Sony MVC-FD73 0.3MP Mavica Digital Camera w/ 10x Optical Zoom

I have used this camera extensively for over a year. I use theMavica almost exclusively for pictures at my web site. Many are shrunkfor quick download times, but you can still see the output quality.

After using the MVC-FD73 for this long there are many pros and cons that I have come up with.

Pros:

1 easy to use

2 nice LCD viewer for scrolling through previous shots

3 floppies are a very convenient reusable medium

Cons:

1 LCD viewer gets scratched easily

2 Viewer LCD hard to see in very strong outdoor light (a better camera would have an interchangeable regular viewfinder AND an LCD viewer)

3 Flash always seems too strong a lot of red eye incidents indoors

4 Has a hard time focusing in low light

5 Floppies, while convenient, are FAR too small for high res pics. Why Sony hasn't made a Zip Drive or Super Disk drive version is beyond me.

In the future I will buy another camera that clears up the problems listed above. It probably won't be a Sony since Sony's pushing proprietary media in their future digital cameras.

If you want this camera for the long haul I'd suggest doing a little more homework and being fully aware of the 5 problems I mentioned above before buying this one.

I purchased my camera (display model) when a large chain was relocating to a new store for a very good price. I had been looking for quite some time and a friend had the FD-71 and was very happy with it. So easy to use a 4th grader could immediately use. I was not looking for the features that the FD83 had as I already had a digital video camera. I really like the idea of being able to click in a floppy and start shooting and not having to hook up anything once I get home to start printing out my shots. The only disappointment to me is the low resolution. If you want to print anything larger than a 4 x 6, you loose the clarity. On a scale of 1 10, I would rate the SOny Mavica FD-73 a 9

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I purchased this camera about a month ago and still am taking pictures galore. I have read the reviews given here and I must say, I agree and disagree with some. Personally, I love the floppy disk storage. It's not hard at all to throw a few extras in just in case you need them. I love the idea of not having to use any cables or "special" programs to download my pics. I will say though, I have gotten quite a few pics. that were of poor quality (fuzzy) and then out of the blue...picture perfect. I use a photo program I bought from Walmart for $10, EZPhoto (I used it when I scanned my "old" paper photos) and I normally reduce the size of my picture A LOT to send quicker through emails. This camera does have an email feature though. Quite a few people said that you don't get a very good quality pic. for printing, but I have to say I disagree. Maybe the printer they are using is of poor quality. I have printed hundreds of pics. and everyone has enjoyed them and are so surprised they came from a print off from the digital camera. One thing that disappointed me about this camera is...for the $ you spend, you don't get a carrying case. I bought a cheap "purse" that looks like a camera case and has many compartments to carry all the extras (battery charger etc.). I spent $6 on it and it was well worth more than that. You can't tell it's even a purse. Another thing, I checked all over..stores and internet and the price of this camera does not really vary...and if there's a substantial difference in pricing somewhere..CHECK TO BE SURE YOU'RE GETTING THE BATTERY CHARGER WITH IT! I found a few places that advertised at a cheaper price and also found that the charger did not come with it...

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I have had this camera 11 months. It is very easy to handle, zoom is excellent, using ordinary discs is great, battery system fine. But very often I have been disappointed with the quality of pictures. There is simply not enough pixels. Pictures from houses for instance are good enough, from people so and so, mostly not. Near shots from flowers look little bit waxy and stiff but I have taken lots's of them. Most disappointments I have had with nature pictures, grass looks odd, too much details for such a few pixels. If I would have known this I would have choosen more pixels. Still this has been a great joy and I am hungry for a new megapixel digital camera. Before you shop try to see pictures. For e-mail and web they are OK.

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I got a Sony MVC-FD73 Mavica Digital Camera for Christmas and have used it a lot since receiving it. It is an excellent camera and I certainly would recommend it to anyone looking to purchase a Digital Camera at a reasonable price.

However, a couple of points about the camera. First, the LCD view finder gets dirty and scratched easily. There should be a cover for it when not in use. Second, it is almost impossible to see the view finder when outside in bright sunshine, making it hard to take a picture. Cannot see what you are viewing. I think it would be nice if Sony had put a regular view finder on the camera for taking outdoor pictures.

Zinwell ZAT-970A Digital to Analog TV Converter Box (for Antenna Use)

• Set-top box converts digital broadcast stations for viewing on your analog television set
• Standard RF antenna output and RCA with stereo audio outputs for connecting to your television
• Fully ATSC compliant--receives RF channels 2-69, supports all 18 broadcast formats, decodes Dolby AC-3 audio
• Parental control with V-Chip technology, lockable channels, and downloadable Rating Region tables
• Selectable aspect ratio of 4:3 or 16:9 for different TV screens

I've been playing around with three DTV converter boxes over the past three months (Magnavox DTV Digital to Analog Converter, TR-40 CRA by Dish Network, and this Zinwell), and none of them stands out above the rest. They all do about the same thing, providing excellent picture quality over their analog equivalents, and I can get 27/28 channels with a rooftop antenna in the Baltimore-Washington area. This Zinwell is the latest, and after about 2 months of testing it, here are my observations:

Pros:

It has a power button and channel buttons on the front of the box in case you misplace the remote

It displays signal intensity/quality meters each time you change the channel so you can adjust your antenna for best reception

Internal firmware is upgradeable for future updates

Built-in timer changes channels for extending the life of analog VCRs

Great picture quality

Analog pass-through (kind of)

Volume control from this remote (based on TV's current max volume)

Parental controls

Cons:

Remote control is pretty flimsy

Power cord is only 3' long so you may need an extension cord to reach a wall jack

Analog pass-through signal is not as clear as without the box

Picks up one less channel than the Magnavox on the same antenna

Built in time clock slips a few minutes over a period of weeks; annoying if you're using it to provide programming to an analog VCR

red LED to tell you it's "off" is an unnecessary waste of energy

Having spoken to others using various DTV boxes/setups, it seems like the deciding factor on how many channels you'll receive is what kind of antenna you're using. Those with rabbit ears inside the house get as few as 4-6 channels; my 18-year old stationary roof-top antenna gets 27-28 as of today.

Aug. 2011 UPDATE: It's been 3 years since I first wrote my review, and Amazon has now changed the product photo to one that looks nothing like the model I purchased in 2009. I don't understand why they wouldn't have given it a new model number if it totally changed; you may need to do some research.

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I purchased the two major timer event schedulable/programmable converter boxes available as of this date: the Zinwell and the DTVPal Plus (enhanced version of the DTVPal or TR-40 CRA). These are some of the major problems and advantages of each.

The biggest problem I have with the Zinwell is that the remote control is the flimsiest and cheapest control I have ever seen with any product. The down arrow button is already having problems responding to pressing after only a few days. It usually takes several years before buttons on a remote control begin to go bad, and I am concerned that this one will not even be working a year from now. The text labels on the buttons are rubbing off and becoming harder to read.

The biggest problem with the DTVPal Plus is the reception. The Plus is supposed to have enhanced reception over the prior models which were famous for bad reception, but in my area it gets a couple less UHF channels than the Zinwell and often has severe breakup on the ABC affiliate and two other channels (even with an amplified antenna). Perhaps this will be less of an issue if digital signals get boosted in February.

The Zinwell has 8 timer events to 5 for the DTVPal Plus. The Zinwell lacks a recurring M-F weekday scheduling option. Both devices make you go through several menus to get to the timer scheduling. The DTVPal Plus has an awkward event scheduling process that takes you through two screens. The Zinwell has its own awkwardness-it makes you choose a channel from a list of station call letters rather than channel numbers! The Zinwell also requires confirmation at the end of the timer scheduling process, and defaults to Cancel making it easy to accidentally cancel your timer event, so watch out.

If you like on-screen program guides, the DTVPal Plus has a fuller one than the Zinwell, and you can even schedule timer events direct from the program guide with the DTVPal Plus. The DTVPal Plus has an annoying download each time you turn on the converter box, but you can cancel the download.

If you get a Zinwell, do not throw out the manual. Zinwell has unfortunately set a password on some of the channel functions, so you will need to look up the default password in the manual if you try to access these functions.

Do not expect much support. Both companies took several days to respond to an inquiry and gave canned answers that did not address my question. After supplying follow-up information, neither company got back to me. There are several other issues and quirks with both devices.

(--some updated notes 9/16/2009 after a few months of using--)

The Zinwell picture quality has been nice. Occasionally, I have had an issue with the Zinwell audio and video getting slightly out of synch (as also reported by some other reviewers)-but doesn't bother me and turning off and on puts them back in synch.

The biggest problem I have had with regular use of the Zinwell is that scheduled recurring events (weekly, etc.) get messed up regularly so I have to constantly monitor them. The Zinwell loses the channel on the recurring events and resets the channel to the highest station number. (I believe this is the most commonly reported major problem with this device.) Periodically it loses the recurring events completely and they need to be reentered. One-time events also get corrupted sometimes, although less often. Even the most popular 5 star review of this box by couchbum, in the Comments link, acknowledges that the timers fail periodically.

The DTVPal Plus tends to run hot, so I have propped it up at an angle to give it some cooling space. I have had a disturbing problem a couple of times where the DTVPal Plus would not power on-had to unplug it from the power source and plug it back in again, and then it resumed working.

Since they boosted the digital signals after the transition, the DTVPal Plus weaker reception has not been a problem and it now gets all the channels that my other converter boxes get. (However, I live in an urban area and have an amplified antenna, so the weaker reception may still be a problem for many people.)

The DTVPal Plus regularly loses timer events and is very unreliable. I have found two specific sequences of timer events that cause it to consistently drop events. The DTVPal Plus timer issues have been far more numerous and problematic than those with the Zinwell. I used several VCRs over two decades and never had a device malfunction on its timer events or spontaneously change the selected channel. Not sure why it is so difficult for these digital boxes.

I get the best results with both devices by setting timers the morning of the same day as the programs. Setting timers a day or more in advance of the programs increases chances for timer event corruption.

