Bought one 6 months ago from radioshack. Great camera until it got bumped and now the iris won't open. Just a black screen. These camera's only have 6 months warranty for service, 1 year parts. Called the service center in Cali and they want $100 in labor. Not worth it.

Ok, so I've read all of the comments and am now too confused. I'm going to Spain this summer with my daughter's soccer team. They will be playing in a tournament there, I might want to video a little of the play, but mostly envision shooting video of the girls arriving at the airport, goofing off in the ocean, etc. It doesn't have to be great quality but will this suffice? I don't have a lot of cash so this is a big purchase for me.

Also, I saw links to a few other places. Should I buy at Costco or Amazon. I'm confused as to what is the best option.

What else will be absolutely necessary to buy? I see people mentioning extra batteries, chargers, memory cards, etc.

Thanks in advance.

Has anyone tried using this as a webcam, either for communication or recording directly to a computer's hard drive?

An Amazon review states: "Webcam: Fixed at VGA size @15fps and no manual control..."

Can anyone verify that this is really the case?

I'm not happy with webcams in general and I've read in a bunch of places that camcorders make better webcams than actual webcams do. But if this particular one is limited in that capacity it'll kinda defeat the purpose for me.

Waffling on this one. After reading the comments and reviews it seems a few things are needed. You should probably get a class 10 sd card for this to get the clearest video if doing HD recording, higher class is faster writing speed. You do need extra memory as this only has 50 MB not GB so it is very limited without the expansion. Extra batteries and an AC adapter are advisable for any kind of trip or extended shooting. The size of the camera makes it clear you could carry the extra battery in your pocket.

deeboe wrote:I bought this same camera from Woot! about a month back. I was pretty disappointed to see the poor video quality in low light. Was even more sad to find out you cant use the light on the front of it when recording video.

An external light is the way to go. I use the Power2000 Deluxe LED Digital Video Camcorder Light with Bracket $25.95. I prefer it to the more expensive versions because it uses ordinary AA batteries. It works well with rechargeable batteries.

Question for those who own this camera: The manual mentions shutter speeds of 1/30 to 1/10,000 sec, and it mentions you can set that manually. Can you actually set it that high to 1/10,000 for example to capture hummingbird wings in flight (I used to do this with an old RCA camcorder)?

Thanks!

skywarrior3 wrote:Is it my imagination, or does the silver camcorder look bigger?

Or is black naturally more slimming? xD

Well if you take a look, you might notice that the angle of the photo is different on both camcorders, thereby making the silver camera look wider. Voila.

whistl3r wrote:The VPC-GH4 is 10MP w/10x Optical Zoom

This VPC-GH2 is 14MP w/12x Optical Zoom. Seems to me a better deal, but it's up to you to decided what you think is better.

In for one.


Good link for information:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejxcRGuTsXY

can anyone confirm that GH4 has better compatibility and easier to upload to youtube than GH2?

michaeljasinski wrote:Same price on Amazon with free shipping! Why buy it here?

Show us a link. I see the cheapest as $170.19 (edit: from a reliable vendor, and new):
http://www.amazon.com/Sanyo-VPC-GH2-Definition-Camcorder-Optical/dp/tech-data/B0036TH75I/ref=de_a_smtd

batteries - Camera comes with 1 700mAh battery. I bought four 1300mAh batteries on eBay, expecting longer record time. Tested all five batteries and camcorder record time for every one is 30-35 minutes. Maybe the ebay batteries are crap, don't know, but they didn't last any longer than the factory provided battery.

Does anyone know if this can be used with iChat or Photo Booth on a Mac?

michaeljasinski wrote:Same price on Amazon with free shipping! Why buy it here?

Hmmmmmmm, maybe because the Amazon price is for a used product, not new.
But hey, go for it.

Found batteries for 4.25 shipped on ebay.
http://cgi.ebay.com/1000mAh-D-Li88-Battery-for-Sanyo-VPC-GH1TA-VPC-GH2_W0QQitemZ180624737947QQcategoryZ162045QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp5197.m7QQ_trkparmsZalgo%3DLVI%26itu%3DUCI%26otn%3D1%26po%3DLVI%26ps%3D63%26clkid%3D7041103457945953988

kitcatbrat wrote:I'm working on a documentary in an area without electricity. I was recommended the Canon T2i because it takes 1080p HD video, but it's amazingly expensive. If I want HD video does anyone know how this would compare to the T2i? I want HD video but size is a big issue, the smaller the better because I'll be camping.

