Sony HDR-TD30V Full HD 3D Handycam Camcorder with 3.5-Inch LCD (Black)

I bought this camera exclusively for the 3D function, as I'm sure you will. A couple things about the product advertising. They were not deal breakers, but I prefer honesty in advertising. You are not buying this for 2D, DLP LED projection, lens options, or anything other than just 3D so don't throw away that 2D camera if that's what you wanted.

1. 1080i is the only 3D format. 1080p is not available in 3D, no frame rates, no bitrates, no codecs, nothing.

2. You can not take a picture in 3D. This was unexpected as several Sony 2D cameras can do a 3D picture.

3. Low light performance, is not HD. Instead it is adaptive to the light in that part of the picture. Brighter objects get higher resolution and frame rate. On a big screen, it appears distracting like a cheap low bitrate webcam with low res and a slow frame rate on dark areas, high fps high res on bright objects. There is no way to disable this, so either record with the built in light, which is surprisingly bright enough or have some regular lights on indoors. Oh and prepare for friends and family to ask you "how much did you pay for this again?" As with any Sony camera I've owned, auto focus in lower lighting doesn't work, it keeps guessing every few seconds. Usually in the wrong direction, but you can go manual from the touchscreen.

4. Ps3, can only playback the 2D portion from the 3D recording. So use the hdmi cable instead.

5. No adapter ring to fit a UV/dust filter, neutralizer, polarizer or water housing.

6. The sony 2008 waterproof housing fits, and operates the camera functions fine, you'll have to use construction paper to block reflections, and software to adjust the waters pink color balance. If you don't own the water case, they only made it with cheap stereo mic's. but it is water tight, even in salt water.

7. No slow motion in 3D.

8. No golf shot in 3D

9. X.V. Color range must be reselected ever time the battery is removed. If you have a 3D tv, you have xv color range. Charge the battery in the camera, or when swapping batteries, make sure your settings are all there.

10. Steady shot is better than my 2008 model Sony. Actually better than most current movies and tv shows that think shaking makes drama more realistic. It's not perfect but for 3D, reduced shaking reduces eyestrain headaches.

11. Other things that do not work in 3D. White balance, spot meter, spot focus, iris, shutter speed, auto gain limit, low lux, scene selection, fader, self timer, telemacro, digital zoom, auto backlight, smile shutter and sensitivity, flash, red eye, recording mode, frame rate, HD/SD option, 4:3 option.

A note about 3D on such a small 20mm dual lens camera, the bigger the tv, or closer you sit, less 3D effect. Farther away, smaller tv, bigger effect. Probably why most stores use small 40" demo tv's and upsell, expecting customers just to assume bigger is better. They call this 3D roundness. If you are like me, after a short time, my brain tries to compensate and flatten the picture because it knows its really a flat tv that should not have any depth. Thats why the end of avatar doesn't look 3D anymore. An exaggerated roundness factor, helps. PS 3 games usually have a 3D effect option to turn a soccer ball into a football shape so your mind sees a round soccer ball. This is not the same as the 3D depth option on a camera or TV set. That depth option is a parallax screen alignment only. If the whole scene shifted in front or behind the tv, you can adjust that, not the actual depth perception or roundness. That would require a specialized computer program to calculate scene depth and then fractal multiply it, which isn't available to consumers yet.

I took 3D video at a colorful Indian wedding. Everybody, even the hired videographer, who saw the video in the 3.5-inch LCD would go WOW. I have to try the video on my 65" 3D TV.

The camcorder replaced an earlier excellent Sony camcorder HDR-CX500V, lost in Nepal. I am too new for this camcorder, but I am sure this will be a good or better replacement.

The 3D video is crisp and amazing and so much better than the 2D.

I recommend this camcorder to all.

Buy Sony HDR-TD30V Full HD 3D Handycam Camcorder with 3.5-Inch LCD (Black) Now

Another post mention that a big screern 3d tv shows lack of 3D effect...

Humm...

I also bought Vizio 3D 65" ($1600) from big brand store and the 3D effect are awesome from the camera. I watch at 8' from the TV which vizio recommends for 3D viewing.

The OEM battery (NP50) only has 71 minutes to start with, so I bought 2) NP-100v's & charger aftermarket kit for $40 online, far far cheaper than just 1 of Sony's batts. It now starts with 245 minutes (4hrs) remaining on the cheap np-100's. 2 np100's should last you all day, but the more you zoom in & out, it will use it a bit faster. Getting the 100's is almost a must.

One can get confused on after market battery ratings. Camera says 6.8v but you will see 7.2 or 8.4v battery advertised. 8.4v is the charge voltage, 7.2 is a full charged battery and 6.8 is the means voltage (in operation). So don't worry about how other manuf. rate the specs. Its the same correct battery.

Does NOT come with an SD card so you cannot record (no built-in memory). I had to wait. Be sure to look for seller in USA and not china less you want to wait for weeks.

I picked up 2)64g PNY Pro X SDXC cards fairly (very) cheap ($40 ea) as no one else was bidding on them.

Few days later, am playing with the camera and am very satified with it.

Read Best Reviews of Sony HDR-TD30V Full HD 3D Handycam Camcorder with 3.5-Inch LCD (Black) Here

Sony DCRTRV120 Digital Camcorder

Digital home video is the wave of the future, and this camera truly expresses it. This camera comes close to perfect. It offers EXCELLANT picture quality. The quality is so good I compare it to twice the quality of a full size VHS camera (no not VHS-C). This camera has everything you need. An explanation of the features: Video format: Digital 8: Digital 8 is a digital signal recorded onto a High Band 8mm tape. There is less degradation as the film is played over and over because it's all Digital. Audio: 16 bit PCM Stereo: This meaens that even with that little microphone on the front, you're getting much better quality than with a 8mm or hi8. And it records with 2 channels instead of 1. Maximum CCD Resolution: 460,00 pixels: Thats a freaking ton of resolution for a home video camera. Thats more than anything you've probably ever used. Other things this includes: Super Nightshot 0 LUX: This enables you to shoot in perfect darkness at a better distance than normal nightshot. The camera emits two infraed beams from the front of the camera. This beams scatter and bounce of objects. The camera detects the beams bouncing back, using them to see. i.link DV Interface: This is the new standard for high speed transfer of information, usually digital video. This way you can plug into your computer and edit with it, with out having to sell the farm on equipment to turn analog into digital. 450x Digital Zoom: This means you can zoom in 450 times what the camera normally sees. Perfect for football games or looking for people far away. Auto Focus: The camera focuses it self, so you don't have to do any focusing to shoot S-Video Output: Amazon.com claims it isn't there, but it is. This enables non-digital transfer of very high quality video, your DVD player probably uses this feature. There are other features, but there are too many to mention! Over all this is an EXCELLENT camera. It lives up to the name Sony.

I am only 13 years old and I purchased this camera because me and my friends wanted to make movies. I use it every day and have had it for 8 months! It can be used for stop motion animation with clay and legos at 8 FPS and is 30 FPS during normal record. The remote is great for seting up the camera and then starting it when your also in the movie scene. Slow Motion is cool to and the Night Shot feature is great! Night shot has a 10 Foot range out side and from personal experience it has over a 50 foot range inside because it can bounce off walls. Night Shot is even better with the night shot upgrade attachment (Sold Sepretly, boost to 100 feet outdoors and over 300 feet indors!) Also in playback mode the buttons light up orange, a bug plus! Also the 25x OPTICAL gives you close ups at great quallity. For example you can zoon into someones PUPIL from 10 feet away with that much zoom and then 450x digital degrades quality but is helpfull for those far away shots. Super Steady Shot is great image stabilization to! The Carl Zies lens can focus at only .5 CM away! If you press your finger on the lense you can see your fingerprint clearly! Photo mode is great and so is the 100 min battery life! LCD screen degrades life by 10% when on. The 480 min batter (8 hour) lasts a long long time and is sold sepritly .... Has IEE 1394, S VIDEO, LAN (For pictures) and RCA COmposit cables for output and RCA Composit cables, S VIDEO and MIC input ports. Also a HEadphone jack and inteligant accesory shoe. YOu can search for pictures, dates, and times on the film and has 14 picture effects like negative and Pastel. 2.5 inch color LCD screen and manual/auto focus and exposure. So many more features I cant list. Has been a great buy and VERY durable (Has been dropped at 4 feet, fallen in puddles, ect). GREAT BUY!

Buy Sony DCRTRV120 Digital Camcorder Now

I just recently purchased this video camera after deciding to upgrade from an old Hitachi 8 mm analog camcorder and I am really very pleased with this decision! This particular model is no longer being manufactured by Sony but Sony has a full line of parts and accessories for it and you can find some really excellent deals for a new or refurbished model if you do a little bit of web searching.

The cheapest digital camcorder far surpasses the best analog out there so if you are considering a new video camera, consider this one. I personally do not need, or want to pay for, state of the art features that many more expensive digital cameras have. This one has all of the features that I personally find important:

1.) Really nice resolution @ 460,000 pixels (Same as the 130,140,240,310,340,520,530 for starters)

2.) 25 X Optical and 450 X digital zoom

3.) Electronic image stabiliztion

4.) 2.5 inch swivel LCD screen

5.) Nite Shot and Super Night Shot modes (you can vid in total darkness!)