Although the on-screen station program guide for the DTVPal Plus is robust, it has an inadequacy. The normal program guide access turns off audio and video while you are browsing the guide, so you cannot hear or watch television as you peruse it. To view television as you browse the guide, you cannot use the Guide button on the remote but must use the directional buttons to access the guide-but the guide still overlays much of the screen (semi-transparent).

In the clock settings, the Zinwell has no daylight savings on/off, while the DTVPal Plus does allow you to control daylight savings. The Zinwell has the advantage that you can manually set the time, while the DTVPal Plus does not allow you to. If you manually set the time in the Zinwell, I found it loses 1-2 minutes per week and also loses the clock time completely if power goes out even for a second (most devices will hold the time for 2-3 minutes in a power outage). I have mine on a UPS (backup battery) to keep it from losing time in a brief power outage. At least the Zinwell allows you to control the time if you want to. (Early in the digital conversion both boxes were keeping erratic time so clock options were important, but digital time signals have improved enough now that using automatic time is generally fine. This has made the options of manual time setting and daylight savings much less important but I have included this info for those interested.)

The DTVPal Plus has one bright spot: it handles poor signal quality well. The two aspects of reception are signal strength and signal quality. While the DTVPal Plus does not pick up low strength well, it does handle poor signal quality very well. There are a couple of minor stations with poor quality (but adequate strength) that my Zenith and Zinwell cannot receive but that the DTVPal Plus picks up. In my experience, it also has less dropout from other things that reduce signal quality, such as splitting the antenna feed or electrical interference.

One other small plus I have found with the DTVPal Plus: it operates from my old universal remote (as a SAT box), which allows me to control all my devices-very, very handy. None of the other converter boxes that I have will work with this old universal remote, although I have heard that some of the newer universal remotes can control converter boxes. This somewhat makes up for the fact that the DTVPal Plus has no buttons on the box and can only be operated by remote control. (However, it may be too sensitive-it also turns on when I press the fast forward button on one brand of VCR remote!)

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I only have an outdoor TV antenna. No cable or satellite. I too bought this converter for the built in timer. You can record different channels at different times while you're away from home with your VCR and TV antenna (However, you can not record one station and watch another station "at the same time"). You have to set your TV and VCR to channel 3 (always) and the timer in this converter is what you set for the time and channel to record. Make sure the clock time on the converter box matches the clock time on your VCR. Or you may miss part of your show. There is one problem that I haven't figured out yet. I hooked this converter to the TV in my living room. My outdoor antenna cable line continues on and goes to the bedroom and the TV in the bedroom only plays the channel that the converter box is on in the living room. I have 2 of these converter boxes and so I hooked the second one up in the bedroom. It receives no channel signals. Well, that didn't last long since I received my DVD recorder in the mail (Toshiba DR560 1080p Upconverting DVD Recorder with Built-in Tuner, bought on Amazon) and this DVD recorder has a built-in ATSC/NTSC/QAM digital/analog tuner. Meaning, I don't need a converter box in my living room now. This DVD recorder allows me to record one station and watch another station at the same time from my over the air, outdoor antenna. Just like a VCR. Awesome! Now the converter box works on the bedroom TV. Since the DVD recorder is allowing the signal to continue on through to the bedroom. I am a happy camper. I now have an extra converter box. Maybe I'll sell it on Amazon.

Over 3 years ago, I got rid of my cable (yes, the first 3 months was very difficult). I bought an outdoor TV antenna and lived with that for about a year. The reception wasn't good, lots of white specs or lines. Then I bought a "booster" for the antenna. A big improvement almost like receiving paid cable. This converter box allows me to receive more TV stations then the outdoor TV antenna alone. I haven't figured out yet what these stations are. I think they're cable or satellite channels. This converter box also improved the reception of all the TV stations. My new DVD recorder, as I mentioned above, also improved the reception even better then this converter box.

By the way, so far I've saved over 2 thousand dollars by getting rid of my paid cable and going to an outdoor antenna. Add up your monthly cable bill and times it by 12. That's what you're paying a year for paid cable.

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I've had my Zinwell converter box for two months and a few days ago, it simply stopped working. The unit powers up and five seconds later goes off. The real problem though is with Zinwell. When I called I went to the tech support line where I was told to leave a message only to find out the mailbox was full. After two attempts, I keyed in the customer service extension and same thing happened. THIS ISN'T BAD CUSTOMER SERVICE, IT'S ZERO CUSTOMER SERVICE. BUY AT YOUR OWN RISK.

The main reason I bought this product was for the DVR/VCR Timer. This feature allows you to program your favorite shows, and the box will automatically change channels to that show. You can then use your DVR or VCR to capture the video off the box.

Other boxes like the Zenith DTT901 have better reception capability, but lack the ability to operate with DVRs or VCRs.

The Zinwell also has analog passthru for people who will be watching Low Power or "clear air" stations after the February 2009 analog shutdown. If you're like me, and don't have any analog stations post-transition, then this feature has no real relevance.

The Zinwell's guide is rather poor, since it only tells you what program is on now, and what program will be on next hour. The Dish DTVpal has a full=featured guide upto 12 hours into the future, but I don't recommend that device due to poor quality build & software bugs that make it almost unusable.

Overall I'm satisfied with the Zinwell's DVR and VCR capability, although I still use the Zenith as my main box when watching live television.

Sony MZR70 Minidisc Recorder

• 40-second shock resistant memory and high quality recording with digital automatic gain control
• Dual headphone jack allows use of remote control while listening
• Up to 17 hours of playback with one AA battery
• Digital bass-boost for richness of sound
• Includes a remote control, connecting cable, AC adaptor, rechargable battery, carrying pouch and battery case

I've been putting off buying a portable listening device since my last '90 Aiwa tape player. But after seeing the Minidisc in action it's a definite buy and constant use gem.

First, do the math if you're seriously comparing MP3 format vs. Minidisc. A single MD at 74min costs 2 dollars at most Read/write capabilities, move tracks, edit, `tMark'=index songs, etc. You don't need a computer either use your existing AV setup to record while having the option to use PC, DVD, etc.

Sound quality? Can you say OPTICAL input. You cannot get any better sound resolution than this; any decent DVD player has an optical out; decent CD players too. RCA IN is a plus (not included) and the PC IN option is mediocre it is convenient with all the CD-R/PC/MP3 formatted music. It's got a two-stage added-bass feature that works quite well. The standard headphones are excellent an updated version with position detents for fixed fit. The remote fob device is essential for total playback+record control once your MDplayer is tucked away in the pocket. (look for the RM-MZR55 remote with backlighting if you want to upgrade)

The unit has never skipped even with major motion, jostling, or shock. I haven't done a drop-test, but I'll skip it for now. The biggest drawback is the lack of a custom case/holster for the unit; it does come with a bag, but it isn't adequate for protection or carrying with any confidence. Plus, the lack of backlighting on the main unit is a bummer.

It comes with it's own AA ni-cad battery and charger, and runs for a prolonged period of time ~ 6 hours playback, 1.5-2x as long on a regular AA. The half-sized ice cream sandwich form kicks the CD portable players to the curb. It isn't as ubiquitous as some MP3 players but why would you want to drop several dimes on something invisible. Personally, the anodized blue colored one has more impact than the silver, but the form and interface overall is a delight. The battery bulge just slightly cants the display up, the button separation and placement works great for easy access. I find excuses to block the world out and listen to high-fidelity music on the go.

Buy Sony MZR70 Minidisc Recorder Now

This mini-disc player has to be one of the best on the market today. (if not the best)It is easy to use, small in size, and much more practical than a CD burner (it's like a portable burner/player)

Positives:

#GREAT sound quality (like CD)

#easy to set up, only takes about 5 minutes

#it makes recording simple, without the need of a HUGE system attached to your home stereo

#PC USB connected

#software is already on your Windows computer

#looks cool, and is very light and rugged

#regular AA battery last 17 hours!

Negatives (there aren't very many)

#long recording time (but it goes by faster than you'd expect)

#Inserting title takes a few seconds

# included rechargeable battery last only 6 hours

Overall I give it a 5 because it was well worth the money and is better than a CD burner, MP3 player, and definitly better than a tape player!

Read Best Reviews of Sony MZR70 Minidisc Recorder Here

This is an excelent little machine. I bought mine from a friend... with 20 disks, and it's worth every penny. This little rig is small, light weight, and has excelent sound and battery life.

To start, it's small. It's about the size of the palm of your hand, with a bump on the back where the batery goes. it fits in ANY pocket, unlike most CD players. it weighs very little, so it doesnt bother you by pulling on your cloths like some CD players.

The sound is great. The only problem is that it has a low record volume, and gets fuzzy when you turn it up too much. If you have the mega bass on while you recond on high, it gets fuzzy also. At low and medium volumes though, it's got crystal clear sound (that also depends on your headphones, and what kind of music... rock is less fuzzy than Rap) I like my music LOUD. I ride a bus one way to or from school, and that gets awfull loud. I have several "buss disks" that are recorded on high volumes, and they work fine when you are being bombarded by background noise, but are a little fuzzy when you run it through a car kit or stereo. This machine has over all good sound though, and with a little fine tuning of bass and volume you get great sound.

Battery life... what can i say, it lasts. Even on regular duracells, i can get almost a whole school week on and off, and the provided rechargable battery last even longer.

Besides the sound glitches here and there, it also makes some noise. When skipping tracks, rewinding a few seconds etc. it has to think for a couple of seconds. It's not a major problem, but it is somewhat slow here and there. It will skip too. If it is riding in your pocket where it can bounce, it'll skip. Not as much as a 40 sec asp cd player though. it'll freeze for a second, then you will stop, wondering what went wrong, then it goes again. not a mojor problem, but if you jog or run, i suggest you upgrade to an MD with the same G-protection of a CD player.

For the money... it's a great buy for people who want small portable music, that can come from anywhere, (even MD to MD.)Hope this helped

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I know the item is currently out of stock, but this little machine works up to its name. The outer shell of my player/recorder is blue like the MZR90 model. I do all my recordings in half the time I'd do them with an audio cassette recorder. There's no comparison in quality and efficiency with the latter equipment.

