Great Camcorder for the price

Author's Rating:

Pros: Quality video camcorder. Ability to capture still photos. Good low light capabilities. Computer friendly.

Cons: Camera must be removed from the tripod to change tapes which are only 60/80 minutes.

The Bottom Line: 
This camcorder is recommended for someone who wants quality video at a low cost that is easy to use and also desires the ability to record in low light.

Author's Review
My DCR-HC40 camcorder is about 14 months old and is still recording in good quality. I have not had the problems that some others seem to be experiencing.
I recorded my grandchildren's school play and transferred it to DVD using firewire and ulead "dvd movie factory 2". The school used the dvd as an additional fund raiser. The parents and grandparents loved the dvd and requested that I record and create the dvd for their school play again this spring.
I have another digital camera and do not really care about the limited 1 megapixel resolution of the still pix. I do like the option of grabbing a picture or two while recording video. The resolution is more than adequate for digital slideshows and web pages. When I want to print a picture I increase the resolution with Ulead Photoimpact. The night mode allows video recording and photos in very low light, the colors are pale, but you can't expect bright colors without light to reflect color. Just don't forget to turn off night mode or your video will be over exposed in daylight. Mini dv tapes (including the 80 minute tapes) run out before my battery. I don't particularly care for the quality of the video and sound when recording to the memory stick, but it is a nice feature when you forget to bring an extra tape and you want to capture the moment. It works well for webpage video when you are trying to conserve memory and bandwidth.