( 5 reviews )
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( 2 of 2 found this review helpful ) Posted: 09-07-2005
I have owned this camera for about 1 year, and it has performed very well and is fully compatible with Windows XP. It produces very good quality and has been completely reliable. I suggest that you should buy wide-angle and telephoto accessory lenses. These cost me about $100 CAD (they are "no-name", so I can't give you a specific recommendation). These increase its flexibility and improve quality by extending the optical zoom instead of using the digital zoom. To address some of the issues raised in earlier reviews: - Most camcorders do not include an accessory light, to reduce the initial purchase cost. There are various aftermarket choices available. - The DVD is in DVD-RAM format. If your DVD-ROM drive does not support this format, it won't be able to play it. This is hardly Panasonic's fault. Although DVD-RAM is not widely supported, you can find drives that support it. - The camcorder provides 3 levels of quality. Make sure you choose the Xtra setting; this gives a very good picture. -(...)
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Posted: 05-30-2005
I bought this camera during xmas of 2003. The camera is really easy to use, but you need a Master's degree in computer programing to get the software to work. I have had little success in getting the usb connection to work. Still after struggling with this thing for over a year I discovered that you can use the dvd ram in a drive eliminating the need of the usb. A prior review suggests that you have to load the dvdram driver to make the transfer to the computer easier. In the configure menu you have to tell the software to read the disc in your dvdrom drive. The transfer is still slower then XMAS, but at least I don't have to pray to the electronic's gods to get my videos transferred. One last thing, the manual for the software is completely useless.
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( 2 of 2 found this review helpful ) Posted: 05-19-2005
After less than two years, this recorder crashes and destroys everything I've recorded every time I try to record on a 60 minute DVD for more than 55 minutes. It works fine as long as I remember to stop it before 55 minutes, but losing everything seems like an awfully big price to pay for losing track of the time. I've called customer support and they say it shouldn't do this and they don't know why it does, and there's nothing to be done about it since it's not under warranty anymore. (They'll fix it for $300 + parts, but I'm reluctant to pour more money into this piece of junk.) For $700, I expect a product that will work reliably for more than a year!
