Jvc Hd Camcorder

Customer Reviews

1. G. BLAIR says:

   May 27, 2009 at 9:27 am

   Rating

   I had been looking for a digital camcorder for some time, waiting until the “right” device came along. I saw this one advertised in Sports Illustrated, looking not much bigger than a baseball. True 1920×1080, plus up to two 16GB SDHC cards, plus 20x optical zoom with a good-quality lens – all these added up to being irresistable for me.

   Ordered from Amazon, along with two 16GB SDHC cards and a spare battery. Unit came with one free 8GB SDHC card. Spare battery arrived first – it is TINY. Then the memory cards arrived. The camcorder itself arrived a few days later. Surprisingly small box.

   Charged it up – 2 hrs for the initial charge, put in the memory cards, reviewed the quickstart guide (very clear). And hey presto! Works like a charm. Extremely lightweight. Nice LCD display. Menus fairly intuitive. Face recognition works very well. Image stabilization works as well as you could expect for optical IS. Then I hooked it up to my HDTV for playback – and discovered there is no HDMI cable included. So I had to order an extra mini-HDMI to HDMI cable. That was a pain I never expected.

   Image quality using standard RCA video jack supplied was so-so. I am really hoping the HDMI cable will increase sharpness dramatically.

   Overall, I am quite happy with this device. Great for baseball or softball games when only one parent can be present due to work, etc.

   Added June 19, 2009: Addition of an aftermarket mini-HDMI cable made a very small difference to the quality of the images on my Samsung 52″ HDTV. Further research (i.e. the details in the manual) reveals the device is not true 1080i @ 60fps. That is kind of misleading in the advertisements. That being said, though – I’m still very happy with it. It’s a huge step up from my old mini-tape camcorder.
   
2. G. M. Arnold says:

   June 3, 2009 at 3:00 pm

   Rating

   It’s been a number of years since I had a camcorder. It was a tape unit, and after the initial infatuation with the new toy, I found that I never used it. Recording was a chore (juggling tapes and batteries), uploading was tedious, and the quality wasn’t all that good. For quick ad hoc recordings, my various digital still cameras could grab a few seconds of good-enough video. The camcorder disappeared from my life.

   A few years later, things have really changed. I received the Everio GZ-HM200, snapped in a couple of 8GB SD cards, charged the battery, and I was ready to go. We took a day trip to Mount Rainier; the weather was perfect, and I took a lot of video of photogenic glaciers and waterfalls.

   When I got home, I wanted to upload the video into my computer. The Everio comes with software for Windows PCs, and Mac users are hardly mentioned in the documentation. I had searched the various on-line discussions of Mac video, and there were many cautionary tales about compatibility issues with the Everios. I anticipated problems.

   I was wrong. I connected the USB cable to my Mac Mini, started iMovie (part of iLife ‘09), and opened up the camcorder. The USB menu opened, and I chose the “Upload” option. iMovie detected the camera, asked me a few questions (video quality, destination, whether to check for stabilization issues), and then imported the video clips. It was trivially easy – just the way I like it.

   The Everio has a “Snapshot” mode to take still images, and I had tried it out. This meant that while I was working with iMovie, iPhoto also started up and offered to import the photos I’d taken. My verdict: it’s OK for casual 1x use, but no substitute for a real digital camera. The problem is that the Everio’s autostabilization mode only works for video, not for still images. This meant that a couple of 20x zoomed images, while impressively magnified, were hopelessly blurred. I’ll stick with my Panasonic DMC-TZ4 for the still shots.

   The JVC Everio is a tremendous little camera: compact, easy, light, and producing excellent HD video. (Yes, my Mac Mini feels a little underpowered for working with this.) The dual slot SD card design is excellent; the camera will automatically switch from one card to the next during recording, and you can swap cards on the fly. In XP mode (17 Mbps VBR 1920×1080) 16GB is good for 2 hours of recording, which feels about right. (You can crank it up to 24 Mbps, which will give you 1 hr. 20 min., or drop down to 5Mbps, at which point you can run for over 7 hours!) No more media juggling…..

   There are tons of additional features in this camera, and sometime I may try them out. But for the basic job of plug-and-play HD video, this is hard to beat.

   Recomended.
3. Alexander Lucard says:

   June 15, 2009 at 11:24 am

   Rating

   This is my first Camcorder and I have to say I am REALLY happy with this. The picture quality is amazing and when I upload videos to either my computer or Playstation 3, the high-definition footage may not be up to the same quality as a few documentaries I have on Blu-Ray or HD DVD, but it is easily the crispest footage I’ve seen shot from an camcorder.