I have the Canon T1i and as far as I know, it takes 1080p HD video (at I think 20 frames per second, whereas smaller settings are 30. I could be wrong though). With a 50mm lens, the focus can be really beautiful. I'm no professional but I can show you some examples if you'd like.

rockrgrl3 wrote:Does anyone know how well this works when it's dark out?

Why would one wish to record darkness?

I don't know, Woot!; fifty jalapeno-poppers?

Better put those baby-wipes in the freezer . . .

abugnego wrote:Can it record audio in French?

Yes but you have to have the French mic installed.

I bought this last time they had it on woot. It wasn't refurbished and the zoom button was defective. I used the camera like 3 times and it broke right after the 90 days labor warranty and it costs about 80 to fix it. I don't recommend it the video quality it's bad as well, like a webcam.

I have the 720 from years ago. It has been great mainly because of the size. I can put it in my pocket and take it anywhere. It is small enough to mount on a helmut when I go skiing or ride my quad. Even though it is only 720HD it still takes excellent video and pics. The one drawback on my old one is it doesnt have a very wide angle lens. Hopefully this one does.

localfitch wrote:Dear Woot, this would have been great bundled with the 32MB SDHC card from Monday.

Yes bundle it with a 32MB card that would be soo useful lol

buffaloed wrote:An external light is the way to go. I use the Power2000 Deluxe LED Digital Video Camcorder Light with Bracket $25.95. I prefer it to the more expensive versions because it uses ordinary AA batteries. It works well with rechargeable batteries.

I have a feeling that this light would be more worth your money...

jmacm001 wrote:Shooting video with a DSLR can result in some excellent footage, but it can be a frustrating experience. The biggest benefit to the DSLR video is the shallow focus--you can easily shoot a subject in focus and leave the background out of focus. This makes the shot look very professional. That's also it's biggest drawback though.

The focus during shooting on the DSLRs is very difficult to work with. Pre-focus (before you shoot) is great, but once the shooting starts you're left with either a very slow contrast detection focus (lots of hunting, probably two-three seconds to find focus) or a blank screen while using the regular focus method (<1 second though). Focus is not automatic during shooting either, you have to trigger it manually. Honestly, it really works best if you just focus manually as well.

The newer Nikon electronic spies are supposed to have a much better focus during video shooting. I haven't tried them so I can't say for sure.

If you've got $800-$1000 to spend on equipment take a look at the 3 chip camcorders. You'll get excellent results with much less frustration.

One other thing--I don't believe this camera has a mic in jack. If you're shooting anything where you want to hear people talking this is probably more important than the video quality itself.

Yeah, I have a 3 chip camera (miniDV), but I was looking for something HD. I'm thinking of how large a screen at a film festival would be, and I don't want my footage getting too grainy. The mic-in jack is a problem, though, I do need one of those

nothingsong wrote:I have the Canon T1i and as far as I know, it takes 1080p HD video (at I think 20 frames per second, whereas smaller settings are 30. I could be wrong though). With a 50mm lens, the focus can be really beautiful. I'm no professional but I can show you some examples if you'd like.

Do you have video examples? That'd be great

This video taken with this camera makes it awfully tempting....

Youtube

Can I append to a previous video; as in a "regular" tape camcorder I can contiue with the previou 'shoot'; can I do this with this camcorder?

markmiz wrote:Can I append to a previous video; as in a "regular" tape camcorder I can contiue with the previou 'shoot'; can I do this with this camcorder?

With most modern camcorders, the answer to that is "no," but you can easily edit and join files with software.

cvivers wrote:I'm thinking of buying this so I can film my fire dancing, but I repeatedly see low light downfalls. Since there is typically a lot of light from the dancer's fire, do you think this would be a good camera for me? It would be my first digital video camera...

Thanks in advance, Candyman!

That I am not sure, but most camera's today will do what you want, I have done some real dark lowlight video and come out good.

