JVC GR-DVL510U MiniDV Digital Camcorder / Still Camera With MMC and USB

Author's Rating:

Pros: Price, picture quality, features, USB, manual focus, exposure and white balance

Cons: 10x optical zoom

The Bottom Line: 
The JVC GR-DVL510U a good value. And the MMC as well as USB interface make it easy to use to take still pictures.

Author's Review
The JVC GR-DVL510U MiniDV digital camcorder adds the ability to shoot still pictures and store them on the supplied 8Mb MultiMediaCard to the features of less expensive DVL310U. It also replaces the serial connection with USB interface to simplify the transfer of still images to your computer.

There is another review here that says this model does not have manual focus. IT DOES.

Picture And Sound

The DVL510U produces great pictures and sound (the sound quality can be better if you use the external microphone). In low light conditions you might have to use the built-in light or adjust the exposure. The camcorder uses MiniDV tapes and employs, a quite effective, digital image stabilizer.

Zoom

The camcorder has a 10x optical zoom and 400x digital zoom. It employs a 680,000-pixel CCD, which allows you to use digital zoom with not much loss in visual picture quality. The 400x digital zoom with spline interpolation is used in addition to the 10x optical one.

The zooming speed varies according to the finger pressure. The 10x optical zoom is small compared to the digital camcorders from Panasonic and Sony, but the camcorder’s CCD has quite high resolution to compensate for this fact.

Features

The camcorder has a large selection of digital effects, which include classic film, strobe, slow shutter, black and white, negative, digital wipes and fades, 16x9 mode, etc. The random assemble editing mode provides an eight-scene memory for favorite scenes and the ability to add special effects.

The camcorder also has a digital image stabilizer and playback zoom, audio dubbing. And, unlike Panasonic models, where you have to buy the remote separately, a full-function remote control is supplied.

Also supplied is Li-Ion battery, A/V cable and USB cable, drivers. The camcorder is very compact and weighs just 1.3 lbs.

Integrated Auto Light

The DVL510U has a built-in automatic light, and you will need it, since the dark scenes create video noise that has to be cured either by this built-in light or manually adjusting the exposure. The exposure can be manually adjusted, as well as white balance and focus.

LCD

The swivel color 2.5” LCD screen allows you to operate the camcorder from any angle. The LCD is 2.5 inches in size and has quite high resolution (110,000 pixels). In addition, the camcorder has a B&W viewfinder, which allows you to conserve battery power.

Manual Adjustments

In addition to automatic adjustments, you can manually adjust focus, exposure and white balance if you want. The manual white balance option is a feature not usually found in cheap camcorders and might come in handy, especially when using artificial light sources.

MMC and USB

The camcorder allows you to shoot still pictures at 640x480 resolution and store them on the supplied 8Mb MultiMediaCard (MMC). You can transfer them to your computer using the USB interface. The USB driver is included. You can take still pictures (“Snap Shot Mode”) in several modes. The USB connection is faster than connection using a serial port and it is also easier to use.

Inputs

The camcorder features A/V, S-Video out, i.Link (FireWire, IEEE 1394) and USB outs.

Bottom Line

The JVC GR-DVL510U a good value. And the MMC as well as USB interface make it easy to use to take still pictures.