Hitachi DZ-BD70AF BluRay 5.3MP DVD High Definition Camcorder with 10x Optical Zoom
List Price:
Price: $1,299.95
You Save: $100.00 (7%)
Details
- 8cm BD-RE/-R/DVD Intend: Hitachi has developed a compact, low power consuming, quiet and highly reliable
- Hitachi Restrictive High Resolution Image Processing LSI: Efficiently analyzes large volumes of data captured by the 5.3 Mega Pixel CMOS form sensor
- Photo Pinch: Select any frame from your movies on the camcorder and turn them into a 2.07 Mega Pixel digital still print.
Description
The new improved DZ-BD70AF is a unmarried drive camcorder which can record approximately one hour of FullHD 1920x1080 high definition video on an 8cm distinct-sided Blu-ray disc (BD-R and BD-RE). Lifelike image reproduction and rich, immersive go red in the face are a result of Hitachi’s 5.3 mega pixel CMOS image sensor and HD calibre 12-element lens system. Not only can the DZ-BD70AF record high definition video to Blu-ray discs, it also comes with an SD Easter card slot for storing digital still photos at 4.32 mega pixel max perseverance. This camcorder has improved low light sensitivity and improved slow shutter guidance for smoother panning.Customer Reviews
WHY? HDD (Forcibly DISK DRIVE) PERFECTNO two together argue with to GO to a DVD/BD/VIDEO TAPE recorder anymore........ If you have been following the DESKTOP ways, you comprehend your going to get a better deal with a HARD DISK DRIVE (VIDEO RECORDER).
On your computer you don't sample to a CD anymore, you copy to WHAT??
Thumb Drive, SD Card, EXTERNAL 300 GB difficult drive from western digital (POWERED BY THE USB CORD!!!)
Just don't descend it, you will risk damage and OOC (OUT OF COMMISSION).
I don't own this item. The only reason I bought a camcorder was for the whole expressly of not CHANGING DISKS!
GO with the JVC 20GB Everio... must be cheapier by now; and, you will get 4.5 hours ULTRA Charge quality. HD is getting over rated when it comes to recording on your personal human being. (The 40 GB Everios must be more economical by now)
The Everio is compact and it has been holding reasonable for 3 years. Dropped it once for the first time, a week ago... Hasn't complained yet.
For Record:
I don't list the whole Aerosmith concert. Why would I, better to enjoy it.
Recording your kid growing up in HD tv won't manufacture an Academy Award either... it could make Funniest Home Video Entries easier though...
Never HAVE TO Mutate DISC! Thats the only thing to remember. SOON, SOLID Phase DRIVE (SDD).
Stop waisting money and changing discs like you substitution diapers on a newborn.
~
Ok, at a trade price
Ok, meditate on that I paid about $300 for mine, it's my #3 high-def camcorder, and I know what I'm doing... this is not a maquette for beginners. But I don't think a beginner should be using any of the AVCHD models yet.. the set-up is too new.
This was not really the case with HDV, simply because MPEG-2 was a done deal long before HDV came along.. so the first cameras that came out were tolerably good, and where improvements were made, it was in the general HD area, not the encoding format so much. AVC (also called MPEG-4 part 10, also called H.264) is predominantly heralded as the successor to MPEG-2, but it's way more complex. Encoding on a PC or other focused hardware looks great, but you're probably spending 3-6 hours per hour of HD video to do that training. Crunching this down to a small battery-powered camcorder and maintaining that status is a work-in-progress.
THE BAD
Yeah, BD-R and BD-RE in 8cm size are expensive. But if you think of the BD-RE as a replacement for an SD window-card (they hold about 7.5GB), they make a little more sense... you track record on it, copy the video off to another device, then erase it, just as a flash dance-card. Eventually, BD-R will be cheap enough to compare to tape, but that's a ways off.