6.) Backwards compatability with my 8 mm and Hi 8 tapes

7.) Firewire (IEEE1394) output

8.) LANC interface for editing on pc

9.) Last, but not least, a reasonable price!

It has lots of special features that I don't use such as different fade options, titling and special effects but these also can easily be created by editing on your pc.

As a side note, Sony has put together a nice editing package called EZ Editor to go with their digital and digital 8 video cameras that contain the firewire card for the pc, the I-link cable for the camera's connection to the pc, Pinnacle 7 Studio editing software and a thick user's manual. It is so easy and so much fun to edit videos on the computer adding music and titles and voice over's along with different fades. I believe you can also edit analog video as well.

I am very happy with this camera and with the quality of the video that I am taking, especially at the price I paid! It is well worth the money and a high quality Sony product.

Read Best Reviews of Sony DCRTRV120 Digital Camcorder Here

I got one of these used a few years ago after doing some research into the features and reputations of similar cameras. I've had no problems with it.

Video quality is excellent, and it works seamlessly with iMovie, which I use for editing.

I disabled the digital zoom (which degrades the picture quality); 25X optical zoom is already impressive, especially with the SteadyShot camera-shake compensation.

The camera operates surprisingly well with low light, even without engaging NightShot.

The "digital still photo" feature on any video camera is essentially a gimmick, so I'm not counting this camera's poor still-photo quality in my rating. Even the cheapest pocket digital camera will take a better still photo than a high-priced video camera -so hey, buy a used DV camera and get yourself a cheap still camera to go with it.

I've found Digital-8 highly convenient, because I can get Hi-8 tapes in many stores that still don't carry MiniDV tapes.

I only wish the camera were super-tiny, but hey, it's not a cutting-edge supercamera -it's a good, solid camcorder. Works for me!

Want Sony DCRTRV120 Digital Camcorder Discount?

I recently purchased this to replace my old Canon Hi8 camcorder. I've been always the fan of Canon camcorder but this is very solid and high quality camcorder. I have lots of old 8mm & Hi8 tapes and this is a great camcorder to transfer them to DVD or upload to PC (since this camcorder is Digital8). Being able to digitally transfer your old 8mm & Hi8 tape to PC is a great function to have. This also has amazing Zoom and very good video quality. I am very satisfied with the purchase.

ITRONICS ITB-100HD 1080p True HD Car DVR "Black Box" Recorder with GPS

• 2 Megapixel - H.264 Compression - Night Vision - Full HD 1920 x 1080p, 1280 x 720p, 720 x 480p
• Record Video, Audio, Speed and GPS Location - GPS is built in
• 8GB Class 10 SD Card Included - Recording Time 3 - 13 hours
• Parking Mode with Shock and Motion Sensors - Record Incidents Even When Vehicle is Unattended
• -20 to 70C (158 F) Operating Environment - Does Not Suffer Heat Issues

Just an FYI, I didn't purchase this here, so I won't comment on sellers or prices.

Short review:

+ Full HD! can read license plates and see details clearly in daylight

+ Built-in GPS is surprisingly accurate with both location and speed.

+ Built-in accelometer records any bumps or "shocks" the vehicle receives.

+ Good quality mounting sticker

+ Several configuration options

+ Updateable firmware if you can find it

+ Automatically over-writes oldest files when card is full

+ Small and semi-inconspicuous

+ Automatically saves video when unplugged

+-Parking mode option if camera is powered

+-Default configuration options don't work well, but are changed easily.

+-Included 8GB card is only 4 hours of HD video. Easily upgradeable to 32GB card though.

Not so great at night this is where the 5th star went.

Expect broken English, as this is a Korean product.

Quick start guide only Korean English manual is on the SD card.

Software tends to crash/lock up fairly often

I believe there is no manufacturer warranty for the US.

No button to permanently keep a recording

Built-in mic records quiet and muffled.

Details:

Only 1 button on camera: Microphone toggle on or off.

List of configurable options for the CAMERA from within the SOFTWARE:

* Only one physical button: Microphone on or off.

* Speed toggle in Kilometers/hour (KPH): on or off.

* Recording quality: 1080p@24fps; 1080p@15fps; 720p@30fps; 720p@15fps; 480p@30fps; 480p@15fps.

* Brightness: Standard & Bright. Literally just makes the recording brighter doesn't seem to improve quality at all.

* Shock sensitivity when driving: Off; insensitive; normal; sensitive. Normal picks up every single bump. I keep at insensitive.

* Parking Mode: Off (stops recording); Record for Shock only; Record for Shock or motion.

* Shock sensitivity when parking: Insensitive; normal; sensitive.

* Motion sensitivity when parking: Insensitive; normal; sensitive.

* Shock alarm: On or Off. Camera beeps when it senses a shock.

* File delete method: By time or by file type. Overwrites oldest file first, or lets you set percentage of each type of file to keep.

* Time Zone: For the date/time overlay on recordings.

List of configurable options for the SOFTWARE:

* Speed toggle: Kilometers/hour (KPH) or Miles/hour (MPH)

* Brightness

* Contrast

* Night mode: On or off. Same thing as brightness control, just simpler.

* Rotate recording

* Capture image. Saves current frame as image.

* Play Speed: 0.4x; 0.6x; 0.8x; 1x; 2x

* Volume

Parking mode details:

Parking mode is supposed to be a low-power mode that is activated after the camera is stationary for 5 minutes. Of course, this will only matter if you keep the camera plugged in and if your car provides power when off. The camera stays on the entire time, it just doesn't write the video to the card unless it detects shock or motion, which I assume uses less power. Yes, this could drain your battery anyways, but the camera uses such little power this is not likely unless you rarely/never drive the car.

Note on motion: The manual doesn't clarify this at all, so I had to test for myself. The camera actually does "see" motion not just "feel" it. In other words, if motion is turned on for parking mode it will record someone walking in front of your car/camera, not just pushing on the car.

Other notes:

* You need a windows computer to install the software, change settings, or view GPS data. However, raw video is stored as standard AVI files, so you will still be able to view video with any computer.

* This camera has no night vision whatsoever. There needs to be some source of relatively bright light to see anything clearly.

* I forgot to measure the length of the 12v adapter cord before installing, but I was able to route the cord all the way around my windshield, out and around the dashboard, and to the middle outlet with about a foot to spare. It may have been 10-12ft long.

* The camera saves a video file to the card every 1-2 minutes OR when power is disconnected.

* Camera takes about 30 seconds after power is applied to begin recording, and averages about 1-2 minutes to obtain a GPS signal.

* To reiterate, if speed overlay is enabled, you will only see KPH in the video. MPH is only viewable in the software.

*Update: There is an English version software update available that works for me on Windows 8 x64, so I assume it should work on Windows 7 as well. It is located on the original manufacturer's "mall" site, which is totally in Korean. Link below if it will allow: ipassmall.co.kr/ipassblack/down_proc.asp?filename=PC+Player%28ver+1%2E3%2E2%29%5FITB%2D100HD%2Ezip

Buy ITRONICS ITB-100HD 1080p True HD Car DVR "Black Box" Recorder with GPS Now

This is a great camera, for what it is.

With accelerometers (to sense crashes, jolts or sudden acceleration/braking) and embedded GPS metadata, this is much more than just a souped-up GoPro camera.

The camera records audio and video continuously on the included full-size 8Gb SDHC card, but I would recommend buying a 32Gb card or two. It's a good idea to have a spare on hand in case you need to remove the card to view or preserve its contents.

Most cameras in this price range dont even record audio, the ITB100HD does.

Camera settings are done within the (Windows only) player application, which are then transferred via the SDHC card to the camera. The camera itself has one control: A single push button that toggles the internal microphone on and off, and to format the memory card. Worked fine with 64-bit Windows 7.

Settings include choices of frame-rate and resolution, whether or not the camera records continuously (or simply responds to motion or jolts), whether the camera overwrites older files, and in what order event-associated files are over-written.

You can also choose how sensitive the shock sensing and motion detection is -to a point. I have found there are too few steps of resolution to choose from, and the camera is often sensitive even at its most insensitive settings. There are also presets for brightness, time zone, and the ability to export still frames or whole clips to your computer's hard drive.

When the camera experiences shock or jolt, it tags a clip as an 'event'. Likewise, if it records motion while in 'Parking mode' (when it senses you haven't moved for five minutes), it tags those just as distinctly. This is useful when sorting thru files to distinguish travel time from time parked.

The on-screen speed overlay is in Kilometers/hour, requiring a 3rd-party firmware hack to correct it to mph.

Time-stamp information comes from GPS, so that is not only a convenience but essential if you need to use this video in court.

There is a 'Video Out' connector you can use to assist aiming during installation, and later to provide sound and picture if you want to live-stream your dashcam to UStream, Skype, etc. This is an essential option if you need to preserve your video remotely, to protect evidence from theft or confiscation.

The videos are divided into one or two-minute timestamped clips (depending on the frame-rate you choose) and are standard H.264 video playable on any modern computer.

In the event of a crash or power loss, the camera has enough internal reserve power to do a proper shut-down, preserving the video.

