does anyone know if this is Mac compatible???

Anyone know if this uses the same batteries as other Everio models? I have a non-HD model from a few years ago and already have several batteries including a large capacity one.

Saw a new one at bhphoto.com for $139.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/753449-REG/JVC_GZ_HM30AAGM_GZ_HM30_HD_Everio_PAL.html

hotstudinthehous wrote:Saw a new one at bhphoto.com for $139.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/753449-REG/JVC_GZ_HM30AAGM_GZ_HM30_HD_Everio_PAL.html

It's a PAL camera. That would be perfect if you didn't plan to use it in the US...

hcmiller wrote:This is my pet peeve- low light recording. We had a Sony a few years ago and trying to record video of family gatherings indoors was terrible. Can anyone recommend a camera near this price range that is good in low light conditions? The Samsungs?

You won't find any in this price range. The Samsung HMX-QF20 line that was introduced in late March is supposed to be terrific in low-light. They start at about $250. I haven't seen a hands on review of one yet. That's about half the price of the least expensive decent low-light camcorders.

Be very leary of JVC camcorders. The have a moisture problem. If you take it where there is high humidity there is a sensor inside that fails. You CANNOT reset it. JVC would not even honor their warranty on that.
No JVC anything for me.
Just trying to help you avoid future problems.

Two years ago I got a JVC Everio Camcorder on HSN for around $229. The JVC GZ-MS120ru. It's since discontinued but I have yet to find another JVC Camcorder w/ dual card slots. That in itself is worth it.

I got lucky I guess.

One cool feature - time lapse. I have one of these recorders and have been dying to try out this feature. I want to do a 5 minute sunrise to sunset view of my backyard.

Well, when I loaded Woot today I was slightly confused when I misread the page as selling an "Evil" Camcorder. Confused, but not surprised.

Bradr19 wrote:Be very leary of JVC camcorders. The have a moisture problem. If you take it where there is high humidity there is a sensor inside that fails. You CANNOT reset it. JVC would not even honor their warranty on that.
No JVC anything for me.
Just trying to help you avoid future problems.

Thanks for the tip. I'm in the market for a camcorder for my honeymoon in Cancun, pretty humid over there I assume.

umaize wrote:Weird, I was just looking at Everio for sale over at Adorama for 10 dollars more before clicking on woot!

You mean ...?

For $5 more ($130 shipped), you can have the new JVC GZ-HM50B, which is basically the same as woot's GZ-HM30, but with 8GB built in flash memory (instead of none on the GZ-HM30). There's no color choice though, only black:

http://www.adorama.com/JVGZHM50B.html?emailprice=t

Bradr19 wrote:Be very leary of JVC camcorders. The have a moisture problem. If you take it where there is high humidity there is a sensor inside that fails. You CANNOT reset it. JVC would not even honor their warranty on that.
No JVC anything for me.
Just trying to help you avoid future problems.

Sorry you had that problem. I will say that I used this very camera under an umbrella last weekend at a soccer game with no problems.

Bradr19 wrote:Be very leary of JVC camcorders. The have a moisture problem. If you take it where there is high humidity there is a sensor inside that fails. You CANNOT reset it. JVC would not even honor their warranty on that.
No JVC anything for me.
Just trying to help you avoid future problems.

ALL cameras and camcorders, except that few that have water seals, have moisture problems. In fact, even film cameras had moisture problems. Water and electronics generally don't mix, and no manufacturers out there honor water damage as a warranty item. That's an unfair expectation, really, unless the camcorder specifically says that it's waterproof.

Refurbished,recertified,bah!Why buy someone else's castoffs when you can buy a new one for a few bucks more!BTW,for all you "review" heads
out there(like me),the Canon vidcams are clearly the best.
Some things a person should'nt go cheap on,and a camcorder is one of them,after all,you're shooting memories right,and that's priceless!

P.S
I expect my post won't last long before it "mysteriously" disappears!

I wonder how this compares to the SONY DCR-SX45/L in terms of low light shooting. It's at Sony outlet for $169 and it's standard def. Any idea?

Right now, I am quite happy with my Sanyo Xacti HD. The price for a new one has dropped to around the same price as this Everio. It's a different type of camcorder, though, but I love the pistol grip and it's very ergonomic.

Bradr19 wrote:Be very leary of JVC camcorders. The have a moisture problem. If you take it where there is high humidity there is a sensor inside that fails. You CANNOT reset it. JVC would not even honor their warranty on that.
No JVC anything for me.
Just trying to help you avoid future problems.

This is not a problem limited to JVC, or camcorders.

