Camcorders: Buying Guide

What to Look for When Buying Digital Camcorder Accessories

Introduction

A digital camcorder is a marvellous acquisition, but you may find that not all the accessories you need to make the most of your camcorder are actually included in the box. A so-called "starter" kit – typically including a camcorder carrying case, or bag, a battery, and a tape, or disk – may, or may not, be included, and there are definitely other items, such as cables, lights and a tripod, that need to be purchase separately. The good news, however, is that – despite constant advancements in camcorder technology – accessories remain fairly constant, and can be used, and re-used, with successive generations of camcorders.

Digital Camcorder Accessories

A carrying bag is probably the first camcorder accessory that you`ll need to think about, provided, of course, one isn`t already included in the price. A carrying bag should enable you to secure your camcorder, safely, in such a way that it is protected from physical damage, and inclement weather, when it is stored, or carried about. Many camcorder carrying bags include a divider, which can be adjusted to fit snugly around a camcorder, leaving the remainder of the bag free for any other accessories that you might want to carry. Look for a carrying bag with a water resistant exterior, and strong zips, or other fastenings, if you intend to take your camera outdoors for extended periods. The Sony LCS-VA5 Universal Soft Carrying Case, for example, is constructed from durable, 680 denier ballistic nylon, and has strong metal fittings, and compartments with their own mesh lining.

You may also wish to consider a tripod, to allow you to record steady, professional-looking footage, free from shaking and jerkiness. If this is the case, make sure that you look for a tripod designed specifically for a camcorder, which moves more smoothly than on designed for a digital stills camera. Think, too, about the practicality of a tripod; a large, heavyweight, professional model may be impervious to movement of any kind, but may be less attractive if you want to pick it up and take it with you. Many lightweight, portable camcorder tripods are available. The Sony VCT-D680RM tripod, for example, is a lightweight model, designed specifically for consumer camcorders, and extends up to a maximum of 56 inches.

If you wish to transfer video footage from DV camcorders to a PC, for example, you`ll need a FireWire – also known as "IEEE 1394", or "iLink" – or USB ("Universal Serial Bus") connection, and an appropriate cable. FireWire cables are available in 4-pin to 4-pin, and 4-pin to 6-pin, versions. The Belkin IEEE 1394 FireWire Cable, for example, is 1.8m in length, and provides data transfer at 400 Mbps.

Five Quick Shopping Tips

(Reprinted from Amazon Digital Camcorder buying guide!)

1) Questions to ask yourself: what are you going to be doing with your camcorder? Your answer to this question will dictate how much money you can spend and what level of quality you will need. Some important questions to consider before you run through the details of our buying guide:

• Who is your primary audience? Family and friends, or will you also use your video for professional purposes?
• What are your video and audio quality needs? Do you need pro-level output or just base-line quality?
• Are you interested in video editing?
• Do you need to take digital stills?
• Are you going to make a lot of copies?

2) Format affects quality: the format your camcorder uses dictates image quality and the kind of tape you'll need. Unlike digital formats, all non-digital will lose quality as each generational copy is made. Also, the quality of video and audio varies according to format. 8 mm, VHS and VHS-C offer the lowest video resolution. Hi8 and SVHS-C give you improved resolution and sound, while the digital video (DV, Digital8, or Mini DV) formats offer the highest level of video and audio quality.

3) Zoom: zoom can be a little misleading in camcorder statistics. Most camcorders have an optical zoom that ranges from 10x-20x and digital zooms in that same range, resulting in total zooms of 300x-400x. You probably won't find yourself using digital zooms too much--they can have dramatic negative effects on picture quality--so the optical zoom rating is the one you should consider most important.

4) Image stabilisation: if image stabilisation is important to you, then look for a camera with optical image stabilisation--digital stabilisation can decrease image quality.

5) Digital still capability: many camcorders now offer the ability to capture digital stills. Manufacturers' claims here can be confusing. Some allow you only to store the images on the tape itself, which means you have to use a special program to capture the image. Camcorders with better digital still features use a flash memory card slot like a digital camera, making it much easier to store, find and download pictures. Keep in mind that most camcorders offer only low-resolution 640 x 480 stills--good enough to e-mail or post on the Web, but not suitable for quality prints.

More Camcorder Buying Guide Info. Coming Soon...

In the meantime, you can learn more about buying a digital camcorder from the following excellent resources (good places to buy a digital camcorder too! ;-) ):

• Amazon's Digital Camcorder Buying Guide
• Pixmania's Digital Camcorder Buying Guide
  
  
• CNET buying guide
• Beginner's Camcorder Buying Guide
• Camcorder Shopping Tips

And find digital camcorders as recommended by people like you (at Amazon):

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