At the highest quality setting, the frame-rate is 24fps (rather than 30fps) but is more than adequate. Even the 15fps option performs well, and may actually be a better choice for night driving and economizing memory.

The 'Parking' setting appears to be more for saving recording space than battery power, so if you have a weak car battery you may not want to leave this operating for days without charging your battery.

The pinhole opening for the microphone can be enlarged to improve audio, which comes from the factory somewhat muffled.

The mounting kit is for adhering the camera to the windshield glass. In my vehicle, however, I get better performance mounting the camera to the rear-view mirror, so you may wish to obtain a hefty piece of Velcro. Mirror-mounting also better conceals the camera from theft, and newer vehicles have continuous power available at the mirror so you dont have visible wires and clutter.

Each time you insert the SDHC card, you need to push the 'format' button to get the camera to recognize it. If you forget, the camera will sound an 'SD card error' (4 beeps that repeat) after the camera has been operating for several minutes.

There is an essentially useless LED that faces the front, and flashes when in the 'Parking mode'. I call it the "steal me" light, and you can cover it with black tape.

The oddest thing about this camera is how it is marketed.

iTronics has apparently had issues with some sellers, and honoring the warranty seems to depend on where you bought it.

The manual is broken English, so it would be worthwhile to consult some online forums dedicated to this camera.

The English portion of iTronics website is completely unintelligible, so firmware and software updates are often found on independent forums like dashcamtalk.com or radardetectorforum.org.

Even with the English-language software version, iTronics seems to assume most users will be in Korea. That's unfortunate, because they are underestimating the value of their own product, and missing bigger markets.

You can find the English manual on-line, search for ITB100HD_English Manual.pdf

You can also download and install the player application, by searching for ITB-100HDE PC Player.zip

There are other versions of this camera from iTronics, some have substituted the GPS module for Wi-Fi (so you dont have to fetch the SDHC card) and even one with a voice module (sadly, only in Korean). The ITB-100HD has the better CMOS imager and performs better at night, so beware if you are considering other models.

If you are a good driver, and are ever in the position where you need to prove it, this under-$200 "black box" is a good investment.

If you would like a rock-steady record of a road trip matched with a GPS map, you are also in luck.

One last thought: Using this camera at night will definitely illustrate the value of keeping your windshield clean.

Read Best Reviews of ITRONICS ITB-100HD 1080p True HD Car DVR "Black Box" Recorder with GPS Here

The only concern I had when buying this product was that I saw that it was km/h only and would only show MPH in the viewing software.

I found a guy on a forum who was selling a converstion for $8.00 and thought that was crazy. Then I did a bit more searching and found a blog post that not only described in detail how to convert the code to work with MPH, but also shared a patched binary for FREE!

has details on how to update the firmware of the camera to use MPH instead of km/h. It took me less than five minutes to convert mine and now I couldn't be happier.

Want ITRONICS ITB-100HD 1080p True HD Car DVR "Black Box" Recorder with GPS Discount?

1080hd for good quality video,

GPS to tell you where and how fast you were going,

shock sensor to tell when you crashed,

Accelerate or Decelerate awareness,

creates separate folders,

So whats missing?

an installation for MAC, are you serious? how did such amazing technology mess this up? i cant even look at the settings, since there is only one button on the device and everything else is handled through the computer when the SD card is inserted, fail...

Bought this from Lone Wolf Electronics (NOW SA Computer Systems) and the first thing was the box did not have any instructions in English as was stated would be in the box in the description. Ended up going online to get instructions and installed the product and then were not able to get the information to download on the computer (that manual would have been great) Decided to return the product right away. When we contacted the seller, they said they had a *** 50% *** restocking fee plus they deduct the shipping and handling from what was left of the refund. WHAT?? When questioning this policy, which I cannot find stated anywhere, the seller states it is an Amazon policy. again.. WHAT??? called Amazon and they said their return policy is a full refund within 30 days (which we were) and that some sellers have a different policy. Buyer beware, if you product doesn't work, you only get half your money back even if you're given instructions in Korean and the return policy isn't stated.

Sony DMEX DMXDVD BRAVIA DVD Link

• Customize your BRAVIA HDTV with an integrated DVD solution
• Easily operate your TV and DVD using a single remote control
• Integrates into Xross Media Bar menu navigation, when used with a DMeX- enabled BRAVIA HDTV
• DVD upscalling delivers enhanced picture quality
• Seamlessly mounts to back of your compatible BRAVIA HDTV

I would have liked to know that it would work with my Sony TV. I would like to have received an instruction manuel with the product. There was an initial problem with the volume freezing and immediately had to consult on-line support to find it had to be reset to factory specs. Final review, a great size, picture and all around product once clear of bugs.

Buy Sony DMEX DMXDVD BRAVIA DVD Link Now

Nice product and a solution to my problem. I needed to run an HDMI cable behind my fireplace and accompanying walls to hook up my DVD player to my 52" XBR5 LCD TV and was this putting the labor intensive process off. Then Sony released the Bravia Link DVD player that attaches behind the TV. That solved my problem!

Pros: Nice small form factor, not noticeable. Nice integration with the menu bar on the TV. Because of the integration it does not require you to deal with LED repeater that you may need if you have your components in another area. Nice remote, better than what came with the TV. It does a beautiful job with upscaling standard DVDs.

Cons: A little expensive for an upscaling DVD player that in component form cost $79 at most. If your TV is already mounted on the wall, it is difficult to attach the required mount. If you use a TV mounting bracket other than Sony's bracket you may run into problems like I did. I got it to work but it is not attached properly. The DVD auto selects the screen mode. Most DVDs default to wide screen which is fine, but it will not allow you select another screen size. I reduced it by a star because of the difficult mounting process if your TV is already mounted on the wall.

Over all, it saved me a weekend of work and aggravation!

Read Best Reviews of Sony DMEX DMXDVD BRAVIA DVD Link Here

The DMXDVD Link module works seamlessly with my 40" Bravia TV. After a 10 minute installation, I was able to pop in a DVD and watch up-scaled movies on my TV.

I was disappointed when I discovered that the DVD unit has its own power supply and is not power by the DMex port. I now have an additional cord that runs from the TV to the wall outlet.

This unit is expensive for an integrating option. With less-expensive options available, you should weigh the importance of the integration for the price.

I was delighted to find that the DMXDVD comes with an additional remote control; perhaps Sony can eliminate this addition and reduce the price some.

Want Sony DMEX DMXDVD BRAVIA DVD Link Discount?

Bought this for my 52" XBR9 just for "completist" sake. Pricey for an "ordinary" DVD player especially since I had a PS3 which of course has Blu-ray and up-conversion of DVD's as well as a Panasonic up-converting DVD player already, but the XMB integration was tempting enough that I had to try it. It does integrate rather nicely in the back of the TV, and even though it requires a USB, HDMI, and it's own power supply, it still is rather unobtrusive. The DVD link player appears in the Video portion of the XMB, but there is a problem of which I cannot seem to find a solution. The option for the player is at the bottom of all the Internet video links (Netflix, You Tube etc.) of which there are quite a bit to scroll through before you can get to the player. You can manually select the player through the HDMI input, but that will leave a message on the screen which cannot be dismissed that reads to select the DVD player from the video tab of the XMB which is the only way to get rid of the message. Kind of annoying.

Problem 2: The player will not display a 4:3 image if the DVD is recorded with one. It automatically stretches a 4:3 image to 16:9 Full. You cannot change this, in the player, or with the TV's settings. This is a deal breaker. My Panny DVD player, and the PS3 will display widescreen in widescreen, and 4:3 as it should be. I don't like when shows that were meant to be square become stretch-o-vision. This hampers the enjoyment of some of the 4:3 DVD TV shows I have. I simply couldn't believe the player was locked into this and cannot be changed (the manual even says this option is not available. I presume this is to fill the Bravia's real estate since many people stretch 4:3 material but, I am not one of them. Very disappointing, and it requires me to use my PS3 for any 4:3 DVD's.

Picture quality for Up conversion: Not bad, but not as good as my PS3 or my Panny DVD player. Audio: 2 channel only through the TV, no optical output for a receiver, but this isn't really the purpose of this unit. Remote: standard YM-023 Bravia TV remote but can be controlled through your model Bravia remote. Unit will power up once teh TV is on, and turn off when the TV is powered down. Bottom line is it's a slick unit, slim and hidden but it could have been so much better than this.

Overall, this is a fairly well designed add on, if not for the 2 issues I have with it of which one may not bother some people.

Cost more than it should but the placement on the back of the set sure gets it out of the way. Fully integrated into TV software and remote.

RCA RP5120 256MB USB 104 Hour Recording Digital Voice Recorder

The system won't allow me to upgrade the star rating too bad. My initial review was negative. I thought the recorder had too low sensitivity for lecture recording. Later I read the manual more carefully, and found a CONF setting. Now it records in open spaces loud and clear! I recommend this unit, ignore the star rating I gave it earlier.

Of course there are other units of better quality and flexibility of use. However, if one is on a budget and just needs a recorder for the requirements of the job or school, RCA's product is adequate.

The pluses are the price, the compatability of the unit, the very informative manual, and the fact that there are four "folders" in which one can place his recordings.