Most non-waterproof camcorders (and cameras and many other electronics) I've seen are rated at 80% relative humidity (RH) maximum, and you'll exceed that in many tropical areas and rainy/foggy days. If it breaks due to humidity/condensation technically the warranty is void. JVC (and possibly other companies) probably have lost enough money from warranty claims to warrant using such a sensor.

I remember old Panasonic VCR and VHS-C camcorder that would refuse to power on if it senses too much humidity ("DEW" error).

You may want to consider using a waterproof camcorder/camera (they're sealed from water so naturally air-proof too), a camcorder/camera in waterproof/underwater housing/bag that lets you use the unit while sealed (do use the provided desiccant packs and avoid opening the housing in humid air), or at least use a digital camera for video instead since they usually have fewer and smaller gaps/holes for moist air to seep in. Avoid abrupt temperature changes that can induce condensation (e.g., placing near air conditioning in the car/hotel after humidity exposure).

Need more Roomba

So maybe I'm just failing, but what is the file type that this outputs? I don't want another camera with a weird unknown file type exported out.

This would be great to record yourself in a woot! off! Imagine sharing all the faces you make with friends and family(and potential internet stalkers) when you miss out on the Bundles of Clones

I am on the fence here ... I need to replace my JVC digital video camera (the kind that still takes tapes) and have been pretty happy with it, as far as brand name goes. I am leery of this one though with the comments on poor quality indoors, and what? no pause button when recording? Hrm...

sdc100 wrote:2) It doesn't do still photos, which is a common and easy feature to implement.

I have a higher-end Panasonic camcorder and the still photo it takes is worse than those from 8-year-old cameras or many cheap phones' 3MP cameras.

The last thing you want is for customers to return camcorders (just) because they found out they takes really bad photos, so it's quite sensible to exclude this feature from low-end models. Those who insists on still photo capability will be directed to higher-end models, which have higher profit and hopefully passable still photo quality too.

Camcorders tend to have much smaller image sensors (1/5.8" for budget ones like this JVC, 1/4" is common too among sub-$500 camcorders), than digital cameras (1/2.3" is the norm). The sensor and lens need not be high quality since people don't notice individual frame quality in a video. Camcorders also tend to have big lens (for the zoom) and big high quality lens aren't exactly cheap.

sdc100 wrote:4) Keep in mind that this uses the AVCHD format (a new standard for HD digital camcorders) for HD videos. This format is not easily imported in many older video editing programs, especially free ones. This fact makes Point #3 all the more annoying.

AVCHD is basically Blu-Ray (file and directory) format modified for lower bitrate videos from camcorders (and now digital cameras). It has standardized baseline encoding/format, menu navigation system, subtitles, audio tracks like DVD/BluRay, things that .MP4 .MOV .AVI lacks. AVCHD burned onto cheap DVD disc can be played on many Blu-Ray players, even for players that do not formally state AVCHD disc compatibility (like my Insignia). This allows the simple authorizing software bundled with camcorders to make cheap HD discs fast with nice scene selection menus for viewing and archiving that's guaranteed to play in a AVCHD-capable Blu-Ray player. The other option for my Panasonic is burn to Blu-Ray discs ($$$) or convert to low-definition DVD-Video at 3.5 hour of conversion per hour of video converted on my Core i3 laptop.

But yeah, the file and directory format is messy like DVD/Blu-Ray, compared to simple .MP4/.AVI/.MOV files.

sdc100 wrote:5) The sound is monaural, not stereo. Since this is HD, why skimp on the sound???

I've never noticed any stereo separation in the footage my family has taken over 25 years. The internal mics are rarely over 1~2" apart (getting tighter with smaller camera/camcorders) and like most people we never use external microphone even if there's a mic jack.

As far as Moisture, living in the Gulf Coast anytime I would take a camera outside from an Air conditioned room, I would have serious issues.

Now I use the cheaper brands and have no problems, but I found out that if you do have a video camera that will not turn on because of moisture, you can hold them under one of those hand dryers for a minute and that solved the problem every time.

Of course taking cameras into bathrooms creates an entirely different set of problems.....

Gameguy411 wrote:So maybe I'm just failing, but what is the file type that this outputs? I don't want another camera with a weird unknown file type exported out.

The format is a variation of AVCHD commonly known as AVCHD Lite and is written to the memory card in a fairly complex series of nested folders - a construct that is necessary for some applications to properly identify and initiate the import process.

But at the core of it is the actual video file which is designated the .MTS file extension and be located on and extracted from the memory card. This .MTS file may be compatible as is with some post production software, but in many cases, requires transcoding before being imported to an editing application. In some cases, when importing is initiated directly from the camcorder via USB, this transcoding happens automatically as part of the import process.


