All types of 2000s camcorders explained

if you want to record video today you  probably reach for the same device that   you're using to watch this video right now  your smartphone but back in 2008 the iPhone   couldn't record video yet nor could the early  Android phones so that was out of the question the Flip camera and other similar pocket  sized video cameras were very popular   but with their cheap plastic fixed focus  lens and lack of image stabilization they   were well known for producing shaky  video that was difficult to watch the video capability of digital still cameras  was improving but was still generally hamstrung   by limited recording time poor low light  sensitivity and even worse audio quality so if you wanted to record decent quality  video in 2008 you needed to get a real   camcorder and boy were there more choices  than ever ranging from the last vestiges   of early 1980s technology to full HD  video that still holds up well today the last remaining analog Hi8 and  VHS-C camcorders had finally been   discontinued but were still  available on clearance sale   for those who didn't mind old technology  and just wanted the lowest possible price "Santa tapes everything oh yeah hi Dad Merry  Christmas Merry Christmas Merry Christmas   what are you guys doing what are you making  a cake wow please don't photographer us" Sony's Digital8 format likewise had just  been discontinued but was still available   on clearance for those who wanted the lowest  price of entry into digital video recording "hi Ben hi Paul how are you? good how are you? good  welcome to the bonfire how were the waves?   terrible did you ride a long one? no no? I didn't  ride anything oh well maybe next time I hope so" and MiniDV was still a mainstream format  despite being on the market for over a   decade offering good quality digital  video recording with easy editing on   your computer if your computer had a FireWire  port which was taken for granted on Macs back   then and relatively common on PCs as  well but is virtually unheard of today "now I'm thinking on the track but  it's DCR-HC52 and I hear the 52 is   only the number for the U.S. it might  be different if you're in Europe I   think it's the 51 in Europe anyway  um yeah further proof here's the 52" MiniDV camcorders stuck around long enough  that the later models had a widescreen   display and could be easily switched  between 4:3 and 16:9 aspect ratios "Erin sorry this is my second time around  the house because I first forgot to put   the tape in second time it wasn't recording  you want to walk over and get up close Rachel?   actually this video camera is so good  it's perf... you can see it perfectly" for those who wanted ease of playback on  their home entertainment system there were   DVD camcorders such as the one I'm using  right now these recorded on to mini 3-inch   recordable DVDs although they were only  good for about 20 minutes of recording   time at the highest quality setting and if you  used the cheaper non rewritable discs whatever   you recorded was permanent you could not go  back and erase or record over your footage "say hi to the camera. How you doing Mikey? I'm waiting   for you to get out from behind the  camera and get on the dance floor" for those who wanted the longest possible  recording time there were camcorders which   recorded onto miniature 1.8 inch hard drives  the same kind used in iPods although these   were a common source of confusion because  people saw HDD on the label and assumed   that meant it recorded in high definition when  in fact many of them were standard definition and for the burgeoning YouTube age flash memory   camcorders which recorded onto SD cards  had finally become mainstream although   Sony steadfastly stuck to their  proprietary Memory Stick format "yeah I'm rolling and we're live he's  got nothing to say I'm really pretty   yeah ladies and gentlemen stand up  straight the music got way better" standard definition camcorders often made up  for their lack of high resolution video with   other features such as extra long optical  zoom or even a 5.1 channel surround sound   microphone a feature which online video  platforms still don't support 15 years later for those who wanted to keep their  options open there were combination   models such as this Hitachi camcorder  which can record video onto either an   internal hard drive or mini DVDs and can  also take still photos onto an SD card high definition camcorders were  an increasing part of the market   at the time although they were still very  expensive with many models costing at or   above $1,000 the most popular format  for HD video recording was HDV which   recorded high definition video onto the same  inexpensive tapes that MiniDV camcorders used "how close how close does it focus?" for those who wanted high definition at a  slightly less astronomical price Sony and Canon had   a short lived series of camcorders  which recorded HD video onto mini   DVDs although they could fit a whopping 11  minutes of 1920x1080 footage onto one disc Hitachi was even crazy enough to  make camcorders which recorded HD   video onto mini recordable Blu-ray discs  which are just about impossible to find I'd love to demonstrate this unique camcorder  for you but unfortunately it doesn't work   all I get out of the lens is a completely  black image sometimes with some lines and   interference on it the zoom works and I can  even make a recording but that's all you see oh and if you had one of those Sony or Canon  HD DVD camcorders which recorded onto regular   DVDs you needed a Blu-ray player in order to  actually play the disc are you confused yet? "um LTECs need to do this to survive if  an LTEC isn't able to master their core   specialty and um then find some of  these additional