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Best Entry Level HD Camcorders

Best Entry Level HD Camcorders

So you’re one of those interested in the new HD format of media? Well its cool to watch the Blu-ray DVD’s but what if you want to start shooting them? What is the best equipment on the market for this? In this article we will take a look at a few entry level HD camcorders. All of them are under $1,000.

Canon Vixia HF100

The Canon Vixia HF100 is not the first in HD camera market but it is a very versatile camera and at a price of just under $900 it’ll have you up and making your own home HD movies in no time.

The camera records in AVCHD format at 17 megabits per second (maximum) which gives you round about 2 hours and 5 minutes of video. At the lowest bit rate (5Mbps) it can hold 6 hours and 5 minutes of record time. The highest bit rate supports the full 1080dpi. The lens on the camera performs beautifully and the only drawback is the manual function (which Canon loves of course) that is not that practical on a video camcorder.

The bottom line is this camera is an excellent buy and with the ability to store media on removable cards (SD to be exact) it’s a solid buy for those who are interested in heading into the HD revolution.

Sony Handycam HDR-SR11

Sony is no stranger to the HD revolution as their Blu-Ray discs and solid lines of HD TV’s have set the standard for the HD market. Canon has had quite a few pro level HD cameras on the market for quite a while. But its not until recently that they started offering more entry level models. The Handycam HDR SR11 is one of them.

The SR11 sports a 60GB drive which offers full 1,920×1080 HD capture capabilities. The maximum 16Mbps AVCHD recording mode is awesome. At this resolution you can hold 7 hours and 10 minutes of video on the 60GB drive. If you lower it to the minimum 5Mbps it can hold an impressive 22 hours and 50 minutes of video. The included battery allows you to record up to an hour and a half on a single charge.

The lens on the camera is also impressive. The 12x optical Carl Zeiss Vario Sonnar lens is among the best quality in the entry level market. Not surprising that means that the camera can also take stills in 10.2MP.

The video quality is excellent. Recording is a snitch with the user friendly controls and audio quality is very good. Of course it does lack the ability to attach an external microphone but no need to worry as it offers features such as zooming in on sound and setting the quality for louder or softer sounds.

All in all the SR11 is a great buy. And with a starting price tag of under $950 you will be more than satisfied with this one.

Other Models

Other models to take note of are the Canon Vixia HF10
, Sony Handyman HDR-CX7. Both of these models are very good but carry one or two problems with quality and recording functions.

Last but not least let us look at the main things you want to check when getting an HD camcorder.

Resolution: This is the foundation of the HD industry. With the current level of HD camcorders it is safe to say that one should not settle for less than full 1080dpi.

Lens: You can have the best CMOS but if your lens are not up to par your video quality will not be good.

Compatibility: This is extremely important if you will not be shooting in the HD format all the time. You don’t want to buy a camcorder that only shoots in HD and cannot down convert to standard definition.