Samsung HP-S5053 50-Inch Plasma HDTV Review

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(More customer reviews)After shopping for several months I finally took the plunge and purchased this TV from a national chain. I finally decided plasma over DLP because of the vertical fading effect I saw with all the DLP sets. I took two of my own DVDs in to the store with me and made the staff there hook up a player so I could see both the fast action of The Matrix and the beautiful scenery of Spring, Summmer, Fall, Winter, Spring. The picture on the Samsung HP-S5053 was the second best of the many plasmas that I examined. The Pioneer had a better picture but was significantly more expensive. I do not use the built in speakers because I had an existing 5.1 speaker system. I really like the minimal black casing since the silver finishes are distracting-at least to my eye.
The menus are extremely intuitive. I didn't have to read the instructions at all to get anything working within an hour of unpacking my system. I purchased an upconverting DVD player and an HDMI cable at the same time I purchased this TV. My old DVDs look great on this TV. The 10-15 HD channels I get with Cox cable also look incredible. The one fault I've found is that if I use the HDMI cable from my cable box or DVD player and connect to the TV and then connect the digital audio out of the TV to my receiver I only receive stereo sound even when the original broadcast is 5.1. I get around this by using composite video cables from the cable box and DVD player to the HPS5053 and also run a digital audio line from each source to the receiver. The HPS5053 has plenty of inputs to support almost any type of user.

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Offering an incredible feature set and exceptional quality for its price, Samsung's fifth-generation 50-inch HP-S5053 plasma TV uses the company's proprietary electronic chassis and the latest DNIe enhancement circuitry to deliver outstanding brightness, contrast, and image clarity. Use it for home theater and use it for your PC--it's perfect for both. In addition to a standard-broadcast NTSC tuner, it also features an integrated ATSC tuner that can capture over-the-air digital broadcasts from local network affiliates (the set will still require a set-top tuner for receiving non-terrestrial HD broadcasts from channels like HBO or Discovery).
The Samsung Digital Natural Image engine (DNIe) Video Enhancer refines all analog NTSC and wideband video inputs for an overall improvement in picture quality. DNIe improves contrast, white level, picture detail and incorporates digital noise reduction to improve lower quality video inputs. Thanks to the new 13-bit processing capability of DNIe, the HP-S5053 can produce over 549 billion colors (compared to the one billion colors that TVs with 10-bit processing can produce.
This set features a 1366 x 768-pixel resolution, 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio, 175-degree viewing angle, brightness rating of 1300 cd/m2 (candela per square meter), and an amazing 10000:1 contrast ratio. (The higher the contrast ratio, the greater a TV's ability to display subtle color details and not get washed out by ambient room light.) The 3D Y/C digital comb filter constantly analyzes the three dimensions of picture height, picture width, and picture changes-over-time to dramatically reduce edge image artifacts while improving transition detail.
The anti-glare plasma panel offers several protective features to resist burn-in, including auto pixel shift, signal pattern processing, and white screen function. It's rated for a 60,000-hour panel life (6 hours of usage a day for 27 years). Other features include:
Picture-in-picture (PIP) enables convenient simultaneous viewing of TV programs and video or PC sources.
Parental Control (V-Chip) helps parents monitor what their children watch on TV by establishing rating limits.
Auto volume leveler keeps audio volume consistent during channel changing.
Multi-lingual on-screen displays in English, Spanish or French.
Side A/V input

High-quality virtual surround sound can be experienced with just the speakers built into the sides of the TV. SRS TruSurround XT technology delivers an amazing, simulated 3D effect with clear dialog and powerful bass. It produces 10 watts of power per channel (for 20 watts total) and offers the following connection options:
Composite (RCA audio/video): 2 inputs (1 on the side)
S-Video: 2 inputs (1 on the side)
Component (Y/Pb/Pr): 2 inputs
HDMI: 2 inputs
PC: 1 D-Sub15 input
RF: 2 inputs
Digital audio: 1 coaxial and 1 optical

Tech Talk HDMI is a lossless, uncompressed, all-digital audio/video interface to link any audio/video source (such as a set-top box, DVD player, or AV receiver) with your TV--all over a single cable. HDMI supports standard, enhanced or high definition video, plus multi-channel digital audio on a single cable. It supports all ATSC formats--standard (SDTV), enhanced (EDTV), and high (HDTV).
TruSurround XT audio adds three new audio enhancement technologies to produce an amazingly immersive sound experience.
Dialog Clarity brings movie dialog into ÒfocusÓ during the playback of any surround-encoded material to make speech much clearer and crisper.
TruBass creates incredible deep rich bass allowing a person to perceive significantly deeper, richer low bass tones that are far beyond the physical low frequency capabilities of the speaker itself.
The SRS WOW feature widens the soundstage by processing standard two-channel stereo material as well as multi-channel encoded material for a dramatic improvement in the playback of any stereo audio over a two-speaker system.
Component video (also called Y/Pb/Pr) features a three-jack video input, which provides separate connections for luminance (Y), blue color difference (PB) and red color difference (PR). This results in increased bandwidth for color information, resulting in a more accurate picture with clearer color reproduction and less bleeding than you would get with S-Video or composite (RCA yellow video plug) connections. You will need a separate RCA left/right audio cable for sound.
What's in the Box Plasma TV, remote control (with batteries), power cord, printed operating instructions

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Archos AV500 100 GB Multimedia Player and DVR Review

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(More customer reviews)Note: I have only had the player for a week. This is a first impressions report.
Overall: the Archos AV500 100 gb player is pretty impressive. It is a good size, the screen is bright, and the built-in interface is easy to navigate. It feels small and heavy at first. Built-in speaker is tinny but adequate for its size. 100 gb is a lot of space! It is a little heavier than the AV500 30 gb model, but I don't have one for direct comparison.
Functions tried:
(1) Links to Windows XP computer via USB 2.0 without a problem, can use as Device Player with Windows Media Player 10 (auto-sync libraries, etc), or can set to Hard Drive Mode and drag and drop files. USB 2.0 is fast.
(2) Transfer DVDs: Lots of stuff on the internet about doing this for Archos devices, but this is still complicated and some technical savvy is required. There is some built-in software that I didn't bother with.
The easiest (and legal) way is to just record direct from your DVD player; however, not the best quality by report and any Macrovision protection is preserved (can only view on LCD screen, not video out). I actually have not tried this yet, though.
If you have DVD's without copyright protection, one of the better (and free) programs (in my opinion) at this point is Auto Gordion Knot (or AutoGK for short) to convert these to the DIVX format. This works well; however, conversion is processor-intensive (5 hours on my 3000+ Athlon XP for 2 hour video). The picture is pretty good, some minor compression artifacting. There is a large community working on DIVX codecs. I used the XVID codec, which the AV500 is compatible with (even the Windows Media Player 10 didn't think so and refused to transfer without conversion).
(3) Listening to music was easy. Dragged and dropped a bunch of MP3's, worked well. Nice loud volume.
(4) Slideshow for pictures work well. JPEG and BMP only. Can't listen to music while looking at pictures, though.
Functions haven't tried yet:
(1) Camera record - can hook up lipstick camera (separate accessory) directly to AV500 and record.
(2) Direct file transfer from camera. (Has separate mini USB port and cable to hook into camera)
Drawbacks:
(1) Probably a little fragile - handle with care. Lots of people have reported issues with the previous AV400 models. Basically, this is a very fancy hard drive with a screen. In fact, if you take the battery off, you can see the hard drive sitting in there.
Running with it, or any activity with lots of vibration/shaking will likely cause early hard drive failure. It would be like running with your laptop. You might get away with it for a while, but those hard drives can't take a lot of jolting.
I can see mashing the small buttons could result in problems. This is not a ruggedized portable by any means. Even thought the case feels solid, the buttons are cheap-feeling and flimsy. My bet is that the buttons would be the first component to break on this device.
(2) Video transfer is still complicated. Could try Windows Media Player 10 for automagic conversion, but I like to have more control over settings. Video must be DIVX in specific format. This is not a Video Ipod. It takes some savvy.
(3) Note before you buy the file types it supports. Won't do AAC, Ogg or other music formats.
(4) Comes with a disc shaped connector hub for AV in/out connections, but no travel AV in/out. That is a separate accessory. So, if you want to see your video on a separate TV, bring the big hub, or spring for a separate set of travel connectors.
(5) Inadequate carrying case provided. I am already looking for a better carrying case.

