Sharp VL-WD255U

Have had problems with it eating tapes after 2 tapes have been recorded. 2 cameras, 3 repairs in 8 months. Would not recommend.

Price is the only strength.

Poor quality and Sharp will give you the run around. Have spent 1.5. months out of 8 without a camera.

JVC, RCA

Poor

My first impression upon picking up the camera was that it was bulky compared to the miniDV cameras on the market. The body is all plastic and slightly off-balanced when held at the hand grip. I got used to the weight once I tightened up the hand strap. The camcorder has a camera mode and a vcr mode on a switch that can be accessed with the right thumb when holding the camera in the grip. I found it a little difficult to engage the tiny lock button on the switch to move the switch from the off position to one of the other two modes. The record button next to the power button is well placed but requires a little bit of pressure which makes the camera shake at the beginning and end of a scene. The zoom button at the index finger allows for varied rates of zoom depending on how far you push/pull the button. Zooming was smooth and the transition from optical to digital zoom was seamless. The button for stills is also at the at the right-hand index finger but requires an acrobatic reach to activate. The other problematic button is the navigation button on the viewpanel side of the camera. It has a flimsy feel and does not give a tactile response to being pressed. Scenes can be viewed and played back through the viewfinder or the 2.5" viewpanel. The images look good on the viewpanel without much glare, although I haven''t tried the camera out in bright sunlight yet. Taping is very easy in the automatic mode with focusing taking a fraction of a second in good light. There are four preset modes for shooting (sport,sunlight, dusk, and party). You can also set the camera in manual mode where you can adjust focus, shutter speed, exposure, and picture effects. Video quality is acceptable except in low light. As the scene gets darker, the image gets grainier. In very low light, the camera prompts you with a light warning. Cat''s eye mode allows for low light shooting but the images are in B/W. I haven''t tried using the camera for stills with the SmartMedia card yet. You can save stills on tape, but transfer to the computer would have to be through the serial connector included. Overall, it is a good inexpensive digital camcorder for a beginner.

Low cost, many features, simple to use

Average video quality, hard menu navigation button

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