Best features are: 1) Is very compact, it fits in my shirt pocket 2) The remote comes in handy when my coat is closed 3) It fits in a standard discman accessory case with discman 4) Included phones are enriched with amazing bass boost sound 5) The best of all is for skipping a track takes about 3 to 4 seconds. This feature is convenient for me when I only want to hear certain songs. 6) The shock absorbtion is great. Never to worry about a song skipping again. 7) The adaptor comes in handy for recording while saving on batteries 8) With accessories, you can record from phono, CD, cassette, and from your VCR hookup on the stereo. With all that, you can't go wrong. SONY has lived up to its name in quality.

My MZR70 works like a charm. I won't upgrade yet, as this machine meets my expectations. I quickly bonded with such a quality item. For someone looking for a unit with the equivalent in volume to a Discman, the Minidisc has a softer sound. You can't obtain with this unit the same volume strength as the Discman, but for the amount you can get, you have the most out of the 1.2 volt battery provided with it. If the volume is up to about 85%, it's enough for me. I say this because some songs are recorded louder than others. The battery life is normally ( 7 to 8 hrs. ).

In my accessory kit, included with the player was among others, a rechargeable Ni-Cad battery ( NC-WMAA DC 1.2V 700mAh ) that lasts the said amount. SONY does offer a DRY battery, not available here in Montreal. IF SOMEONE CAN LET ME KNOW WHERE I CAN GET ONE??? at mailto:woof1@sympatico.ca .

As soon as this item is available, get it!

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I'm surprised that mini disc hasn't caught on. It's small, you can record MP3s (the reason I wanted this in the first place), and it's easily concealable. The only problem I have is that recording takes forever, it's second-for-second (meaning that the time it takes to record is the amount of time the song lasts), and pre-recorded mini discs are hard to come by. Not even Amazon sells them. Other than that, it's a great player. I don't have this particular model, but mine's very similar. I like the fact that you can assign names to each song. Another big, big plus is the cost of the discs: $2 a piece. It doesn't skip and you can record and re-record several times over. I could go on and on about how great mini discs are...

Aiptek MZ-DV-MPEG4 Camcorder with 3x Optical Zoom

I bought this camera for backpacking, where size and space is critical and any equipment is subject to harsh conditions so expensive cameras can be a bad idea.

My main computer is a Mac, so I had some reservations about the MZ-DV, since it uses Microsoft's proprietary ASF video format. That's right: it says "MPEG-4", and MPEG-4 is indeed based on QuickTime, but the MPEG-4 standard is implemented as more of a framework than a specific codec, so any vendor who doesn't like to play ball with open standards (sound like our friends in Redmond?) can make their own proprietary variants and it's left to the consumer to sort out the confusion.

Fortunately, I found a handy little software tool called EasyWMV which is dirt cheap and does a great job of easily converting ASF files for use on a Mac with any QuickTime-based program like iMovie.

And the photo format is JPEG, requiring no conversion at all to use on any computer.

I've only had the camera a couple days, but so far it seems a good value for what it does. With all of its features at such a low price it isn't best-of-breed with any one of them, but to have them all in one convenient device is pretty nifty, and the folks at Aiptek have done a competent job with this model.

The quality of low-light video is as reported by the others here: There is a low-light setting, and it's good for pictures but the video is indeed of much lower quality. But in all fairness, I've not seen any hybrid camcorder that didn't have similar issues. You'd have to go up in price and abandon other features if shooting in low-light conditions is important to you.

So far the only limitation I've seen is the one disclosed on the packaging: when mounted on a Mac, the camera acts as a read-only volume. This means you can't load MP3s into it, or use it as a portable drive. I've written Aiptek technical support on this, and if I learn anything useful I'll post it here. I also run Windows under Parallels, and have no trouble loading MP3s and other files into the camera from there.

But aside from the download limitation, everything else on the camera works a treat, with very intuitive controls that often provide multiple ways to change modes conveniently. And with EasyWMV, it's a breeze to use video from it on my MacBook.

I would rate it higher, at least a 4, if I was using Windows primarily. But even for Mac users, if you need something inexpensive that offers these features, I shopped around and couldn't find a better model.

I got this little gadget a few days ago and I love it. I think the negative reviews have come from people who were expecting too much. For a device that does so many different things, it does them pretty darn well. Granted, it isn't GREAT at any one thing, but, face it, you have to pay a lot more for ANY device that does even one thing "great." If you are looking for professional quality videos or photos, you will have to pay a "professional" price. If you are looking for an amazing little gadget that packs a lot of functions into one little package, look no further.

For what it's worth, I took great indoor video and photos, and the pictures came out just fine.

Buy Aiptek MZ-DV-MPEG4 Camcorder with 3x Optical Zoom Now

This camcorder is terrible in just about every way:

Cons:

Unacceptably blurry video; the specs say it records at 640x480, but it looks more like 320x240 (if that!) blown up to VGA.

Noticeable aura around any dark shape on a lighter background.

Awful light sensitivity; forget about recording indoors--no matter how brightly the room is lit, faces will come out too dark. The built-in LED's don't help much (and not at all at distances over 4 feet from the subject).

Noisy zoom that gets picked up loud and clear by the microphone.

Zooming goes in irregular steps--completely useless while recording.

Video lags noticeably behind camera movement; when image stabilization is turned on, the lag becomes so atrocious that you can't tell when to stop panning--UTTERLY USELESS!

When using AV-in and AV-out cables, the firmware has frozen on me a couple of times; the only way to reset the camera was to remove the battery.

Video encoding (through the AV-in cable) produces an unacceptably noisy and undersaturated result.

The LCD display has a very narrow viewing angle; anything more than about 10% and you can't make out a thing.

Still photos taken at the native 5MP resolution come out strangely grainy and uneven--something like a "sharpen" effect gone wrong. I can get better looking pictures with my 2MP Canon Powershot A40 camera.

The manual recommends keeping the camera motionless for 2-3 seconds AFTER snapping a picture (that's on top of the 3-4 seconds it takes the thing to focus BEFORE it snaps); but you can't keep THE SUBJECT from moving, folks! Welcome to the psychedelic land of image trails...

Flash photos come out with wildly different color balance depending on the color of the background.

The manual is a sorry affair--only 17 pages long and doesn't go much beyond identifying external controls and menu options.

I could go on and on, but I'll stop now, as you probably get the picture...

Pros:

The camera body seems sturdily built; the controls also have a sturdy feel to them, as do the battery and the USB port covers. Hmm... it's the only nice thing I can think to say about it.

Maybe a child (think pre-teen) could find this "camcorder" exciting as a toy, but I don't see how it can be enough even for an undemanding person looking to capture occasional life's moments on video.

Read Best Reviews of Aiptek MZ-DV-MPEG4 Camcorder with 3x Optical Zoom Here

All I wanted when I bought this camera was something easy to use every now and then, sadly this camera fails so bad that I'm looking for something new now. I go to conventions every now and then and like to snap shots while there, however this becomes an issue with this particular camera. It may be that I'm not doing something (even though I've fiddled with all the controls) anyway when trying to film in areas with lots of people the video comes out awful. The camera attempts to focus on everything or something and you end up with all these blurs of light moving around on screen.

Then if you try to take stationary pictures your target must remain perfectly still or there will be a blurred effect to the picture. Another annoying thing about the pictures is how long it takes to take a single one. First you have to wait for the camera to focus, then you must hold down the button for a second or two, THEN after the camera makes the sound to let you know the picture is taken you must keep the camera aimed at your target or it will blur. If you are trying to take a picture of someone who is in a hurry good luck keeping them still that long.

I didn't expect this camera to be top of the line and ignored the bad reviews because of it's cheap price, however I seriously wish I had spent the extra money for an overall better camera, the only plus for this thing is that it's durable and easy to carry.

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For starters, 5+ stars to Amazon for delivering this in about 14 hours (literally) when I opted for 2-day shipping. I'm going on vacation in a week and speed was of the essence.

This is my first experience with a "hybrid" camera so I had no preconceptions.

Appearance: Sleek. High tech. So intuitive I barely opened the manual (which is good because, while at least being in English (with proper grammar and everything!), it's about as bare-bones as you can get). Attractive graphics on the menu screens with buttons/icons logically placed for maximum ease of use. And so compact -I've seen bigger cellphones.

Performance: The still photos are acceptable quality to me. There is the annoying delay between shutter press and release (and true, your hand can't move a millimeter in that time). I like how the still camera and video camera operate in the same mode (different buttons) so no need to switch back and forth in between.

Video. Well for this price, as others have noticed, the videos aren't exactly high-def. If you're in full sunlight they're more than acceptable (to me). Only minor complaint is the constant auto-focusing that can be heard on the video, but again, at this price for taking simple, fun videos I didn't have high expectations.

Lower light does create the annoying trails with movement, and this is where I encountered my first real problem: With the Night Shot feature enabled (which doesn't remove the trails, but makes the difference between normal quality and a "Ghost Hunters" effect), the camera started freezing every time I stopped recording. When it didn't freeze, the videos it did create appeared blank on the camera, and showed up on the computer but without sound (please don't stop reading at this point though).

I emailed and called tech support, desperate for a simple solution before my trip. Email was a waste of time, but I did speak to a person on the phone. He made a few (unsuccessful) suggestions, told me sending it in for repair would take much longer than the week I had before my trip, but assured me I could wait until after the trip to do so. I figured I would just shoot in daylight so I would at least have a camera.

After experimenting a lot, I made some discoveries of my own: My previous attempts were on an A-Data "turbo" SDHC and a Kingston regular SD card. Using a Hewlett Packard SDHC "high-speed" card, the problem seemed to resolve -as long as I made sure to aim the camera somewhere stationary when I stopped recording. My theory is trying to simultaneously auto-focus and stop recording probably overwhelms the camera (or the card? These aren't top-of-the-line cards as I didn't want to spend tons of money if it didn't work out). It's the best I can come up with, having no experience, but at least I know if I HAVE to record in lower light it's not completely impossible.