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Your movies, your games, your music, your photos -- all in one little device. That's the Archos AV500 100 GB Mobile Digital Media Player. This exciting media companion offers direct TV recording and the best of home cinema, gaming, digital music and more. Now you can bring all your entertainment with you wherever you roam. This 100 GB model, which is less than an inch thick, lets you store up to 400 hours of video, 250 movies, 55,000 songs or 1,000,000 photos. Using the AV500's rechargeable, removable battery, you'll get up to 15 hours of life for music and up to 4.5 hours forvideo playback on the built-in LCD.
Personal Video Player Used in conjunction with the included TV docking pod, you can record television programs, movies and home videos directly from your TV, VCR, DVD player, cable box or satellite receiver. Then watch themon the go whenever the notion strikes you. Plus, with the integrated scheduler you can program your recording schedule a week to a month ahead of time. Play back your favorite program on the 4-inch widescreen or on any external screen in near-DVD quality. The unit plays DivX, Windows Media, protected Windows Media, and MPEG-4 video files. You'll also have excellent control over your viewing experience with features such as slow motion, adjustable screen size, video editing, and a video bookmarking function.
Photo Viewer The AV500 is a great digital photo companion. Transfer thousands of photos directly from your digital camera, or another mass storage device using the built-in USB connection. You can also transfer from a computer using the AV 500's high-speed USB 2.0 interface. Then, organize your photos and watch them in slide shows on the unit's screen or on any external display.
Music Player The AV500 features Archos' newly-designed music player application. Now you can easily organize your songs and customize your view by artist, album, type of music, title, year, and play lists without having to use a computer. The AV500 also offers an audio recording application that records in high-quality WAV format from almost all analog stereo sources. You can also use the stereo microphone if you want to record notes, presentations and lectures.
ConnectivityThe player has a USB 2.0 port that enables you to copy, share, connect and transfer files directly from other powered mass storage devices. The unit is also recognized as a mass storage drive on your PC or Mac, giving you the ability to transfer any computer file using the high-speed USB 2.0 interface.
PlaysForSureThe AV500 lets you purchase, download, subscribe to or rent protected video and music content from Microsoft PlaysForSure websites. The Archos AV500 works with many online subscription and pay-per-download music services such as Yahoo! Music Unlimited and Napster To Go. The PlaysForSure designation ensures compatibility with Windows Media Player 10 and Windows XP. Using the USB 2.0 interface, the AV500 will easily auto-synchronize this content with Windows Media Player 10 each time you connect it to your PC, or convert your Windows Media Player 10 library content to one of many compatible formats (MP3, WMA, WAV, protected WMA, MPEG -4, WMV and protected Windows Media Video).
Play Games AnywhereBecause the AV500 supports the popular Mophun gaming engine, it's designed to integrate with the Archos Web site for purchasing and downloading games. You can also connect an optional mini game padto kick your games up a notch.
What's in the BoxAV500, TV docking pod, remote control (with batteries), audio/video cables, USB 2.0 cable, USB hostadapter, AC adapter and charger, stereo headphones, protective case, user guide.

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Sony DCRHC65 MiniDV Digital Handycam Camcorder w/10x Optical Zoom Review

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(More customer reviews)I got this camera for $430 at circuit city. I don't think its worth $800, but it has some great features if you can find it for a good price, since it is last year's model. I love the big touch screen. Its really easy to use. The supernight shot plus works great. This camera can see better than me in the dark. Picture quality is good and if you get an upgraded battery (only $20 on ebay) the camera can run for a long time. It doesn't have the built in lens cover, but I just keep my lens cover in a camera bag when I'm using the camera. The camera is a little bigger than some other models out there, but I think it makes it easier to hold and have control.


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Sony DCR-HC65 Mini DV Digital Camcorder See the big picture with the DCR-HC65 MiniDV Handycam camcorder from Sony.MODEL- DCR-HC65 VENDOR- SONY CONSUMER FEATURES- MiniDV Handycam Camcorder See the big picture with the DCR-HC65 MiniDV Handycam camcorder from Sony. The DCR-HC65 features a huge 3.5 hybrid SwivelScreen LCD display a 1.0 megapixel advanced HAD CCD imager and a professional quality Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar lens which help you see your video bigger brighter and clearer than ever before. It also includes features you would expect from a camcorder twice its price such as Super NightShot Plus zero-light video recording digital photo mode on Memory Stick DUO media and Super SteadyShot image stabilization. Why settle for less when you can have a Sony? Includes Camcorder AC-L25 Power Adaptor/In Camera Charger NP-FP50 InfoLithium Rechargeable Battery RMT-831 Wireless Remote Commander Remote Control Shoulder Strap USB Cable MSG-M8A Memory Stick Duo Media MSAC-M2 Memory Stick Duo Adapter Lens Cap Multi A/V Cable LCD Cleaning Cloth CD-ROM w/USB Driver (Picture Package Software v.1.0 for Sony).* 1.0 Megapixel (Gross) Advanced HAD CCD Imager 1/5 Advanced HAD (Hole Accumulation Diode) CCD with 690K (effective) pixels provides excellent detail and clarity with exceptional video performance (up to 520 lines of horizontal resolution). Realize great looking digital still images utilizing 1000K (effective) pixels. The Megapixel technology enhances your digital videos and digital still photography performance.* MiniDV Recording Offers up to 500 lines of horizontal resolution 3X color bandwidth (vs. VHS) and significantly higher S/N ratio to provide stunning video performance.* 10X Optical/120X Digital Zoom The optical zoom helps to bring the action up close from far away. In addition the digital zoom interpolation means that extreme digital zooming is clearer with less distortion than previous types of digital zooms.* 3.5 Hybrid SwivelScreen Touch Panel LCD Display (123K ...

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Panasonic SDR-H200 30GB 3CCD Hard Disk Drive/SD Palmcorder with 10x Optical Image Stabilized Zoom Review