On the minus side, the volume setting could be stronger but a decent set of headphones will assist in hearing that which has been previously recorded. The unit devours regular AAA batteries. Because of the latter, an investment in rechargeable ones might be advisable.

Buy RCA RP5120 256MB USB 104 Hour Recording Digital Voice Recorder Now

I liked the price and the size. Easy to use but when it came time to listen to the lecture I got frustrated at the ability to rew and ff. The unit was too slow and if I hit the rew twice the unit erased where I was at and started from the beggining...ARRGH. Sounds good and has great pc download speed which is what I had to do to get my lecture in a place to use for my needs. Price good for what it delivers but could be the ultimate if the speeds were more flexible. 1x 2x 10x.

Read Best Reviews of RCA RP5120 256MB USB 104 Hour Recording Digital Voice Recorder Here

This recorder, I thought, was a decent interim recorder for only a few days while my Olympus was down and another en route. My mistake! I successfully converted three files to the .wav format needed for my purposes. The fourth file I attempted to convert was considerably larger, 27,000+KB, and I got an error message, "bad file format." What? It's the same format as before! Tech support informed me that the file was corrupted because it was too large and there was no other way to access it. There should definitely be a warning in the instructions that if you record more than an hour at a time (mine was one to two hours in length) it will corrupt the file. Had I known, I would have stopped recording and created new files throughout. Now there's no wayt to transcribe what was recorded and it's lost forever. What a bad, bad investment! I didn't get mine from Amazon, but people should know about this. Mine is going back to the store where I purchased it. It's a piece of junk for lengthy recording.

Want RCA RP5120 256MB USB 104 Hour Recording Digital Voice Recorder Discount?

This is an easy to use voice recorder, but if you're looking for quality, go with an Olympus. The sound quality of the playback is horrible, both on the player itself and the computer. Hoever, if you need a recorder just for grocery lists or lectures, this will do.

Sony HDR-CX550V 64GB High Definition Handycam Camcorder

COLOR:

The camcorder does a good job in the color department, most of the time you get Accurate & Natural colors but other times it tends to vivid the blues & reds. The same happens with the Canon HF-S21, while Panasonic HDC-TM350 & HDC-TM700 looks more natural "most of the time".

LCD:

The touch responsiveness is simply amazing, comparing it to the Very Difficult to handle of the Canon HF-S21 and the just OK of the Panasonic family. The resolution is the best of his class by far. Also you can organize it in a very custom way; "You can use the menu items easily by registering the menu items you use most often on MY MENU. You can register 6 menus items on each MY MENUS of the MOVIE, PHOTOS and PAYBACK. That's a total of 18 pre-determent Custom Menus.

LENS:

The HDR-CX550V has larger lens than last year's model. The new G-Lens is capable of capturing videos at enormously wide angles, Close to 20 degrees more than Canons & JVC are capable of. It's also a much wider angle than you'll get from the Panasonic HDC-TM700.

Low Light:

In this area the clear winner is the HDC-TM350 or HDC-TM700, Sony has the Night Shot which allows to record in almost 0 LUX but you get a graining and unacceptable quality. Using the LOW LUX feature improves the image quality but some light is needed to be able to record.

RECORDING MODES:

Format Resolution Bitrate Codec

HD FX 1920 x 1080 24Mbps H.264AVC (AVCHD)

HD FH 1920 x 1080 17Mbps H.264AVC (AVCHD)

HD HQ 1920 x 1080 9Mbps H.264AVC (AVCHD)

HD LP 1920 x 1080 5Mbps H.264AVC (AVCHD)

STD 720 x 480 9Mbps MPEG-2

ZOOM & STEADYSHOT:

For some reason the SteadyShot has an impact on the zoom of the camera, when you have the SteadyShot set to Active the zoom goes up to 14X (this has been a complain for some reviewers because they have said it only goes up to 10X) but if you have the SteadyShot in Standard or OFF it does only go to 10X. Based on this, it seems like a good idea to consider that setting depending on the scene and recording conditions, example; if you are going to use the camcorder on a tripod to film landscapes, sunsets or any other scenography in which you want a wider angle it will be very helpful to turn OFF or put in Active the SteadyShot, but if the situation is the other way around, you want to record a far away object and want them to looks closer then the SteadyShot should be in Active mode even when using a tripod.

Comparing the HDC-TM700 (12X) to the HDR-CX550 (10X) in Optical Zoom and TM700 (18X I. Zoom) vs. CX550 (14X Without been named or pointed out by anybody else). At Digital Zoom the TM700 goes up to 30X or 700X (complementing its name) while CX550 MAX is 120X, either of them display very bad and distorted images when the Digital Zoom is used.

The Stabilization produced by the STEADYSHOT is one of the best I have ever seen, it works great in all situations while keeping very sharp image quality.

STILL PICTURE:

In the still picture nobody can beat the JVC GZ-HM1 as far as quality-sharpness-colors; the Sony does a descent job just like any other camcorder in this price range. The Smile Shutter is one of the FUN features of this Camcorder, this allows to take a picture every time the cam detects someone smiling, Smile shutter can be set so that it is always on, to work during video recording only, or it can be turned off completely but unfortunately this is NOT available when recording at the MAX Quality Setting of 24Mbps HD FX Mode.

FUN Features:

Smooth Slow Record: A slow motion setting that records 3 seconds of footage and turns it into 12 seconds of Very Slow Video. This setting shoots at a very high Frame Rate of 240fps in order to create the slow motion effect. You have the option to select that the Camcorder record those 3 seconds after you press the START button or be recording at all time (like a Pre-Record Mode) so when you press the START button the last 3 seconds will be converted into the 12 seconds of Very Slow Video. The quality of this Smooth Slow Record is NOT quite close to HD, it may be SD quality at 16x9 aspect ratio.

Golf Shot: Takes two quick seconds of video and divides it into frames that are recorded as a movie and photos in a 16x9 aspect ratio.

GPS: The built-in GPS allows you to keep track of your videos & photos by the location in which they were shot. By having the GPS on, the battery life decreases by 2-3 %.

CONCLUSIONS:

This is a good camcorder with lots of Manuals and Fun features, very portable, with a good overall performance; it looks like a very good choice for a Family-Vacation's Camcorder.

Okay, so I'm about to be a dad due April 12th, and while I was looking for a camcorder wide enough for the delivery room, I was struggling with the Canon VIXIA HF-S21 that is due to be released on April 15th. However, let me state the highlights of the Sony HDR-CX550V which swayed my decision why I went for the Sony to suit my own preference:

Compact and Lightweight (something my wife wants over holding my Canon 5D2 and lenses)

Wide Angle 26.3mm Photo

Wide Angle 29.8 mm Video to 298mm (On the Canon it is 35mm equivalent 43.5-435mm which is longer)

12 Mega Pixels still images

10x Optical Zoom

Stabilization which works really well

Takes both SD-HC (this is great) and Sony memory sticks (I don't use them)

Built-in 64GB Flash memory.

Excellent low light shooting

Includes GPS geotagging (which I haven't used yet, I keep it turned off for now)

3.5" LCD (921K)

Dolby Digital 5.1ch recording with Built-in Zoom Mic, which I haven't really tested to say how good the results really are, but off-the-bat the results are very acceptable.

It is also very easy to set up and operate, not a lot of digging for menus to get it recording right! You simply either swing open the LCD or pull out the viewfinder (having one is plus for me) and it turns on and after a few second, you can hit the record button. Vice-versa to turn-off.

Shoots in HD and records in 1080/60i and this equates to it being 24p or 30p via software when editing, this is argued extensively on forums, but the HDR-CX550V does not let you specify, which may be a good or bad thing depending on your own preferences. Having said that don't let the 1080/60i put you off, since this is the same with all other camcorders I have seen including professional camcorders. The 24p or 30p on the Canon HF-S21 also records at 60i.

I think ultimately making a choice on either the Sony or the Canon, you won't be disappointed, however, to me the main highlights are that this is a very compact camcorder with excellent touch screen (this one works!) and shoots wide to long instead of normal to long, and has excellent low light results as well as support for SD-HC flash media and a wonderfully sized LCD display.

I ended up buying the BC-TRV Travel charger and the NP-FV100 battery, although is larger than the supplied battery it is still small enough that it shouldn't bother you when you require the extra juice for extended shooting which is about 15 hours at High-quality HD mode.

Image results are great for such a small system, very satisfied.

Update: April 12, 2011.

***********************

Okay first off, apologies to all those that asked questions in the comments. Unfortunately I don't have the time to go over each question, but here is a short feedback after a year of use towards my personal usage and preferences. I don't shoot in extreme circumstances, such as a heavy metal rock concert or middle of a field with no lighting what-so-ever! I have shot in noisy market streets, and noisy restaurants to dimly lit rooms with no extra accessories.

Okay, this time I was able to shoot my son's first birthday party a couple of days ago. A month or so ago, a couple of weddings. A short trip to Asia. So here are the highlights:

Menu continues to be simple to use.

The camera stability feature still works extremely well hand held. Just don't expect miracles if your hands happen to be the exact opposite!

A whole day and evening banquet(Not continuous) for a wedding shoot, the extra battery and internal memory provided enough juice and storage needs.

