2004 CamInfo Select: Best DVD Camcorderby Camcorderinfo.com Editorial StaffPublished on Dec 31, 2004 6:00 PM |
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The CamInfo Select Best DVD Camcorder article is one of the easier articles to write. The camcorders being compared are fundamentally similar, in that they all record on the same marginal medium: the 3.5-inch DVD disc. While many of these DVD camcorders offer middling video and low light performance, the winner of this year?s CamInfo Select award easily and substantially surpasses the competition.
The DVD camcorder is a young breed of camera and is generally marketed by manufacturers for its convenience. While nearly all manufacturers of DVD camcorders offer rudimentary editing software with their products, the footage captured is virtually uneditable. The ability to make a DVD with some segments chopped from the master DVD of the family?s Thanksgiving sports fest is all you can get out of these bad boys. The user who wants to edit, in our opinion, is better off doing the MiniDV thing; going to DVD would probably be just as fast, especially if you have the clams to buy a DVD burner in the first place.
That said, the debate opens up as to whether DVD-R/RW is a better recording format for DVD camcorders than the DVD-RAM format. Sony DVD camcorders record to DVD-R/RW, while Panasonic's and Hitachi?s machines record to DVD-RAM/R disc. As far as we?re concerned, the DVD-R format is ridiculous; it can only be recorded once, and only holds about two-thirds of an hour. The good thing about the DVD-R disc (and the DVD-RW disc, which is a DVD-R disc that can be recorded more than once) is that they can be played directly, after on-camcorder finalization, on a conventional DVD player. DVD-RAM discs, on the other hand, only play in certain DVD players. One of the plusses to DVD-RAM recording is that the menu and navigation systems on the camcorder run more smoothly and with more fluidity than those on DVD-RW/R menu systems. Also, if the user wants to transfer footage to full-size DVD, the DVD-RAM format is easily converted to full-size DVD-R using a Panasonic DVD recorder, as the format behaves in a manner similar to a hard disk. For full-size DVD transfer, DVD-Rs require a computer. It all comes down to what the individual wants. DVD-R/RW recorders are more convenient for instant gratification, while DVD-RAM recorders offer superior ease of use and a relatively easy option for recording full-size DVDs. As the user will probably not be overhauling in the editing process anyway, an easy way to make quick DVD copies seems more appealing.
Now, neither format has any impact upon Video Performance, Low Light performance, handling, or anything like that. However, trends can be seen in these areas. DVD camcorders typically have A/V in/out, S-Video in/out, and USB ports. All of the DVD camcorders this year have microphone inputs, some sort of shoe (cold on the lower-end models; hot on the upper), and usually have 2.5 inch LCD monitors. (The DCR-DVD301 has a 3.5-inch LCD.) CCD sizes and effective pixels vary. Hitachi DVD camcorders have exactly the same body design as Panasonic DVD camcorders, but perform differently. While still performance and capabilities may change between camcorders, and usually include upgrades from one model to a better one, the still photography options on these camcorders are horrible, and are used mainly as a marketing ploy. Aside from the sheer volume of stills able to be recorded to a DVD, the quality of these stills is pretty bad. (On a side note for still performance, Hitachi and Panasonic camcorders include card media, while Sony DVD camcorders do not.)
Onward, to the meat:
Read the Full Review Review of the Hitachi DZ-MV580
Hitachi?s DZ-MV580 is the best DVD camcorder that Hitachi had to offer this year, and it blew the other competitors away. Physically, the DZ-MV580 looks exactly the same as Panasonic?s DVD models, but packs a bigger punch. It houses a 1/3.8-inch CCD with 400K effective video pixels, giving it the slight edge over all other Hitachi and Panasonic DVD camcorders. Sony?s DCR-DVD201 and DCR-DVD301 both have 690K effective pixels on 1/5-inch CCDs. The DZ-MV580 blows all of these camcorders out of the water with superior low light performance. We don?t know what it is about these little guys -- the DZ-MV550 does very well, too -- but they prove that Hitachi knows how to build a DVD camcorder. They should; they've been doing it longer than Sony and Panasonic. The surprising thing is that when these camcorders hit the market, they were the cheapest of the DVD camcorders, and yet the best performing. Since their introduction, Sony and Panasonic have gotten wise and lowered their prices, but Hitachis remain a tremendous deal, even in the face of these lower prices.
