Reviews for JVC GZ-MC200 Microdrive Digital Camcorder

GZ-MC200 Microdrive Digital Camcorder (2.1MP, 10x...

Strengths: compact size. Great quality

Weakness: Nearly perfect except in low light

- Great video quality if the light is good
- Great sound quality if the person shooting doesn't talk too loud
- Great size
- Massive convenience of not having to rip and encode video

Cons:

- Terrible (useless) video quality in low light
- Cannot focus in low light (making even still photos with flash difficult)
- Sensitive mike results in audio distortion is person shooting talks loudly
- S-l-o-w cold start
- No flash shoe or tripod mount

The above pretty much sums up all that is good/bad with this camera. If it worked better in low light I'd give it five stars.

One tip - the camera produces MPEG2 video with AC3 audio (not MP2), in files with a .MOD suffix. You can rename these to .MPG to play them, but many players will not handle the AC3 sound. There is a free tool to fix this. Amazon won't let me include a link but search for Converio and you should find it.

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Excellent DV, poor Digital camera- a little too...

Strengths: 1. Easy to carry, small 2. Good MPEG2/Dolby encoding 3. Transfer files easier

Weakness: 1. 2mp camera only, bad flash placement, lag after pressing shutter release 2. VERY slow bootup 3. Hot after long use 4. MPEG2 format not stndard 5. no firewire

I have been using a Mini DV based camcorder for more than 2yrs before switching to this. My previous DV is also a JVC with only 680,000 pixel sensor. The quality of 1mp when compared to 0.68mp is very noticeable. The video is very crisp and the 10x zoom is responsive and quiet. This DV does a great job encoding the MPEG2 video and stereo audio. To transfer the file, all you need to do is hook it up to the USB port and it is recognized as a drive. Unlike a tape-based DV, which require second by second video transfer, this is way faster. With its small size, it is almost a perfect gadget other than some flaws.
First, also the most annying, is the slow boot time. It take about 5-10 seconds from, pressing "on" to actually take the first shot. There is a fancy JVC boot screen everytime you turn it on and no way to turn it off. Second, the MPEG file cannot be recognized by a lot of software unless you convert it first with the included software. Also, the camera gets pretty hot after long use. And, last but not the least, it comes with a 2mp camera with poor quality. Even worse, the camera lag ~ 1sec when you press the shutter.
Having a mega pixel camera and DV in one is a great combination- no more lugging two. But the digital camera function is pretty useless- especially in low light condition. The DV also preforms poorer in low light but the quality is acceptable. The small size and the video quality deserves 4 stars; while the camera function is the missing star.

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Get ready....the dreaded E04 ERROR! BUYER BEWARE!

Strengths: small, no tapes!

Weakness: The E04 error...should be a dealbreaker. Don't buy this camcorder.

I got the E04 error that ended the life of the camcorder after about 2 weeks. Do your research on the E04 error before you buy. Loved it though until the error!

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The first of its kind but has a lot to offer.

Strengths: Size, ease of use, excellent outdoor performance.

Weakness: Somewhat akward to hold, can get hot after prolonged use and indoor videos lack the quality offered by tape based camcorders.

This camcorder is a true hybrid. It is able to take great video and decent stills in a package that has no rivals with regard to size. I think it is a fantastic gadget which many people will love but it does have some drawbacks as mentioned above because it is the very first tapeless camcorder offered by JVC. While many will argue that newer models with 20/30 GB HD are better because of their potential recording capacity, they fail to recognize that if the HD in the newer models break JVC will churn you on repairs. In this model however, if your microdrive breaks you can use sd cards or simply buy another microdrive which is far cheaper than 3-400 in repairs. Once again, a great camera especially at current prices. Don't be sold on larger HD's. The only thing this camcorder lacks is 16:9 aspect ratio. Otherwise it a well built solid little gadget. One warning, JVC has the worst customer support on earth so don't buy this camcorder unless you are willing to overlook JVC's shortcomings in the customer relations realm.

