On Fri, 28 Mar 2003 22:57:59 -0330, "Chris Fewer" <chrisfewer@yahoo.com.nospam> wrote:

>"Neuman - Ruether" <d_ruether@hotmail.com> wrote in message

>news:3e84b52b.29891748@newsstand.cit.cornell.edu...

>> The VX1000 and Panasonic AG-EZ1U were available

>> earlier, and the TRV900 was available around the

>> same time - all these would have been prefereable

>> choices, I think, for both handling/packing-ease

>> and image quality...;-) See:

>Yes, but the VX1000 isn't shoulder mountable, and I appolgize, but i'm not

>familiar with the AG-EZ1U.

The XL-1 isn't a shoulder-mount camera, either - it

is a relatively big, gawky, unbalanced "hold-out-front"

camera to which a shoulder brace (or "bumper") can

be added (as can be done with the others...). The

AG-EZ1U was the first, I think, of the Mini-DV camcorders,

and was not bad at all - and it had a unique finder which

would offer advantages for "on-the-run" viewing - it

had a very large display, with excellent eyepiece

(unlike the LCD fold-out panels which are hard to see),

and the tiny eyepieces of most other camcorders...

See: www.David-Ruether-Photography.com/camcorder-comparison.htm

(though, unfortunately, I did not have an EZ-1U

available at the time for direct-comparison with

frame-grabs with the VX1000, TRV900, and XL-1 also

reviewed).