Well as the price on camcorders continues to plummet, more and more people are able to afford to jump in to the world of video! JVC is riding the wave by offering quality camcorders at a more than reasonable price and the JVC GR-D850
is just another example of that.
I have purchased quite a few camcorders in my time, (my side business is filming wedding videos), and I have to admit, that although I have strayed from the JVC line now and again, I keep coming back.
JVC has been at the forefront of the camcorder industry for quite some time now and I don't see that stopping any time soon. And with prices like $213.17, with free shipping, for the GR-D850
from Amazon, it looks like this trend is going to continue.
If you are new to camcorders and don't already have a FireWire cable to connect to your PC or Mac, you're going to need one if you want to be able to transfer your videos to your computer, as this price doesn't include the cable. At the time I am posting this Amazon is offering a package deal for another $23 and change, where they throw in a 5 pack of Panasonic DV tapes along with a Belkin 6 foot FireWire cable. This saves you another $33 over what it would normally cost you for the cable and tapes.
I have been a fan of JVC camcorders from the get go. My first camcorder was a Panasonic and I think it must have weighed in at about 50 lbs., not really, but after carrying it around on my shoulder filming weddings for an hour or so that's what if felt like! But with the advent of smaller and lighter camcorders being made available this problem has been resolved. Thank god!
So my second camcorder was a JVC GR-DVL505, man what a relief, I think it weighed a whopping 3 lbs. But the reduction in weight from the Panasonic monster was only the begining. The camcorder just blew me away, picture quality, sound, everything was incredible. And JVC has continued to improve their camcorders as the years have passed.
The GR-D850 is by no means the top of the line product as far as camcorders go, but the quality and features it comes with for the price are simply unbeatable. From the Konica Minolta lens with 35x optical zoom to the Night Alive feature that boosts light sensitivity for a clear, bright image even in minimal lighting situations. Not to mention the little things like the ability to just touch the DATA button and instantly get remaining battery life time and recording time, even when it's powered off!
Additionally some of the other features on the GR-D850 include:
- 2.7-inch widescreen Clear LCD monitor
- 115-minute data battery
- 3D Noise Reduction
- Digital effects and scene transitions
- Super high-band processor
- 1/6" CCD image sensor
- Built-in image stabilization
DottisMama from BestBuy.com said:
"I purchased this camcorder after doing a lot of painstaking research on mini dv's. My conclusion was not too good. Most reviews I read on a myriad of different brands all had the same complaints across the board. Anything from bad picture quality in low-light areas, horrible sound to the camcorder just making a lot of noise when in use were just a few. Which brings me to why I'm so happy to have purchased this model. Not only is my picture quality great but the sound is as well. It also takes snapshots and has an illuminating light if necessary for night-recording. Did I also mention it's a perfect size for a small hand like mine and it's super easy to use. It is, it is!!! Overall, I'm very pleased with my purchase and I can't wait to take it with me on my trip to Disneyworld in July.
One thing I will strongly suggest is that you purchase an extended service plan. It was only an extra $35 bucks so it's really affordable. It covers most damage so it's good to have just in case since regular service charges going through the manufacturer could be very pricey to say the least."
Would you recommend this to a friend? Yes!
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xeolvoid from Amazon said:
The sound and video quality is amazing! I am very impressed by the quality of the image and sound even at night. There is no blurring when panning around either, but at night its performance slightly suffers. Sometimes it takes a few seconds to focus correctly at night from switching from close to distant objects, but it is crystal clear. The sound is GREAT. Its easy to use, easy to hold.
In order to place taped videos to the PC, you need a Fire Wire port on your computer, a 6pin to 4pin fire wire cable, and a lot of hard drive space. One hour is about 14 gigs when transfered 100% uncompressed. After editing and compression though the file size is very manageable.
**For every minute you record it takes one minute to transfer to the PC**
If I had payed 350 dollars for this, I would still be amazed. Its the steal of the year, so cheap yet so good...! I bought the camera, firewire cable, three Fuji Film MiniDV's with tax didnt break 300 dollars!
Would you recommend this to a friend? Yes!
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JackTheSmack at BestBuy.com said:
"This is a good camera. So freaking cheap, so you can buy it on a whim and find SOMETHING to record. Aside from lack of view finder, and the fact that I had to spend an extra $50 for a cord to plug into my PC and some tapes, this was a great cheap purchase.
The safety strap for your arm is way too big and defeats the purpose of a small, portable camera. Luckily it doesn't come attached and can be easily removed or put on.