Depending upon the platform, editing application and version, your mileage may vary.

raelalt wrote:I was wondering what the sound recording was like, thanks your post sold me. BTW, I thought your video was great!

Either you misread his message or I did. I think he recorded the audio on something else and put them together later.

picked one up for my wife... she just mentioned last night that she wanted a video camera... and boom.

I've got one of these. Great camera for taking home movies.

It's been dropped by our 3 year old dozens of times, myself a few times, and even dropped into a 4' deep swimming pool... and it just keeps on going.

dondaniel5 wrote:does anyone know if this is Mac compatible???

Yes, it is Mac compatible, but you'll need to have the latest version of your editing software in order to import directly from the camcorder. This import process involves using the import function from your editing application, as well as putting into "upload" mode on the camcorder menu.

If you don't have the latest version of your editing software, or want to import directly from the SD card, some applications *might* be able to read the file structure and allow import, but in some cases, you may likely have to use a transcode intermediary application to convert the .MTS file into a compatible format for your application.

Re: j0hnlind
Your problem with "whine in the audio",
using a "Rube Goldberg solution".
I have Not had a problem with noise or a whine through the audio.
In response to Battery Life with the
Bestbatt Company Battery...
Very good usage under normal conditions.
This capacity battery-3000mAh, for me has been over 2 Hours of use.
ie: Zoom use, on & off modes, play back.
Charging the aftermarket battery must be done
with the combo charger or through the accessory USB mini B cable. ** Note: Cannot charge this after market battery in the Camcorder itself!**
Hope this helps!

Hi ya'll. I need some help please. I bought one of these for my daughter a while ago and she can't seem to upload her videos onto her computer (middle school projects). We youtubed a couple of videos but it had her download a program from some teenager then something else but still she cannot upload. She just wants to plug it into the computer via usb and find it on the computer file and send her videos to her mates. The disk that came with it, we downloaded but still..nothing. I'm not computer savy but I would LOVE to be able to help her solve her problem. We even tried to take the sd card out and put it in a sd reader then into the computer but still....nothing. Help please!!! THANKS!!!!

nochipsnik wrote:We even tried to take the sd card out and put it in a sd reader then into the computer but still....nothing. Help please!!! THANKS!!!!

That's how I do it...

Is it not showing up as a removable drive or is it just not coming up automatically?

nochipsnik wrote:Hi ya'll. I need some help please. I bought one of these for my daughter a while ago and she can't seem to upload her videos onto her computer (middle school projects). We youtubed a couple of videos but it had her download a program from some teenager then something else but still she cannot upload. She just wants to plug it into the computer via usb and find it on the computer file and send her videos to her mates. The disk that came with it, we downloaded but still..nothing. I'm not computer savy but I would LOVE to be able to help her solve her problem. We even tried to take the sd card out and put it in a sd reader then into the computer but still....nothing. Help please!!! THANKS!!!!

Hi.

First of all, you'll need to make sure the software you are using is compatible with this camcorder. If you are using a common software editing program, make sure you have the latest version, and that it is equipped to handle the AVCHD Lite codec this camcorder generates. If you are using a Windows PC, this camcorder also come with a fairly rudimentary content management application with which you can import the video to your system.

However, note that importing content directly from this camcorder to your system requires initiation of file importing on both ends. Use the import function of your computer software of choice, but also, make sure you go to the 'menu' of the camcorder, select the "connect to PC" option, and then select "Upload". If all is well, the computer should then recognize the camcorder and allow you to import the content.

Hope that helps.

Thanks @flareit! That is excellent information to know. I get about half an hour with zooming, on/off etc. on the 850mAh battery, so the 2 hours you are getting on the 3000mAh seems to confirm that it is 3000.

By the way, here is a video I did with this camera, edited using only the free Microsoft "Windows Live Movie Maker". The files the camera creates are editible by the software with no conversion whatsoever.

Wow this camera sounds great thats why i ordered it for my daughter...hmmmm i wouldnt know cuz my camera is still sitting in fedex 6 days later hasnt even moved still says arrived in texas... What is up with this has anyone else had a problem i never had until now its insanity i wanted to give this to someone for a gift but what im reading people are saying 3 weeks for delivery. I would def pay more for express shipping

The reason I bought this was because it said it was able to output 1920x1080p image size. I need a good quality camera to document my dance classes. I am a dance teacher and being able to record and review helps immensely!

Yes this camera is a decent one, however it only can output 1080x720. not bad... But, not what was in the description. I did not get what I paid for, which hurts because I liked woot.com.

I'd like to keep shopping with woot, but I have been wronged and would like to be treated better.