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(More customer reviews)I took the plunge and bought two of them (One for my brother). My reason for this is:
1. the predominance of editing software available for MPEG2, MPEG4, AVI, etc. as well as the ability to play on practically any regular DVD player. My Aunts, Uncles, relatives and friends do not care for, nor ever will buy a BluRay Player and a 42"+ Panny, although I do (more about that in a sec). Thus sharing compatibility is more important to me than obtaining the latest AVCHD, although I may for other reasons in the future. I know I can down convert but the extra steps, increased price, limited industry supported software (for unconverted .mt2s files), the new h.264 compression standard and the increased horsepower required for PC use are all compelling reasons to stick with SD in the home and for sharing - not only the finished product but also raw footage with others and having zero complications.
I have a 2GB RAM, P4, 3.0 Ghz, etc. laptop but 8 out of every 10 others I know use centrino technology, 1.8 Ghz, 256-512 RAM, etc. which just isn't gonna drive h.264 footage nicely is it. Same goes for desktop setups. Try downloading and watching 720p video from the Windows Media HD Video website if your computer leans more towards the latter to see what I mean. SD footage won't encounter these snags. Once again, I am speaking from the point of view of sharing with the people I know who for the most part will never upgrade to the latest PC / Home theatre (or at least not in the next 5-10 years).
2. USB 2.0 Hi Speed Transferring, i.e. 100 MB files transferred from card/ HDD in about 15 seconds. Editing, Rendering, Authoring is a breeze.
3. I wanted a MEMORY MAKER, not a home movie studio. This unit fits in the palm of your hand (almost bordering on too small) and easily slips into a LowePro camera bag.
4. I have a 32-bit PCMCIA SD/SDHC card reader (not 16) that I bought to replace my laptop 4-in-1 media reader. Standard readers that most people have today on their desk or built in to their laptop will not read the new SDHC cards available at 4GB+ capacities. More mention of this should be made in my opinion. Also, these new cards will not work in older devices that do not support SDHC. The SDR-H200 does support SDHC.
I experimented recording to the card and then transferring footage to my laptop. The 32bit cardBus adapter is 10-16X faster than USB 2.0. It is just awesome. The reason I mention this is because of the 1 major gripe I encountered, Namely...
...Transferring HDD footage requires disconnecting the battery from the unit and connecting a DC cable to it from the AC power adapter. Then USB 2.0 cable out to computer. Sooooooo, this means always needing to be around power instead of just turning on the camera and transferring the HDD footage randomly anywhere. It's not that big of a deal but I like having Zero restrictions ;) So using SDHC cards frees me from that restriction, hence the mention of the 32bit cardBus reader (YES they exist - interfirm - http://www.synchrotech.com/products/media-adapters_01.html)! ***If you follow suit and get this adapter make sure you download and install the correct driver from the website because there's no Windows XP/ Vista substitute that will do it for you like we're used to!!
Another Note - if you transfer files directly from the card they show up as .mod files. Windows media player 11 recognizes them and plays. Other players don't, so you simply change them to .mpg. Sektionschef created a great program that automatically converts multiple .mod files (i.e. all of your stored clips) to the .mpg extension all at once! Very cool. It's called
5. 3CCD over single chip, this unit uses 3CCD RGB, nice. A handy F1.8 for dimly lit environments works pretty good. The 10x optical zoom is very smooth, speed contollable by the amount of pressure used on the toggle switch and there was no focus hunting in Auto mode. The O.I.S. doesn't help much when zoomed in on a subject and you're moving around so staying wider helps unless you're into using tripods. But zooming in fully on a WestJet airplane taking off produced good results.
Another nice feature is the auto fade in and fade out when you start and stop recording. It effectively smooths over those slight but noticeable camera movements that sometimes occur when the record button is pressed non-gently, awkwardly, haphazardly or whatever. This setting can be switched on or off. I like it, but you may not want to use it if you're into utilizing post-editing software because you can't remove an already recorded fade.
Here is a few clips I uploaded you can check out. I recommend downloading and playing the clips on your computer video player over using the website streaming player because the web player compresses the video resolution...
Indoor, Available Light, Auto, Setting = XP (higest SD quality) - Outdoor light is completely overcast.
http://files.filefront.com/MOV007mp...;/fileinfo.html
Outdoor - Auto, Zoom in on airplane, XP, Completely overcast sky
http://files.filefront.com/MOV009mp...;/fileinfo.html
Low Light, Indoor, Coffee Shop, XP Mode, Auto
http://files.filefront.com/MOV002mp...;/fileinfo.html
Finally, does the footage measure up? YES. There is no comparison to watching footage on the laptop as compared to a monitor, TV or Plasma. When I watched it on my laptop I was like hmmmm, oh yeah, that's pretty good. But when I ran my footage from the camera through a Yamaha RX-V2700 Receiver with 1080i/1080p upsacling to a 42" Panasonic Plasma via HDMI I was blown away! You will be extremely PLEASED if you run your footage through a home theatre HDMI setup. The same goes for a DVD disc.
I also tried S-Video out directly to TV with included AV cables (no HDMI/ no receiver) and I would still rate the footage as GREAT. Fortunately, you can do this running on straight battery power and a remote control is included! I also ran it through my 23" Samsung LCD HDTV computer monitor and... you guessed it, great. In all cases the picture turns out to be very crisp, clean and vibrant.
So although I love the new HiDef footage, etc. I took my chances in sticking with SD for home video purposes and am more than pleased. No regrets. The unit shoots in 16:9 or 4:3 and has no problem saturating my entire 42" screen. Even my mother who is expecting plenty of baby footage from my brother was more than impressed and could tell that it was a quality pic.
So, if you are looking for a memory maker and anticipate bringing it along on trips or to the ball game or whatever you'll be happy to own this unit.
The menu is simple and clean, and you can easily switch from recording to HDD/ SD/ SDHC card at the push of a button. There is plenty of manual settings you can tinker with but auto mode does the trick nicely.
It is simple, handy and fun which is exactly what I wanted. This unit delivered that. 4 out of 5 stars for not being able to transfer HDD footage to computer without power adapter (but to its credit, the adapter is conveniently small). Since it also holds 7 hours of highest quality footage this shouldn't be too much of a bother unless you're a frequent downloader. I peronally will buy an 8GB SDHC card (110 minutes) off of eBay and leave it in the unit so that I'll have options baby :)
The unit comes with ImageMixer editing software and is very easy to use and import your video with directly from the camera - it's a good added value piece of software.
This is my first review here and always appreciate when others have taken the time to share their experience with new products that I'm interested in buying too. I hope my taking the plunge this time helps. Enjoy!
One more thing... READ the manual you lazies, there are things you should and need to know.
P.S. It takes decent one push 2MP still photographs too in a pinch (not outstanding but not too bad - it's nice knowing that it's there if necessary)! You can find a still I posted here...
http://www.pana3ccduser.com/showthread.php?t=14208&page=4&pp=10
Bruce


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The Panasonic SDR-H200 3CCD Hard Disk Drive/SD Palmcorder Camcorder is perfect for recording long events. It features extended recording for extended shooting fun. The internal 30 GB hard disk drive holds as much video data as about 22 8-cm DVD discs. That means you can record for around 27 hours non-stop. This SD Card/Hard Disk camcorder is perfect for people who want to shoot for hour after hour without worrying about memory space. 3CCD Camera System/ Optical Image Stabilizer /Minimum Illumination1 Lux (Magic Pix)High Speed Shutter - 1/60 - 1/8,000 sec. (Moving Picture) / 1/30 - 1/2,000 sec. (Still Picture) / IrisAF/Manual / Backlight Compensation LCD Monitor -2.7 wide (123K pixels) /Manual Focus Ring /Microphone -Stereo Zoom Mic /Wind Noise Reduction / Date Recording Wide Mode (16 - 9) / Digital Zoom -10x - 700x /Recording Modes -XP/SP/LP Still Picture -JPEG / Built-in SD Slot (SD/SDHC) / DPOFMax. 999 stills PictBridge Compatible / S-Video Out / Video Output -AV out / USB 2.0 High Speed (mini B)Dimensions (H x W x D) - 3.27 x 2.98 x 4.76 inches Weight -1.01 lbs

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Sony CDPCX455 400 Disc MegaStorage CD Changer Review

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(More customer reviews)I owned a perfectly wonderful Pioneer, 100 Disc CD changer. Since my CD collection had approached the 400 mark, I decided to purchase the Sony CDP-CX455 unit, so that I could randomly listen to my entire collection, without constantly changing CD's. After reading some of the reviews on Amazon, I was reluctant to purchase this unit. Unable to find another unit that would accomodate 400 CD's, I decided to take a chance and went ahead with the purchase. Big mistake! After spending hours loading the CD's into the system and setting it to play on random(shuffle), I soon discovered that several of my CD's were skipping. I am meticulous with the handling of my CD's, so I know that the problem was not caused by my mishandling of them. I removed the CD's that were skipping, hoping that this was an isolated incident. The next day, I turned on the unit and again set it to play songs randomly. Once again, some of the CD's started skipping. When I removed them from the unit, I noticed that there were scratches on both CD's. I then called up Sony to explain to them that this particular CD changer has an engineering defect, and that it scratches CD's. Their response was that they have had no reports of such incidences. I asked to speak with a supervisor, who informed me that this CD changer has been taken off the market and is not being replaced with a similar unit. He said that stores still had them in stock, but once the stock was exhausted there would be no more available. I then asked him why they were not replacing this unit with another 400 CD changer model, and was told that they are getting out of the CD changer business, in favor of DVD/CD combo units. I offered the comment that the reason they are not replacing the CDP-CX455 with a similar unit, is because they know that the CDP-CX455 has an engineering defect, and they are not capable of building a 400 CD unit that is problem free. At any rate, I called the store where I purchased my changer from, and told them that I was returning it because it was scratching my CD's. I then started the long process of removing the CD's from the system and was astounded to find that almost 1 out of every 3 CD's had been scratched by this CD changer. I called back Sony, and their attitude was basically that they couldn't care less. Once you buy a Sony product, you are on your own. Their customer support is non existent. Despite the fact that over 100 of my CD's have been damaged by this unit, their response was that they were sorry, but there is nothing they could do about it. Based on this incident, I will never purchase another Sony product again. If you are planning to purchase this CD player, my advice to you, "Buyer Beware."

