12-31-2006, 10:07 AM

After being a life-long PC user - I have taken the plunge to Mac. I absolutely love it! I am expecting a baby in January and need to get a camcorder. I have read several threads with many suggestions. While I thought MiniDV was outdated - it seems this may be the easiest way to edit/transfer. I am partial to hard drive and would love to get an HD camcorder, however I am worried about playback. I don't have a HD or Blueray DVD player - also - will it sync correctly with the new Intel Imac. The next question is the hardest - which camcorder do I get? I'm not opposed to spending a huge chunk of change as long as I feel I am getting more bang for my buck. I'm looking for something that is easy to use because my wife will also be editing/uploading with our new Mac. Any suggestions are welcome - please help!

01-01-2007, 07:29 PM

A multitude of questions in one, let me see if I can help a bit.

First congrats on the imminent baby arrival, I have 3 in varying ages

Not sure why you think MiniDV might be outdated, certainly there are newer technologies around but it'll do what you need. However any camcorder with a firewire (as in IEE 1394 compliant) interface should connect direct to your Mac and the new Intel Mac makes no difference to that.

Whether you buy an HD (as in High Def I presume) Camcorder or not it'll make no diff as iMovie can handle that and you can grab your recorded content into iMovie and then save it off to a CD / DVD or as a QT movie or one of a number of other options.

Finally the worm hole of what camcorder to get? Whoowee, that's a biggie that I cabn't hope to answer. However my 2c worth is this ....

1. Find someone with a camcorder and see if you like it and in particular its output and then if you can buy that or a newer version of it, then do so.
2. If you can find one that'll allow an external Mic to be added then get it as most camcorders I've used give very poor quality sound reproduction. It's adequate but not great IMO.
3. Finally here's what I'd do. Pick one I like the look of, check it out online and check it out locally if I can. Then see if it has the features I need and finally see what extras it might have. If you find one to meet your expectations then buy it

Lastly I suggest hunting the web for reviews of some you fancy - here's a site to get you started.

http://camcorders.about.com/od/camco...alCamcorde.htm

All the best

01-01-2007, 08:03 PM

When you say you are willing to spend a good chunk of change, how much is that?

There are these options that you have if you want a very good camera but more on the consumer end of things:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/cont...goryNavigation - This camera is a HD Camera by Canon but with some more high end functions.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/cont...goryNavigation - This camera is a HD Camera by Canon as well, but more of a consumer base

There are more cameras that i recommend from canon such as the XL2 (if you want standard deff yet still 16x9 so its compatible with your hd tv with out stretching There is also the canon xl-h1 which is the same idea of the xl2, yet its in HD. The XL2 and the XL-H1, are more on the prosumer level and are more expensive, but also have alot more functions you can play with to get the best picture possible.

01-02-2007, 01:24 AM

I dont know how good of a picture quality you want, but for baby and family movies, you shouldn't have to spend more than $600.

01-05-2007, 02:47 PM

Thanks to all for the detailed responses. I realize the questions were a little vague, however I am on the right track now...