Camcorders Deals

Review by Lovejoy:

Having been the very happy owners of a bulky JVC mini tape recorder for the past eight years, it was a very sad day when we realised that it had done it’s last bit of filming and left us for the great camcorder home in the sky! I’d planned on upgrading to a dvd disc type machine, but they are apparently obselete now according to all the tekkies out there. So, my plan scuppered, the challenge commenced. About October 2009 I started looking for a replacement. Let’s just say the market has moved on. I’ve spent months trawling through reviews watching on Amazon for the reviews to click up, visiting the various local electrical stores (do your research on line – it’s far more accurate than in store!!!!). Well I missed the winter recital, the very last family nativity, and the spring recital and I was adamant that not another event would go by unfilmed. I hesitated so long as I was desperate not to make a mistake, the market is huge, and there are far too many to choose from. In the end I took the plunge. I settled on the FS306 and didnt wait for it’s successor which came out the following day! I don’t need HD, i’ve not got the computer or tv technology to support it, and the quality of the FS306 is brilliant without it. I knew I didn’t want a built in memory as our holidays are always inclimate and activity based and may affect the laser quality. It came out on top for lots of reasons, but mainly because of where I want to film, generally too many rows back with dim light or on skis. It has so far lived up to my expectations, i’ve filmed an indoor party and it’s clear, with lovely sound, the picture is steady and bright and the quality is great. The controls were easy to use, it was dead simple to set up and even the kids can use it. It fits in the palm of my hand, it’s neat, compact and would fit in a coat pocket – perfect for mountain terrain! I charged it on the 31st March, and yep, it’s still got plenty of charge left in it. It probably does loads of quirky things too, but for me, point and shoot will do nicely thank you. I just want memories for my family. Overall verdict – go for it!

Review by Chakrit Ratanamook:

Hi, Sorry to say this product disappoints me badly. After doing alot of researches online and reading reviews of this camcorder, I purchased it along with the memory card and USB reader.

The function is really basic as I’d have expected. Well afterall, point and shoot is something I really want just to get the job done. Though, the worst part is the camcorder shake. Holding my breath and shoot is definitely less than ideal, let alone shooting while walking (forget about zooming). Shooting in the dim lit light is less than useless, or perhaps just really poor in a normal lit room.

Why did I buy it? Coz of the budget constraint… lured by the cheap price and fancy silver colour.

Review by H. AFZAL:

I expected more from this camera, having done the research I did. I’m far from a camcorder expert but I’ll list the problems I had:

1. Overall picture quality was not much better than a sony camcorder I bought over 9 years ago. I heard that this was one of the better standard definition camcorders available, but having nothing recent to compare it to I can’t really say how better it is against other standard def models around.

I think it may be worth paying that little extra to get a HD camcorder if this is one of the better SD camcorders.

2. Picture is very shaky, even for small movements. Was not happy about this at all, I probably would have keep the camcorder if it were not for this.

3. I have no idea why Canon would makes the video files in the .MOD format. Hardly anything is compatible with this file type so you will have to fork out another £15-30 for software to deal with this. And the software given is incredibly slow to use.

4. The shortcut buttons on the flipout screen have no backlight so even in a poor lit room they are difficult to see.

5. Menus are a pain in places, it took me 4-5 clicks to delete a file.

Pros:

1. Good build, lightweight, simple controls.

Even if looking for a simple point and shoot camera I would look elsewhere. I’m just sorry I cannot recommend anything better as I’m still looking myself

Review by Mr. A. Simpson:

Well let me start off by telling you at first I got a similar priced camcorder from Sony, an Sx30e. It was rubbish!!! The colours were all over the place and did not look natural, the picture was fuzzy, the battery life was hardly anything to write home about and it was slow to focus. So I took it back and on the recommendation of someone who’s really into camcorders I bought this little canon instead.

Well what a difference! The colour is far more natural looking, it focus’s much better, it’s better in low light thanks to it’s slightly bigger image sensor and it’s got a built in LED light on the front to help you out in low light too. The battery life is bloody fantastic! Takes a bit longer to charge then the Sony but then that’s only to be expected, bigger battery takes longer to charge. I’d say the battery lasts about an hour longer then the Sony did.