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Sony's CDP-CX455 400 Disc MegaStorage CD Changer is perfect for your extensive CD collection. Access your CDs with ease using Twin Jog Dial and enjoy MP3 and CD-R/CD-RW Playback. Utilize features like Custom File Memo, MegaChanger Control, Optical Digital Output, CD Text, and 2 Repeat Modes (Disc or Track) to make the most of your music. Keyboard Input, FL Display, 32 Step Program Play, Control A1 II, and a Remote Commander Remote Control are also included. So take control of your CD listening experience with the CDP-CX455!This 400 Disc MegaStorage CD Changer stores and plays CDs only

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Sony HDR-UX5 4MP AVCHD DVD High Definition Camcorder with 10x Optical Zoom Review

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(More customer reviews)The combination of ClearVid CMOS and x.v. Color standard makes the difference. Supposed to capture 1.8X colors more than the human eye can recognize and i agree with that. Your LCD with HDMI will blow your eyes (component is nice too). I never tought my TV can display those colors, clear, crispy, vivid, you got to see it to believe it.
You can capture still images at 4MP even while you're recording (you need a MStick Duo). The pics are ok but doesn't replace a semipro digital camera. But let me tell you that you can leave your digital camera at home.
Your home movies will be flavored with dolby digital audio, so if you have a home teather you will see your friends in the scene while you're hearing sounds from other directions.
Slow motion mode lets you capture up to 240 fps for just 3 seconds, that's a 12 seconds sequence with no lost frames at normal playback, interesting for sports or any fast move.
The only con is the AVCHD format, you will need a PS3 or Blue Ray player in order to play the Double Layer DVD but can use the camcorder as player. Anyways you can use standards mini DVDs.
Is a good deal, i think camcordes twice the price are not much better than this.

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CL) SONY HDR-UX5 HI-DEF DVD Camcorder

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Raidon Stardom SOHORAID SR4: 4-Bay RAID eSATA/FW800/USB 2.0 enclosure. Review

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(More customer reviews)Impressed with the attention to detail and craftsmanship. Others should learn there is a market, repeatable in so much as searching other products of same brand... "one can buy 3 cheap pair of shoes and curse wearing them as they fall apart, or one quality pair that one cannot wear out and only get better with age." Seems a fitting analogy.

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Raidon Stardom SOHORAID SR4: 4-Bay RAID eSATA/FW800/USB 2.0 enclosure. RAID 0 speed or RAID 5 protection. Removable drive trays. Compact design with rugged exterior. 1 Year Warranty.

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GenevaSound All-in-One Stereo for CD, iPod, iPhone, Radio, Line-in (Large-Black) Review

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(More customer reviews)Previously, in my search for the ultimate "all-in-one" sound system, I purchased the B&W Zeppelin and Bose Sounddock 10 and put them head to head in my own home. The B&W zeppelin was the clear the winner of that comparison with clear natural sound that really brought out the beauty of recorded music. The Bose had more volume capability and slightly more bass in the lowest registers, but it struggled to bring out the tone, accuracy and depth of the Zeppelin and my refence system, consisting of Full range Dynaudio Towers and NAD amplification. Of course this led me to wonder if there were any other systems out there that could be better yet. This led to me to Geneva. The Geneva line of systems has been out for several years, but I had never listened to them before. Geneva has systems of various sizes ranging from S to XXL, and I went with one right in the middle, the L. When I received my Geneva L, I was immediately impressed with the packaging and the fit and finish of the product. The glossy paint was perfect and the system integrated perfectly with the brushed metal stand, an optional piece from Geneva. It was very easy to operate. I opened the wooden flap on top of the unit, plugged in my Ipod, and powered the system on. Within minutes I was listening to my playlist. Now it was time to see what this thing could do. I already had a playlist of about 50 songs encoded from my CD collection in apple lossless. This is the same list of songs that I used to evaluate my home reference system, the B&W Zeppelin and Bose Sounddock 10. I then played about 50 hours of music and full bandwidth pink noise through the system in order to break it in. I can't stress enough how much the sound changes in all of these systems during the break in process, the Geneva most of all. After listening to my playlist on the Geneva L, I was truly amazed. The sound was simply fantastic. It has the clarity and tonal excellence of the B&W with overall volume capability and deep bass that surpassed both systems. There were a couple of trouble tracks, such as Joss Stone's "Less is More" and Jack Johnson's "Taylor," which caused the Zeppelin to exhibit port noise and some loss of coherency. The Geneva L played both of those songs beautifully, at high volume, without issue. The overall impact of this system was something that completely took me off guard. Listening to these systems side by side also showed how much deeper the sound stage of the Geneva L was. In fact it projected a sound image that was nearly as wide and deep as my reference system. The Geneva did appear to have less punch with very low volume listening which may be due to less dynamic loudness in the DSP. I also very much enjoyed listening to CD's and FM radio which is all included with the Geneva L. It became obvious to me very quickly as I was comparing the Geneva to other Ipod docks that this was not really apples to apples. First, this is a more expensive product at $999, but it was also a lot more than an Ipod Dock. With CD, FM, ipod and such full range sound, the Geneva was the first system that I consider a true stereo replacement, and could easily be the primary music system in my home. It really has the sound quality, dynamics, and imaging of full size stereo system in one sleek unit with a single single power cord. This system is a unique product is an excellent value for all that it can do, and I look forward to enjoying it for some time to come. I hope this helps anyone who is on the eternal quest for an "all-in-one" system that really can do it all.

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From Switzerland, GenevaSound is \'furniture music" – a renewed fusion of home entertainment and home décor that brings technology and design full circle. Visually, Geneva is a classic design statement. But beyond its striking simplicity, Geneva\'s clean lines embody an advanced acoustical array that\'s won the highest marks from leading audio reviewers. One look at GenevaSound reveals why it\'s sold in leading design and fashion houses from Milan to Manhattan. Listen to Geneva Sound and you\'ll know why its patented audio engineering is found in recording studios that repeatedly win Grammies and Oscars. Never before have such a variety of functions been integrated into one compact cabinet - a complete, powerful hifi system with a slot-loading CD player, an iPod-iPhone dock, a radio tuner with digital presets, and line-in jacks. Leading reviewers say it's the easiest multi-function stereo ever. Geneva Sound Large delivers room-filling sound, thanks to the power of its four 25 watt amplifiers, for a total of 100 watts of Class D amplification, a new generation of extremely efficient, low-power-consumption amplifiers. On the top of the GenevaSound Large is a slot-loading CD player. Ahead of the CD slot is the 30-pin iPod+iPhone connector hidden under a flip-up lid. Embedded in the GenevaSound cabinet is a digital radio tuner; no tabletop radio has ever sounded this big before. Setting your favorite stations as a present in the remote control has never been easier. GenevaSound Large also has auxiliary line-in connections - 3.5 mm and also RCA. These can bring in sound from almost any audio device. The cabinet measures: height 11.5 inches, depth 14.2 inches, width 17.6 inches. It weighs 38 pounds. This model comes with brushed aluminum feet with rubberized footpads. There are optional floor pedestals. The GenevaSound Large Gloss is available in three colors: white, red and black gloss lacquer.

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HP iPAQ hx2795 Pocket PC Review

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(More customer reviews)Pros
Great overall value for your money, especially if you buy online.
WiFi, Bluetooth, WM5, FAST processor!
Cons
Not SVGA, but I'm sure this helps the systems current performance! It's FAST! Might be a little pricey, but it fit my needs perfectly, and I'm willing to pay the higher end for a dependable device.
The Bottom Line
This device suites me perfectly. I understand that everyone has their own needs, but this has everything I need plus more. It's dependable when used as described.
Full Review
I have searched and read at least 15 websites for reviews on this product, and was not surprised to see several of these web-sites with the same two people giving it a bad review. It's my experience that many people start using the device and critiquing it only when they experience problems, and don't ever decide to consult the user manual to find specific instructions on how to perform the operation they desire.
The hx2795 is replacing an old 3600 series iPaq. I generally use mine for GPS related work and the hx2795 has performed better than expected for me.
Right out of the box, my battery had 94% battery life, and I used it off and on for two days after I bought it without needing to charge the battery (although the battery may not condition properly if you follow my example).
When not using my GPS, and use it moderately throughout the day, I tend to run at 20% battery life left after 3 to 4 days. Once I plug the charger in, it will have a full charge within 3 to 4 hours!
My IBM T42p laptop w/ bluetooth made for an easy and wireless ActiveSync. I synced my Outlook 2003 contacts, email, tasks and calendar without any hitch. I'm not sure why other people in the reviews of this device had problems, but as I stated earlier... read the directions. It's in there and tells you exactly how to do it, as well as tells you what to do if you do run into problems. Very detailed instructions, as well as on ActiveSync's website!!!
I have a linksys portable wireless router that I was able to configure the hx2795 against. Configuration was quick and trouble free. Internet seemed to be just as fast as using my home desktop computer.
I purchased Pocket CoPilot 6 w/ wireless bluetooth GPS receiver, and once again, worked flawlessely right out of the box.
Since I have had the device, I have had to soft reset only 5 times within a month and a half. And 2 of the times was because of incompatible Pocket PC 2002 software I was trying to load. This is very comparable to my Palm Treo 650 that I have had for a year as far as soft resets.I did run out of battery a few days back for the first time. I bought a new RhinoSkin leather case and it didn't fit quite right, and was pressing down on one of the keys, leaving it on over night. But the persistent battery kept all my data safe, and didn't need to re-sync all my data. I turned on the key-lock after that incident.
Overall, this is a very good purchase! I would do it again.