The biggest reason I chose the MZ-DV was for the media player. It seemed like the perfect way to travel light and still bring along videos to watch on the plane. This is what makes this camera exciting. Getting the computer file to the camera is involved, but well worth it. (Again, this was learned through dogged trial-and-error, the manual is purely decorative): It has to be converted to an .asf type, which can be done with the handy bundled software. You also can't rename the file, it has to stay in the "CLIP0001" etc. format -a bit of a pain for locating later, but those are the rules. I needed tech support again for this revelation, but I was just so happy to get it working I didn't really care. Then you drag and drop into the removable drive/DCIM/100MEDIA folder and voila! Instant portable DVD player.

Recording from a DVD is much easier, though takes longer since obviously it has to be done in real time. Just the fact that it's possible is pretty thrilling.

Watching the video isn't trouble-free. I've noticed if you attempt to fast-forward or rewind you lose audio/video synchronization, and of course any kind of "resume from last stop" feature is too much to expect for this price. Last night I realized using the camera's external speakers also results in audio/visual mismatch, but using headphones fixes it. Quite a quirky machine (perhaps too quirky for some).

I haven't tried the mp3 player yet, I'm more of a video fan. If that disappoints, it's not like my iPod Nano takes up so much luggage space.

The battery life seems respectable. I played with it off and on for at least a couple of days before it ran out. It took awhile to recharge (about 3 hours). I don't know if that will go down over time, but spares are pretty cheap from the manufacturer's site (aiptek.com).

The bundled software is half useless (ArcSoft PhotoImpression and Muvee autoProducer), 1/4 useful (ArcSoft Media Card Companion for extracting files to the computer) and 1/4 essential (ArcSoft Media Converter, for converting files to the correct format to use in the camera).

Customer service: Very satisfactory. I had to sit on hold to get one, but both times they were very helpful and friendly. I think it's a little rare these days to even get a person when dealing with off-brand products.

Conclusion: For the price, the versatility of this camera repeatedly amazes me. Playing with it and figuring out all that it can do is extremely fun. "Fun" is the operative word here. I wouldn't use this to film someone's wedding professionally (or your child's first steps, just in case). But for a couple of days in the Big Apple with not much luggage space, I think this is just about the perfect machine.

Royal Machines EZVue 8V Electronic Organizer PDA with 3MB Memory and 6-Line RoyalGlo Backlit Display

The product is very cheaply made. I have an ezvue6 that has last me 3 years and it's made more solid this this thing. There's no touch screen, you have to press the arrow buttons HARD and they won't take you back to another selection. you have to turn it off then turn it back on and start over. Royal has really gone downhill on this thing. This is NOT worth $30. try $10 at toys-r-us and label it "5 years and under".

The EZVUE8V is the most miserable piece of junk I have ever used. Every day it starts with "battery low" and requires two more. It will not schronize with my computer or any other. Instructions are useless and I will most certainly return it. I have been using hand held organizers for almost 20 years but not any that will work with the computer. This one doesn't work either Royal EZVUE8V Personal Digital Assistant

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I bought this product locally from Wal-Mart and it didn't last three months. "Pieces" of the display disappear making your entries unreadable. I have written to Royal Corp. and they have not even had the decency to respond. If I had the sales receipt at this time, I'd return it to the store and demand my money back for this piece of ****. Don't buy this item, you are wasting your money and time.

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I AVOIDED BUYING THISUNIT FOR SOME TIME AND BLEW A LOT OF $15 UNITS UNTIL I CAME BACK TO IT.

I LIKE ROYAL AND LOVE LOVE THIS ORGANIZER!!!! IT'S LIKE A PDA OR MORE, A SMART PHONE WITHOUT

PAYING THE PRICE.

READ THE MANUAL AND CONFIGURE THE UNIT STEP-BY-STEP.

DON'T FORGET THAT A LOT OF THE BUTTONS MENTIONED ARE ON THE KEYPAD.

IT IS VERY EASY TO LEARN HAS TONS AND TONS OF PROGRAMS--AND IT HAS SOFTWARE

THAT WILL WORK WITH WINDOWS. THE SOFTWARE IS TERRIFIC FOR NIGHT TIME LARGE INFORMATIONS.

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The EZVue 8V was a substitue for an old Rolodex electronic address book that was starting to go. After looking at different products I chose the EZVue. It seemed to have more stuff than I needed, and it worked pretty well. I did not like the fact that it went through my rechargeable AAA batteries like nothing. I had left it sitting for about 2 weeks, deciding whether I wanted to keep it and when I turned it on the batteries were dead. It also used the batteries when I was loading the information onto the unit. I ended up returning this baby. My old Rolodex had watch batteries that lasted years. I would have kept it if the batteries lasted longer.

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Belkin NetCam HD Wireless IP Camera for Tablet and Smartphone with Night Vision and Digital Audio (

I have a half dozen different wifi cameras in my house. This is the easiest to set up. It has you create an adhoc wifi network with you iphone, then it simply attaches itself to your wifi network. It all runs through an iphone app. The antenna is internal, so not very good.

The camera gives a decent picture looks pretty HD to me. Colors are accurately reproduced.

The app is not optimized for the iphone 5, so it clips the top and bottom. There is no dedicated ipad app, so only a tiny window iphone emulation.

I cannot figure out how to access the camera using other software I can only get it to work through the Belkin app.

The app itself is pretty bare bones. There are no brightness controls. There is no portrait orientation (only landscape). You cant even pinch to zoom. Audio streaming is patchy at best maybe due to a weak signal. When recording video, the frame rate drops to an unusable level.

The app allows you to do motion detection, but that is completely useless. Even at the least sensative setting it detects every minor movement of a cloud changing the lighting in the room a tiny bit. And the emails it sends you are all have the incorrect time in the subject unless you happen to be in CA, which the camera knows I am not.

I give this three stars. It has potential to be four or even five if the software were improved.

The setup was very easy, so that is a major plus.

This was incredibly easy to set up, and the only thing I am using it for is to see who is at the front door (I live in an upstairs apartment). The camera is fairly well-suited to that task, and it seems to stay connected just fine with my iPhone 4, but I'm not actually using it that often or asking that much of it. The video quality suffices to show me whether it's the UPS driver or a person here to give me a copy of Watchtower.

What the camera supposedly *does* but doesn't do well:

It's not good for video chatting. The video quality, while supposedly HD, is considerably worse than the front camera on my iPhone 4, and audio is lousy.

Motion sensitive security: way too sensitive and annoying.

Recording video: Nope. It's like a strobe sequence in a horror movie. Just, nope.

Bottom line -> this is not a good value in an IP camera. As of this writing, it is every bit as expensive as the higher quality cameras that are available. If it were selling for about 1/3 of its current price, I would add a star for value. At its current price, it gets three stars for mostly serving its purpose.

Buy Belkin NetCam HD Wireless IP Camera for Tablet and Smartphone with Night Vision and Digital Audio ( Now

Love how all the Belkin people have rushed in to thumbs-down my review. Typical.

Let's begin. First off all, this is not made by Belkin. It's an off-label brand that they have rebranded as their own. Yet it actually has less functionality than the off-label product.

Pros:

The video preview quality is decent. That's it.

Cons:

The software crashes all the time.

A 3-second animation plays every time you open the app, even if the app was just idle!

The camera keeps losing the connection to the iPhone app, so you need to quit the app and relaunch it constantly.

The video recording on the software is limited to about 2 frames per second.

The buttons for recording or taking a photo have childish sounds attached to them and they can NOT be turned off. Even if you put your phone on silent.

The recording of video stops at random places, probably caused by notifications on your phone.

You have to sign up for their service, giving them a username, email and password in order to use the camera. There is NO way around this. This means at any time Belkin can watch your camera!! Now wait a minute, you think this won't ever happen? After I sent 3 emails through the app to Belkin, a notice popped up on the screen of my iPhone stating:

Logged out!

There has been a log-in of the same

username and password from

another computer device.

They were looking at my camera!!!!

SEE the photo I added above!!

I sent it back within 3 hours. You will too.

Read Best Reviews of Belkin NetCam HD Wireless IP Camera for Tablet and Smartphone with Night Vision and Digital Audio ( Here

PRO:

Night vision is excellent with this camera. Visibility can be set to day/night or auto and the camera will automatically switch when the light level is too low for normal vision.

Responsiveness is quick...movement on the camera is reflected in the mobile app within about 2 seconds, and does not have any significant lag time.

Application works on both apple and android products, and is quick and easy to install and use app is fast and has all the relevant configuration options for the camera plus live view and share.

CON:

Like other network cameras this one can't be connected to a home surveillance system like a webcamxp or ispy camera device. It creates its own wireless network (which you can't completely customize), and so you must use the Belkin app in order to view the video. This is a huge downside if you already have a home camera solution and just want to add a night-vision camera to it. So if you have a solution, this is a second solution vs. an add-on.

Installation is very quick and easy the camera creates a wireless network that you connect to and configure using the interface, plus the app that you download from either iTunes or Google Play allows for configuration. You can turn audio on/off and quality settings as well.

We accidentally left the phone connected to the camera's wi-fi network after config and wondered why we had no internet access just remember to connect it to your home wi-fi and then move back to your normal setup. You might have to look at the channels of your wi-fi network and move things around so you don't have overlaps, because the camera default isn't configurable as far as I have found. That's another CON for me. I like to fully customize anything on my network, right down to the nitty-gritty.

I took two points away for the network inflexibility...otherwise the quality of the camera is very good and in both day and night mode it provides a clear picture with very smooth quality over a mobile connection (4G and wi-fi tested).

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Wow i saw the other reviews, but thought, surely it can't be that bad. It is. The app has virtually no functions and no options. I thought, well, that's okay, I can use it with IPCamView or even Blue Iris on my computer BUT NO it is NOT COMPATIBLE with any other software and apps that almost every other IP camera is compatible with. WHY? Why did they choose to limit it like this and render it virtually unusable. You can't even adjust the image, or set motion detection zones. Also, when viewing in full screen on their website, the picture is not clear doesn't look HD at all. It may be clearer on a tablet, but you cant zoom into to see a particular detail and a phone and tablet have small screens, so it's hard to say if it really is HD quality also the colors are very washed out to the point of almost being black and white.