Uploading to my PC is a piece of cake. Simply plug in the firewire cable, and if in playback mode the PC will automatically detect it. Set the times of the video you want to be transferred, and it'll go for you and open it in Windows Movie Maker or whatever program you choose. From what I've heard, Macs have a fast forward option to transfer at 8x the playback speed.
If you're new to video making, and want a camera to dip your toes into, this is the perfect one."
Would you recommend this to a friend? Yes!
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Brick1Camera1Man from BestBuy.com said:
"This camera is amazing especially for its price
Its Durable ive droped it several times and never broke it
Its steady Its Verry light It fits in ur hand really nice buy it
NOW
its goooooood look no further
u found a good camera
dont waste money on cheap ones
buy this one
buy it now"
Would you recommend this to a friend? Yes!
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Cassandra18 from BestBuy.com said:
"i got this product in april and it has worked amazing for me. the volume works awesome. i went to NYC and the camera lasted me two straight days with out having to charge it. and the best part is being able to watch it on TV"
Would you recommend this to a friend? Yes!
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Jooey from BestBuy.com said:
"I have owned this for about 3 months and am happy with it. Have used it to record live shows in Vegas on the strip. The recording tape is short and makes for big breaks in special features that are lengthy. This is my second camcorder. The first did not have a staiblizer and JVC really did great in adding this feature. I was really surprized that my shows were clear and less bumpy than the other cam."
Would you recommend this to a friend? Yes!
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JSR from Amazon.com said:
I bought this one for my mom and dad. It seems just as easy to use as the one I purchased a few years back. It's lightweight and mom seems to understand how to use it after about ten minutes of showing her how to do things.
The only thing I would not like is that it lacks a viewfinder (like on a film camera) -- all it has is the large LCD display. If you prefer a viewfinder, you may want to look at other camcorders.
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yomama123432123 from BestBuy.com said:
"this camcorder is perfect it has absolute great video in the dark and the zoom is awesome. also this camcorder is pretty cheap for all the features you get. the special effects are cool too.i really like the mirror effect.it also takes great video outside and the light looks little but is very bright.overall great camcorder i highly recommend it."
Would you recommend this to a friend? Yes!
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JVCperson from BestBuy.com said:
"Good little camera for the money. If you are nice to the thing, it will treat you well. It has good 12/16 bit sound too. Cool blank tape button that finds a new section of tape to start recording on, also a quick review feature that reviews like the past 5 seconds of recording. Excellent dark shots, most of the time looks like day. Some image stabilization, though not much. No Firewire (dv, ieee 1394, iLink) cable included which makes me kinda erked because the instruction manual said there was one included but there was not. Price was okay, but add in the extra I had to pay for the cable. Still, I would recommend this to any newbie."
Would you recommend this to a friend? Yes!
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jpgarcia6 from BestBuy.com said:
"I like this camcorder.It is excellent for makeing good videos.I love how you dont need to install a thing to use it as a webcam.Its also small and easy to carry anywhere.However,I dont like tge fact that you need to spend extra on a DV tape and a firewire cord(speaking of which,is not slow).There is also little features but thats ok if you have a good editor.I would have also have liked to see some DV to AV out or whatever it is called so it can function as a dazzle.Other than that,its a great buy.Sorry for errors,but my pc is messed up."
Would you recommend this to a friend? Yes!
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Peter Muzyka from Amazon.com said:
The JVC GR-D850 MiniDV Camcorder is our 3rd JVC camcorder. It was purchased primarily for quick capture of family events and we didn't expect the final video to be as high a quality as our previous JVC GR-DV800U which cost almost 3 times as much. So, when we powered up the camcorder and took our first video we weren't too disappointed. That being said, this camcorder is small enough to tote around just about anywhere and comes in handy when hiking in the woods or around family gatherings. The final video produced isn't too bad although the color balance is just OK.
For the price this is a good buy.
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So there you have it. And I didn't intentionally leave out the bad reviews, I just couldn't find any! And I am not surprised. JVC has always put out superior products in my opinion and the JVC GR-D850 is just another example of a good quality camcorder at a more than reasonable price.
If you are interested in getting more in depth information or you just want to pick one one of these babies up you can follow this link below to Amazon.com and see the rest of the features I didn't list. And don't forget about the option to get the package that includes the 5 DV tapes and FireWire cable for $236.91 with FREE shipping, and save yourself even more money. This would make a great Christmas gift for that up and coming film maker in your house!