HD quality is above average at best and that's good enough for me, now do understand this, I don't believe any home camcorder can perform beyond much past this point to date. So do understand the satisfaction level this will provide you. Yes it is short of a prime lens mounted on a DSLR like the 5D Mark II shooting video, and is costing so much less and much easier to operate as well.

The camera continues to be so simple to use, that you flip open the screen to turn it on, press the record button to start recording (duh!) and press again to stop, and flip close the screen to turn it off. This alone can give both me confidence and whoever I pass the camcorder to that they will do a satisfactory job (no experience needed)! With the exception, do tell them not to shoot portrait orientation :P Camcorders don't work that way!

Color Saturation level could be a little more vivid and the backlighting response with regards to white balancing are the only improvements I can think of for video quality. Neither of which are bad, just feels average. Physically, the size is small and lightweight. Only other thing is the top hot-shoe (I don't own any accessories), but did try to mount a 3rd party LED light, but couldn't, because the hot shoe is recessed into it's own slide-away compartment, it was too small to slide my LED light.

I continue to shoot stills with my DSLRs, so I cannot comment on the stills from this camcorder.

My original rating stands, the camcorder has been reliable but well looked after (It still looks like new for the amount of times I have used it), I have used it often, lent it out, played back and recorded. I love what this camcorder gives me for the money in both video quality and sound. I hope this helps that little bit more.

Buy Sony HDR-CX550V 64GB High Definition Handycam Camcorder Now

After comparing many camcorders and recording technologies I picked this camcorder for the following reasons:

1. I decided on flash memory because you do not have the sound of a tape drive or a hard drive and the camera is more compact. 64GB gives you hours of recording time without the need to change miniDV tapes or buying extra memory cards. Copying the highly compressed video files to a MAC or PC takes minutes for hours of video. Compare this to miniDV tapes hour for hour.

2. Quality low light performance is great on this model and far exceeds my old Sony HC-1.

3. This camcorder has a wider angle lens than most camcorders which to me is more desirable. The drawback is that such a 10x lens cannot zoom in as close which is fine unless you go on a safari.

4. The image stabilization is phenomenal. You could have a tremor and the picture is rock solid. You can walk with the camera and the picture is smooth. If you make a sudden movement you can see the picture lag and move less abruptly.

5. The touch screen menus take some exploring. You can customize "My settings" with buttons you wish to have at your finger tips. The only wish I have would be another recording button for one handed operation when you do not use the wrist strap.

Best accessory: the under water housing

7. Finally, this camcorder works great with MACs. Image Capture and iMovie recognize the camcorder and you can work with these applications as usual. Final Cut Pro works equally well, but instead of Log and Capture you have to use Log and Transfer (Shift Cmd 8)

Read Best Reviews of Sony HDR-CX550V 64GB High Definition Handycam Camcorder Here

I had a Canon HFS200. I returned it. Great overal camcorder, but one deal killer. No wide angle lens. I was constantly backing up, and telling my kids to back up, so I could get them in the frame, and I still missed a bunch of shots. With the Canon, a wide angle adapter would have been an essential tool, and I just wasn't willing to incur the extra expense and weight.

I looked at the Panasonic TM700 as an alternative. I was intrigued, but right or wrong, the fan noise issue scared me off (see reviews), as well as the fact that the files are apparently difficult to edit (also see reviews). I know that there are many people that swear the fan noise is no big deal, and swear that you can work with the files, and swear that the Panasonic is the best camcorder on the market, but.....

I opted to go with the Sony primarily because of the wide angle lens. The Sony has the equivalent of a 29mm wide angle, the Panasonic was 35mm, and the Canon was 43mm. Since alot of the video I shoot is of the family, inside my house, I wanted the widest angle possible. Right now, the Sony is it.

Things that I like about the Sony:

-Wide angle lens....probably the #1 reason to buy this camcorder

-Excellent picture quality

-Excellent low light capability in general, with 2 additional low light modes (night mode and low lux mode)

-Excellent stabilization....nice for shooting walk around videos

-Large (3.5"), bright, high image quality LCD

-EVF (not the best, but at least there is one, which is important if you are shooting outdoors in bright sun)

-Nice menu system....like the look and feel much better than the Canon HFS200. (This is probably more of a personal preference)

-Nice ergonomics....feels good in your hands (at least for me and I have large hands)

-64gb flash memory.....unless you shoot several hours of video a day, and shoot for days on end without downloading to your computer, you should be able to get by without ever having to use SD cards (unless of course you want to).

-Easy to get files out of the camcorder and into your computer for editing with the supplied Sony software.

Things I don't like about the Sony:

-Only 10x zoom.....15x would have been nice. Heck, even 12x would have been better than 10x.

-The wide angle is a blessing and a curse. Wide open it is excellent in virtually all lighting situations. Zoomed in, in even moderately low light situations, you lose ALOT of light, and the zoom becomes essentially unuseable since the images become VERY dark. For me, this is a minor tradeoff. I just know not to zoom in very much in low light situations. Not a big deal for me, but it might be for you.

No wind screen. Outdoor videos in moderate wind produce a noticeable sound. I'm planning to buy an aftermarket wind guard myself for about $20, so I'm not anticipating that this will be a major problem for me.

-Supplied Sony software is great for getting the video out of the camcorder and into the computer, but that's about it. Strongly suggest you use a separate editing program. I use Cyberlink PowerDirector and am having good results with the video that I've shot with the Sony. There are many other editing programs, but that is for another review.

-Price.....prices flucuate dramatically, but generally The Sony doesn't stray from around $1000-$1050 anywhere. I've seen the Panasonic and the Canon pop into the mid to high $700's here on Amazon, so on any give day the Sony can be about $200-$250 more than either of them. That's a pretty substantial price premium (around 20%), so if you're on a budget, or if you don't really care about the wide angle lens of the Sony, this may not be the camcorder for you.

-I would say the Photo quality is good to very good, but not excellent. In my opinion, the photos that came out of the Canon were noticably better. If you are looking to carry only one piece of equipment for videos and photos, just something to consider. Personally, I don't plan on taking very many photos with my camcorder. The ones I did shoot with the Sony, with a little editing in Photshop Elements, were fine.

Overall, I am really liking my new camcorder. I didn't give it a 5 star rating for the negatives noted above, but definitely a solid 4 star. Again, Canon and Panasonic produce some excellent camcorders, so the main reason to buy the Sony in my opinion is the wide angle lens. That is by far the most distinguishing characterstic. To me, it has made a HUGE difference. Coupled with the fact that overall video quality is excellent in all lighting conditions, excellent stabilization, and the files are easy to edit on your computer, I would highly recommend this camcorder.

Note: In other reviews, you may see people mentioning confusion because 3 files are generated when you download the video to your computer (.m2ts, .modd, .moff). I was confused myself until I researched it. I can safely tell you to ignore the confusion. The m2ts is the file that contains the video and the audio, and is easily handled by any of the current crop of video editing software. The other 2 files are nothing but marker files used by the Sony software to keep track of the video clips in the organizer, and store data about the clips. If you re not planning on using the Sony software to organize and edit your videos, then you do not need to concern yourself at all with these files. Even if you are, they have absolutely nothing to do with the video and audio itself, and thus you will never need to do anything with them.

Want Sony HDR-CX550V 64GB High Definition Handycam Camcorder Discount?

I'll save the long winded review since so much has been said. It came down to two cameras for me the Panasonic 770 and the Sony 550. I had a chance to compare the two and the Sony won out because:

1. Wider Angle Lens the Panasonic was going to require a wide angle addition ($25 $75),

2. Storage the Panasonic was going to require a 32Gb card to match the Sony storage ($35 $75),

3. Fan Noise I found the Panasonic was picking up too much fan noise for my taste using gain control in manual I was able to reduce the fan noise to nearly inaudible, but it was going to require I use the camera in manual all the time...not an option.

4. Underwater Housing I had a housing from a past Sony camcorder, which despite the housing kit stating it was for an earlier version, it works just fine. Its not a frequently used accessory, but boy does it make for some cool shots. The reason it works is becuase the new camcorders still use the Sony "half moon" shaped connector which allows the housing to control the camera in this case.

5. Smart Doors the 550 doors (the things that cover the charge port, mic port, etc.) slide neatly out of the way most other camcorders have doors that dandle on a plastic hinge. Its not a huge thing, but its nice to have the camera look and feel tidy when plugging in accessories.

Add all this up, and I think you get something close to your moneys worth for the more expensive Sony.

I will give slightly better marks to Panasonic for color the colors seemed more vivid on the Panasonic. Sony's colors seem real, but maybe a touch muted not enough to really matter for me though.

Low light performance In darker settings I liked the Sony...using just two CF bulbs in lamps, I can easily film, producing a picture that looks natural and well lit. White balance has been perfect so far.

Quick Update (12/22/2010) Camera is still going strong and I am loving it. Its been one of the most satisfying electronic purchases in a while. I have been using it with Final Cut Express on my Mac, and editing has been pretty easy -would help if I knew Final Cut a bit better, but I am learning fast now that video is SOOOOO much easier to import without having to transfer from a tape.