The app is so basic that you can only log in, and view the camera. If you go into settings you can turn the audio on or off, turn the IR on or off, turn image auto adjust on or off, and set emails on or off and that's pretty much it! This camera and it's pitiful app mean that it is only good for real time viewing forget about it if you want to record anything automatically or use it for any kind of home security. Maybe Belkin will wise up and add some better features in the future, but as it is, this camera is really not good for much other than viewing real time activity. And because it's not compatible with other software besides Belkin's own, you can't use it to mix and match with other cameras in your home security system. Trendnet and Foscam both have similar cameras that have all the features this is missing. IE the ability to record to SD card or computer when motion is detected, the ability to use it with any software and app that you prefer and I believe both of them are similar, if not cheaper in price than this Belkin. I may be trying one of those two for my next WIFI camera. The logitech alert cameras are more expensive, but also have a much higher feature set than this, as well as really nice desktop software for recording activity and scheduling alerts, etc.

Motion detection alerts seem to work okay and it will email you two frames at the time it is triggered, but again, since this is meant for phone/tablet use only, why only email alerts? There should be an option to have it send push notifications so you can look right away and not have to wait for an email to come thru. And without it having the capability to automatically record when motion is detected, it is useless unless you happen to be able to drop everything and go into the app and press the record button. If someone breaks into your house forget it, you cannot have it record them ripping off your stuff so you can give the video to the police. This makes it basically a glorified nanny cam or pet cam. And if that's all you want it for, I would get something a lot cheaper than this.

Also, at this price point, I feel like it should have an sd card slot to record motion events to, but unfortunately it does not.

These Belkin cameras seem to be released prematurely they advertise easy setup, and sure that is true, it is easy to setup because they are so limited in functionality. I think they are planning on these cameras as part of a whole home automation system, but right now I would say they are in pre-beta stage and have a lot of work to do they are starting out with less than other makers have had available for years. I'll be interested to see if they improve functionality of these over time.

It does deserve at least one star, because it is so simple to setup that any novice user can do it, and for those that don't want to have to mess with port forwarding, dynamic dns, etc but still want to view their camera from anywhere, then maybe this is the best option and they won't mind all the missing features.

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Smoke Detector Hidden Spy Camera DVR with motion detection, Wi-fi n, Recording & Remote Internet Ac

Arrived very fast. Other than the power connector on the back of the unit, it looks just like ordinary smoke detector, even up close. Installation was a breeze. The picture quality is excellent. I have been using it for over two months now, no complaints, very happy with my purchase.

Philips CDR775BK Dual-Deck Audio CD Recorder

• For use only with "audio" or "music" CD-Rs--will not work with data CD-Rs; 74-minute discs recommended over 80-minute
• Dual-output DJ mode allows you to operate both decks simultaneously
• High-speed (2x) and normal-speed dubbing
• Disc title entry and storage
• Coaxial and optical digital-audio inputs and outputs; stereo analog inputs and outputs; copies DTS- and HDCD-encoded CDs

I bought this model from Circuit City which offered a free 30-pack of Memorex 80 minute CDRs. Along with a $50 rebate I was excited about being able to record tapes, records, and copies of my favorite CDs. Well, after having problems like not finalizing CDRs automatically and just stopping in the middle of a song frozen with no option but to turn the unit off and then on again to get any functions to work (not to mention rendering alot of CDRs useless and a waste of my time), I took it into Circuit City after having it for just over a month. Since Circuit City's policy is no refunds after that, I took it in to be repaired at one of their service centers. They had it for almost 3 weeks and replaced the CBA recorder in it. Not too long after I got it back the same occured and I brought it back again and after the same amount of time, another CBA recorder had been replaced. The problems continued. I finally called Philips customer support to discover that 80 minute CDRs are not compatible with this model. Now why would Circuit City give free 80 minute CDRs with a model that's incompatible? They say they didn't know and eventually gave me 30 TDK 74 minute CDRs after I contacted the company online. Also, why doesn't Philips tell you this in the manual? How is one to know? Actually, it does make very good recordings when it's working right(the only reason I give it a generous 2 out of 5). However, it still freezes up during a song once in a while, even with 74 minute CDRs and you have to shut it off and on just to get the wells open. Forget about your recorded CDR at that point, it's useless and a waste of time and money. Like some others who have said negative things about the customer support, I pretty much got the same kind of useless advice. This model has problems, and I think Philips has a tough time with damage control issues. If you buy this model, expect the real possibility of having to deal with these problems. As for me, if the problems continue to persist regularly, I'll be looking into another brand, but this time I'll research better. The amount of frustration, waste of time, and money on wasted CDRs just isn't worth it. Although I'm surprised how many reviewers actually liked it, isn't it amazing how many also had similar problems?

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I've had the Philips CDR775 for about a year now. I love the ability to record CDs, but I think maybe I should have shopped around for a better product.

My biggest complaint with Philips is that their support is awful. They have idoits with no training answering the phones. You can actually hear them reading through the same notes you can find on the web. Call with a complex problem and they ask dumb questions like "are your cables plugged in?"

My second complaint is that with fast dubbing, the deck adds a half second of blank time between tracks. Therefore, don't bother copying a continuous play CD. They sound really bad.

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In the 1 week of ownership of this model I have had several frustrating days and phone sessions with the Philips girls on the customer "help" line. Finally I was able to break through to a technician named O'Neil who gave me the clue which helped me make 9 successful external recordings from vinyls and cassette tapes so far, and makes me feel safe in keeping the unit. The secret? He said this model is NOT ABLE TO HANDLE OVER 74 min.(including the finalization time) of the 80 min. disks. Yes, I finally found Philips disks at Sears. However, the local authorized Philips repair shop uses only Memorex and never heard that they won't work. They are not aware of the 74 min. limit, or of the requirement to use Philips disks. Neither is the dealer at Circuit City. If Philips would tell their DEALERS of this highly kept secret, they would not have so many returned "out of the Box" units on the shelf (which this was one of several) or so many unhappy purchasers.I hope this information is helpful for your particular problem.

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I found the connections very easy to hook-up. The manual was a bit confusing though. What was a pain, was to record selected tracks off another cd. There are a few steps that if you mess up on any one of them, you will accidentally record the wrong tracks. I did also have some defective tracks once later finalized and played back. When it would reach the defective track it wouldn't recognize it, then the playback would stop. If I bypassed the track, all would be fine. Other than that, I have had very pleasing results with the CD's I've made. It would be nice though if you could record on any CD-R, as I have many computer-ready CD-Rs that are now usless to me.

This is a fine product when it works and that's the catch. Sometimes it will and sometimes it won't. The directions are adequate if you are comfortable with electronics equipment. Otherwise, you have to trust your intuition. The first unit I received arrived already broken. The second one has provided me with two months of alternative pleasure and maddening frustration. [Right now the machine cannot read a disc I just recorded on it.] It can be a nightmare trying to get it to work properly at times. When it does work, it can be a joy. But I would rather have something that is reliable. It is apparent to me that Philips has issued a product with some real quality control probles. I would not buy it again and am already searching for a replacement.

DC DXG-202V Tapeless Digital Video Camera

This camera is barely usable as a video camera. First off, you need a LOT of light when capturing video... daylight or close to it.

Other not so great features:

Video frame rate is no better than 15fps at 320 x 240 (as stated in the manual) The best I've seen in the tests I've done so far is around 10 12fps. Marginal at best, and certainly not video camera quality.

The battery/memory slot door is flimsy; it looks like it'll break after a handful of uses.

no optical zoom. Digital zoom is a useless gimmick.

no mounting options at all, so you can't use it on a tripod.

The camera has some nice features, though.

It's compact

The pop-up LCD screen is not bad.

the built-in microphone captures sound well.

If you need a small, cheap digital camera that produces average still photos, marginally useful video and good sound capture... then this camera may suit you.

Many other regular digital cameras in this price range have better digital camera features (optical zoom, better lens) and can capture short movie clips that are as good (or as bad) as this camera. They're probably a better choice.

I bought this little unit as a take-anywhere video camera to record those day-to-day, once-in-a-lifetime moments of my child that you usually only catch as a memory in your head. It's not the camera you want to use for big events like birthdays or holidays, because the video quality is not good enough. But it's perfect for casual outings to the park, or places you may not want to take your expensive video equipment.

It easily fits in my pocket, so no matter where we're going, I take it along. And since it was so cheap, I don't have to worry about breaking it. I even take it close to the pool--although it is NOT waterproof or water resistant.

It does not give the same high-quality video as my expensive miniDV tape camcorder, or my expensive Canon S2 IS digital camera, but the quality is sufficient for the price.

I can take tons of video on my 512 meg SD card (I calculated 45 minutes on the highest resolution), but have yet to use all of the card in one outing) and then I can upload it to my child's website, or burn it onto a DVD.

Some people have complained about the battery/sd card door, but although it is hard to close, I don't anticipate it ever breaking.

PROS:

Inexpensive.

Small enough to take just about anywhere.

Super-long battery life (using nimh rechargeables).

No tapes!!

Records in easy-to-edit avi files.

CONS:

Results are poor if the camera is moved around too quickly while filming. Sometimes you get a "warp" effect if you move too much, too quickly.

No lens cap.

Awkward handling since the lcd screen flips up rather than swinging out to the side as in a typical camcorder.

Terrible in low-light conditions.

In the month that I've owned it, I've captured lots of memories that I would otherwise never been able to see again or share with others.

I was skeptical about it when I purchased it, but this thing is a keeper!

Buy DC DXG-202V Tapeless Digital Video Camera Now

The Mustek DV4000 doesn't come close to the DXG-202v camera. The Mustek feels cheap, the case is cheap, and the movies come out fairly blurry. The photos on the Mustek over-emphasize the color red and are pixely down to VGA (640x480). However, the DXG-202V has a small fold out LCD screen, a firm case design, the photos are very similar to a 2MP CCD camera and the movies come out very clear. And, unlike the Mustek's line of MPEG4 cams, the DXG-202v uses the MJPEG AVI file format which WORKS FOR MAC, TOO! I use my DXG-202v in iMovie and QuickTime. And the last wonderful thing about this cam is that it's a fraction of the price of a Mustek DV4000 camera. The only thing I would change about this cam is that instead of a smooth zoom in video mode, it seems to zoom choppy; other than that I am very happy with this camera.