   It’s also very easy to upload to either system and to Youtube. As I said I’ve never owned a camcorder before and have only used one back in college or shooting footage for friends.

   My only real complaints are the lack of an HDMI cable and the fact it has a mini HDMI cable slot instead of a full size HDMI cable. I had a few HDMI cables lying around for extra use, so I was a bit disheartened I had to buy a new cable just for downloading footage.

   This camcorder is very user friendly and if you’re looking to export to YouTube or ITunes, it’s amazing how simple and easy this makes it. With dual slot SD card capability, you can store several hours of footage before having to upload.

   The JVC Enverio is a great camcorder for people who have never used one before and are looking for something simply and streamlined to welcome them into the world of making home videos. I can’t wait to use this for Hallowe’en this year in Salem, MA.
4. OlyNomad says:

   June 15, 2009 at 12:08 pm

   Rating

   It’s been less than a month since I’ve had this camcorder and I’m still learning all the bells and whistles, but it has far exceeded my expectations already.
   
   This is a fantastic, great looking camcorder and I love it’s compact size. I didn’t want to feel like I was weightlifting just taking videos. It’s even convenient to take hiking with us.
   
   It is extremely easy to operate even for someone like me that doesn’t like to read manuals unless I absolutely have to. I like that I got it, charged the battery and was good to go.
   
   The video quality is absolutely surreal. I notice that if I use it indoors it isn’t quite as rich as it is outdoors unless I have the lights on bright. I’m still on a learning curve though. But outdoors the quality far exceeds all previous camcorder experiences I’ve had, it is really sharp.
   
   The one touch upload is a cool feature as is the dual SD card slot.
   
   I think this is the ideal camcorder, especially for someone looking for one that isn’t bulky, that is easy to use, and that doesn’t compromise quality at all.
5. Nathan Beauchamp says:

   June 25, 2009 at 6:38 pm

   Rating

   My very first impression of the JVC NM200 was that it was very small, and that first impression has stuck with me. Every time I use it I’m reminded that it is about a 1/3 smaller than the other previous generation camcorders I’ve used. However, don’t let the size fool you, this guy is packed with features and is easily the best camcorder I’ve ever owned.

   First off, the Excellent:

   1. The flip screen rotates a full 360 degrees (270 degrees one direction and the remaining 90 the opposite direction). This makes filming yourself easy since you can constantly monitor the framing. The screen is also very high quality and accurately displays what the camera is aimed at as well as recorded videos.

   2. The video quality if fantastic, especially if you have good light (not making Paris Hilton videos on super dark rooms). The HD quality is simply great and transfers to my 42″ TV both from the live feed option or burned to a BlueRay.

   3. The layout and design of the camcorder is easy to use and intuitive. I never cracked the manual since all the menus were easy to navigate. If you’ve used a camcorder before, you’ll find this one especially easy to use.

   4. Dual SDHC cards! This means you can have 64gb of on board memory (over 7 hours of full resolution HD recording) for just about $180, or 32gb of memory for under $100. Gone are the days of tapes, slow internal hard drives, and other lesser options. SDHC slots also makes it very easy to swap multiple cards in and out if you want to shoot video for an even longer time.

   The Good:

   1. The touch sensitive scroll wheel–well not really a wheel but a touch sensor strip–takes a bit of getting used to but works really well once you’ve mastered it. It makes navigating menus really easy, but does take a bit of time to master.

   2. Takes pretty good static images. They’re not as good as a nice digital camera, but they’re plenty good enough for most applications that don’t involve blowing them up to 11×17.

   3. The battery charges quickly. I can get a full charge in a couple hours. This makes up for negative point #4 below.

   The Bad (although not awful)

   1. You can only record to one of the SDHC cards at a time. You must define one as the save location for video and the other as the save location for static images. You can, however, fill up one card and then switch video to the other card. It would have been nicer if the camcorder did this for you.

   2. Audio quality is not that great. Of course any serious video work needs a dedicated mic so it’s probably not fair to list this as a complaint, but its worth mentioning that the audio will not impress you unless you are very close to the target source.

   3. Battery life isn’t that long. I can get 2-3 hours of continuous use, but even with the camcorder off the battery slowly loses juice so that 2-3 days of inactivity leave the battery only 1/2 full.

   4. Battery location is a bit odd. It actually locks unto the back of the camcorder and is fully external. This isn’t that big of a deal, but it does get a bit hot and I thought it worth noting.

   5. No external battery charger or dock it provided. This means you must plug in the whole camcorder to charge it. This is a pain, especially if you decide to buy an additional battery, although a kit like this Two(2) Spare NB2L Batteries + Charger solves that problem.

