What digital camcorder is right for me?  What to look for in a digital camcorder?

Camcorders come in many different models offering all sorts of capabilities and specifications. Before you go out and buy your camcorder have a little think about what you will need it for. I mean it’s not worth you going out and buying a top of the range camcorder if you will be using it for making you tube movies the majority of the times.

We will be looking at 3 types of users excluding commercial users such as film makers. If you fall into one of the following categories then this guide will help you choose the right camcorder for you.

Holiday and home film-maker

The majority of camcorder users fall into this category.  If you fall into this category then generally speaking you will want to shoot school plays, your baby’s first steps, birthday parties, days out and memorable moments. Nothing extremely technical will need to be done but you will be looking for a camcorder that can add special effects and which can be easily edited. You will be looking for simple controls and a easy output.

You will want to look for the following specs in the camcorder

• Lens type:-10x or greater zoom
• Recording format:- MiniDV; Digital8; MicroMV; mini DVD-R/RW/RAM-hard drive
• Ports and connectors: s video or USB
• Focus control:- automatic or manual focus control

Take a look at the Jvc GZ-MG330 digital camcorder which holds a 30Gb hard drive storage capacity. It has won many awards and has a great price

Budget Buyer

A budget buyer would be someone not really fussed if the camcorder is bulky. Who doesn’t want to spend too much money and doesn’t require any advanced functions

You will want to look for the following specs

• Lens type:-10x or greater zoom
• Recording format:- MiniDV; Digital8;
• Focus control:- automatic

Take a look at the JVC GR-D720 MiniDv digital camcorder. It is excellent value for money and again has won great awards.

Or take a look at the Jvc Everio GZ-MS100 digital camcorder which is slightly more expensive but has a memory card function

Experienced and frequent film-maker (trendsetter)

This would be for someone that is looking for the coolest gadget in town- someone looking for cutting edge technology and features, someone who wants the best in design and wants people to look twice. It’s for someone who is after the best and is willing to pay the price.

You will want to look for the following specs

• Design:-Horizontal; vertical; compact; ultracompact; combo
• Lens type:-10x or greater zoom controlled via switch or lens ring; electronic or optical image stabilisation
• Sensor:-1/4-inch or 1/3-inch CCD; minimum 690,000-pixel effective (a.k.a. actual) video resolution; 1- or 2-megapixel effective still-image resolution
• Minimum illumination rating:-2 to 7 lux (lower is better)
• Recording format:-MiniDV; MicroMV; mini DVD-R/RW/RAM
• Ports and connectors:-FireWire (a.k.a. iLink or IEEE 1394); A/V; USB; S-Video; accessory shoe; microphone terminal; headphone terminal
• Exposure controls:-Automatic; exposure shift; programmed scene modes; spot metering; low-light infrared mode; built-in video light; pop-up flash for stills
• Focus controls:-Automatic; manual option via dial on camcorder body or ring on lens; spot focus
• Viewfinder and LCD:-Colour viewfinder and 76mm (3-inch) or larger colour LCD
• Multimedia:-Memory card slot that supports high-capacity media (SD or Memory Stick Pro) for photo capture; MPEG-1 or MPEG-4 video for Web and email

Take a look at the Hitachi DZ-BD70E Blu-ray disc camcorder