On Wed, 29 Aug 2001 13:59:06 +0100, Stephen Casey wrote:

>OK, horrible question, but I want a camcorder, what
>do people suggest?
>
>Cheers....
>
>OK, kidding.. More specifically..
>
>I am going to be using it for holiday videos and the
>like. I want to be able to get video onto my PC, edit
>it and put it back on the tape for archiving and viewing.
>Results are going to be watched on a 43" television, so
>quality must be pretty good.
>
>I want decent optical zoom, image stabilization and a
>colour LCD.
>
>I'd like if it came with good software to do basic
>editing, if that's unlikely, what software should I be
>looking for?
>
>Oh, firewire I guess? As a matter of interest, if I have
>a slower PC, do the editing with that, will it effect the
>final version, or will all frames be kept?
>
>Oh, final note, still images are not required at all, I've
>got a digi-camera for that..
>
>--Steve C

For around $1600, I would look at the 3-chip
Sony TRV900 (best overall), the PC120/TRV30
(sharp for one-chippers, but with some other
compromises in return for smaller size), or
the PC9/TRV17 (small and light, under $1200,
with pleasant picture and sound). Ultimate
image quality: the VX2000 at around $2500,
but you may not enjoy carrying it...;-)
Camcorders do not come with software for
editing, but the FireWire cards often do
Two good ones: Canopus Raptor, with Premiere
(about $350), and the Pyro with Premiere
($250???). (See my web page in a couple of
days for a new article [under "I babble"]
on how to set up Premiere for intuitive
timeline-based editing...) A slow PC will not
affect final image quality, just render times,
assuming the HDs are fast enough for
capture/play. BTW, some camcorders are reviewed
at: www.David-Ruether-Photography.com/camcorder-comparison.htm