Viewing 22 posts - 1 through 22 (of 22 total)
  • Which camcorder for imac/ipad please?
  • slackalice
    Free Member

    My plan is to at last make the ‘jump’ and leave the world of PC and endless windows updates for the time being and enter the world of the Mac….

    I know, there are as many of us here who will make convincing cases both for and against this intended move, however, it’s my money and that’s how I’m going to spend it (although a Morewood Zula with a Lefty….).

    Le famille Slack are also wishing to document bits of our lives in moving pictures and so a camcorder has been voted onto the list and I started to research which one would be best for the iMac…. oh dear… It seems iMovie is not all that tolerant towards many of them and I’m getting increasingly confused by all the various possible conflicts and instabilities that are/have been reported on the multiple forums, discussion groups et al.

    So, I thought it best to cut through the crap and consult the oracle of STW… to give me a whole load more to sift through, knowing that there will be gems of insight and genuine experience in amongst the myths and legend.

    I thank you and wish you all a peaceful winter holiday season.

    slackalice
    Free Member

    It’s probably very good therapy…. not rushing with any suggestions and by so doing, allowing me to investigate further and find the resolution to my own question…. very clever, thank you all!! 😀

    Now I know which one will definitely work! 😀

    JulianA
    Free Member

    Well I don’t have a Mac (strictly Windows here, mostly for work reasons), but I do know that my iPad takes great video, so would an iPad work for you? The later iPads, the iPad Mini and the later iPhones(4s onwards) all take 1080p video, so would one of those be an option?

    grum
    Free Member

    AVHCD format can be a bit of a pain but pretty much everything else is fine IME.

    iPad has terrible ergonomics for using as a camcorder IMO.

    slackalice
    Free Member

    Yep, thanks guys. Wont be using the iPad for too much outdoor/days out video-ing due to it’s ergonomics.

    The Apple site has just recommended the Go-Pro 3. So whatever format that is, it looks like the one to go for – which has an added benefit of course!! 😀

    Lazgoat
    Free Member

    I think it really depends on what sort of videoing you’ll be doing with the family. The Go Pro 3 a fantastic little camera but it doesn’t have any Zoom, LCD (unless you buy the add on). Because it’s small the battery is tiny, so it doesn’t last long, so you’ll need spares. Factor in buying these add ons.

    cbike
    Free Member

    Jvc have a final cut native camcorder but it is quite dear. The recent iMovie s are clunky and final cut has apparently gone down this line too.

    mikewsmith
    Free Member

    ok start with what your going to do with it.

    The GoPro is awesome for some things and rubbish for others
    A Digital SLR is awesome for some things and rubbish for others
    A camcorder is probably obsolete in many ways as the other 2 can do most of it now.

    next question Budget?
    Depending on how much you have to invest then that is another long or short list

    Also if your serious about doing videos then I would suggest a good editing suite like Adobe Premiere (elemets version). In fairness you could probably get a much better camera and software by not buying apple for a premium and getting a fit for purpose PC. Even heading down Linux/KDNLive for editing for free.

    bigG
    Free Member

    what about a Flip mino? I bought one when our little un was on the way and it’s so simple everyone in the house can use it (including our two year old).

    The native video software on your mac – iMovie can be used to kick out some half decent edits if you have time.

    The other bonus is that’s tiny and so is more likely to be taken with you on days out.

    slackalice
    Free Member

    Thank you people! Your comments re Go Pro limitations noted and yes, I did omit budget from my initial request.. Circa £300, so nothing too fancy or cheap, it will be used for ‘documenting’ family life, events and the usual home video times.

    Loving the Flip Mino suggestion, thank you! Simplicity and ease of use rules! What is the difference between the Mino and the Ultra?

    PeterPoddy
    Free Member

    iPad has terrible ergonomics for using as a camcorder IMO.