As for the picture quality, well as I have said the picture is really good for a standard definition camera. Some people say you can’t watch standard definition on a large modern high defnintion tv, well you can with this one and it looks ok. Yes you would get better picture quality if you paid another £200 for a good quality high definition camcorder, but not everybody is rolling in cash are they? Lol!

One more thing, people may look at other cameras from Sony and Panasonic and notice they have a more powerfull zoom and that may make them lean towards those brands. Don’t!!!! Let me spell this out for you, you cannot use the full zoom of any camcorder without either some conveniant place to rest ya arms on or a tripod. Why? Because even the tinyest hand movement (say a tenth of a millimeter) will result in mega shake in the video. Yes these cameras have anti shake features on them, this canon has an image stabilizer, but they will only help so much and at full zoom they can be overwhelmed. So never buy a camcorder based on zoom alone, it’s a gimic you will find hard to use.

This is the best camcorder you will get for your money in this price range, buy it!!!!

Review by S. Gornall:

this is just what i wanted the camcorder does everything it sayes on the packet it is ideal for recording anything from motorsport to family parties the zoom is great and the picture quality is perfect, the size of the cannon fs200 is ideal it is a comfortable fit in my hand and i can put it in my pockey easily to carry around

Review by Matthew Tubb:

I was looking for a Camcorder to record family moments with my 18 month old son. I knew that I would probably not be using it everyday, so i didnt want to spend a fortune but I was happy spending whatever it takes to get a decent picture when playing it back through my TV or saving files and burning to DVD’s to send to the grandparents etc. I also wanted something that was easy to use and download files, and playback through TV, Laptop or burn to DVD for the grandparents.

I did alot of research, inevitably got very sucked in to High Definition Camcorders that are 3 times more expensive and do all kinds of things that deep down i knew i would probably never use. Ultimately though I would happily spend the money if it meant that the picture quality was going to be horrible at the lower end. In the end I came full circle back to the Canon FS200.

Am sooo glad I went for this camera. The picture is perfectly good, even on playback through the tv and laptop. Actually exceeded my expectations and I am very pleased I didnt spend that extra money on HD. Ofcourse these more expensive cameras are gonna have better and better picture quality, but based on the results of the FS200 I would honestly say (and I am quite fussy) if you want it for the same reasons I bought it, you will not be disappointed at all. Its really easy to use, has some great functionality and extra gizmo’s on it, some will be used others probably not. The zoom is great, massive, but again I am using it for family stuff not filming aeroplanes and birds sitting on mountains half a mile away.

By the way, the software and loading of all the technical stuff was pretty easy actually, another reason i went for this camera as I really dont have the patience to be downloading different formats and changinging stuff around. makes me sweat just thinking about that stuff.This camera does exactly what it says on the tin and does it well. The picture is great and you really dont need more unless you are extremely in to camcording or professional. Plus its very cute looking and easy to take anywhere. Battery life seems good, lasts a good few hours. If I end up using this camera loads then maybe I would consider upgrading to HD but for me and I would think for many people in a similar situation this camera is a good purchase. Go for it.Canon FS200 Camcorder – Red (41x Advanced Zoom,2.7 inch Widescreen Colour LCD)

Review by Stewart Martin:

Bought this cam to replace my old Panasonic,after reading all the write ups about it and I am glad I did. The zoom is great, and the size and weight are fantastic. The battery life is far better than HDD models because being a flash cam there are no working parts in the camera.

This camera gets my recomendation, I don’t think you would be disappointed.

Review by K. Richardson:

I previously had a Samsung Mini DV tape camcorder & decided to upgrade . I looked at many different types & lots of customer reviews & decided on the Canon F306 because it was a recent model & the reviews appeared to be okay. Well the first thing I like is the size & weight which is great to carry around.

The battery life is really good so no need to worry about a spare battery . I bought a 16gb SDHC card so there is plenty of average filming time on it.