The DZ-MV580 has a 10x optical zoom, a downgrade in zoom typical among DVD camcorders from the DZ-MV550?s 18x optical. It includes the same mediocre manual control found on the DZ-MV550 and on many DVD camcorders, with focus, white balance, and exposure options. All of these DVD camcorders have preset shutter speed options. The DZ-MV580 has a hot accessory shoe, a 16:9 widescreen mode, and a microphone input. It also captures mediocre stills at 640 x 480.
Read the Full Review Review of the Hitachi DZ-MV550
The DZ-MV550 is the stripped-down version of the DZ-MV580, and is available for about a hundred dollars less. It has an 18x optical zoom, but does not have the hot accessory shoe, the still resolution, or the CCD size. The DZ-MV550?s CCD is only ?-inch, with 340K effective pixels for both video and still. The DZ-MV550 also performs slightly worse than the DZ-MV580 in the low light category and in the video performance category.
Read the Full Review Review of the Panasonic VDR-M50
Like the Hitachis mentioned above, the Panasonic VDR-M50 records to DVD-RAM/R. In fact, not only does the VDR-M50 share the recording format with the Hitachis, it also shares the body design, manual controls, ports, and still performance. The VDR-M50 can be seen as the counterpart to the DZ-MV550. However, the VDR-M50 doesn?t have as big of a CCD as the DZ-MV550. While its 1/6-inch CCD isn?t as big as the DZ-MV550?s, it does include the same amount of effective pixels. This pushes the low light performance for the VDR-M50 below that of the DZ-MV550. Unfortunately, the VDR-M50 also currently sells for about a hundred dollars more than the DZ-MV550.
Read the Full Review Review of the Panasonic VDR-M70
The VDR-M70 can be seen as a counterpart to the DZ-MV580. It has the same body design, optical zoom, still resolution, and hot accessory shoe. And, with a ?-inch CCD with 680K gross pixels (the same imager as the DZ-MZ550) it has similar scores to the lower-tier Hitachi. Good, but not good enough to surpass the DZ-MV580, especially when it usually costs a hundred dollars more.
Read the Full Review Review of the Sony DCR-DVD101
Sony?s DVD camcorders start here this year. The DCR-DVD101 records to DVD-RW/R, as opposed to the DVD-RAM/R format used on Hitachi?s and Panasonic?s camcorders. While it could be argued that this format is more convenient, the low light and video performance on the DCR-DVD101 may change your mind about buying one.
The Sony DCR-DVD101 has a 1/6-inch CCD with 340K effective pixels. It ships with a 10x optical zoom, which is substantially less than the DZ-MV550 and the VDR-M50. The DCR-DVD101 features the same manual controls and ports found on the other DVD camcorders, but does include a hot accessory shoe. Unlike the other DVD camcorders, the DCR-DVD101 does not feature card media for recording stills. It can take stills to DVD disc at 640 x 480. The main downside of the DCR-DVD101 is its horrible low light performance. The cherry on top is that it?s more expensive than the DZ-MV550.
Read the Full Review Review of the Sony DCR-DVD201
The Sony DCR-DVD201 includes some important upgrades from the DCR-DVD101. It upgrades the CCD size to 1/5 inch, with 1.07 gross pixels. While an increase in CCD size and pixel count are important upgrades, in that they aid the DCR-DVD201?s low light performance, still resolution is also increased to 1152 x 864. Even with increased CCD size and pixel count, though, the Sony DCR-DVD201 still suffers from low light scores worse than any DVD camcorder this year save the DCR-DVD101. While we have not reviewed the Sony DCR-DVD301, this camcorder shares identical specifications with the DCR-DVD201, aside from an LCD size increased to 3.5 inches.
The choice is clear folks. Hitachi DZ-MV580. Good low light, good video performance, great price, and all the amenities of the other, more established brand name folks.
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