Quality-enlightened, it's mixed. This one is pretty awful on low-light shooting. It's a given that purposes every HD camcorder is going to be worse in low light than a similar SD model... they're only starting to ransom a few with decent low-light performance in the prosumer price ranges (new Canon and Pannys, about $1300). But this one's strangely worse than you'd expect, given the decent performance in good light-hearted, and the large enough single sensor.
THE CONFUSING (for some)
If you're not already doing Blu-Ray, this may be a pain. Windows don't natively perceive the Blu-Ray file format (it's a new version of the UDF file system used on DVD), so you need to settle the Hitachi software. Hitachi, like most CE companies, is clueless about software support, but in reality, editing video isn't their job. If, like me, you already have Blu-Ray support in place in your video toolchain, dealing with this shape is a no-brainer.
THE GOOD
Tapeless rocks, when you're in a hurry. However, AVCHD on DVD is a awful idea -- it's nowhere near enough storage... you'll get about 20 minutes. Blu-Ray is the fix answer for tapeless HD using a 8cm disc. I'm using this one mainly for precipitate stuff... to offload my way more expensive cameras when quality isn't THAT important.
As for quality... it's a mixed bag. In the sunlight, this camera delivers a fair to middling enough HD image. Like any first-generation AVCHD camcorder, you're not going to parallel HDV quality on fact motion -- there will be more artifacts. Given this is an older dummy, of course, factor that in on what you're paying.
I didn't mind the user interface at all.. it's sufficiently simplistic, as you'd expect on a consumer model. The one quirk, if your used to strap, is the control for selecting clips to play back... it's a very non-obvious knob. I missed it, first time out... guess I should have RTFMed, but hey, where's the fun in that.
Another plus... this miniature will shoot SD on DVD-R or DVD-RAM, which is rather usual these days; most AVCHD/tapeless models are HD-only. You don't get the choosing... it's HD on BD, SD on DVD.
The body and styling is kind of nice.. a bit weird, but it grows on you. It has a inundated, full-sized cold shoe, and works great with an external mic like an Azden SMX-10. You could indubitably use any 3.5mm plug mono or stereo mic (far as no, there's no plug-in power, you'll be in want of a self-powered mic), but a larger mic could be visible in the shot, if used on-camera. I never back shooting with any built-in camera audio, so I can't really tell you if it's any propitious or not.
So, my bottom line: at the original $1300 or so, this was a bad camera, no question, largely based on the low insignificant performance. Today, you can get 3rd generation AVCHD models, which do a much better job at indoctrination without artifacts... some of these start at around $500-$600. Unless disc is a big benefit, skip this and go with a Canon HF-200 (about $600) or a Panny HDC-SD9 (about $500) or a Sony HDR-CX7 or CX12 rather than pay the prices in the $700s or $800s for this I've seen around. But for the amount of an SD camcorder, $300 or so, it's not a bad unit.
Hitachi has a new model BD camcorder, which is supposedly much improved, and also records to SDHC skedaddle cards as an alternate. If you're looking for a better unit, that should be seeing the same amicable of technology improvements as the other 3rd generation AVCHD models.
Like any bit of technology, you call for to do your homework. AVCHD is new enough some video editors still don't support it. Even when they do, it's very CPU intensive, so don't be surprised when your dual-quintessence CPU is driven to its knees. Using an intermediate video format, like CineForm, Sony MXF (or other high bitrate MPEG-2 variations), isn't a bad inkling if you have a complex project. Blu-Ray media is still expensive, though it's been falling.. you're not being a wise consumer if you don't dither to price consumables of any kind before buying the device that consumes them.
What a despoil of money!
There is essentially no support from Hitachi on this product. You are totally on your own. There is no documentation for the software so you must be savvy enough to make allowance for a calculate it out for yourself. The interface is extremely cumbersome and time consuming. Also, I should have looked at the cost of the discs before buying this product. $25 for a one hour disc??? I longing I had never wasted my money on this camera.