    Agreed. iPhone is spot on though, and better quality.
    That said, I’ve had a brief dabble at filming with my DSLR. All I have to do is pop the SD card into the iMac and, bingo, the movie is transferred over. I’ve not got to grips with iMovie yet though, not really tried.

    plumber
    Free Member

    this – excellent little camera – great quality photos and vid – no compatability issues with ipad – upgradable lens if required and tough enough to see me round the world biking and boarding

    Go pro 2 if you really need to but it wouldn’t be my only camera thats for sure

    Plum

    bigG
    Free Member

    I think the main differences between the flip mino and flip ultra are –

    Size
    1080 HD on mino

    Can’t recommend it highly enough, sounds like you’re wanting something to do pretty much what we did when we bought it.

    slackalice
    Free Member

    Thanks for all comments and suggestions!

    I’m certainly err-ing towards the Flip… Thanks for the heads up on that one bigG… loving the ease of use/simplicity thing and from reviews read so far they are certainly plug and play with the Mac…. but then that’s why I’m jumping to Mac…

    CaptainSlow
    Full Member

    My plan is to at last make the ‘jump’ and leave the world of PC and endless windows updates for the time being and enter the world of the Mac….

    .. loving the ease of use/simplicity thing and from reviews read so far they are certainly plug and play with the Mac…. but then that’s why I’m jumping to Mac…

    If you are going from PC to mac solely for these reasons, you may be disappointed . :mrgreen:

    Prepare yourself to be both underwhelmed and a little frustrated as neither of these reasons hold to be true.

    If your coming from a PC World special then yes you will see a great deal of improvement as the HW will be of a lesser quality and the SW will be fairly awful.
    For the amount a mac costs you could custom build a very snazzy PC for yourself that will have equal or better performance than the mac, be compatible with more stuff (HW and SW) and have enough left over to spend more than a measly £300 notes on a cam corder. You’d have enough for a decent starter DSLR as well.

    I’ve recently moved from windows to mac, my mac was slower than my lower specked w7 PC (due to the SSD). Now I have installed an SSD in my mac, it is as quick – slightly quicker than my 4yr old w7 PC.

    I didn’t intend this to read as a PC v mac post as neither one is really better than the other, just different. I like my MacBook and enjoy using it but that doesn’t mean I now hate on every other OS.

    If you want one cos it looks nice and is kinda cool, you’ll be very pleased with it.

    Back to your original question – if you were using a windows PC you would not need to ask, it really would “just work” 😆 🙄 8)

    slackalice
    Free Member

    @ captainslow – thanks for your comments chap. See where you’re coming from too. Design ethos is not a consideration, however I do like the prospect of losing the birdsnest of cables. Wireless capability with music streaming at home and at second home also seems to make sense in a way.

    My main motive is that I’m led to believe the Mac is more robust and secure than PC – however (and this is a big ‘however’), our current set-up is embarrassingly low tech – 7yr old HP desktop running Vista with just 1gb RAM and a 10yr old HP XP laptop…. so quite frankly, I daresay that a PC World ‘special’ would easily outperform what we use at the mo.

    My other ‘gripe’ is the daily AVG Free scan seizes the desktop and Firefox consumes so much memory and Adobe Flash plug-in crashes every time embedded video is played – IE tab helps, but it’s a faff. Weekly windows updates and plug in updates and application updates to woirk with the windows updates just appear too sticking plaster like and make me think that nothing is tested before it’s issued as a fix.

    I just want something that works and will stay working…. not too unreasonable? I’m sure I could build/spec a PC to work robustly, but I dont want to have to ‘tinker’ with it to maintain it. Fit and forget as it were.

    Comments welcomed!

    slackalice
    Free Member

    I forgot to mention compatibility issues…. IME, windows HW and SW compatibility is pure chance as to whether they get along…. recent graphics card replacement being a prime example and again I’m forced to go down a ridiculous scenario of having to download graphics driver updates on a monthly basis, to then manually uninstall the existing driver and manually install the update… WTF is that all about??!!!

    Possibly because I’m not tech literate enough to sort it any other way? Or because I’m dealing with a new bit of graphics HW in a 7yr old box?

