Camcorder Reviews

The 4 pin connector was overlarge. It would barely go into my DVD recorder, but would not connect to my Sony camcorder at all. (I tried another brand, which fit easily into both.) If look are looking for a cable for your Sony camcorder, don't buy this one.

At first I was skeptical since I also own a Sony Digital Camcorder, however when I received it, I had no problems connecting it to my Sony Camcorder and as a bonus it also works with my digital camera which uses both USB or firewire. Firewaire is much faster, so if you have that option, this type of cable will save you minutes off your precious time.

I just purchased this item and I must say it is perfect! It holds my camera (Canon Rebel 2000) w/ lens 28-200mm attached, a 70-300mm lens, and a flash. It has pockets for my film, filters, cleaning cloths, batteries, everything you need to keep with your camera. I bought this because I wanted a bag that would hold all my stuff, but was not cumbersome to carry around. It also seals the main compartment really tight; I bet it works great in the rain. This is a top-notch bag for an aggressive amateur or anyone who wants to travel light without forgetting the essentials.

I purcahse this bag because i need space for my flashs and lenses. This was one of the best bags ever. It is durably and it holds everything. This is a great buy.

I have a Mac and this product doesn't work at all with it. The customer support explained to me first that the software for the Mac was on the disk. After I called again they told me that I had to buy a product called Capty that you cannot test like any other usual product of this kind. I spoke to a supervisor and the the answer I got was "OK... OK..". They cannot certify that Capty works. On top of that, compared to Canon which produces great equipement, the photo I got with this camera are mediocre and the autofocus is poor. Never again I will buy a JVC product.

THIS is an amazing camera- BUT- It does not work with a mac.. you can get the files to the desktop, but the sound is separate.. trying to splice the sound back to the video is next to impossible. (and I'm a mac geek..) I bought some software from some Japanese site, claiming to translate the MPEG2 format but it was basically a joke.. Apple has a $39.00 MPEG2 plugin for QT that should work, but it did not.. Basically DO NOT GET THIS IF YOU ARE ON A MAC..

All one-star reviews on this camera come from Mac users. It's risible how they make a big stink out of nothing, for instance:

1. -"Why has JVC used USB 2.0 instead of Firewire, oh why?". Well, gee, USB 2.0 is more common than Firewire, specially if you live -like the rest of most people- outside the "Mac bubble". USB 2.0 is actually 480Mbps speed, and Firewire is 400Mbps!. So the choice was clear, and JVC rightly went with the more common interface: USB 2.0

2. -"Howdy, my MacOS-X can't play the video files generated by this camera, oh the horror". Answer: perhaps you should write to your spiritual cult leader Steve Jobs and tell him to fix the damned Quicktime buggy player!. Like some other reviewers have proved: the generated files can be played back both in Windows and in Linux using the open source Mplayer media player!.

Perhaps if Mac users had a clue, they would dump Quicktime and use Videolan player -also available for Mac OS-X- www dot videolan dot org which has no problem playing ANY file on Windows, Linux, and Mac.

3. "I can't edit the video files on my Mac, oh the horror". Answer: someone else who uses a mac also said he succesfully used Final Cut Pro on his Mac to edit files generated by this camera. Get a clue.

4. "Why has JVC chosen MPEG2 instead of DV"?. Answer: sheesh, read the specs before buying!. Nowhere is JVC advertising this as a "DV camera". It's an MPEG2 camera and that's what makes it a beauty!. MPEG2 is the format used on DVDs and you can hence create a DVD disc out of your eVerio camcorder files with drag-and-drop simplicity into any DVD authoring application without the need for transcoding!.

I give this camera five stars, does what it promises. (If you are a Mac cult member, only buy white cheesy hardware from the Church in Cupertino).

The camera is one of the best considering the price and the size of it. The only problem I found is that it has not a light, so you will need to buy the external one, if not all the shots that you do at night will be very dark.