Wntrgarnet wrote:For any of you who purchased 1 or 2 of the 9,999 32GB SD cards the other day.. This is perfect for you if you got the SD card because it was a great deal and then later said... "what the heck am i going to use this with."

Bottom line: SD card+ camcorder=THE ULTIMATE WOOT!

i really regret not buying that now that i wooted this one...

ddanc1984 wrote:Yes but you have to have the French mic installed.

wow...i just lol'd

y0himba wrote:The battery that comes with this camera is 700mAh and it uses 3.5W when shooting video. I have seen replacements for the battery that are 1100mAh, but have no Earthly idea if that is better.

One would assume that that larger number means more recording time, but that may not be that case.

Are there Hi-Capacity replacements for this battery allowing more recording time per battery?

Can the battery be recharged by plugging the camera into an outlet with removing the battery, or when plugged into USB?

Yes, 1100mAh is the amount of current stored so it should last roughly 15 min longer. Electronics consume a set amount of power regardless of source so more stored energy equals longer run time.

eeferber wrote:batteries - Camera comes with 1 700mAh battery. I bought four 1300mAh batteries on eBay, expecting longer record time. Tested all five batteries and camcorder record time for every one is 30-35 minutes. Maybe the ebay batteries are crap, don't know, but they didn't last any longer than the factory provided battery.

Bad batteries. They should last twice as long, biggest problem is if its a cheap china based company with little to no regulation they can claim anything and it's tough to verify the actual storage capacity.

Long time troller, first time buyer. Hope I likes.

Can anyone tell me if this camera can take filters over the lens (such as UV, polarizer, etc.)? I can't tell from the pictures if the front lens is threaded or not.

I do see where the front lens is marked 34mm but can't see if there are threads for this size filter to attach. Thanks for any assistance!

Regards,

Steve

sculver1 wrote:Can anyone tell me if this camera can take filters over the lens (such as UV, polarizer, etc.)? I can't tell from the pictures if the front lens is threaded or not.

I do see where the front lens is marked 34mm but can't see if there are threads for this size filter to attach. Thanks for any assistance!

Regards,

Steve

Hard to tell...kinda looks like it, but kinda doesnt. Maybe your eyes are better than my surgically altered eyes http://us.sanyo.com/ImageHandler.ashx?mediaID=14502&mediaFormatID=30 . Also more hi-res pics here, click on the 'Dealer Images' tab at this link http://us.sanyo.com/Dual-electronic spies/VPC-GH2-Full-HD-1080-Video-and-14MP-Digital-Photos-with-12x-Dual-Range-Zoom .

bentleysmaster wrote:Hard to tell...kinda looks like it, but kinda doesnt. Maybe your eyes are better than my surgically altered eyes http://us.sanyo.com/ImageHandler.ashx?mediaID=14502&mediaFormatID=30 . Also more hi-res pics here, click on the 'Dealer Images' tab at this link http://us.sanyo.com/Dual-electronic spies/VPC-GH2-Full-HD-1080-Video-and-14MP-Digital-Photos-with-12x-Dual-Range-Zoom .

Bentleysmaster:

Thanks for the link to the pics. It's kind of difficult to tell if those are threads for a filter or not. I downloaded the owner's manual and I can find nothing there about filters. I guess I'll just have to wait until I get mine delivered and see for myself. Thanks again.

Steve

Anyone heard of a shipping delay? It has been 5 days....

y0himba wrote:Anyone heard of a shipping delay? It has been 5 days....

I live in Austin, TX and I got the door tag today showing that it is sitting in the locked apartment office. Still no shipping info on the order page itself other than that I'm set.

y0himba wrote:Anyone heard of a shipping delay? It has been 5 days....

I'm in Houston, TX and got mine today. Sweet little thing, just need an SD card for the thing. Doesnt look like its threaded for filters, though. Maybe tape the d@mn filter across the front :P What would Wily E. Coyote do?

y0himba wrote:Anyone heard of a shipping delay? It has been 5 days....

Looks like people in Texas got theres. I hope mine comes today i am leaving on a trip tomorrow and would love to not have to take my crappy 5 Mega pixel camera

Still waiting for mine and the status hasn't changed to shipped yet. really hope it comes in today, my girl has an ultrasound to find out what we're having. fingers crossed just a few hours left.....