Read Best Reviews of DC DXG-202V Tapeless Digital Video Camera Here

I LOVE THIS LITTLE CAMERA!I have sent back 2 mustek dv3000 cameras,the pictures were blury and grainy and it was so hard to download the pictures.The pictures taken with this camera were crisp and clear,and easy to download.If you want a low priced camera that takes decent pictures,this camera is for you.

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I just bought this camera and let me say the features are endless. It's a 2MP digital, video camera, audio recorder (wav format), mass media storage device, and a webcam all in one. Clear video, crisp pictures. People say there is no zoom in video mode and this is not true. This is a great camera for the price!

Opteka Gold Plated high speed HDMI to mini-HDMI 6' Cable For Canon Vixia HF M30, M31, M32, M40, M41

not much to expand on, but i will say this cable has done exactly what it is supposed to do. if you're looking to transfer files from a camcorder or camera at high speeds....this is the cable for you

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Audio-Technica ATR2100-USB Cardioid Dynamic USB/XLR Microphone

• Handheld dynamic microphone with USB digital output and XLR analog output
• USB output connects to your computer for digital recording, while the XLR output connects with your sound system conventional microphone input for use in live performance
• Smooth, extended frequency response ideally suited for podcasting, home studio recording, field recording, voiceover, and on-stage use
• Built-in headphone jack allows you to directly monitor your microphone output without audible delay
• Cardioid polar pattern reduces pickup of unwanted sounds from the sides and rear
• Dynamic Microphone With Usb Digital Output & Xlr Analog Output
• Usb Output Connects To Computer For Digital Recording, While The Xlr Output Connects With Sound System'S Conventional Microphone Input For Use In Live Performance
• Built-In Headphone Jack With Volume Control

This microphone is quickly becoming a standard for podcasters. It can be used without a mixer or preamp by connecting it to a computer with a USB cable. If you want to use it with a mixer, it also has XLR output. Both the USB and XLR outputs can be used at the same time.

The mic's sound is excellent. The podcaster's microphone of choice and justifiably so is the Heil PR40. It's the one that Leo Laporte uses on his Internet and radio shows. If you can afford a PR40, buy one. However, if you want to save some money and get a fabulous value, buy this mic. It's cheaper than a Shure SM58, a Blue Snowball, or Audio Technica AT2020, and it sounds better.

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I bought 2 of these mics to use as guest mics on my podcast and I'm floored by their sound quality. I have a Shure SM7B mic costing 7 times as much as this mic and although I like the Shure a little better, I'm sure that this is because of my investment. The ability to work with both USB and and XLR is another great plus.

The sound quality is amazing for a mic in this price range and in my opinion is equal to other mics costing at least triple the price. Unlike another rater, I haven't had any problems with my mics using the USB or a mixer.

This mic is cheap enough to buy as just a Skype mic, but also good enough to work well with podcasting, and by this I mean head and shoulders over some other cheap mics like the Blue Snowball. Also, because it is a dynamic mic it also cuts down on the background noise.

Please don't feel that this is some sort of starter mic, it isn't. Even for triple the price it would still be the best sounding mic in my humble opinion. Also, my Mackie mixer has no problem powering this mic and does so easily, plus it works great on USB mode.

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The microphone is responsive and clear, but don't confuse yourself about the USB connection. Just because the mic has USB out does NOT mean it's a USB microphone. This microphone requires drivers to work, and hence it won't work on systems you can't install drivers on, eg. the Xbox and other various electronics. It may seem minor, but it's half of what I bought this mic for. Other than that, it's a great mic, but it's silly that something so simple needs drivers.

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The microphone was delivered a week early, and was an excellent buy. The mic is used for podcasting and just perfect for the job. Works perfectly on either my iMac or iPad.

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I use this mic for podcasting, and I am very pleased with the quality for a $40 microphone. I run the USB output straight into my Apple MacBook Air MD224LL/A 11.6-Inch Laptop (NEWEST VERSION) (with linein, soundflower and audacity so I can record Skype calls using the mic). It's completely plug and play with the Mac. If you speak at a normal conversational level, the levels may seem a bit low, but there is just about zero noise, so you can amplify it fearlessly and get fine results. Speaking with more of a stage voice or singing into it will results in higher levels if you want.

My only complaints are minor: the desk stand that comes with it is a little cheesy and light weight, so I can't mount my pop filter to it, and you definitely need a pop filter. You may want to get your own desk stand. Also, the blue LED light stays on even when you have the microphone switched off. Would that the LED changed color or went off when the switch was off.

SAMSUNG YP-U1X 512MB USB MP3 Player

• Lightweight multi-format digital audio player with LCD
• 512 MB memory holds 8 hours of MP3 and 16 hours of WMA audio
• Compatible with MP3, WMA, ASF, WAV, and Ogg Vorbis
• Integrated voice recorder; 8 EQ presets; 9-band user EQ controls
• Internal rechargeable battery with up to 13 hours of life

I have a Samsung YP-MT6Z that I use often, but was intrigued by the new design and the new features that this YP-U1 offered, so I opted to purchase the 512 meg model.

Since I'm a very heavy audio book listener, two new features (ones not offered in the YP-MT6Z) in particular appealed to me.

Adjustable Search Speed

Adjustable Skip Interval

Fellow audio book listeners can probably appreciate those two functions. Sometimes you get audio books that have tracks every 3 minutes or so, but others may have entire sections of the book divided into very large chunks, say 70 or more minutes long.

When they are in huge chunks like that (I have had one book that was provided in segments that were 240 minutes long each), you may have to do quite a bit of fast-forwarding, and depending on the configuration, that can be a pretty slow process.

Many players only offer a single, fixed fast-forward speed and only allow skipping forward on a track by track basis. The Samsung YP-U1X, however offers adjustable settings for search and skip.

Search Speeds include 1, 3, 5, 10, 15, 20, 30 and 60 seconds

Skip Intervals include 1 Track, 5, 10, 15, 30 and 60 seconds, as well as 3, 5 and 10 minutes

With these options, even the most demanding user should be able to find a setting that works well for them. Two fantastic additions that I wish every MP3 player had.

Another feature that I really like is the RESET button. Anyone who is familiar with Samsung MP3 players may be aware of an ongoing problem regarding corrupt SETTINGS.DAT files. The units scan the folders at startup to ensure it has a proper read of what is on the device, and frustratingly, at times, that index seems to get corrupted and cause the unit to auto-shutdown and restart when you navigate from track to track, for example.

When this happens with the YP-MT6Z, I have had to plug the unit into the PC and either delete the SETTINGS.DAT file and then allow it to recreate one from scratch after disconnecting the device and restarting it, or transfer a previously backed up SETTINGS.DAT file from the hard drive on my PC to the root folder on the YP-MT6Z. The latter method allows me to preserve the user settings and preferences, and assuming the playlist in that SETTINGS.DAT file is different enough from the file and folder structure on the device, will force a re-indexing of the content, which seems to accomplish the fix as well.

Well, with the YP-U1, all you have to do is activate the reset button (like with a pen or paper clip) and it takes care of the first method for you. That is a very sleek little solution, which I can appreciate, even if I wish they would still correct the corruption problem in firmware. Until they do, however, the reset button solves the issue nicely.

The built in USB connector (with a spiffy flip-out design) is simply genious and one of those things that can make you ask "Why doesn't EVERY manufacturer do it that way?"

One of the reasons I like Samsung players so much is because they require no drivers and no special software. They have no fancy copy protection restrictions either. You just plug the device into your USB port and it shows up as a standard, FAT-formatted (FAT-32 I think) storage device. No muss, no fuss.

I prefer the FOLDER method of storage and navigation to those that rely on MP3 tags, because I guess it seems a very logical extension of what you can do with computer hard drives. Some players (like Sandisk) seem to have issues with tags and others handle version 1 and 2 tags inconsistently.

With the Samsung, you can easily make a folder, copy your files into that folder and they are compartmentalized and stored sequentially based on the file name. If you number your tracks 01-99 or 001-999 or whatever (music or audio books) it will play them in order for each of the folders you create.

So, if you have 3 audio books on the player and are ready to listen to the trilogy, you can create a folder structure like:

\BOOK1

\BOOK2

\BOOK3

and in each of those 3 folders, you can have individual files named CHAP-01, CHAP-02, CHAP-03... etc. and they all play in order for each book.

I also appreciate that you can delete files (one at a time) directly from the MP3 player if you want. That way, after you listen to a chapter or two, you can delete them to free up room for the built-in voice recorder, for example.

You can even format the built-in storage right from the menus for those times when you just have to have the free-space for recording a lecture or something. And unlike some flakey and tempermental navigation methods like those on the Creative Labs Zen line, the Samsung relies on easy to use mechanical buttons. Not likely you'll overshoot the target menu with this method, which I do all the time with touch-sensitive units.

Bottom line is this thing puts the iPod Shuffle to shame. It has a very easy to read 4 line display that is the same size and very similar to (though not quite as bright as) the YP-MT6Z. I can't imagine running a player without a screen, and the monochrome display (dark blueish text on a white/light-blueish background) does a great job of helping you get the most from your player.

For $69-$79 for the 512 meg version, I'd be all over this thing, cause the Shuffle just can't hold a candle to it, imo.

If you prefer a unit with a standard replaceable battery, you can snag the Samsung YP-MT6 or the newer YP-C1 lines, which get like 40+ hours from a single AA battery.

But if you don't mind an internal rechargeable battery, this thing is a fantastic choice, I believe.

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So far, for the price I paid, this seems like a far better deal than the iPod Shuffle that was its competition.

Sound is good, operation is straightforward: it works like a flash drive, just copy your MP3 folders in and you're good to go.

The one sticking point I have found is that it is finicky about which USB sockets it will work in. It wants a socket with a good power supply, which means that it won't work in unpowered USB hubs. It won't work in the USB ports on the front of my computer, for instance, but will work just fine in the ports on the back of the computer. Likewise, it doesn't like the USB port on the keyboard of my Mac at work, and gives a "USB Low Power Notice."

Under Windows, plugging it into a USB port without enough power causes the Device Manager dialog to flash on and off, apparently because the electronics aren't working 100%. You get the same behavior in the dialog that lets you shut down removable devices before ejecting them.