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By member: Jythra - May 24, 2006

Compact product with nice performace

Strengths: * Ultra light weight * Micro hard drive - 0 maintenance cost * 2MP still pictures * Replaceable hard drive, CF & SD Cards

Weakness: * LCD is small (1.8") * Night mode is not very effective

I like the compactness of this product very much. It also comes with a 2MP digital camera and provision for SD card. You can switch the media between CF, SD and Microdrive. Set-up is fairly simple and easy.

Sound is very sharp with built in Dolby Digital encoder. Picture is quality is pretty good compared to my previous Mini DV camcorder.

It comes with Hitachi 4GB microdrive. This can take up-to 60 minutes of fine quality video or 120 minutes in economy mode. Data can be transferred quickly from drive to computer in MPEG-2 format. No special conversion needed unless you want to create media for DVD/VCD player. If needed additional drives can be used which are becoming cheaper these days. The battery goes for about 80 to 100 minutes depending the shooting mode set.

Overall, I am happy with this product and recommend it to others.

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JVC GZ-MC200 Microdrive Digital Camcorder

Strengths: Small size, memory(microdrive), bright lcd screen, easy setup.

Weakness: No remote, expensive microdrive.

This camcorder is very small, and stylish. I can put it in cell phone case. Microdrive can read in the memory reader, and can easily move the files to my computer. I can see the file in window media player. It is very convenient. LCD screen is a little bit small, but bright. So, there is no problem to record. 4gb microdrive can record 60 min. I want to buy more, but expensive. So, you should consider this. And remote is not included. Sometimes it need. In my case, this is not a problem. Briefly, I am satisfying this model, and I would like to strongly recommend it. Thank you for reading.

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Multifunction and compact - very happy

Strengths: Compact for travel Digital Storage for MicroHD, SD and CF Good stereo sound recording Standard USB 2.0 interface-serves as a large flashdrive Fast saves-ready for next pic.

Weakness: Slow startup (5 sec) Does not auto poweroff to save battery power Too small for large hands. Low level lighting is an extra challenge

An all digital storage is ideal for my situation and activities as my business involves repairing and selling arcade games. Making a quick photo shoot of the games I am working on helps to document what work I have done and how to put it back together. And for showing a game to a prospective buyer becomes easier - video and still pics are very good.

Audio recording is very convenient for lectures and comes out clear while I sit right in the audience. Although, switching between functions is a bit slow, the same as starting up the device - 5 seconds each change.

Concerns about low level lighting is valid as the ASA setting must be set to the higher number for pictures to come out brigher.

I would prefer that the lens cap be integrated as it has to hang by my hand when shooting. Also, when I am taking pics and putting the camera down to position something I have to be conscience that it does NOT auto shutdown after a minute. I was used to this with my previous camera and walked away the first time, came back a couple of hours later to find that the battery was dead. The camera can still be used while plugged into a power source.

Much to learn still as I am a moderate user Still, I am happy with my purchase and with the prices of memory cards dropping, I can have a total of 12gig of storage installed for a couple hundred dollars extra. Wow.

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GZ-MC200 Microdrive Digital Camcorder

Strengths: Great quality

Weakness: the camera limits maximum file size to 4GB. As a result it shall forever be impossible for this camera to record more than 60 continuous minutes using the highest quality video setting.

Pluses are obvious - slap the CF card in your PC reader and you can instantly start editing, converting, and/or burning the video to DVD. Much more convenient than (ugh) in-camera DV capture with a regular DV video camera. The accompanying software package is a perfect match for this camera. Also, this camera is freaking TINY. Although the video is not as good as my DV camera, I will undoubtably use it much more. Audio is excellent, Dolby Digital.

Minuses - Compared to my Sony DV camera, the focusing is slow and inaccurate. Holding the camera still is extremely difficult because of its size - the stability feature is essential although not spectacular - you need to work to keep this thing still. Although the resolution is the same as DV (720x480), I think my DV cameras picture is better, probably due to the CCD. The picture is not very sharp, and movement is pretty blurry.

Conclusion: This is an early adopter product. I would love to see a version with a better CCD and flash, which will undoubtably be down the road the next 12 months or so.

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