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Videocamera buyers guide

Byer Gair- 11/12/2009

Tags: buyers guide, Byer Gair, camcorders, videocameras

Whether its for viewing on the high definition TV or sharing on the web, there's a video maker for every purpose, writes Byer Gair.

There's been an explosion in the last 12 months of devices on the market able to capture digital video and stills. Suddenly, you can now shoot standard definition (SD), high definition or full high definition (HD) with a startling array of camcorders, as well as digital compact and DSLR still cameras.

Just to muddy the waters even further, many camcorders can shoot top quality stills, even while you're simultaneously recording video.

Standard Definition videocameras

Talking strictly camcorders, the SD models are appealing with their low price, simple operation and small form factor. Many have high powered, stabilised zooms, often 60x or 70x or more in optical zoom power and can record stereo sound. Street prices can be as low as $400 for name brand SD camcorders and typically top out at around $900.

Some offer 640 x 480 pixel resolution at 25 fps, comfortably viewable on a 4:3 TV set as well as any of the newer widescreen tellies. Other models can capture in 720 x 480 resolution at 25 fps - an ultra-low budget method to shoot widescreen (16:9 picture ratio) video that is also viewable on 4:3 and widescreen TV sets.

Net-cameras

The upper level SD camcorders will shoot the works: sports, hobby videos, school projects. They will also shoot smaller resolution video - like 320 x 240 pixel video - that is not web-hungry.

If you want to shoot video purely for web or email use, SD camcorders could be more than you need but, with the right software, you can easily edit your work, mess around with sound, titles, wipes etc - then save it to DVD or drop it onto the web, converted to a lower resolution.

If your target is web distribution you may be happier with net-cams such as the Aiptek, Flip (pictured left) or or Samsung's SMX-C14: cheaper, quicker and easier to use than an enthusiast's shooter and perfectly adequate for videos you want to send to friends and rellies on the web.

High definition and full HD videocameras

Strictly speaking, high definition (HD) can be defined as a video picture having a vertical resolution of 720 pixels (or lines) or more. There are some camcorders able to capture 16:9 pictures at 1024 x 768, 1280 x 720 and up.

When we get to full HD we encounter a video picture that can take advantage of the current widescreen full HD TV sets that display a picture composed of 1920 pixels across and with 1080 vertical lines (1920 x 1080).

The exciting factor in all of this is that you can now shoot home video with consumer camcorders that, if operated with skill and care, can capture video and sound nearly indistinguishable from a top quality TV broadcast.

Page 1 of 2  Next - Understanding the key videocamera specifications  

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In this article

• Videocamera buyers guide
• Understanding the key videocamera specifications