When in doubt, use the USB ports in the back of your computer that are part of the motherboard.

Aside from that one issue, though, I'm pretty happy with it.

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1. It's almost exactly the same size as an iPod Shuffle.

2. The 4-line display is clear and bright with white backlit LCD.

3. Multi-lingual support (14 languages) for both menu and Mp3 tags -pretty nifty.

4. Built-in rechargeable battery, charges in a USB port.

5. The USB jack "flips" out so there's no cap to lose.

6. The menu controls are pretty intuitive.

7. The build quality is very good.

I would recommend the Samsung YP-U1X over the iPod Shuffle. It is just so much more versatile a product with an LCD screen.

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I don't have a ton of experience with portable audio players but I knew what I wanted: an inexpensive flash player that could play ogg vorbis files (an open source audio format) as well as mp3s. The Samsung YP-U1 definitely fits that bill and the sound quality was surprisingly good (though obviously, dependent on encoding quality -I tried up to ogg Q8).

After using it about a week, I've discovered some quirks and features, good and bad, you might want to know about.

GOOD

Very small. Fits in my car's ashtray.

Nice sound quality using included earbuds, at least with ogg files.

USB jack is incorporated into device itself and used to both charge the battery and transfer files. There are no dongles or AC adapters to keep track of.

Interface and LCD screen are fairly intuitive and natural to use, while not being up to the iPod standard. (Though really this device is competing with the iPod Shuffle which has no screen at all..)

Included software rips CD's efficiently to ogg, mp3, or other formats and adds basic ID3 tags.

Software also has subscription to the Gracenote music recognition service, so songs were identified correctly even from homemade mix CD's -this was very convenient.

Player functions as a standard FAT32 flash drive. You can copy files to and from the device manually. You can also save and edit non-music files, etc.

Voice record feature is handy, though sound quality is obviously not the greatest with the tiny condenser mic.

BAD

The music management software is fairly primitive in the way it organizes music both on the PC and on the player... in folders rather than with tags. Multiple playlists can be created on the PC, but only one (completely different) playlist can exist on the flash player.

SUGGESTION

If you want the highest sound quality and the best file naming/ID3 tagging, you might want to use some other ripping and/or music management software and then just manually place your music on the player.

All in all, this player seems like a good value if your main goal is just to listen to some tunes and keep things simple.

I think that the mp3 is a much better product than the I-pod because it stores up to 128 songs, and it is a much more manageable product than the I-pod. The I-pod has a very large storage base, which is really useful to any lover of music because you can store all your albums. There is a disadvantage with the I-pod because even though it stores up to 10,000 songs; most people who own one of these products would waste half their time hunting for the song that they really wanted to listen to. There is much more point in spending money on an mp3 as you can download the songs you want and if you get bored of one song, then you can always delete it and put on a new song that you like. The mp3 is a much more practical product as you don't waste time in looking for a song that you really like.

Panasonic DMR-ES10S DIGA Series DVD Recorder , Silver

• Single-disc DVD player/recorder with DVD-RAM, DVD-R/RW, and DVD+R recording capabilities
• Plays DVD-Video, DVD-Audio (2-channel only), DVD+RW, video CD, MP3 CD, and JPEG image CD
• Progressive-scan video output renders seamless, flicker-free images on high-definition and HD-ready TVs
• Video enhancements include Visibility Modulation technology, integrated noise reduction (NR), and 4x Natural Gradation
• Measures 16.9 x 2.5 x 13.9 inches (W x H x D)

Don't tell my girlfriend, but I think I'm in love.

I picked this unit up yesterday, so this is obviously a very preliminary review, and I'll update it later if my opinion changes, but this seems like a real winner. And at a list price of $200, a real steal also.

After buying (and returning) one pile-of-junk DVD recorder, I did a fair amount of research and found many horror stories and much dissatisfaction ... except for the Panasonic DMR-E55 (and slightly different models), which almost everyone here and at videohelp.com loved. However, it did have some difficulties for my intended use, in particular that it only wrote to write-once discs and to DVD-RAM. Now DVD-RAM seemed slick as a greased weasel, allowing the DMR-E55 to do TIVO-like tricks such as starting to record a show while you're out, getting home midway through and then watching the beginning while it's still recording the end, but if you wanted to watch the resulting disc on a standard DVD player, or to use your computer to make copies or transfer to hard drive for editing, you were out of luck (or would have to buy a DVD-RAM supporting drive). Plus, forget archiving stuff on DVD-RAM, even for use on Panasonic machines, since they run $4+ per disc.

Nevertheless, with a somewhat heavy heart and plenty of reservations, I decided the E55 was what I'd go for, the least-bad solution, so I hied me down to Best Buy thinking I'd probably come home with one. Alas, they only had a display unit left, with no box, no remote, etc. But the sales guy sort of offhandedly mentioned, "Well, we did get this new model in, there's a stack of them over there." We opened up a box, checked the manual to make sure it had all the nifty features of the E55, and in a kind of daze I walked out with one, all the qualms and the feeling of settling for something that might be a pain-in-the-neck gone.

I spent yesterday afternoon and evening playing with it, and what can I say ... it just works, smoothly and efficiently. I obviously have tried only a portion of the features and possibilities [and of course can't say anything about long-term reliability], but this new machine gets around some of the difficulties with the old E55. It seems like Panasonic was actually listening to the complaints, and came up with solutions ---

-except for the not widely supported DVD-RAM, the E55 only recorded to DVD-R, and reportedly not to (most) 8X blanks either. The ES10 additionally records to -RW and +R/4X and +R/8X, all of which I tested (and the +R were cheap discs, Teon and WinData). The results play on my computer's DVD drive. Being able to use DVD-RW gets around the DVD-RAM incompatibility for now (I can record, say, a bunch of episodes of Frasier, then transfer to the computer to edit out the ads, and re-use the original disc), though I might install a DVD-RAM compatible drive eventually. [For some reason, DVD+RW discs are not supported for writing.]

-many people commented on the obtuse manual and difficult to use remote and menus. I can't compare directly, but having been driven to blinking distraction by one bad DVD recorder, I can say the ES10 was a delight to use -it was easy to find what little I needed in the manual, and I could largely just wing it. I was making "flexible record" discs (where compression is chosen based on total program length to use the entire disc precisely) immediately. If you hit the wrong button by mistake, the unit does not begin to make grinding noises and/or go into never-never land; it's OK to try things to see what they do. And if you're stuck, the "magic" button that gets you out of certain menus or situations seems to be labelled Return.

-to fast forward/reverse, you had to use and hold the chapter skip buttons; there are now separate buttons.

I have no substantive complaints so far, but here are some annoyances. That most are so trivial speaks volumes --

-the open/close control is on the opposite end of the unit from the disc drawer; for some reason this is not intuitive to me.

-there is no on screen display of the record mode (XP, LP, etc, i.e. recording quality). Only the display on the unit itself, which can be hard to read across the room.

-the unit uses 8.5 watts even turned off; the manual notes this and says you might want to unplug it when not used for long periods. Why can't they just put in a genuine 'off' and a 'standby' if they feel it's needed?

-some of the remote buttons are too closely spaced for my stubby fingers, yet there is unused or underused real estate in the configuration.

-'stop' and some other controls seem to leave the unit in a kind of intermediate state (though they do have the desired effect); to go to a 'neutral' or startup state, I have to hit stop again. (Maybe this is some feature I just haven't figured out yet. Or maybe it's somehow an example of ...

-the menus maybe go a bit too far trying to protect you against doing foolish things. You get asked twice, not just once, if you really want to format a disc, for instance.

-the 8-hour/disc mode really is substandard, worse than a 6 hour VHS tape; but the 4-hour mode should be acceptable for many uses. [There is a 6-hour mode, but apparently you have to select that instead of 8-hour in Setup and I haven't tried it yet.]

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If you're going to copy a lot of VHS tapes to DVD-R or DVD+R discs, this is the one to get. I tried both a Philips DVDR600VR DVD recorder/VCR combo and a Sony RDRVX500 DVD recorder/VCR combo. The Philips had a couple problems and I returned it, so I'll compare the Panasonic to the Sony:

The Sony had a lot of nice features and overall good quality, but I found that it had a major problem copying VHS tapes from a separate VCR with a GoDVD device. The quality in that case is substantially degraded, with streaks of interference, as with a satellite dish with the polarity or azimuth tuned wrong. This is either with the composite video connection, or using an S-Video cable from the GoDVD to the Sony. The odd thing is a signal from a separate DVD player comes through the same GoDVD device OK, and the signal from the VCR is OK without the GoDVD. The only way I found to get a decent signal from a separate VCR through the GoDVD to the Sony was through an adapter to the coaxial input, which of course is lower quality anyway and somewhat defeats the purpose.

However, with the Panasonic DMR-ES10, I made perfect copies of the exact same tapes from the same VCR through the same GoDVD device. Additionally, the Panasonic has the following handy features not on the Sony combo unit:

1. Flexible speed recording. If you have a tape that's 2 hours 5 min. you can record it at a speed that exactly fills the DVD-R (or +R), where if you just left it in SP mode it would run out. I tried a DVD-R disc recorded this way on 2 other players and it works fine.

2. You can change the thumbnail images in the menu. With the Sony you're stuck with the first frame. With this model Panasonic you can play the title to any frame you want to select for the menu image.

3. You can store phrases for the titles. For instance, if you're recording Perry Mason episodes, every title starts with "The Case of the ... " You can store that so you don't have to spell it out each time. I like to add previews to the extra space on a disc, so I saved "PREVIEWS."

The only problems I've had with the Panasonic DMR-ES10 is with DVD+R media. When recording stops, it fouls up the disc so it's unusable. I've had this problem with TDK, HP, and Sony DVD+R disks. Once in a while it works if the recording is under an hour. It always works fine with DVD-R.

This isn't a combo unit, so the quality from the VHS tape depends on the VCR. I tried two different VCRs, an old Toshiba and a newer cheaper model, and got great quality DVDs from both. I tried both VCRs with the Sony and both had the problem with the GoDVD described above, but seem fine without the GoDVD. But the VCR built into the Sony combo unit seems to have worse performance than the separate VCRs, causing flickering sometimes.

