JVC Everio GZ-MG50 (30 GB) Hard Drive Camcorder

Finally! I have been waiting for a video camera that takes good quality video (not mpeg4) and does not use tapes. Everyone that I know has a minidv/digital8 camera, and when they shoot something, the last we all ever see of it is when they hook up the camera to the tv at the end of the day. After that, no copies, no sharing, most of the time no one ever sees the video again. The whole point of recording memories is that you can watch them easily whenever you want and be able to share them with friends and family whenever you want.

First I have to say this is my first camcorder ever (yes, I have been waiting 30 years for this camera). I have used plenty of other camcorders that people have let me borrow, but this is the first camcorder I ever buy for myself.

I went to Cancun two weeks ago and I made the decision that I had to buy a camera for the trip. This camera was a great choice and I love it! I didn't have to lug along my digital still camera, because the everio takes 1152x864 pictures as well which is more than enough for me (for those out there that think they need 6 megapixel pictures, wake up and smell the marketing).

When I got back from my trip, I decided to sit down and get everyone a copy of the video. I was a little apprehensive because I work in advertising and I know how cumbersome and slow it can be to work with large video files if you don't have a computer specifically made for that task...I decided to use my home computer because I didn't want to wait (2.6ghz celeron with 512mb of ram). I didn't really like the DVD authoring software that came with it (seemed to complicated and unintuitive), so I used the Nero VisionExpress that came with my Nero Ultimate Edition software. It was soooo easy to get this done. Within one hour I had already completed a dvd with all the footage from trip, with thumbnail menus and chapters automatically set for each time the camera stopped. I shot some footage of tropical fish in the water at Cozumel and I used that as the video background underneathe all of the menus. On a separate DVD I also created a compilation of photo slideshows (with music) from all the photo cameras everyone took (including pictures taken with my Everio).

I had the software "burn to hard disk" so I could make as many copies as I wanted of both dvds. I made 5 copies and was done totally done with the project in 2 hours. This would not have been possible without this camera, capturing from any other minidv camera or other video source would require hours upon hours of video conversion to dvd compliant mpeg2. But since this camera shoots in mpeg2, that is not a factor.

I love this camera and highly recommend it for most people. If you are one of those videophiles that worries about the number of lines of resolution of your video, or how many ccd chips your camera has, then this camera is probably not for you. If you want great looking video and the convenience of being able to share it EASILY, CHEAPLY AND QUICKLY then definitely check out this camera.

On another note, I have used the software that came with the camera to convert video clips to quicktime, windows media video and realvideo. This is very useful for emailing clips, posting them on websites, or putting them inside your windows media center (or other home theater pc) for easy access.

Also, when getting this camera, be aware that there are two models/versions out there that only do 640x480 pictures...I almost made that mistake.