I have shot a few videos both in & outdoor & so far I am really pleased . The quality is far superior to my old Samsung , the zoom is good & the sound is good.

The downside is the average software that comes with it but it does the job . If you use this software please NOTE THAT YOU MUST USE NEGATIVE DISC’S. I spent ages trying to work out why it would not write to my blank disc until the penny dropped. I bought some negative blanks & they work a treat.

The photo option is useful too , I expected the quality to be poor but was pleasantly surprised . It is more than passable if you are out without your camera & want a picture within 15 feet , if you zoom the quality is blurred.

All in all , I am very happy & will now look at some new editing software.

I would recommend this to anyone who wants to take videos whilst out on holiday or a trip & does not want to spend a fortune.

Review by Sonny:

An excellent camera and does what it says on the box! However, as usual here are some minor thoughts on the design. The image stabilsation is not as effective as on the previous Canon Camcorder I had, the MVX2i, and do miss the IS which was on the old machine. The ergonomics of holding the camcorder and pressing the on button does not suit my hands and fingers but no doubt, in time, I will adapt to it. I have just used it on a an extended tour of the South West USA and the pictures are just great however its performance in relatively darkly lit scenes does show up much “noise” when compared to the MVX2i and perhaps this is due to the smaller size sensor. Just make sure you have purchased the Grade C4 (and upwards) SD card else you are not going to get the best performance the camera is capable of delivering.

Review by AB:

First impression – this camera is a good deal smaller than it looks in the picture!

For £450 you get value for money. At it’s best the camera shoots at 24mbps at a resolution of 1920×1080 in either 50i or 25p. Performance in low light is excellent – especially using 25p shooting.

Using the highest settings, you’ll get about 1hr 30mins on a 16gb sdhc card.

I use Cyberlink Powerdirector 8 for burning this footage to blu-ray, and get about 2hrs15mins on a 25gb blu-ray.

There is room for the optional Vl-5 camera light, as well as microphone and headphone sockets.

The supplied battery will be used up in 1hr30mins so a spare is advised.

I’m amazed that one reviewer bought this camera just to output in 640×480! That aside, make sure you have a PC with a Quad Core or i7 Processor, with plenty of RAM and a good GPU. AVCHD is very hard on your PC!

Highly recommended!

Review by Mr. R. W. Owen:

Canon FS100 Digital Camcorder (45 x Advanced Zoom With 2.7″ Widescreen Colour LCD)I purchased the FS100 two months ago to replace an earlier Canon owned for seven trouble free years. Though a little dubious about the `New’ technology without tapes I took the plunge.

The results from this pocket size camera have been delight.Vidio footage is crisp and clear. Colours are natural very good Easy mode and the manual selection on the whole are very useful. The night selection is the most disappointing.

Battery life is very good, once you have stopped frequently swapping modes and reviewing your work, charging is relatively quick with the supplied charger.

The 45x zoom is very good though I would recommend support at the upper end.

A handy little remote control is also a very helpful item.

Still pictures are acceptable even at its relatively low pixel rating. I found the ability to switch from video to still at any time a great feature.

So far so good it saves me carrying two cameras and get good results from this pocket

sized gem.

At the price I would highly recommend.

Review by R. Rands:

I got this camera a few weeks back, and I have to say that I’ve been delighted with the results. As has been mentioned before, the picture quality drops in very low light situations, and if you want to film on the highest zooms then you’ll need steadier hands than mine(or a tripod)! But, all in all it’s worked very well for me indoors and out.

One of the appeals of flash memory for me is the ease of transferring video on to a laptop. I can’t comment on how it performs with a card reader, but the device itself imports the data quickly and with the minimum of fuss, although you have to keep the camera plugged in to the mains whilst you do it. I’d read that some people had had issues importing to iMovie on a Mac – no problems here for me.

I’m not too sure why Canon have bothered with the FS10 & 11 models as the price of flash storage makes them overly expensive, but that’s their decision!

All in all, if you’re looking for a very compact, lightweight, easy to use and cheap flash memory camcorder, you could do a lot worse than this little number.