"Wayne.B" wrote in message
...
I'm thinking about buying a HiDef video camera, primarily for use on
the boat.

Does anyone have any recommendations or cautionary advice?



I recently bought a Samsung SC-HMX20C. There are many types being marketed
and here's what I learned during the research process:

"HD" doesn't mean High Definition. "HD" means hybrid drive or something
like that, meaning it has both disk drive and a memory card type memory.
Look closely at the specs and make sure the camera is a "full high
definition with 1028i or p resolution.

I was told to avoid the disk drive models because camcorder cameras tend to
get banged around a bit and their primary failure mode is the disk drive.
One of the reasons I went with the Samsung was because it has a built in 8GB
memory card (not removable) and an additional slot for another 8GB removable
SD type memory card.

The biggest issue I had to deal with was the native recording format, and it
was a bit of a surprise.
The Samsung records in MP4 video which not all editing or display programs
will work with. (Windows Media Player can't play it)

It came with a program from CyberLink which was horrible to work with. I
even emailed CyberLink with some simple questions, but it was like talking
to a cable TV tech center who read from a script. Worthless.

I ended up buying a program from Roxio Creator which is much, much better.
It will convert the MP4 video into .avi, .wmv and other formats and is more
flexible for editing and creating movies. I also found a decent video
conversion program on the 'net that was freeware and works well, but has no
editing capabilities.

As far as the camera is concerned, the high definition format is impressive,
especially when displayed on a large screen, HD TV monitor. On small
screens, I am not sure the extra size of the HD format is worth it.

Eisboch