niche um services   um that the the the environment  simply is not going to allow them uh to   exist in their market or CMS is  not going to allow them to exist" high definition camcorders using  hard drives or flash memory were   also starting to become available although  you needed a fairly up-to-date and powerful   computer in order to handle the  then new AVCHD codec they used iMovie '08 was the first version to support  AVCHD video although by default it downscaled   it to 960x540 resolution for better performance  and easier editing Apple claimed you probably   won't notice the difference and at the time  that may have been true because YouTube didn't   support HD until December 2008 and that  was only 720p at a relatively low bit rate for those who couldn't afford high  definition there were some interesting   stopgap products available at the time  such as camcorders which recorded in   standard definition and then upscaled  it to 1080p through an HDMI output if I connect it to the HDMI port of  my TV it shows a 1080p60 resolution   but when I pull up one of the files  that the camera actually recorded   and check the properties it's just standard  definition 720x480 video not high definition to provide a more affordable option for real  HD video recording some of the brands known   for cheap low quality video cameras tried making  real camcorders such as this model by DXG which   records full HD 720p or 1080i video has an  actual glass lens with autofocus optical zoom   and image stabilization it even has an external  microphone input although there's no accessory   shoe to mount it and despite what it claims  the built-in microphone is only mono not stereo you can see this is true HD video  with optical zoom autofocus and image   stabilization amazing but it only looks  good under this bright studio lighting   but under more normal indoor lighting it  completely falls on its face compare that   to an old-fashioned MiniDV camcorder  which still produces a usable image in 2008 the market for camcorders was  so competitive that you had over 50   different models to choose from  from the top four brands Sony was   the leader with 16 models in their  2008 lineup including 10 standard   definition and six high definition camcorders ranging from $249 to $1,399 Canon was next with 15 models to choose  from in 2008 including nine standard   definition and six high definition  models ranging from $249 to $1,299 next was JVC with 14 models of camcorders in  their 2008 lineup including eight standard   definition and six high definition  models ranging from $230 to $1799 and Panasonic was lagging behind with only  11 models in their 2008 lineup of camcorders   including eight standard definition and three  high definition models ranging from the $280   PV-GS90 MiniDV tape camcorder I have here to  their $1,100 HDC-HS9 high definition camcorder the most popular camcorder models were even  available in a variety of different colors   but today 15 years later the consumer demand  for camcorders has been absolutely decimated   by competition from smartphones DSLRs  and action cams the only company still   offering a full range of consumer grade  camcorders under $1000 is Panasonic Sony only has one model of Handycam  under a grand which has been on the   market unchanged since 2015 while Canon and JVC  no longer offer any new camcorders under $1000 you may see inexpensive new 4K camcorders  from well-known brands like Vivitar and   Minolta but those have nothing to  do with the cameras those brands   made decades ago they're just licensed  and put on cheap Chinese video cameras and remember the features I praised this DXG  camcorder for having? well you won't find any   new Vivitar or Minolta camcorder with all those  features the same thing is true of all the new   camcorders that are flooding Amazon from  brand names you've never heard of before   even if they're tarted up with accessories like  a big handle a big lens hood and a big external   microphone the really just badly upscaled toy  cameras cosplaying as a professional camcorder if you'd like to use any of the types of old  camcorders I've shown in this video there are   a lot of tutorials on how to try to get them  to work with a modern computer but I think your   best bet is to use an old camcorder with an old  computer an era appropriate one from the mid to   late 2000s which is old enough to still have  a DVD drive and a FireWire port also known as   IEEE-1394 or i.Link but new enough to run Windows  7 and a copy of Windows Movie Maker version 2012 it's a very rudimentary program but it's easy to   use good enough to get you started and  knows how to properly deal with all the   digital video formats I showed here both  standard definition and high definition and if you're thinking this video  was just an excuse to show off my   collection of obsolete camcorders that  I got on eBay and at thrift stores and   some of the footage I found on them you're right "you ever wonder how he gets all  the girls? like I don't know I   guess some girls are just into jerks  good thing they're not the only choice"

Channel: VWestlife

Views: 46,655

Keywords: camcorder, handycam, video, camera, digital, analog, sd, hd, standard, high, definition, 480i, 720p, 1080i, 1080p, 576i, 8mm, video8, hi8, vhs, vhs-c, super, svhs, svhs-c, digital8, minidv, dv, dvcam, tape, dvd, mini, dvd-r, dvd-rw, disc, bluray, blu-ray, hdd, hard drive, hard disk, flash memory, card, ms, memory stick, pro duo, sony, canon, jvc, panasonic, dxg, flip, iphone, android, smartphone, dslr, action, cam, gopro, 2008, transfer, edit, upload, record, playback, convert, digitize, hdv, avchd, 1920x1080, 720x480, widescreen, 16:9, 4:3, aspect ratio

Id: nIhhN93y7k4

Length: 13min 37sec (817 seconds)

Published: Mon Oct 30 2023