I have own this camcorder for 6 month
it's a good camcorder, esay to use, easy to bring
As it's design purpose, PC-55 is enough for home use
Only one thing I want to mention here, before I buy this camcorder, I thought that I can record video on MS duo in mepg format, and it's easy for post-edit on PC, you know, tansfer a MiniDV tape to computer may need a huge space to save.
However, when I replay the video which stored on MS, the sreen was full of mosaic
fortunately, when use DV type to record, this situation never happens. good quality.
The one press photo button also becomes useless because the bad quality.

When you buy a product that is designed and meant to fulfill certain needs, just expect the best performance out of those features.

The PC55 is a camera for the everyday home shooter, easy to use and made with the best SONY quality for one of the smallest MINI DV camera ever created.

If you are thinking about buying this camera don't hesitate one minute, this camcorder is one of the kind, it gives you pretty much the flexibility and video quality of a regular camcorder but with the amazing bring-it-in-the-pocket size and all the coolness and attention that it brings along (let it be your best Ice breaker, believe me it works like heaven!). I work for a camera store and let me tell you: we haven't received one return of this model during the time I've worked there (8 months), which proves the high quality SONY has built into this model. I have been using mine for a few months now and all I can say is that "the product is great... period!".

Let's get real, the 500 bucks you are paying for it is not for the film quality kind of movie you get in the picture (for that you need to spend at least a couple of thousand dollars) but the portability and worriless of no need of the big luggage a camcorder used to be in the past" (some times people don't realize a motorcycle couldn't be compared with a truck or vise versa).

About the picture shooting option, well let's see! A camcorder is for videos and a digital camera is for photos, if you want to have them both in one package, that brings excellent quality, you'd have to spend a lot of more money than if you bought them separately, let me explain you in a few words, the average photo quality for a MINI DV camcorder is 1.3mp or lower (the same quality you get out of your cell phone camera) to be honest with you, the manufacturers add this option just to give it an extra feature and at the same time take more money out of your pocket, with tape less digital cameras it happens the same way, the video and sound quality are very poor; so why bother paying more for a camera with both functions being excellent (there are quite a few out in the market now, starting around $1200 for models of similar size) instead buy two little cameras, one for each use, for half of the price.

If you are looking for a cool, high quality & durability MINI DV camcorder with the smallest size available in its kind, The SONY DCR-PC55 is your BEST option.

To finish, I just want to wish you all enjoy, more than the product, the unmemorable moments you will live with your loved ones because of this little fellow.

I bought this, 6 months ago, right before my wedding. Whereas this is not a bad miniDV recorder, it certainly isn't good either.

If you are lucky enough to have perfect lighting in your shots, the image (video) quality is impressive - especially for the price of this machine. However, most of us are not going to consistenly have perfect lighting conditions when taking everyday video. Then, what we get from this camera is dingy images. Clear but dingy - everything has an overcast look.

The camera is attractive, small, and comfortable in my hand. It is also quite simple to use. The menu navigation took a minute to get used to but then it was smooth sailing.

The battery life of 50-60 minutes is average or a little above average for this level of consumer miniDV.

The audio is not good. I read other reviews talking about the motor noise but I bought it anyway thinking, "How bad can it be?". It's not so bad that you can't hear other sounds but it's bad enough that it's noticeable and distracting - especially in quiet settings.

The LCD on mine is in need of repair. It does not function when flipped out in the normal viewing position, however, if you flip the LCD backwards, it works. Doesn't do me any good when it's backwards though. :-)

JVC's customer support is fairly awful. They encourage you to email rather than call. I sent them a detailed email explaing the issue with my LCD screen and listed several different ways for them to contact me. That was 3 weeks ago and today, I finally gave up, and called them.

It took me 5 minutes to navigate their voice menu and I think it was luck that I got a person on the phone. After keeping me on the phone for 15 minutes (ask my name - put me on hold, ask my phone number - put me on hold, ask my serial number - put me on hold, etc), I was instructed to mail the camera to Georgia.

I suggest buying something a little better. I wish I had.

