On Mon, 11 Mar 2002 20:52:58 GMT, jal wrote:

>ultimately for family events in and out doors. for dvd-r ultimately.
>Have been using sony hi8 cam for 5 years. not bad...occasionly it was
>a hassle to carry all day.....so weight vs quality is the issue and I
>guess is more specifically comes down to low light performance? or is
>there such an obvious difference in color, clarity , other factors
>too?

Yes. Look at the frame-grabs and descriptions in the
comparison of five of the six Sony Mini-DV ***imaging
types***, at: www.David-Ruether-Photography.com/camcorder--comparison.htm
Unfortunately, no one-chipper can equal a good 3-chipper
for picture smoothness with motion, good (lower) contrast,
sharpness, color-quality, and low-light performance all
together, though in any one or two characteristics, it
may be possible to get close...

>if it came down to upright .....what do you think between the elua
>110m and the sony pc120. Than if low light (living room at nite with
>all the lights on) is really significantly different, I would think
>the trv900 is probably not much bigger or heavier than the trv30?? or
>is it.

Yes, it is... See the picture at the beginning of the
article at the URL above, with VX2000, TRV900, TRV30,
PC100, and PC9 side-by-side (though perspective
exaggerates the smaller ones relative to the larger a
bit...;-).

>If the trv30 is lighter and smaller and not much bigger or
>heavier than the 'uprights' and smaller and lighter than my current
>trv82 hi8 and better in low light, it might be a good compromise?

See the article - it depends on how much "flapping"
on edges and "stairstepping" with motion bother you.
I do not like the picture of the PC120/TRV30, good
as it looks in the still frame-grabs...

>looking to be happy. small buttons don't bother me. Do you get nite
>vision with the 900 and analog in?

No night vision (but at 1/4-second shutter, lens wide-open,
and +18db gain, you can shoot in VERY low light, in
color...;-). You can copy analogue to tape (NTSC), but
not "pass-through" A->D with the TRV900...

>thanks looking for something for the next 5 years.
>Jack

The TRV900 is about to be replaced - but this does not mean
it isn't a good buy, since it is an excellent camera, and
it will continue to be an excellent camera compared with
others out now, even after it is replaced...
BTW, I have the low-use, checked-out PC100 and TRV30 used
in the comparisons for sale...;-)