Because of that I don't see much advantage to the combo unit, and recommend the Panasonic DMR-ES10 as the best option for copying VHS tapes to DVDs.

Read Best Reviews of Panasonic DMR-ES10S DIGA Series DVD Recorder , Silver Here

Panasonic DMR-ES10 DVD Recorder

Pros: Great low price. Excellent recordings ,even in the LP (4Hr) speed.

Cons: PIP & Commercial Skip wont work on Finalized DVDs.

Full Review :

Unlike all previous Panasonic DVD recorders. Besides being able to record on DVD-R and DVD-RAM. This new model will also record on , DVD+R , DVD-RW. This is a much needed and smart move by Panasonic.

But a word of caution. Due to strict new copy protection laws. Some broadcasts now contain Copy Control signals. They may have one of three signal types: Copy-Free, Copy-Once, or Copy-Never. The recorder limits the recording according to the copy protection signal. Copy-Free encoded signals can be recorded at any time with any compatible blank disk type.Copy-Never encoded signals can not be recorded on this unit. Many of your premium cable stations(HBO,SHO)are Copy-Once programs. This means you may record the program to a disk. But you are not able to take that disk and then make a copy of it. According to the manual copy once programs may only be recorded using DVD-RAM. I did have some problems finalizing copy protected recordings from HBO using DVD-R and DVD-RW disks.

I highly reccomend purchasing the Sima CT-2 (GO DVD) Video Signal Processor (Amazon Price: $69.49) This will allow you to record any copy protected source (Cable,VHS,DVD).

Being that this is only a $200 unit. It is not made as sturdily as some of the previous models. But the many important new features and low price make up for that.

Panasonic made alot of bold claims about this unit.I was hesitant about them , especially since this is only a $200 unit. While other DVD recorders like the SONY sell for nearly $400.00. But I am happy to report that all the claims are true. The unit works great. Panasonic really backs up all thier claims about this DVD recorder.

All the DVDs I made recorded played back with very high quality. I also found no problems with compatibility when playing those DVDs back on other DVD players. Recordings made in the four (4) hour (LP) speed looked nearly identical to those made using the (2) Hour(SP)speed. The VCR Plus feature is fairly useless if you have it connected to a CABLE box. But if you have it connected to a standard antenna then VCR Plus is a useful feature.

The remote control also controls your TV. It can also be adjusted so that it wont control any other Panasonic equipment you may own. Among the important new features is that all the new Panasonic models for 2005 now have improved horizontal resolution. In the LP (4 Hours) mode, this DVD recorder has images twice as sharp as last year's models. It gives up to 500 lines resolution. This is double the horizontal resolution compared to the 250 lines of conventional LP mode recording. Thanks to this, you now have high quality four hour recordings as sharp as the Two Hour (SP )speed.

Another new feature is what Panasonic calls "VHS Refresh". This feature offers improved quality when Dubbing VHS to DVD. When connecting a VCR and the DVD recorder to record VHS videotape images onto a DVD disk. Something similar to a "Time Base Corrector", helps reduce jitter and also performs signal conversion to create a stable signal.

The unit also has 3D Digital Noise Reduction which detects and virtually eliminates randomly generated noise and color errors to help minimize flicker. This 3D DNR works on any video input source. Thanks to these two technologies, the video input signal is automatically detected and optimum processing is performed to provide an easy way to even more beautiful digital pictures. There is also a Digital Noise Reduction for playback. This helps clear up recordings made in the EP 6 hour speed. This unit has an option to allow up to Eight (8) hours of recording time. Although I really don't recommend recording with the 8 hour speed due to quality issues.

One of the most important new features is the nearly instantaneous response time in start-up and recording. It is as quick as five seconds from the DVD-RAM insertion to Play or Record. The unit has nearly as fast times for other blank DVD media. Disk finalizing takes about four minutes which is a bit slow.But that's a minor trade-off for the very quick disk recognition. The Panasonic DMR-ES10 DVD Recorder also has a "One Touch Record" button. Each press gives 30 Minutes recording time up to 4 hours. The unit then powers itself off after the recording time has finished.

All Panasonic DVD recorders offer all the benefits of the DVD-RAM format. Which include " Chasing Playback". -This feature lets you view a program that you're currently recording from any point that's already been recorded, while continuing to record the live program in progress. So you no longer have to wait for the entire program to be recorded before watching it from the beginning to the end. Simultaneous Recording & Playback are also possible using DVD RAM. This way you can record a live TV program while watching any other program that's been previously recorded on the same disk. Time Slip Button -Just press the Time Slip button once during recording on a DVD RAM, to start playing back the scene recorded 30 seconds earlier. You can also use the cursor keys to return to any point from 1 to 360 minutes earlier.

The Panasonic DMR-ES10 DVD Recorder offers a PIP(Picture-in-Picture function) and commercial skip during playback.

Please note : These two features will NOT work after the DVD +/-R/W disks are finalized. These features also wont work on pre-recorded (store bought) DVD movies. They do work on on DVD RAM disks. Since those disks do not need to be finalized.

The unit has a new layout with finalize and disk setup which makes it alot easier to use. Also new is that it goes into record mode and loaded blank and pre-recorded DVDs so much faster. Both are major improvements over earlier units. I also liked the smaller size, and large easy to read numerical readout. Total ease of use is also much improved. But novices will still need to read the manual thoroughly. I like the new sleek look. This model seems very user friendly and priced low enough. So if you haven't already purchased a DVD Recorder. Then this is the unit that may make you put away your VCR. For those who like their components to match. This unit also comes in Black. I have only one minor complaint. There is no disk time remaining display during a DVD movie playback. The time remaining display is viewable during all recording modes to view the recording time left on disk.

Connections 1 RF(TV) Input/1 RF(TV)Output, 1-Front Panel Audio/Video(S-Video)3-Rear Panel Audio/Video(S-Video),1 Rear Panel component video input. 1Audio/Video (S-Video)Outputs,1Digital Audio Optical Output.

If you need even more features than the DMR-ES10 offers. There is the DMR-EH50 model ($500) which features a 100GB hard disk drive. This gives up to 177 hours of recording time using the hard drive.

The Bottom Line :

Low Price with great Quality LP speed video ,new user friendly features. All adds up to an excellent DVD Recorder

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If you have been looking at options for converting your old analog tapes to DVD, then this unit is a consideration.

After looking at multiple options, including countless computer accessories, software, Digital8, firewire, I finally decided to use the "point and shoot" approach this unit affords.

Since we already own a Panasonic DVD/VCR unit, the user's manual was a cinch. It took about 15 minutes to get this thing out of the box and begin burning my first DVD from a vintage 8mm tape via a camcorder.

Quality was excellent. Many approaches complain about the ability to sync sound with action. This was not evident on this particular unit.

What was especially nice was that I was able to utilize a batch of Verbatim DVR-R disks that I picked up on sale.

One drawback is the inability to create multiple chapters with the -r format. The documentation states that the unit automatically creates 5 minute chapters with a DVD-RW, however I have yet to test that feature.

One other glitch is Panasonic does not seem to differentiate their remotes. In other words, the ES10 remote will turn on, activate and eject DVDs from my other Panasonic unit. I will be moving this unit to another location to avoid this.

If you invest in the DVD-RAM technology, you can edit, create new chapters etc. This might be a consideration in the future. However, since the "RAM" technology seems to be favored by the Panasonic brand, I would prefer to burn a few "generic DVDs" first.

Another option is to invest in a DVD recorder which has a hard drive built in. Prices seem to be dropping on these as well. However, reading reviews of this technology indicates a greater tendency for breakdown, so an extended warranty would certainly be a consideration.

If you are looking to convert analog tapes to DVD, are on a budget, but still desire high quality output, then this is the unit for you.

I have a digital cable box from cablevision with the built in DVR which to me is a better option than buying a $500 + DVD recorder with a built in hard drive. Considering that I rent the cable box for 10 bucks a month, and considering the lifespan of a hard drive, I think it is a cheaper option. Also if you have a digital cable box

you can't record one show while watching another, so spending all that money would be pretty useless to me.

The reason why I bought this model is because aside from owning a dvr there are occasional times where I want to keep a permanent copy of a show or movie.

You can record one show while watching another if you bypass the cable box, however you can only watch or record the analog channel's (1-99).

To record digital channels:

With the dvd recorder connected to the cable box I can set the VCR timer on the cable box to record my programs while I am not home, the VCR timer on the cable box will turn the box on and turn to the channel you want to record for however many shows you want. You just have to program the recorder to record channel 3 and set the times you want to record. The menus are pretty simple and it really isn't any trouble at all.

DVD-RAM is the best media option for this recorder because it allows you to edit the disk before you finalize it, it allows you to watch one recorded show while recording another as well. With DVD-rw if you want to erase a program in order to free up space you have to erase the last one you recorded, with DVD RAM it doesn't matter which chapter or program you delete, the free space will be useable.

DVD-RAM can be rewritten up to 100,000 times and you can buy the disks in a protective cartridge which will play in this player.

The only downside to dvd-ram is that it is not compatible with most other players and you can't use it on your computer unless you have a dvd-ram drive. I would recommend buying two or three dvd-rams double sided and in the cartridge for recording your disposable sitcoms (the ones you only want to watch once). You do of course have to flip the double sided disks if you want to record on the other side.

For the recordings you want to keep I would recommend getting some

dvd-r disks as they are most compatible with other players (more so than dvd+r).

You can also record from your DVR to the dvd-recorder, I have not tried this myself but I have read on several forums that you can.

I have copied an old VCR tape and it came out great.

The picture quality is very good on two hours and pretty good on 4 as well.

The dvd recorder will not record dolby 5.1, but it will record 2 channel dolby digital. There are no dvd recorders on the market that will record 5.1 (set top boxes that is, of course you can copy 5.1 and DTS on your computer if you have a recordable dvd drive).

This unit is perfect for use in my bedroom, since I have the DVR in my living room. I wouldn't spend much more money on one of these things because you know in a few yrs it will be obsolete with the new blueray technology.