to do handheld anyway, an in camera stabilizer is a strong point to consider.

1) Yes most HD cameras captures 1920x1080 resolution.
2) I wouldn't bother much about this because i doubt you can tell the quality difference. AVCHD basically uses h.264 standard compression.
3) Do you need slow motion? Do you have time to edit the clips? More FPS means more storage required. I suggest just shooting at 25 fps since it's for travelling.

 

[shin89]

The first to look out for is "in build camera stabilization". I assume your father is going to do handheld anyway, an in camera stabilizer is a strong point to consider.

1) Yes most HD cameras captures 1920x1080 resolution.
2) I wouldn't bother much about this because i doubt you can tell the quality difference. AVCHD basically uses h.264 standard compression.
3) Do you need slow motion? Do you have time to edit the clips? More FPS means more storage required. I suggest just shooting at 25 fps since it's for travelling.

Thanks for your reply!

I would like to use a standard output format, so probably the AVCHD/H.264 would be a requirement.

Yep I do have time to edit the video, but nothing fancy, just compiling the video etc.

So what is high FPS used for? Higher FPS = Able to do slow-motion? (assuming more frames taken during an action, thus able to slow the scene down)
If it's so then probably not a requirement.

Is there a difference between 24 and 25 fps?

Any cameras to recommend?

 

[Bamboopictures]

Consider just going with pocket point and shoot instead. The video quality is often on par with entry level camcorder and you tend to get a wider angle than most entry level camcorder. Olympus SH-50 has 5 axis stabilization. Sony RX100 is the best compact money can buy but video function is limited to 15min before the camera overheats. The sensor is 1" so the video is very close to DSLR quality with nice bokeh! Samsung EX2F has a swivel LCD
If you want a dedicated video camcorder, consider JVC-E205. Very decent stabilization, very compact, and cheap and quite intelligent and trustworthy. Although it does not go as wide as the compact P&S.

Top features for traveling camcorder:
pocketability
wide angle
long battery-life
face-detection
tilt swivel screen (for self-portrait)

 

[Wzierbovsky]

See if this site is useful too: Camcorder Reviews, Ratings and Buying Guides - CamcorderInfo.com

My current camcorder since 2010 is a Panasonic TM700 which I picked up on this site's reviews - it's still going on strong after more than 3 years of usage now. The model has been replaced by a newer series that continues to improve upon it, so you can check around to see what's within your budget.

 

[shin89]

Consider just going with pocket point and shoot instead. The video quality is often on par with entry level camcorder and you tend to get a wider angle than most entry level camcorder. Olympus SH-50 has 5 axis stabilization. Sony RX100 is the best compact money can buy but video function is limited to 15min before the camera overheats. The sensor is 1" so the video is very close to DSLR quality with nice bokeh! Samsung EX2F has a swivel LCD
If you want a dedicated video camcorder, consider JVC-E205. Very decent stabilization, very compact, and cheap and quite intelligent and trustworthy. Although it does not go as wide as the compact P&S.

Top features for traveling camcorder:
pocketability
wide angle
long battery-life
face-detection
tilt swivel screen (for self-portrait)

See if this site is useful too: Camcorder Reviews, Ratings and Buying Guides - CamcorderInfo.com

My current camcorder since 2010 is a Panasonic TM700 which I picked up on this site's reviews - it's still going on strong after more than 3 years of usage now. The model has been replaced by a newer series that continues to improve upon it, so you can check around to see what's within your budget.

Thanks for the informative reply.

I realise that you own a D7000 which is also what I'm currently using. But I realise that it's not really meant for recording as the sensor heats up pretty fast after 15-30mins.

That's the reason why I was looking at camcorders that are meant to do video recording.

Thanks for linking me that site! I'll certainly give PnS cameras some consideration when I go about browsing my purchase.

 

[shin89]

Been looking through the Canon products, mainly the HF R38 and HF G10.

What is the difference between HD CMOS and HD CMOS Pro?

Just an addition of a Pro it's $1k more expensive.

 

[Bamboopictures]

CMOS Pros are back-illuminated and larger,giving better low light performance and less noise. But if you are considering the higher end models, look at Sony's flagship PJ790. It has best-in-class stabilisation of any camcorder ever built and lots of professional features like XLR support, focus peaking; as well as nifty features like built in LED lights and even a projector that you can either playback your footage or connect to HDMI devices!