Rating: Summary: A Great Camcorder Review: This is probably one of the best consumer camcorders out there. Everything about it is quite impressive, like the night vision feature and the touch-screen LCD monitor. Most importantly its got a great picture and it does amazing with lighting which most digital camcorders don't. The size and wieght of this product is perfect for portable use and easy maneuverability. Overall this is a grreat camcorder and really lives up to its expectations and price.
Rating: Summary: My new toy Review: Well, after a bit of a wait I finally replaced my Sony hi-8 camcorder with this hc85. It is amazing the amount of features that are packed into this package. I've had it for 48 and here's what I like so far. Very sharp stills (in still mode) and obviously very sharp video. It works well in low light and the touch screen is very cool. I thought it would show a lot of finger prints from touching it but they're not that noticeable. The ability to do a still capture while shooting video is nice but the resolution is only 640x480 & is kind of lousy (haven't figured out how to change that one's resolution...or even if you can). As for still captures, it has all of your typical controls (red eye, forced flash, etc). I also like that the lense size is the same size as my old camera so I can use my old filters & wide-angle lense. There are a lot of capabilities & features which almost feels somewhat overwhelming when you're trying to capture images so I'm not so sure about the various modes & usefulness. I do like that it has the ability to take in an analog input and convert to digital so I'll be transferring my old hi-8 stuff to digital for storage on DVDs. As for any weaknesses, I haven't found it yet, and I look forward to several years of use. Some items to note: It is twice the size of the PC line but then again you get a better lense & more features. The memory stick w/ it is useless (8mb) as well as the battery (it has a 1 hr & I have done several recharges already). These last two items are why I'm only giving 4 stars instead of 5. I don't even know why they give you an 8mb stick when they know it'll be tossed as soon as you open the box!? It can only hold 8 pictures @ max resolution! Good luck & enjoy.
Rating: Summary: My new toy Review: Well, after a bit of a wait I finally replaced my Sony hi-8 camcorder with this hc85. It is amazing the amount of features that are packed into this package. I've had it for 48 and here's what I like so far. Very sharp stills (in still mode) and obviously very sharp video. It works well in low light and the touch screen is very cool. I thought it would show a lot of finger prints from touching it but they're not that noticeable. The ability to do a still capture while shooting video is nice but the resolution is only 640x480 & is kind of lousy (haven't figured out how to change that one's resolution...or even if you can). As for still captures, it has all of your typical controls (red eye, forced flash, etc). I also like that the lense size is the same size as my old camera so I can use my old filters & wide-angle lense. There are a lot of capabilities & features which almost feels somewhat overwhelming when you're trying to capture images so I'm not so sure about the various modes & usefulness. I do like that it has the ability to take in an analog input and convert to digital so I'll be transferring my old hi-8 stuff to digital for storage on DVDs. As for any weaknesses, I haven't found it yet, and I look forward to several years of use. Some items to note: It is twice the size of the PC line but then again you get a better lense & more features. The memory stick w/ it is useless (8mb) as well as the battery (it has a 1 hr & I have done several recharges already). These last two items are why I'm only giving 4 stars instead of 5. I don't even know why they give you an 8mb stick when they know it'll be tossed as soon as you open the box!? It can only hold 8 pictures @ max resolution! Good luck & enjoy.
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