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Windows Mobile 5.0 / 3.5" TFT Color Screen / 802.11 WiFi and Bluetooth Compatible / CompactFlash Slot / 64MB RAM / Stylus, USB Cradle, Charger, Battery inc

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Canon ZR850 1MP MiniDV Camcorder with 35x Optical Zoom Review

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(More customer reviews)I did a lot of research before I settled on this camera. I was prepared to spend a fair amount of money on a better model, but I came to the conclusion that it was a better idea to spend less money and wait a couple of years for the HD technology to come down in price and the hard drive storage format to become more established. So this was, in my opinion, the best mixture of quality and price. There are certainly cheaper models out there but beware. There are three major bugaboos camcorders have to face: internal noise, image stabalization, and low lighting conditions. You can expect cheaper machines not to excell in these and to pay dearly for those that do. Canon's real selling point is its optics, but like most lower-end models, they don't "shine" in low light. They put external mike jacks only on their chapest models so they can sell to schools (the education market likes low prices and external mikes). Personally, I have a pocket digital recorder with a lavalier mike and I edit in a separate digital soundtrack to get around the noise problem, but not everyone wants to do that. Canon's image stabalization seems improved from the previous model that I've had, although while 35X zoom seems impressive, I've not yet tested it to see what the vibration reduction is like at the etxreme end. My biggest problem is the low lighting, so I bought a portable utility light at a home improvement store for ten bucks to help with that.
The reality is that even though you don't care to spend a couple hundred bucks every year on new ccamcorders, you should consider this a disposable camera. It costs almost as much to buy a new model as to fix them. I bought this to replace a ZR85. Which leads me to another point- if you have the option, you might consider an extended warantee. The earlier generations of camcorders seem to have had a habit of blowing out.
You will want to buy an extended life battery as well- the battery that this model came with was good for only a short while.
I wouldn't bother much with still photography- camcorders don't have great snapshot capabilities just as camera's don't generally have good video capabilities. It's tempting to try to kill two birds with one stone, but none of the models I've seen do both eaqually well. Even my cheapo point and shoot digital camera takes better pictures (but not nearly as good video). Also, copying video to the SDram card is a quick and easy way to slap a short video clip on your website or email it to friends, but you will get a compressed file with significantly poorer quality than the miniDV tape. On a PC you can use Windows Movie Maker (free download if you don't already have it) but it only saves in WMV format. To burn in DVD format you will need authoring software (that's another review, but I use Adobe premiere elements).
MiniDV is on its way out, but will probably still be around for a while. It has great quality- much better than a DVD, although you can certainly create DVDs from a miniDV tape. As far as storage goes, the tapes are pretty cheap- 13 gigs or so for a couple of bucks is pretty good. In the future though I think the hard drives are going to be the next big thing.
Copying your tapes to a DVD via a Mac is a breeze with imovie and iDVD (no, I don't work for Mac) although I generally do my editing on a PC. It is a bit of a pain (less so when you finally get the hang of it) but I don't have regular access to a Mac.
This is a really great starter camera if you are just getting into digital video and a real easy, convient, point and shoot workhorse. That being said, it is sophistocated enough that you can grow into it. My guess is that by the time you grow out of it the prices for more advanced technology will have come down and this camera will have reached the end of its lifespan anyway. I found mine brand new online for 260 bucks, and I got what I paid for and then some.

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CL) CANON ZR850 MINI DV Camcorder

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GenevaSound All-in-One Stereo for CD, iPod, iPhone, Radio, Line-in (Large-Walnut) Review

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(More customer reviews)Back in the day, actually before my time, televisions and stereos were designed to be both functional and beautiful - they were considered furniture, an essential complement to a well-designed room. Now, of course, function trumps form for most electronic gadgets, and most are ugly. With the advent of flat screen LCD televisions at least they don't look like the hulking monstrosities that overwhelm the room like the big TVs of the past couple decades, but it's still true that a decent sound system tends to be a box covered with buttons and indicators, and connected by endless wires to a range of speakers spread throughout the room.
That's not necessary if you've got one of these Geneva Sound L systems in the living room. It's an elegant blend of form and function - the sound is astonishing, especially considering that it all comes from a single wooden box. Did I mention wooden? The walnut variety, which is the one I've tried, is not just walnut coloring, it's actually encased in wood, and the metallic grating that covers the multiple speakers inside is just the right tint to match it perfectly. The whole system is small enough not to get in the way, but it delivers 100 Watts of stereo surround sound that can really fill a room for an immersive musical or theatrical sound experience.
Geneva Lab is known for setting an early high fidelity sound and design standard for iPod docking systems. This one is at the middle of their range -- they have one that's a bit bigger and one that's a lot bigger and a few smaller ones. I only have experience with this one and the smaller S model. For me and for my living room I can't imagine needing anything more. It feels solid and there is a serious heft to it - the system actually weighs about 40 pounds - it's not filled with cheap lightweight equipment that'll blow out when it gets loud. It can do radio and takes input from a television or other device, and there's a little, almost invisible, slot for CDs in the top, plus a panel flips open when you push it to reveal a universal iPod dock. It works perfectly with my nano and iPod touch. You can put it on the floor or a table, but Geneva Sound also sells a shiny and stable metallic stand that elevates it a couple of feet for optimum sound range. There's an LCD display that indicates the mode (radio with 6 preset buttons on the remote, iPod, CD or auxiliary), the CD track (will play CD-ROM and mp3 CDs as well as standard) and the volume (on a scale of 1-100) and the bass and treble values (each scaled from -6.0 to +6.0). All inputs, including the outlet plug, and L-R RCA input, are hidden beneath the box so that it looks good from behind -- and if you have the stand all cords can run from the device through the stand's support beam for simplicity and appearance.
Of course, it's the sound that matters most, and to my ears this really delivers. I've never really wanted a massive sound system in my living room but this one really fills the room with sound, both for watching movies and hanging out to music. While it's all in one box, there are actually two sets of speakers behind the screen - there's a pair of 1" tweeters and a couple of 5 1/4" woofers. While most of the sound is directed out from the front of the box, there's also a sound output slot in the rear, probably to help deliver a more expansive sound.The "sound test" CD that comes with the box is pretty amazing ... you drop it in and can literally hear sound coming from all directions, and this device is set to deliver that experience wherever the recorded input has the information. I didn't expect that level of "spatial differentiation" from a sound system that is this self-contained. I was also very impressed by the range -- even on a low volume it delivers what I can only describe as a "big" sound, that fills the room even without being "loud." But, I'm happy to say, it can get very loud without sounding "noisy" -- I've played jazz and hip-hop, rock and pop, and I'm very happy with the sound performance throughout, at various sound ranges.
There are a few problems, though, mostly minor but still annoying. One thing that bugs me about the design is that the buttons on the device itself (hidden along with the iPod dock beneath a wooden flip-up panel) don't do much. There's an on-off button a CD eject button and up-down volume buttons, and an input jack (for mp3 players that aren't compatible with the iPod Universal dock). What that means is that most functions on the system require use of the remote control -- and for me that is a drawback, both because in a house with kids like mine remote controls tend to wander around and are hard to find when you need them most, and because it detracts from the overall simplicity and ease. I imagine they left extra buttons off (pause, stop, song forward and back, mode switching, bass and treble adjust) in the interest of simplicity, but what that means is that the device itself isn't really self-contained, and so is inherently more complex -- to use it you have to have another thing lying around nearby. Of course it's nice to have the remote if you need it, but I like to consider a remote as an auxiliary rather than an essential. Why it's strange, too, is that there's plenty of room near the iPod dock for a few extra buttons that would still be hidden away and not detract from the aesthetics of the device. I like that I can play CDs here directly, and that it plays mp3 CDs, but I wish there was some more control in how it plays them. By default it plays them straight through (no random shuffle) and on repeat mode - and there's no way to change that. I tend to think that if a high end device like this supports a function (like playing CDs) it should support that function fully, not minimally as here.
Still, while I'd love to see an upgrade that fixes these annoyances, as a whole I think this is a beautiful device that delivers exceptional sound in an elegant and convenient package, and that's what it's all about.
About the video: I shot this as a quick illustration of the overall design of this device - shot against a green screen with a sky background because I like to play around with the green screen. One problem with that, as you'll see: there's a greenish tint on the sound system -- that's because I wasn't taking enough care to separate the lighting of the screen from the lighting of the device.