    CaptainSlow
    Full Member

    No worries, glad to help..don’t want to be the continuous harbinger of doom and Apple heretic, but I don’t think they’re necessarily more secure. A better specked and self built windows PC would give you the connectivity, security and speed you’re looking for.

    Remember the weakest link in any PC/mac security will be the user.

    For mac security don’t listen to the don’t need AV crowd and install Sophos or one of the free AVs and disable java unless you need it.

    That said, they do look very nice and are enjoyable to use, so enjoy, they do feel a bit special. Which one are you going for?

    Their monitors look lovely but bear in mind where you will position it. One of the annoyances with my MBP is how reflective the screen is. If I’m near a window all I can see is a dashingly handsome 🙂

    CaptainSlow
    Full Member

    I forgot to mention compatibility issues…. IME, windows HW and SW compatibility is pure chance as to whether they get along…. recent graphics card replacement being a prime example and again I’m forced to go down a ridiculous scenario of having to download graphics driver updates on a monthly basis, to then manually uninstall the existing driver and manually install the update… WTF is that all about??!!!

    Possibly because I’m not tech literate enough to sort it any other way? Or because I’m dealing with a new bit of graphics HW in a 7yr old box?

    I don’t want to sound unkind but it could be user error coupled with 7 years of neglect / abuse.

    What version of windows are you running? If XP I can understand your issues and this may explain some of your issues (which lets you off the hook. If vista you are completely forgiven as that is probably their worst OS ever).

    Windows 7 is a huge leap in user friendliness and stability. W8 is supposed to be better still.

    slackalice
    Free Member

    Points noted re security and thanks for heads up with sophos.

    I wouldn’t know where to start with a self-build and the ensuing knowing what bits of HW would work with other bits of HW from different manufacturers etc etc. I like your approach of more for less but seriously… where and how I start on that road??!

    What is Java? What does it do and why is it there if it needs to be disabled? See my point?

    ATM, probably entry level iMAC 21.5″ 2.7ghz methinks, with the 2tb time capsule for wireless doo-dah and back up. Couple that with an ipad for mobility of internet, choons and entertainment and an airport express installed in the houseboat in Norfolk and I think I’m kinda covered…. 😕

    slackalice
    Free Member

    I’ll happily accept user error!!

    I’m led to believe vista is actually quite good if it’s run with minimum of 2gb of RAM/memory…. but then again, I’m easily led! 😉

    CaptainSlow
    Full Member

    Vista v.v.v. bad, W7 and W8, v.v.v. good.

    There are tons of self build guides on the web, there are shops that sell bundles of the main components so there are no interop issues and the same retailers also build PCs custom order. Have a look on buyer.com or overclockers.co.uk.

    That said, you seem fairly set on the Apple experience and prepared to invest in it. You’ll like the iPad and mac integration of the bookmarks and tabs in safari. Timecapsule is expensive but pretty cool (I’m told, I have no experience). I connect and external HDD and use Time machine to manually backup once per week ish.

    Airport express can be a bit hit and miss I find. Some days it streams perfectly, other days there are breaks in play back other days it cant lock on so have to disable/enable AE to get it working again (Apple stuff “just works” my arse :)). I have good wifi coverage in the house…

    You will like what you are suggesting and it should be relatively easy to setup and get working. You’ll also get 90 days tech support with it to help as well.

    This site has some good tips and will talk you through the basics: http://www.reedcorner.net/mmg-defense/

    Based on what you’ve told me here I’d say go forth and buy your mac* – you should be able to haggle a latte-moca-chocha-chino, sport jacket and roll neck into the price 😀

    Find a local Comet if you can that has stock and you’ll get at least 10% off. 10% is a pretty good discount. If you’re going into an Apple shop, and they wont move on price get them to throw in 3 years Applecare.

    *just bear in mind my initial comments, set expectations accordingly and be ready to google/call applecare 🙂

    Edit – and let us know how you get on and what camera you go for – a HD camcorder is on my todo list

Viewing 22 posts - 1 through 22 (of 22 total)

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