High Definition Camcorder Guide

If you want to enjoy your home made movies in a detailed and crisp way then you need a high definition camcorder.

In the last couple of years high definition has taken over our home entertainment. Our televisions are high def, our games consoles are high def even audio is going hi definition. I’m not saying this in a derogatory way, I think this progress is great because we can now enjoy our media in a very clear and detailed way that just wasn’t possible with our standard definition electronics.

As everything is moving to hi def so is the camcorder industry. It is only natural that if you have a nice 42 inch screen with a 720p resolution that you would want to enjoy your home movies at that level of detail too.

Choosing a camcorder can be a bit overwhelming especially for folk who don’t know all the technical jargon. I’ve written this article to clear up some of the confusion and hopefully help you to make a more informed decision, so with that let’s get started.

When looking the best high definition camcorder for your budget there are several features that make a difference on the quality of the product. Here are the main features you need to look for:

The term “high definition” is pretty vague. There are different resolutions that qualify for high def. The mainstream one is 720p. This mean the video is 1280 pixels wide and 720 pixels tall. The letter after 720 is either “p” or “i”. “P” means progressive scan, i.e. each frame shows the full picture. “I” means interlaced, i.e. One frame shows half the lines in a frame and the second frame shows the other half. I personally prefer the “p” mode but you should view both before deciding.

The other main resolution is 1080p which has a resolution of 1920 pixels wide and 1080 pixels tall. This resolution is really good but usually only for TVs bigger than 40 inch. However, when it comes to a high definition camcorder try to go for as high a resolution as possible to future proof your investment.

There are also non standard resolutions like 1440x1080 that say they are 1080p because they use software to upscale the quality. My opinion on these is to first check the quality and compare it to a true 1080p camcorder and then decide, with some of these cams you cannot even tell the difference.

1. Tape. This was the standard before the era of the digital media. I would personally stay away from tape media, simply because it is on its way out and there is a tendency for more errors on tape, e.g. Noise (dots on screen), dropping frames randomly, getting twisted in the mechanism etc. I’d opt for one of the following...
2. Disc. The disk can be either in a DVD or Blu-Ray format. They’re not the standard size you get when you buy a movie, they are smaller 3 inch discs that go directly into the camera. A dvd disc can typically hold about 30 to 45 minutes of high definition video whereas a blu-ray single layer disc can do about 60 minutes.
3. Flash memory. This is the most popular format, simply for the versatility and global compatibility. A good entry level product that uses SD is the Toshiba Camileo high definition camcorder. The most typical memory card is the SD card. A 4GB SD card is only about $12. This makes it very viable to buy several so you don’t run out of recording space. Another benefit is if you’re travelling with a laptop you can also empty the videos on the SD card onto the laptop each day so you have all that space to record on the following day. If you find a camcorder that’s SDHC compatible then you can opt for an SDHC card up to 32GB in size. You won’t need to worry about space then.
4. Hard drive. These are camcorders that have a hard drive built into the unit. This eliminates the need to buy external media if the drive size is big enough for your needs. Typically the hard drive sizes are between 40 and 120GB. There is plenty of space here for several hours of footage depending on the quality setting you choose. Most hard drive camcorders will also have a memory card slot so you do have the option to expand.

Optical zoom is a good tool to have when wanting to record in detail from a further distance. I usually ignore digital zoom features because all that does is stretch the image to give the appearance of zooming. Optical zoom is where it’s at.  The higher the optical zoom the better but the price also goes up as the lens needs to be longer.  Most high definition camcorders have an optical range of between 8 and 15. Entry level camcorders can sometimes have only 3. The level of zoom you need is dependent on your needs, a lot of people don’t need zoom, especially if you are recording indoors but it’s nice to have that feature available if you ever do need it.

If you only take the odd 5 minutes of footage at a time then battery life won’t be a concern for you but if you need to take longer footage then that last thing you want is you battery to run out in the middle of your recording. There are a couple of ways around this problem.

1. Buy a camera that has long battery life. Typically cameras that use memory cards for storage use less battery as there are no moving parts involved in the storage process.
2. Turn off features that drain excessive battery power. For example the small LCD screen on the camcorders will drain the battery fast. Turn it off and use the view finder to capture your shot instead.
3. Carry an extra battery. This option can be pricey though as depending on the camcorder the battery can be as low as $40 or as high as several hundred bucks.

There is usually a camcorder for every budget range. For example you can get a cheap Flip MinoHD camera for about $140. If you want some more features, better zoom, more storage etc then you’re probably looking at a range of about $400 to $800. Camcorders above the $800 are the high end, best feature models. So you’ll get good zoom, big storage size, high quality lens etc. Most people don’t need the high end stuff, a decent mid range camera with all the essential features is what you should be looking for. If you’re budget allows for it then definitely go for the high end as you will get a superior device with all the trimmings.

Selecting a brand is not that crucial. Some people just gravitate towards particular brands. For example some people may prefer a Canon high definition camcorder over a Sony high definition digital camcorder. I usually don’t look at brands too much. The only thing I look at is if I have bought a product from a particular company in the past and whether I was satisfied with that product.

So there you have it, a quick guide to get you up to speed on the main camcorder features. There are lots of other things that you can discuss like the on camera features and the quality of the sound etc but the above points in my opinion are usually the ones people look at the most. I hope you found this article useful.