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GenevaSound Large in Walnut is the first of its kind to feature genuine hardwood veneer. From Switzerland, GenevaSound is "furniture music" – a renewed fusion of home entertainment and home décor that brings technology and design full circle. Visually, Geneva is a classic design statement. But beyond its striking simplicity, Geneva’s clean lines embody an advanced acoustical array that's won the highest marks from leading audio reviewers. One look at GenevaSound reveals why it's sold in leading design and fashion houses from Milan to Manhattan. Listen to Geneva Sound and you’ll know why its patented audio engineering is found in recording studios that repeatedly win Grammies and Oscars. Never before have such a variety of functions been integrated into one compact cabinet - a complete, powerful hifi system with a slot-loading CD player, an iPod-iPhone dock, a radio tuner with digital presets, and line-in jacks. Leading reviewers say it's the easiest multi-function stereo ever. Geneva Sound Large delivers room-filling sound, thanks to the power of its four 25 watt amplifiers, for a total of 100 watts of Class D amplification, a new generation of extremely efficient, low-power-consumption amplifiers. On the top of the GenevaSound Large is a slot-loading CD player. Ahead of the CD slot is the 30-pin iPod+iPhone connector hidden under a flip-up lid. Embedded in the GenevaSound cabinet is a digital radio tuner; no tabletop radio has ever sounded this big before. Setting your favorite stations as a present in the remote control has never been easier. GenevaSound Large also has auxiliary line-in connections - 3.5 mm and also RCA. These can bring in sound from almost any audio device. The cabinet measures: height 11.5 inches, depth 14.2 inches, width 17.6 inches. It weighs 38 pounds. This model comes with brushed aluminum feet with rubberized footpads. There are optional floor pedestals.

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Kodak EasyShare V610 6MP Digital Camera with 10x Dual-Lens Optical Zoom Review

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(More customer reviews)Kodak V610 review
I have owned this camera for about 3 weeks, and I love it. I have captured about 4 hours of video inside and outside and about 200 still shots inside and outside.
The V610 is a consumer point and shoot still camera and a great 640 by 480 - 30 frame per second movie camera, both with 10 times zoom. If you are looking to have a camera in your pocket whenever you come upon a situation where you want to take a high quality snapshot or a home movie video, I highly recommend this camera. It is fantastic. It takes a reliable snapshot and a very smooth video and fits into my shirt pocket
However, if you are looking to be the next Ansel Adams or need professional videos ... get other much larger and more expensive cameras, with much larger lenses and much more powerful lights.
In my opinion, this is the best and most powerful shirt pocket sized camera on the market today.
Prior to this I owned a digital still camera an Olympus Camedia C-4040 4MP Digital Camera w/ 3x Zoom and a very small DV video tape camera, a Panasonic model PV DV 201. Now that I own the V610, I no longer have to carry a camera bag with me to the zoo, or family reunions or other events. As a replacement for both of those cameras, this is a fantastic choice.
I can't tell you how many times I have seen great photo opportunities at events in the last several years before I owned this camera, but the appropriate camera was either in the camera bag or in the car, and how often I wanted greater than a 3x optical zoom in my still camera.
The 6.1 megapixel resolution is sufficient to allow you to capture nice snapshots, and with a powerful 10x optical zoom, you can be sitting in the back row still get a great still shot or a video and the video to my eye is nearly the equal of a consumer quality DV tape camera. I think that this is one of a very few digital still cameras that allow you to optical zoom while shooting videos.
As with most camera purchases additional equipment is necessary to make the camera most useable. I purchased the following additional equipment to go with the camera:
>> A 2GB high speed (x133) SD memory card which it allows me to shoot a combination of up to almost one hour of video or up to about 1,100 - 6 megapixel still shots- that's right, one hour of MPEG-4 video fits on the 2gb card, with good TV quality video and sound. I paid about $85.00 USD.
>> 3 spare non-Kodak brand batteries. I paid about $12.00 USD each.
>> A 6 in 1 San Disk PC card adapter - card reader for my laptop - no software needed for the laptop, and the SD memory card acts just like a hard drive and I copy the still pictures and the .mov quicktime videos to my hard drive (the provided USB cable is too slow and the camera needs to be turned on the entire time during downloads with a cable). I paid about $24.00 USD.
>> A thin leather case - To protect the camera. I paid about $15.00 USD.
>> A 250gb USB2 external hard drive for backing up the photographs and movies.


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Package Contents: EasyShare V610 Dual Lens Digital Camera, KLIC-7001 battery, USB and audio/video cables, AC adapter with power cord, carry strap, camera case, custom inserts for Freame and Printer Docks, EasyShare software
The Kodak EasyShare V610 Dual Lens Digital Camera captures all the vibrancy and color of those precious moments in your life. This 10X optical zoom digital camera features Kodak Retina Dual Lens Technology; it comes equipped with two professional quality Schneider-Kreuznach C-VARIOGON Lenses for exceptional clarity and sharpness. Embedded Bluetooth Wireless technology makes it easier to share pictures wirelessly. Its advanced engineering is rivaled only by its alluring design.Dual lens; 38-114 mm (35 mm equiv.) f/3.9-f/4.4 Aperture -f/3.9-f/7.1 at wide, f/4.8-f/8.0Shutter Speed -8-1/1200 sec.Scene Modes -Panorama, Sport, Landscape, Close-Up, Night Portrait, Snow, Beach, Fireworks, Flower, Sunset, Custom and moreColor Modes -High Color, Natural Color, Low Color, Sepia, Black & White Up to 80 min. continuous video recording (based on memory capacity); saved as QuickTime VideoVideo resolution -640x480 (VGA) @ 30 fps; 320x240 (QVGA) @ 30 fpsSingle and continuous auto-focusWhite balance -Auto, daylight, tungsten, fluorescent, open shadeFlash Range -2.0-11.2 ft @ wide; 2.0-10.8 ft @ tele Self-Timer -10 sec, 2 sec, 2 pictureAuto picture rotation & auto-orientation 32MB internal memoryStores to SD/MMC cardsBluetooth 2.0 EDR Wireless with object push protocol; Transfer rate -Up to 3 MbpsI/O interface -A/V output (NTSC or PAL), Kodak Camera Dock/Printer interface, USB 2.0 connectorPictBridge compatibleKodak Li-ion rechargeable digital camera battery (KLIC-7001) Built-in lens barrier1/4 standard tripod mountSystem Requirements -Windows 2000 or XP, Mac OS X 10.3 (or higher); 128MB RAM; 200MB hard drive sp

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Sony DCR-SR47 Hard Disk Drive Handycam® Camcorder (Red) Review