   SUMMARY:

   The GZ-HM200 is a fantastic camcorder in a small package. It is full featured, easy to use, and takes great HD video. Well worth the price.
6. K. Hamacher says:

   August 20, 2009 at 7:50 pm

   Rating

   This is one nice camcorder. Lightweight, great video quality, easy to use, good amount of operation time. The designers thought of (almost) everything. I taped a graduation with it in a gym and even though the lighting was dim the videos are very nice. The snapshots are easy to take but there the sensitivity is hitting the limits very quickly. The sound recording is well enough to capture low to normal voice from 12 feet distance. The additional features are fun to use. The only two drawbacks that I could mention is that a) the camcorder does not come with any memory, so when I got if first, I had to order it and wait before I could use. The other is that I can’t get the software to work the way it is supposed to work. It looks nice and very organized, but I have a hard time accessing the clips on the camcorder memory. In any event, I love this camcorder and can certainly recommend it.
7. D. Skeem says:

   September 16, 2009 at 3:27 pm

   Rating

   This camera is way smaller and lighter than my Sony camcorder I purchased years ago. In fact, it only takes up half the space in my small camera bag so now I carry my video camera and still camera in the same bag.

   The image quality is very good. Using the XP video quality I took side-by-side footage with my old camera and the difference was phenomenal. I haven’t yet filmed in UXP yet because I don’t have a blu-ray burner. I’m hoping Apple’s computers will support blu-ray soon. I compare the video qualities to HDTVs. The XP seems to be about the quality of a 720p television, so I’m hoping the UXP will be 1080p quality.

   I agree that the instructions for a Mac user were minimal. I was worried it would be difficult to upload to my iMac. But iVideo recognized it fine and the uploading was way more simple and much faster than the old DV tapes.

   Overall, this is a great HD camcorder if you like taking fun, but simple, video footage.
8. Compucat says:

   November 2, 2009 at 6:50 am

   Rating

   This camcorder is a great second unit camera.
   
   The colors are spot on.
   
   20X Zoom is fantastic.
   
   Face detection works.
   
   The digital stabilization is outstanding.
   
   Using 2 sdhc cards that switch from one to the
   
   other automatically is pure genius.
   
   I use older AVCHD canon’s for my work and love using this camera
   
   to cover some of Canon’s deficiencies i.e.
   
   20X Zoom (Canon’s have 10 and 12X) I hate using
   
   tele lenses because of the vignetting and other
   
   problems.
   
   Th digital stabilizion is amazing and better
   
   on the move than my Canon’s with their optical.
   
   A benefit is the ability to mount this tiny camera
   
   on a moving vehicle (or RC helicopter)
   
   with digital stabilization it works great while
   
   optical image stabilization gets screwed up.
   
   The size enables you to stick it somewhere
   
   and leave it or get a cheap housing for underwater
   
   stuff.
   
   The size and instant on also make it a great grab and go
   
   - no fuss camera (especially with the face detection).
   
   This camcorder is exactly what I needed to augment my
   
   canons. It’s perfect for my uses.

   I also use the cellboost irecharge batteries that last
   
   longer than the 815 series batteries and are less expensive.
   
   (provide a nice camera grip too).

   Notes on other reviews.
   
   Stabilization is great but when zooming – use
   
   a tripod, monopod, or brace yourself against something
   
   especially in hi definition where everything
   
   is magnified many fold.

   This is an outstanding value for the price
   
   and is highly recommended.
9. J. Hiraga says:

   December 5, 2009 at 3:29 pm

   Rating

   i’ve had this for a while, bought it to use it on our newborn baby. i keep it in the nursery and use it on a daily basis. i love every feature about it. the ease of use, the light weight. the picture quality on the camera could be better. so, i use my other digital camera to take pictures. but i guess i’m into real high quality pictures, 10 mega pixel? the camera quality is acceptable. the camcorder quality is great! great price too!
10. Susanna J. Addesa says:

    April 14, 2010 at 8:56 am

    Rating

    This item arrived right on time, and was just as pictured. Very small, lightweight, with all the the bells and whistles. Still playing around with it, so I have a lot to learn. Used it for the very first time last weekend, and was pleased with the quality of video, though I am still trying to figure out just how to save, and edit or delete footage. Also, my only complaint is the little scroll bar on the left of the viewer for the menu is very sensitive, and you scroll and it moves very fast, almost too fast. Many times you need to just barely touch the scroll bar, thus you have to go up or down many times to hit just the item you want that is highlighted on the menu. You can also take still pics, which is nice. A great little camcorder! And the vendor was prompt and reliable.