|
Canon MV600i Digital Camcorder [Mini-DV 18xOptical DV-in/out]
Canon (
03 March, 2003 )
Electronics |
| Our
Price |
: |
£
358.99 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Prices
subject to change. |
This item is not in stock or has been discontinued. |
| |
|
| |
|
MV600i  |
I read all the video magazines for about 3 months before buying. For the low to mid range buyer there seemed to be only one logical choice. The Canon MV 600 range. Reviewers all praised the ergonomics, the handling and the picture quality. Having bought one I can add. The ease of operation is superb. If your in a hurry, its quick to set to full automatic mode, and the results are great. If youve got time and want to manually set the camera up, fine thats really easy too and the results superb. The large buttons on the upper face have dual functions, transport and manual override. Press the play button whilst in camera mode and you can manually adjust the focus with the thumbwheel knob at the lower right of the camera. Press the stop button and exposure can be adjusted. Manually setting the white balance is very easy but it would be better if it could be directly accessed from the transport buttons. Compared to other camcorders the Canon is not pretty, but pick it up. Its really satisfying and comfortable to hold. The zoom and transport motors are virtually silent and the microphone quite amazingly sensitive. Some magazines have criticized the image stabilizer, saying that it was ineffective. This is not the case. Usually image stabilizers degrade the picture quality. Switching them on and off has an obvious effect. The image stabilizer on the MV600i is subtle and does not degrade the image. Zooming in on an object and switching the stabilizer on and off demonstrates its worth. There are plenty of superfluous functions, such as a 360X digital zoom, (this can be switched off) and loads of pointless digital effects. But there are also really great features like wide screen capability, a stills button; the zoom can be used in playback mode and most importantly, DV in and out and Analogue in and out. You can tell I love this camera, but even I will admit that there are shortcomings. The standard battery life is pathetic. There is an optional long life battery that promises 9.5 hours recording. Low light performance could be better. The lens whilst of good quality could do with less zoom and more wide angle. As it is, shooting in the average home is difficult. For the price there is nothing that compares to the MV600i, both the picture and audio quality are superb. The features are excellent as are the ergonomics. In the end you even grow to love its quirky looks.
|
|
Review of MV600i |
|
I looked around for ages to make sure i made the right choice when buying a camcorder. I have not been disappointed with its performance. Its 18x zoom is wicked and allows you to get really close to otherwise far away objects. I know the digital zoom aint much use but all camcorders seem to invest in this pointless feature. Shooting in low light slows the shutter speed and hence moving targets blur when shooting. However this can be avoided with a light mounted on the accessory shoe. I recommend buying extra batteries due to the average battery life. The quality of picture is fantastic, dont be put off it is slightly grainy on the flip screen cos on the pc the quality is much better. The DV in is a great feature only usually found on more expensive camcorders it allows you to put footage back onto the mini dv tapes which are tiny and easy to carry you can then plug the camera into the tv and watch your edited films. A great buy
|
|
Excellent entry level camcorder |
The MV600i is a great little camcorder and you will not get the same features in another model at anything like this price.On the plus side, the features which make it outstanding are, AV-DV passthrough which means you can copy your old 8mm or VHS archives to DV and then use a non linear editor to edit or improve them. It has a good feature count for in camera effects. It is small, well built (though very light) and ergonomic. The DV quality footage is excellent, far in front of 8mm analogue. Problems? None really, although if want to shoot a lot in poor light you will need a videolight. The battery life is normal for a product of this type and longer lasting battery packs are available from the likes of Uniross for around £20. Some people have said that the motor noise intrudes on the recording but I have not experienced this. To really make the most of any DV cam use a non linear editing package (for example Pinnacle Studio 8) and a firewire card to edit the footage on a fast pc then burn it to DVD.
|
|