A-514 Ac Adapter

• Charge devices with USB charge function via USB cable without computer
• Includes 4 connectors: Europe, UK, Japan & US, Australia

INTRO: We bought the Olympus A514 unit to power and/or charge the superb Olympus DM-520 voice recorder that I bought for my mate. After some initial difficulty inserting the correct wall jack adapter (they include the most common 4 types), the unit has performed as expected and posed no problem after 2 months of daily use.

DESCRIPTION: The charger is the fairly common USB power brick design providing 5 volts to USB powered and/or charged devices connected by a USB cable that *YOU* provide and insert into the power block's full sized USB female jack. The all black, all plastic block is much smaller than older style dedicated power units but much larger than the tiny iPod charger block.

PACKAGING: The packaging consists of a compact glossy cardboard box containing 5 items: The main power block (without any wall plug) and 4 wall jack adapter plugs one of which you slide into the side of the power block. The mating of the adapters is where the unit loses credits. No USB cable is provided in this package.

OLYMPUS-SPECIFIC FEATURES: When used with an Olympus device like the superb DM-520 voice recorder, this power unit allows you to power the recorder and charge the batteries at the same time or power the recorder only to avoid unneeded recharging. See your Olympus recorder manual for a section on selecting the mode. On theDM-520, you press and hold the STOP button when inserting the USB cable to place it into power with charge mode. Not doing so defaults to power only. Remember, all rechargeable batteries have a finite number of recharges so it behooves you to NOT charge your batteries constantly.

WORK FLOW: We use the unit to power and charge our DM-520 voice recorder as follows. My mate plugs the unit in without holding STOP so it defaults to power only mode. Once every 1-2 weeks, I will re-mate it with the STOP button pressed to initiate the power + charge mode. That should maintain the life of the batteries for a few years and ensure there is always a charge when it is needed to operate the unit naked in the field without a charger.

PROBLEMS: Each wall jack adapter plug slides into a shoe on one side of the power block very similar to how a camera's flash unit male mounting "tongue" slides into the female "hot shoe" on the top of the camera. The problem is that the edges of the included adapters as well as the retaining edge rails on the block's recessed "shoe" area are plastic, simply molded without "rounds" or "fillets", and provides minimal clearance without any features to ease sliding and mating. So, you have to squint a little, line up an adapter, push it in fairly hard and hope there is minimal "flashing" or other plastic defects on the plastic forms so that it will mate completely.

BOTTOM LINE: If you only need to mate the unit to a single wall jack style and carefully insert the adapter correctly, you should be fine and have no aftertaste. We have forgotten the problems and view the unit simply as a power adapter that works. On the other hand, if you need to use different adapters for foreign travel, I'd re-mate all adapters several times to wear any plastic edges or flashing and ensure they work as required.

OUR RATING: We would have given the unit 4.5 stars were it not for the cheaply designed adapter plug plates. However, since they do work after a little playing around, we reduced the rating only by 1 star to 3.5. Since we cannot enter a ½ and it is clearly not 4 stars, we entered 3 stars.

OEM INFO PAGE:

Save 26% Off

Creative Zen V 1 GB Portable Media Player (White/Orange)

• Portable media player fits perfectly in your palm or pocket
• Big 1 GB memory holds up to 500 songs, photographs, and album art
• 1.5-inch OLED screen displays rich and vibrant photos, full-color menus, and more at any viewing angle
• Direct CD Recording allows you to record songs directly from an audio source without using a PC
• Player doubles as a voice recorder with the handy built-in microphone

I got my zen v and was surprised how tiny it is. It is much smaller than you might think. It's light and easy to use. I found the new joy stick to be a great idea. I didn't have any problems and I dont have tiny fingers. This is an easy player to use and is built beautifully. The quality is as good or better than iPod. I was going to get the zen v plus with video but I couldnt wait and am not that into video on a small player anyhow. The price is very low for these zen v players, especially considering that they are super high build quality. All you have to do is charge the player for a few hours before you mess around with it. So, I highly recommend this delightful player for ease of use and build quality. IMHO it's better than apple and much better than sandisk. You will be impressed. I also would like to stress that the joystick system on this player is easy to use and very simple to figure out. I have had nothing but a good experience using this. Read the manual on the cd if you can hold back from just trying to play with it to figure it out. Even though it doesnt have radio or a video function, the zen v has a lot of options in its menu to mess around with. I am very impressed with the high quality creative is giving out along with low prices. The mp3 market has a lot of options now but the zen v plus is the best for my money. I have a lot of experience with MP3 players and this is the most impressive one yet for its size. Go to a store and check out how small it really is and how nice the player is put together and how easy the navigation is with the new joystick system. You will probably end up getting one. To be honest though, if you do check it out, you won't freak out how small it is when you get it in the mail like I did before seeing it,so flip a coin on that deal.Have fun!

I want to add some things here. First of all, I am not a creative fanboy. Secondly, I own a lot of mp3 players. Now back to the zen V. I've read a lot of bashing on this and I think it's just spin against Creative. First of all, I've had zero problems with this player. I also wanted to say the pictures are better on the screen than you might think from reading some of the reviews on the internet. Although the zen v has mainly gotten very high marks from the pro reviewers, they sometimes mention the controls as hard to use or Ive even seen one review that you cant "scroll". Well, if you hold the joystick you can lol. THey also sometimes say the picture quality isn't so great. Well, I own a few others with picture capability and this is the best and clearest of them all!. I read about 15 reviews before I bought this little creampuff, and I have to laugh at how wrong even the few cons were. I am not praising the zen v as the best overall small but feature filled mp3 player for any other reason than that it is. If you want video and a radio, get the v plus but the zen v is pretty darn cool. I dont even really need the pictures. I just wanted something nice. I own apples irivers, cowens, sandisks and other no name mp3 players. I am dead serious when I say this little gem is hot for good reason. Even the battery life is a little BETTER than they say it is, but if there is a slight negative its the battery life, but it's really not so bad as they say. If a new iPod came out this good, I would praise that too. I have no love for any company that makes these little music players. This one really deserves the praise, and the bashers will lose out as more people talk about how reliable and what a solid and nice looking sounding gem this player really is. Besides that i found out it has the latest chip powering it from Sigmatel, which runs around 200mhz. That is a powerful and award winning relatively expensive chip folks! THis is no cheapo player. From the outside to the inside its all top notch.

Buy Creative Zen V 1 GB Portable Media Player (White/Orange) Now

Update:

The player freezes with no sound and with the screen on (displaying album artwork), at random times and for no apparent reason. One of my two units had to be reset so many times that it can no longer be reset: it feels like that internal pad you press on with a sharp pin has now disappeared (it must have broken off). Our only recourse now is to wait 3 days for the battery to run dead, and hope that it will be reset simply by recharging it from scratch. We've only had this unit since August (it's now December), so I no longer feel the reliability level of this product is sufficient to justify its purchase. Buy something else that doesn't have to be reset all the time!

I bought the 2 GB model because it had the largest flash memory of any unit that works with the Napster-To-Go subscription, so it can store the largest number of songs and color photographs. The 1 GB version is identical except for the amount of installed flash memory.

Why did I choose to buy a flash memory based MP3 player? Compatible hard drive models with much larger storage capacity abound, but I figure they'll break prematurely because they use a hard drive that can't withstand much jogging, accidental bumping or dropping.

I bought two of the players plus the separately sold AC wall charger, and attached one of them to the wall charger for 6 hours, while I attached the other one to a USB port on my PC to charge it for 6 hours.

At the end of 6 hours, the unit attached to the PC was fine until I unplugged it, then it went comatose and would not even revive when the reset button was pushed several times. I had to exchange it for a replacement unit just two days after buying it.

The unit attached to the wall charger was fine, and I went on to load it up with music using my Napster-To-Go subscription. That was fine until 2 weeks later, when my wife charged it on a PC using the USB cable. After charging and disconnecting from the PC, it too went comatose.

This time I was able to revive it by pushing the reset button.

Then I took a look at the other unit, which had been charging on the AC wall charger. It had also gone comatose, and I was able to revive it by pushing its reset button.

The reset button is inside a tiny hole on the left edge of this unit. You can find it by following the thin groove that's below the screen all the way to the left edge of the unit, where you'll find it on the side. The picture in the manual does NOT accurately depict its location.

The hole leading to the reset button is very, very small. The instructions say to penetrate that hole with a pin.

I used the sharp end of a safety pin to do this. When the pin is inserted, it's quite easy to miss the reset button unless the pin is inserted at exactly the right angle. You'll know it's not at the right angle if you don't feel that you're pushing on a pad with a spring behind it when you reset the unit. That pad travels a short distance until it's stopped by a control surface inside the unit; that's when you know it has been reset.

The reset system should be redesigned so that it doesn't depend on the angle you insert the pin to work. I suspect that the first unit I returned could have been reset if I had known that you have to insert the pin at just the right angle to do it. Since I didn't know, my several attempts to reset it were not successful.

Resetting the unit is akin to rebooting a PC: it revives it when the internal software (called "firmware") has frozen by restarting the software. It does not erase your songs or photos.

Make no mistake: this MP3 player looks, feels and works beautifully. However, since the firmware is newly designed, it appears to have bugs relating to disconnecting it from USB or charger power that cause it to freeze, and the reset button is a little hard to use if you don't know about the things I described above that could cause you to be unable to reset it. You may just end up with a unit that's frozen and not be able to reset it.