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(More customer reviews)Im a student film maker and was looking for a cheap camera just to get me going. If you want an amazing camera you cant really expect to pay less than 600 bucks, but i took the risk and im proud I did. This camera is a standard class of video, but it excels beyond the class and could even be compared to cameras of 100 to 200 dollars more.
-Out of the box the camera lacks some color to it, however if you adjust the settings things look great. Its NOT HD, but the quality is still fantastic for some reason. It does lack some saturation to some colors (greens and somewhat blues) but its all adjustable to an extent. I kinda wish it had that "film" effect that some Cannon cameras offer so i dont have to add it in via Sony Vegas, but im happy with the resolution it has now.
-The zoom is absolutely out of this world. I was just screwing around with it and decided ill look down and zoom in on my shoe laces. I could literlly see grains of dirt all over my shoe lace, my shoes are completely clean to the naked eye. I was also zooming in on letters in long distances and was completely able to read everything clearly. The zoom does get a little pixelated when you put it on a TV (i have a Samsung HDTV) if you go too far or move around alot. However the stabability of the camera is phenominal, normally a zoomed in shot would be real shaky and un watchable, not with this camera.
-Like i said im a film maker, but i prefer to use the screen. I was using it outside and its not bad at all, you can put a screen of it or you hand or something and see clearly. The camera is TINY! I couldnt believe it was so small, fit in the palm of my hand without a problem.
-Sound is pretty good. When im filming its completely quiet all around me so i can hear the people talking and what not just fine. It sadly has no option for an external mic though. Its a CLEAR mic that will pick up alot of noise though, wind blowing or something. The Directional Mic that it has does a pretty good job of cutting out some back noise, but id still love for it to have an external mic.
-The cool thing for film makers like myself, is its a extremely good intro camera that you can afford. Not only that but Sony offers a TON of accesories for it. Wide Shot lenses, Camera saturation covers, underwater casing, external lights, and things of that nature. I thought that was extremely neat and bought the lenses myself.
-I forget the file it records in, but it uses the file so that it can burn directly to DVD. The feature is neat if you have a DVD burner for it (about 100 bucks) but you need to convert the file on your computer if you want to edit it. Its all good though, and if you have a good program you wont lose alot of quality.
-The built in HDD is amazing, so much space i couldnt believe it. Not only that but the memory cards it uses are the same as the PSP, they are cheap as heck. So you could add over another 16GB to it with a single card. One reason i bought this camera over its competitior is purely the fact that it uses a hard drive and not just memory cards, trust me its alot cheaper and alot cleaner.
-How the camera runs is great. Flip the flap open and bam its on within seconds, push record and its almost instant. It also has a built in lense protector, so press the switch and it shuts or opens, the camera will also warn you if its close obviously. The touch screen is impressive, i was expecting a delay or inaccurate intereactions but it worked well. Its nice not having a wall of buttons on the side of the camera for you to accidently push while recording.
The bad things i can think of. It has no external mic option, however you can buy Lepel mics and just match up the audio if you wanted. The battery it comes with kinda sucks, only lasts 90 minutes and even less if your filming in the best quality. The single shot pictures are not the greatest, can get a little grainy, but you dont buy a camcorder for that. Its not HD, while i wish it was, you have to buy some of the newer models for 500 to 600 if you want HD and i cant afford that right now, the quality is still amazing though.
I tried to touch upon everything here if nnot ill try to update as I come across things. So far im extremely happy with my purchase. I love Sony products as its usually quality and this camera is no exception, if anything its advertising the other cameras they sell that ill probably end up buying in the future. Right now though this is what I could afford and to me it seems like i got a 500 to 600 dollar camera for 300 and thats not a bad deal in my books.

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Record those special occasions with the DCR-SR47 Handycam camcorder. A built-in 60GB hard disk drive offers extended, hassle-free recording and a professional-quality Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar lens delivers sharp, high resolution images. For close-ups, you will appreciate a powerful 60x optical zoom. Hybrid technology even allows you to record video to the hard drive or optional Memory Stick Duo media.

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Sony DCR-HC96 MiniDV 3.3MP Digital Handycam Camcorder with 10x Optical Zoom (Includes Handycam Station) Review

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(More customer reviews)I have been doing research for months and really wanted to buy a Panasonic PV-GS400. Its video quality, four-way ring, 3.5" LCD, 16:9 cinema mode, and overall prosumer features made it a camcorder legend (read review on www.camcorderinfo.com). I missed the boat, though, since it has been replaced by the PV-GS500, which is not the same camcorder. So I opted for this Sony. This camcorder takes excellent video, make no mistake; just check the reviews on CNET and especially Camcorderinfo for more technical information on this. After all my research, I feel that this is the best overall family camcorder because it is very user-friendly for all the technophobes out there, but it also allows some manual control for the user that wants to explore more advanced (read: manual) features. Word of caution: these more advanced features are accessed via LCD menu, and do not have one-push buttons or rings like the PV-GS400 or other higher end prosumer cameras, but rearranging the LCD menu and putting controls like spot focus, spot meter, focus, exposure, and white balance in the first screen of the p-menu makes this little (literally) camera far more usable. The review on camcorderinfo made it sound like rearranging the LCD menu was a job for the gods of technology. It is not. I read the manual in a half hour, and after another half hour all the menu items had been sorted based on my preferences: it's just a matter of pressing p-menu on the LCD, scrolling all the way down, selecting the p-menu options, pressing the Sort button, and then moving the buttons around according to your preference. Now, it is really important to move all the buttons I mentioned above (spot focus and meter, focus, exposure, and especially white balance) to the first screen if you want to keep your sanity. The reason is simple: you will be using some of these features a lot. White balance, for example, offers four options: auto, outdoor, indoor, and one-push. If you want faithful reproduction of color, take my advice: use one-push. I noticed that the indoor option takes an orangey video, but if you get a white/grey card (you should, it's about $18 for a Kodak one here on Amazon) or use any white surface (the back of a notebook for example) under the same light as your subject, frame it with your LCD and press one-push under the white balance menu option, your video will have a perfect color reproduction. Do you see why you want to have white balance in the first p-menu screen?
Other things you should do: enable 16:9 and also 30p (if you have an HD TV or watch your movies on a computer screen) so that you do not have the flickering of 60i interlaced mode; enable the zebra pattern feature (at 100) to see what parts of your frame are over-exposed; enable 16bit audio (default is 12bit) for higher audio quality; enable guideframe (the criss-cross-like option to help you shot video according to the rule of thirds. If you do not know what the rule of thirds is, google it. It is a very important composition guideline unless you are Steven Spielberg. Then again, if you were Steven Spielberg, you would not be reading reviews on this kind of camera, would you?). Once all this is done, there are a few other things you need to do if you want to convince your friends to watch your home videos and actually enjoy them:
-Get a microphone; the on-camera mic is bad. Get the HCM-HST1 with its funny windscreen (you will see and laugh) or the new $199 bluetooth lavalier ECM-HW1 if you have the dough; with the former you have to be close to your subject to get good sound; with the latter, your subject can be up to 30 meters (I think, check the specs) away and still get very good sound. An external mic is, along with extra battery and tripod, a must. You will thank me later;
-Get the NP-FP71 battery. It lasts a couple of hours with the LCD open; this way you will not run out of juice while your kid is giving the performance of a lifetime; I was considering the FP90 battery for extra juice, but it is very, very big. Not worth it unless you are planning on shooting the next Sundance indie masterpiece;
-Don't forget the Sony BCTRP battery charger since you are at it;
-Get the Sony ND filter package (and maybe the Polarizing package if shooot at water, metals, windows...) to shoot outside;
- Get a firewire cable to connect your camcorder to your Mac or PC; it is better than the USB cable that comes with the camera;
-Get a tripod. People get sea-sick when watching shaky, hand-held home videos. Disable the camcorder's Steadyshot feature when you use a tripod. It is not necessary and reduces overall resolution. Remember to re-enable it if you are forced to shoot hand-held. The Sony $127 VCT870RM is an excellent choice for this camcorder. It is light, yet sturdy and with a pro look and feel. It offers smooth (very important) panning and tilting, and you can control your camcorder directly from the tripod's handle (record/stop, zoom, photo), which is very, very handy; it means you can control your camera without taking your hands off the tripod handle or your eyes off the LCD screen; you'll feel like a pro, which is priceless, especially for guys :) We are grown-up kids after all;
-Monitor your audio. Unfortunately this camcorder does not have a headphone out connector, but you can use the AV out and some adapters to connect your headphones. Audio is very, very important, arguably more important than video quality, so monitor it for your important videos (weddings etc...);
-Get the Sony DVC premium BLUE (not yellow) tape ($3 each, buy them in bulk) and stick with it until your camcorder dies. It is considered bad to switch tape brands (even though it is subject to hot debates these days), but I have read that Sony uses wet lubricants whereas other manufacturers (JVC, Panasonic, Fuji) use dry lubricants. If you use a Sony camcorder, stick with a Sony tape. Do not get the Sony DVC excellence or HD tapes. They are respectively $10 and $15 each, not worth it; get the premium tape and send me the difference :);
TIPS to shoot great home videos:
-Use a tripod and external mic;
-Keep your panning (horizontal movement of the camcorder) and tilting (vertical movement) to a bare minimum while shooting. If you must pan, do it in one direction and then stop for 30 seconds or so). Do not pan back;
-Keep your zooming to a bare minimum while shooting. Zoom in or out before the shot, then take your shot;
-Consider yourself as a photographer: your camcorder stays still, only your subjects move within the frame; take hints from Hollywood movies; you'll find yourself looking at Hollywood movies with a different (more critical) eye, once you start shooting yourself, which is great;
-Use a reflector (e.g. JTL 36" white/silver round reflector at about $30 on amazon) to reflect light coming from one direction so that your subject is lit evenly;
-Use the 30-second rule: shoot at least 30 seconds of your subject even if your subject goes out of frame. This way you will have lots of room for editing;
-Shoot the first minute of a tape on something non-important; when DV tapes screw up, they usually do so in the beginning;
-Shoot your subject from different angles
-Use wide-angle for introduction of scene and Telephoto for emotions. Here is where you may want to use your manual focus option to blur the background when taking a nice portrait shot of your kids (assuming they are not running all over the house J);
-Turn your video into a story; don't shoot randomly; shoot with purpose and edit brutally so that the final video is fun and interesting;
-Do not use the camera fader and other digital effects; add them in iMovie or whatever editing program you use;
-Google great video techniques online. There is plenty of advice. Check out www.current.tv/studio/survivalguide/ for some great tips
Why this camcorder? Great for the family, light and easy to use, takes great, sharp videos even in automatic mode, relatively cheap at $600 or $700, better low-light performance than a Panasonic PV-GS500 at a cheaper price (even though the GS500 is also a good one. It does not offer zebra pattern or headphone out, though). Where to buy it? You can buy it here on Amazon like I did. You might be able to find online stores like Click for Digital that offer it for less, but Caveat Emptor: you will have to deal with pushy Brooklyn salesmen that want to sell you expensive extras because that is where they make their money, and you might wait and wait before you get your camcorder (even though they say they have it in stock). I wanted to buy this toy to shoot my daughter's D-day :) and almost missed because of those guys. I promptly cancelled my order and ordered it from Amazon. No pushy people, and I got the camera the next day. Besides, if you have an Amazon card, that is a $25 gift certificate right there, which brings the price difference down to $60. In conclusion, we are in a transition from DV to HDV. HDV camcorders are expensive, do not offer 24p film-like mode (unless you spend $6,000 for the new Panasonic HDV camcorder), and HDV is slower to edit and impossible to watch on current DVD players (even though you can keep the tapes and rip HD DVDs once they become the standard). So, I bought this HC96 because I feel it is the best transition camcorder. After all, my daughter is not going to wait another couple of years in mommy's tummy :) She needs a camcorder now! Hope this review will help. I've got to go back to my Birth Book now. Ciao.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Sony DCR-HC96 MiniDV 3.3MP Digital Handycam Camcorder with 10x Optical Zoom (Includes Handycam Station)

