New Sony HDR-SR8 Hello all

Hello all. I'm so glad I found this site. Is there any plain answer to a generic question.. I am just starting out with this camera. Sony HDR-SR8 (my wife and I have a new baby). What is the best way to dump my videos to what?? I tried to purchase a HD computer burner no such item. I tried to purchase a dvd player recorder no such item . My only alternative is an external hard drive correct?? I would greatly appreciate any help in this ......Confused new parent:) :)
Is there a HD dvd burner out there???

Howie,
Very broad based question. You have a multitude of options with this camera. You can dump into Vegas editing software and edit and then burn to normal dvd. You can play right from the camera to the television. To burn to blu-ray disc, you will need a blu-ray burner, that is also available, but a tad pricey at the moment. Run up to best buys and look at the different burners for your computer, both external and internal. With this camera and a fast computer, the ultimate is available to you for a price. Have fun and enjoy the lateset it technology. By the way, where did you purchase, how much and what was the purchase experience like?

Thank you very much for the information. I still wanted to burn directly to an HD burner for my computer. I cant seem to find such an item anywhere.
I purchased the HDR-SR8 from Abes of Main. I got a great price under $1350. But had a little discrepancy with new vs open box. I purchased from them before without a problem but this time well not so smooth. Accessories that are bogus aftermarket junk.well you know the drill.
They are in the process of correcting it I will have a new in a box unit on Wednesday. I will post you guys to let you know how it ends. I was really pissed when it happened.
I believe all the online scummy dealers will eventually chase everyone back to the large local chains again.

Thank you very much for the information. I still wanted to burn directly to an HD burner for my computer. I cant seem to find such an item anywhere.


No such thing as a generic "HD burner"...

You'll have to first specify which HD format you want -- "HD-DVD" (yes, that is a particular format name) or "BluRay".

A choice of BluRay burners:
http://www.amazon.com/Sony-BWU100A-Internal-ATAPI-Blu-Ray/dp/B000GPLVOI/ref=pd_bbs_1/102-2124808-7685728?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1184983465&sr=8-1
http://www.amazon.com/Serial-Blu-ray-Triple-Writer-Internal/dp/B000KIT88C/ref=pd_bbs_3/102-2124808-7685728?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1184983465&sr=8-3

Toshiba announced an HD-DVD burner earlier in the year, but those will probably be initially offered to OEMs for inclusion in new computers, and won't see the aftermarket supply chain for some time. (A Google search on the model number only gave various press releases).

Even after you obtain the drive, you'll need to find an NLE/authoring package that supports generating the files for that drive format.

Howie,
Yeah, I got a little jumpy after talking with several on-line suppliers. My first thought was if Sony Style did not have the US camera, how did everybody else? It just did not add up. I have one vendor act if I were stupid when I asked if this was a US camera in a US sealed box. He said of course not, for an extra 250$, I can make that happen. This was one of the big boys back east. I decided to wait for Sony and skip the aggrivation. I am careful at what I order. I order accessories, lens and such, but I shy away from the cameras especially when there is a big price swing. Hope it all gets straightened out. You might want to start out by dumping your captured video to the computer and using Vegas 7.0e or something like it to edit and burn. Too much work to edit in the camera and you will need a place to archive anyway. No reason to dump a bunch of video directly to a dvd in my mind. I usually end up with about 20% usuable video when the day is over.