It needs to be a little more user friendly than that. Hopefully a future firmware update will be available that will lower the occurrence of the unit locking up (freezing), especially when disconnecting from a USB port or AC charger after recharging it. As another user noted, the "safe disconnect" icon is often times not even in the system tray.

If you don't subscribe to Napster-To-Go, your options to get content for your MP3 player are to transfer your favorite songs from CDs you own to your hard disk ("ripping the songs"), or purchase songs one track or album at a time, at a price ranging from 88 to 99 cents per song from sites like Napster, Rhapsody or WalMart.

You can also download books you want to listen to (such as best sellers and classics) or "podcasts" (your favorite newspapers read aloud, or your favorite radio programs like NPR) from a plethora of sites (like NetLibrary and Audible) that make these available, to your computer's hard drive. Now you can listen to your music, audible books and podcasts over your PC loudspeakers while sitting at your PC.

Then you can transfer your songs, audible books and podcasts from the hard drive of your PC to your MP3 player(s). This enables you to take your MP3 player with you to enjoy listening in your car, in your office, while jogging or working out at the gym, while shopping, or at the pool or the beach to hear your music, audible books and podcasts anywhere.

Read Best Reviews of Creative Zen V 1 GB Portable Media Player (White/Orange) Here

I bought this as an IPOD alternative for Audible books . It takes a long time to start and stop and does not return to where you left off in a book accurately. Maddening. I'd avoid this if you listen to audiobooks.

Want Creative Zen V 1 GB Portable Media Player (White/Orange) Discount?

Many of the negatives written about the Zen are true. It does lock up (esp if you try to scroll too fast), you DO have to install software on your computer and learn how to use it (duh), and it's not quite as sexy as the brand name iPod, but I think for it's particular market niche it is a good little player and stands up well against the Apple products. I for one LOVE my little Zen. (note: resetting the Zen is easy, installing/learning the software was not difficult, and for the $200+ price tag of an iPod, I can live with the loss of prestige).

The keyword here is "little". It is truly small (about the size of my car alarm remote) and of negligible weight, so I can comfortably and securely wear it around my neck like a necklace without special cases, pouches, armbands, or pockets built into my jacket or backpack (though all of these accessories are available for those that feel a need for them). Because of this compact, lightweight design, I tend to carry ("wear") my Zen more often than other players and so it has become my favourite.

Secondly, the fact that it is inexpensive (I won't say "cheap") is actually a big plus for me because I am not constantly afraid of damaging it as I would be a more expensive player. I tend to "wear" my Zen through some rugged use (workouts, hiking, traveling, skiing, etc) and it has held up perfectly so far (!), but I am not over-worried about it.

I don't use mine for audio books, so I can't speak to the "bookmarking" problem. I mainly enjoy a large collection of my favourite music which can be nicely categorized into handy playlists, like an energetic workout list, a mellow relaxing list, by music genre, by artist, or even play an entire "album" in it's original order. I love this feature because I can rock out when I want to, or play some quiet background pop when my Mom is in the car... LOL. The Zen has brought a lot of additional joy to my life, hearing my favourite music, esp when sitting around waiting or traveling long distances.

Battery life is impressive. I've gone on entire 3-day weekend trips without it quitting on me. It charges from any USB port (cord included) and has an optional car adapter (an after market NECESSITY).

With a few minor accessories (a USB power cord, a car power adapter cord, a car "cassette" adapter, a protective silicone shell, waterproof earbuds), I have tricked my Zen out to fit very well into my life and my uses. Perhaps I am just not a demanding customer, but I think that the Zen is a very nice little player for an excellent price. I am very happy with mine and I would confidentally recommend it.

I have had my Zen V about a month and so far I love it. I have downloaded books from netlibrary without a hitch. Copying books from CD's and then transferring has been more of a challenge due to each track needing to be edited manually. It bookmarks great and does remember where you left off after shutdown as long as it isn't on pause. Not sure why that is but I learned that fairly quickly. I am still learning all the extra features, but I recommend it if you want to do audiobooks.

GW Security 25 Feet Pre-made Siamese All-in-One BNC Video and Power Cable for CCTV Security Camera

Not sure how to be real colorful in the description of this cable it works and is reasonably priced.

This is being used for an extension on a SWANN security system. It is much thinner than the original cords and is being used inside the house. I don't think I would trust it outside due to squirrels, bugs etc. For inside, it's perfect. It's a cord. It does what it is supposed to do.

Buy GW Security 25 Feet Pre-made Siamese All-in-One BNC Video and Power Cable for CCTV Security Camera Now

This item is described rather well. The product is made from good quality. Will definitely do the job for a camera set up.

Read Best Reviews of GW Security 25 Feet Pre-made Siamese All-in-One BNC Video and Power Cable for CCTV Security Camera Here

This product replaced a defective cable that came with security system. It works great did not need 25 feet but for price could not beat it. It saved purchase of new monitor that my husband was convinced was the problem.

Want GW Security 25 Feet Pre-made Siamese All-in-One BNC Video and Power Cable for CCTV Security Camera Discount?

These cables are exactly as described and they do everything they say they will. My stock cables seemed to be more heavy duty than these, but since they are not in a high traffic area and secured to joists with wire staples, I don't think there will be any significant issues.

Save 14% Off

BLU T172T Jenny Unlocked Quad-Band Dual SIM Phone with Camera, BLUetooth, Analog TV, microSD Card S

Good audio quality for phone calls. Texting is just like any other feature phone. I used 3 different SIMs (ekit.com from EF Tours, Tescomobile.ie, and Postfone.ie) and had no issues. The Quad band is great since you get coverage from either T-Mobile or AT&T in the US. You need the microSD card since the onboard RAM is so small and only good for your contacts. The media player does good with MP3s. The antenna is quirky since much of Europe has converted to digital TV so it doesn't do any good. The radio works fine. The camera is basic first generation, I ended up using my Droid for taking pictures instead of this phone. For the price, it was a good purchase and would recommend for anyone who needs basic features.

I actually bought this phone for my father. Nothing elaborate. Just for simple use. My father was just looking for a basic phone. He liked the style and stated that it operated but the phone was not programmed for voicemail. Really frustrating since I am in a different state and tried to advise him of how to get it. Well he had to go to our retail provider in order for them to activate it on his phone. So now he has to press 123 to gain access. Other than that I take it from him that it is an ok phone otherwise.

Buy BLU T172T Jenny Unlocked Quad-Band Dual SIM Phone with Camera, BLUetooth, Analog TV, microSD Card S Now

Pros

-Product was as described.

I like the dual sim, micro SD slot, video recording, TV reception. etc

Good loking.

Cons

It has a antenna for the FM and TV. Good for those. However my mother felt it old style. (I do not feel so)

Body is plastic but seems to long last.

Overall I like the product and will recommend to others. It is worth more than what I paid for this ($35)

Read Best Reviews of BLU T172T Jenny Unlocked Quad-Band Dual SIM Phone with Camera, BLUetooth, Analog TV, microSD Card S Here

Pinnacle TV for Mac HD Stick

I just unboxed this 15 mins ago and it's up and running and brilliant!

There aren't a whole lot of digital HD channels yet here in brooklyn, about 10 that I can pick up in fair quality, and about 4 in great quality.... but you can pick up all your regular analog channels too. NBC HD looks amazing and the color fidelity is more than I expected.

I have a macbook pro core2duo 2.2ghz. Receiving the NBC HD channel takes about 90% of 1 of the 2 cores of this processor on Activity Monitor -does not skip or jitter, no lag running other applications. I've posted a screenshot of it on this review also... but the small size doesn't do it justice. Native resolution is about 1420 x 800 in HD.

The software it comes with is also quite intelligent... eyeTV Lite.... and the remote is functional and almost has a Front Row kinda feel, appropriate for an apple device. Has tivo like controls built into the remote... you can pause live HD, and record-yes. I didn't think it would work so easily, but it works without configuration. Comes with a free subscription to TitanTV to receive your program guide info. You can also plug a cable box into it and use the titan TV software to get the cable guides..

The device itself is compact, and I expect it'll be easy to "pack your TV" along with you anywhere you go.

It also functions as a DV bridge and has inputs for S-video, yellow RCA video, and a headphone like line-in for audio (you'll need a RCA to mini patch cable if you wanna use RCA audio inputs)... so you can hook up your cable TV, VCR, playstation, xbox, anything that uses standard outputs -and use your computer screen as a TV replacement.

Overall I got much more than I expected. A+

Thanks.

The Pinnacle TV for Mac HD Stick is a nice compact product and comes complete with everything you need to watch television anywhere. With the included antenna, you can watch regular TV broadcast channels and HDTV as well. It can also take cable/sat TV as well. All you really do is insert the USB hookup with the antenna or cable TV line and install the software. Once installed and work with the setup, you are good to go.

The quality of the programs looks great in HD, and is a great alternative to purchasing a HD television. I use a Macbook (1st generation), and it meets all the requirements to view high definition programming.

One of the small issues is that when you set-up your channels, it does an auto scan. If you live in a place that has some difficulty getting reception, you might want to do your autoscan somewhere near a window where the antenna can lock-into the channels. Once autoscan is done, you should be OK. It took me a couple of tries to get all the channels that are available.