The DCR-HC96 from Sony gives you a full-featured, compact MiniDV camcorder at an affordable price. Highlights include the Advanced HAD CCD imager, which captures stunning detail and clarity, and 10x optical zoom with Super SteadyShot picture stabilization, which focuses on distant subjects, providing clear close-up images with less distortion. The Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar lens offers less glare and increased contrast for vivid, more life-like color and tones. A 3.3-megapixel sensor allows you to take still images that can be printed at photo quality up to 10 x 14 inches. Make your personal videos complete with additional customization features such as Picture and Fader effects for creative and professional looking enhancements. Picture Package software helps you easily organize and edit still images and video.

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Sony UWPV1 Lavalier Microphone, Bodypack Transmitter & Portable RX Wireless System, Operating on TV Channels 30 to 33 Review

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(More customer reviews)My UWPV1 arrived yesterday, and I'm thrilled with it. The audio is crystal clear - no static at all, and has good dynamic range. The transmitter and receiver are both extremely solid and fell like they'll take a beating. I let my camera roll while I walked around the house with the mic, and the signal remained solid even when it had to go thru multiple walls.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Sony UWPV1 Lavalier Microphone, Bodypack Transmitter & Portable RX Wireless System, Operating on TV Channels 30 to 33

The Sony UWPV1 is an UWP Series UHF synthesized wireless microphone system. The package includes a lavalier microphone, bodypack transmitter and portable diversity tuner. Mounting adapter for camcorder is also included. The TV channel receiving frequency is 30 to 33. The UWP-V1 includes extremely robust metal construction, mic/line input selection on the bodypack transmitter, a miniature metal body omni-directional microphone and plus the receiver includes a convenient auto channel scanning function allowing automatic search for unoccupied channels.

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Mitsubishi HC4000 HD DLP Projector Review

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(More customer reviews)Mitsubishi Hc4000 Hc4000 - Dlp Projector - Desktop - 1300 Ansi Lumen - 1920 X 1080 - 16:9
A great projector or rather has a potential to be one.
First the good: very sharp picture, good black levels thanks to DLP dark chip 3.
Bright enough for large screen 120" even with lights ON. Audible noise acceptable in low lamp mode. Easy to install thanks to long zoom range and keystone correction. My projector is attached to 7 1/2 ft ceiling and from 16 ft generates perfectly rectangular image on 120" screen.
Now the bad: this projector has problem with image uniformity which makes the picture darker on one side. Also there is a significant light leakage from the vents and around the lens.
And the ugly: My projector suffers from lens internal light leakage which creates an halo or a ring of light about 3 ft outside the screen. This can be seen on the wall when the scene turns dark and you are in a dark room. This problem is very distracting since the ring appears and disappears as the scene changes.
And a word of advice to everybody: Be sure to check the SELLER RETURN POLICY (including exceptions!) before you waste your hard earned money. I failed to do it and for now I am stuck with a great but defective projector waiting for Amazon to bail me out since the SELLER refused any assistance even though the manufacturer (who provided great technical support) issued an exchange case number. Note, Amazon is NOT the seller.
So let the buyer beware!

Click Here to see more reviews about: Mitsubishi HC4000 HD DLP Projector

HC4000 home theater projectors feature a full high-definition short-throw zoom lens that improves image depth and reproduction of deep blacks. A fixed iris provides enhanced brightness and contrast, even in a relatively bright living room with the curtains closed.

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Logicool Z Cinema USB 3-Piece Surround Sound Speaker System (Black/Silver) Review

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(More customer reviews)The Logitech Z Cinema Surround Sound System is officially designed only for Windows-based operating systems using Windows Media Center. In this age of computer versatility, Logitech does not provide any support for Macs. The good news is that these speakers can indeed work on a Mac despite the specification "requirements" of Windows XP or Vista, and the sound is awesome as long -- as you aren't doing anything else on the computer.
While this system does not create true surround sound (more satellite speakers are needed), they have the power to simulate it. You won't hear the explosion behind you, but you will feel as though it's headed directly toward you. Although it can't compete with the system I have hooked up to my DVD player and television, I've never had such an intense DVD experience on my computer as I did with this set of speakers. The sound is rich and precise. The only complaint I have is that the volume at its loudest might not be enough for those who like to feel action movies in their bones.
These speakers use a USB port as input and a two-prong outlet cord for power. The subwoofer drives the satellite speakers. The system comes with a large but sleek remote that communicates with the right hand satellite speaker for commands. With Windows Media Center, this remote is a powerful tool. Otherwise, it's a convenient but bulky (since most of the buttons don't apply) way to sit back to enjoy a movie or music. Oddly, the volume, navigation, play, and a few other buttons worked on my Mac despite the lack of driver software. (The included installation CD is for Windows Vista or XP only.) This suggests that the remote can work with various systems and DVD-viewing programs even though they don't meet the "system requirements."
You can connect an MP3 device directly to the right speaker or plug in headphones, which don't convey surround sound. You can mute your speakers with the remote, switch between inputs (USB, auxiliary, television), and control the volume remotely. The power cord and speaker cables are relatively short, which may make it difficult for some people to set up, especially if you don't want the satellites on your desk. (The power cord, in particular, made it hard for me.) The audio drops out, unfortunately, if you're listening to music and surfing the net, or doing anything else, which makes them better for DVDs than casual listening. The total peak power of this system is 360 watts. Note for Mac Users: go to System Preferences and change your output to Z Cinema; don't worry that it says that Z Cinema has no output controls.
All in all, these are excellent speakers to use on any computer. Logitech needs to wake up, however, and realize that the number of Mac users are increasing at a steady rate. If their speakers work on Macs (they do), then they should not discourage purchases by saying that they don't -- and they should provide software that runs on them. Windows users should have no problems with this impressive system.


Click Here to see more reviews about: Logicool Z Cinema USB 3-Piece Surround Sound Speaker System (Black/Silver)

Featuring SRS TruSurround HD, this Logicool Z Cinema brings explosive surround sound for movies, TV, gaming and music on your PC! This Logicool Z Cinema features a striking front glossy black color with silver trim and delivers a total of 180-watts RMS power output! The satellite speaker is equipped with an headphone for private listeing and an auxiliary input jack for connecting an MP3 player or an external audio source! The subwoofer is capable of delivering up to 110-watt RMS and features rear outputs for the satellites as well as a USB port for connecting to a PC! A remote control is included so you can easily manage your digital media on your computer! With all these amazing features, nothing can beat the quality of sound you get from this Logicool Z Cinema Surround Sound Speaker System! Order today!

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