Buy Pinnacle TV for Mac HD Stick Now

I purchased this product to connect to my MBP to capture from VHS tape. The product works flawlessly. Audio & video sync perfectly and the integration with Toast is awesome. That makes it very simple to capture and convert to DVD. It allows conversion to different file formats (AVI MPG etc)in case you want to save a digital file rather than burn directly to DVD, which is nice for me because I like to keep an archive copy on a portable drive.

I took off 1 star because when you convert to AVI MPG DVD etc, you don't have much control over the output filesize. If you are capturing a 1.5+ hour long video, chances are you will not be able to fit the conversion to a standard DVD, you will need a dual layer burner.

The over the air HD reception is a neat feature, but wouldn't be and wasn't my primary reason for buying. It's tough to receive OTA HD signals from INSIDE so your channel selection will be limited without an external antenna.

Things to note:

1. You will need a 2 RCA to 3.5mm stereo audio patch cable to connect left and right audio from the source (like a VCR or DVD)

2. The package comes with a lite version of EyeTV. I highly recommend upgrading to the full product right away if you are planning to use this a a DVR. The lite version just doesn't cut it. Even if you choose not to upgrade go directly to EyeTV and download the latest lite version as the one on the disk is outdated.

Read Best Reviews of Pinnacle TV for Mac HD Stick Here

The Pinnacle Stick is great as I can view TV on my 24" iMac and record programs or movies. These can be saved to a CD or DVD for viewing on a large screen TV or on my IMac. I am totally satisfied

Want Pinnacle TV for Mac HD Stick Discount?

The Pinnacle TV for Mac HD Stick provides broadcasts and recordings of television programs conveniently and simply. It's worth upgrading from the provided EyeTV lite to the EyeTV full application that enables scheduled program recording as well as burning recorded programs to discs or converting them to various formats, including the iPod. I have a 24-inch iMac and the HD stick turns my computer into a high-quality HD television and DVR (I use an external drive to archive the recorded programs). I highly recommend this tuner for its price and ease of use.

Flip Video Power Adapter

The Power adapter puts to much charging power into the battery pack and over heats the pack and causes a shut down of the camera. The best bet is to buy a second battery pack and charge it through the USB port.

Adapter caused the camera to "over heat" or stop charging.

However, my main concern is, why bother to get this gadget at all?

Charge with a usb connection when you can and, when no usb port is available, just use regular AA batteries!

Adapters, over-heating, errors, possible damage, another country......it ain't worth it.

Buy Flip Video Power Adapter Now

I realized soon after getting my flip HD that I can find so much to shoot that I burn up a battery pack and need to recharge it and that sometimes it's most convenient to recharge it via a wall outlet rather than a computer. Here are some examples,,,

We went on a week long cruise and I had no computer access but I could recharge with this because there were electrical outlets everywhere.

I was shooting a wedding reception for a friend and forgot to recharge before leaving but by the time the wedding was over I grabbed my fully charged unit where I plugged it into the church wall behind a table and I was ready to shoot the full reception without losing any power.

We went to Myrtle Beach and stayed in a friend's condo. No computer there to recharge but I just popped in my camcorder at night before going to sleep and it was always ready to shoot in the morning.

I have even found outlets at the airport (near soda fountains and vending machines) in a pinch.

Don't get me wrong, it's not that my camera runs out of juice easily, it is, instead, that the cameras owner forgets to recharge it as often as I should.

Negatives: Wish this was made so I could just stick my spare battery pack into it rather than having to plug the actual camcorder into it but I suppose most don't have spare battery packs so that is no big deal. However it would be nice if it somehow left open the option to do both so that I could keep shooting while it charges

it is really lightweight and has,so far, worked perfectly for me.

Read Best Reviews of Flip Video Power Adapter Here

I only received this item because it was free with the purchase of the Flip video camera. As soon as I took it out of the box, I was grateful that I didn't pay anything for it. It gets the job done, but it's pretty awkward to plug in and have the camera propped up precariously against the charger so that the whole unit will stay in the wall (and subsequently charge). I've heard that it's better for these types of devices to be plugged into an outlet, rather than charging them through the computer's USB port, so I suppose it's useful for that... but it's just an adapter with a USB port, which means that the wall charger for my iPod and iPhone will get the job done just as well.

I would not pay $25 for this item. In fact, if given the chance, I would probably choose a different free accessory. If you're anything like me, you don't need this, and you'll only be irritated that you got it.

Want Flip Video Power Adapter Discount?

The description provided by Amazon says "Compatible with the following models out of the box: M31120B, M3160S, U32120 models, M2120M, U2120 models" My model is U32120. However, that model is not listed on the box and this device does not support third generation Flip.

Save 72% Off

EDIROL OPRO9P L CASE FOR R09 MAP 35.00

I own both the Edirol R09 and the Edirol R09HR recorders and they are WONDERFUL! However, sadly, I was not terribly impressed with the carrying pouch. The pouch fits the recorder and nothing else--not even the electrical cord for the recorder. The Edirol fits in the case, but for the nearly $40 price charged, I would have expected a nicer case. This was just a cheesy plastic or vinyl case with no padding, and I returned it (which is a rarity for me). I now use a small cosmetic case that is slighly padded (and truthfully more attractive), which not only protects the Edirol better, but also holds the electrical cord, the mini tripod stand and some extra batteries for the recorder.

I would give my whole-hearted endorsement to the Edirol recorders themselves, which are easy to use and make great recordings. This carrying case, however, does not do such a wonderful recorder justice.

DXG DXG-505V 5.1 MegaPixel Camera with 2.4" Rotating LCD

The DXG-505V is an inexpensive, value-packed multi-function device that tries to do everything, but is spread a bit thin in terms of practicality. As a camera, its pictures are mega-sharp although it's surprising to experience internal mechanical focusing noise (and such short battery life) on a solid-state camcorder that has no moving parts. DXG should have really bundled in the optional NP-60 Li-Ion rechargeable battery (found online for under $11) and a 2GB SD card (about $25) and raised the price accordingly, because you WILL be buying these items.

As far as features go, let's run down the list:

1) Pictures. Quite good! Very basic lens, but sharp with decent color, 5.1MP resolution, auto-focus, & flickery electronic flash.

2) Camcorder. Grainy, even in HQ (640x480) mode, with rather low color resolution. Spend $25 and get yourself a 2GB SD card. Haven't tried the Direct Printing support, but it's in there.

3) FM radio & MP3. These work, barely. Clumsy and primitive.

4) Webcam. Yep, this works. You can capture pics or movies with it in Pinnacle Studio or Vegas. Bonus for also being able to record and playback via NTSC.

5) Flash drive. Works just like any other, very easy to get your files in and out of the camera.

6) Audio recorder. Primitive. Sound is fixed at 12KHz mono, and record levels are not adjustable.

So, you get the idea. The LCD rotatable LCD display is excellent, and the firmware is very well done for the most part so as long as you keep your expectations modest, it's a very fun device but strictly for kids and hobbyists.

What this is supposed to do best is probably the worst feature of this product, which is recording video. If you don't mind low res video, and just want something to mess around with, then it's fine. It does take good pictures, but if I wanted good pictures, I would've bought a digital camera. Same goes for the mp3 player, radio, and voice recorder. I wanted this for capturing decent video, and it does a really lousy job with what they should have made thier number one priority. I didn't expect too much from this camcorder for it's price, but it's pretty bad when my brothers digital camera, which was cheaper than this, takes much better quality video. So yea, your probably just better off buying a digital camera that records video, because it'll probably be better at pictures and video than this sub-standard camcorder.

Buy DXG DXG-505V 5.1 MegaPixel Camera with 2.4" Rotating LCD Now

Overall the camera is "okay." It does not come with a memory card so be sure to keep that in mind when purchasing because those alone can cost anywhere from 20 to 200 dollars! I have a 512MB one in it right now, and it's not enough. The camera takes pictures okay, but only in very good lighting. Don't try to use it inside...even the very cool lighting features can't save the poor quality pictures it produces in poor lighting situations. Also, unless you have a very steady hand, most of your pictures will come out blurry or with a glare created from the flash....not sure why that is though...The video it takes is very very very pixeled. You can see colorful dots all over the picture, even when you transfer it to either dvd or your computer. The MP3 features are neat, but it eats up too much space for what it's worth. The camera comes with headphones, usb ports and cords to hook into your tv. Pretty cool, I think. All in all, it's a good camera for what you are paying for...but I would reccommend saving for another month and buying a step up. It's good for a college student like myself, who will in the next few years be building a family and purchasing a better quality camera. :) Hope this helps...

Read Best Reviews of DXG DXG-505V 5.1 MegaPixel Camera with 2.4" Rotating LCD Here

I am pleased with the purchase I made and the price I paid.

I am still getting aquinted with it. I have one problem, I don't know how to erase the internal storage, which is very little. If there was some more internal storage, it would have beem great. Could do with some help there.

Want DXG DXG-505V 5.1 MegaPixel Camera with 2.4" Rotating LCD Discount?

That's the way, that's the way' uh hu' uh hu I like it uh hu uhTony Hawk