This camcorder was bought in September 2005 and is still working well. I was talking a film class and didn't want to have the hassle of borrowing my school's $1000+ camcorder. Knowing full well that Canon and Sony, especially Sony, would be the best camcorder for people wanting their shots to look professional, I looked on Amazon and Circuit City to see reviews. I went into Stereo Advantage and well, walked out with a JVC due to the fact that it was a little less expensive then some of the other camcorders. So, the advantages and disadvantages:

Advantages:
1) It is pretty decent in low light. It does have a light on it and this does help.
2) I never noticed the motor noise mostly because when I film stuff and edit it on my Powerbook with Final Cut, I usually add music. I read reviews with motor noises but I guess that if there is complete silence in a room, you'll hear it.
3) Firewire cable and AV cables are easy to find and connect.
4) Easy to hold.

Disadvantages:
1) Firewire does NOT come with camcorder. You'll have to buy this separate. Best place to find firewire cables is online (Amazon, Ebay). You'll play way too much in stores.
**By the way, if you don't know what firewire is here is what it is. Mac computers almost always come with firewire outlet, just like PCs come with USB outlets. For PCs, you can buy a firewire card and insert it in your PC. The purpose of firewire is to transfer video from your camcorder onto your computer. USB plugs(which comes with this camcorder) just transfer photos.

2) Taking pictures on this camcorder does not turn out good at all. I would stick with a digital camera instead.

3) Battery is horrible. It lasts like 50 minutes fully charged. I plan on buying another one.

Great for those of us who are new at this type of camera and affordable.

We purchased a Mavica that came with a NPF330 battery several years ago. Like another reviewer mentioned, our battery began to act up in very little time though we could never associate any particular event with why it happened. The old battery would show over 100 minutes available until you used the camera - especially with the flash on - an then would go to zero! It never worked well after that.

This new battery is great and I appreciate the other reviewer's mention of luggage inspection machines perhaps being a problem. I'll try to keep this battery out of harm's way now that I know what might harm it!

Sony's battery works as promised; nothing special about it. It works the same as any other lithium battery, starting out with great battery time, but slowly decreasing over the years. The one thing that bothers me...

I bought this battery to replace a Sony NP-F330 that came with my Sony camera. That battery started experiencing problems only one year after purchase. I noticed that the battery seemed to jump from 90 min of battery life to, suddenly, 0 min left. This only atarted to occur after my luggage went through those metal detectors at the airport. The security people said that it was possible that all lithium batteries, not just Sony, could be ruined as a result of going through airport security. Since the time I've bought this new battery, I have not gone to the airport, so I don't know if this battery gets ruined also. But just beware, going on vacation could ruin your...battery.

I haven't seen this problem in other reviews, so it might just happen to me. Who knows...

Other than that problem, this battery has no problem charging, being used, etc. I just don't think that a battery should cost almost half the price of the camera itself. Oh well...

We have this battery as well as the 2 hour Info-Lithium that came with our Sony Mavica. It's a great addition, especially when we're out and about and don't want to miss a shot because of a dead battery.

I would put this camera in 5/5 rating if the it could work fine in low light. In day light or in electric light even if not so bright, this camera does a good job.
The look and Feel: Perfect. Its fits on the palm of my hand and its very comfortable to handle.
Movie: Wonderful quality in broad daylight 5.0/ 5.0. In low light 2.0/5.0 Average night light 4.5/5.0
Picture: 3.0/5.0 But this is not meant to be a digital camera. But still does a decent job on that side.
Over all: 4.5 /5.0

I use this camcorder for my own videography business and have never had any complaints about the video quality. To get a better camcorder, you would literally have to pay twice as much money.
Some people have complained about the low light capabilities, and in my mind this is the one problem with the camera. You will need to find a good camcorder light to make up for this problem. But images shot outdoors look similar in quality to my friend's $2000 cannon camcorder!
If you're looking for a "pro-sumer" camcorder and you're on a budget, or if you simply want a top of the line regular camcorder, buy this camcorder!

First off, this is an awesome camera for the price. There is no other camera in the same price range which will deliver this much performance and quality for the money. Those who talk about the low-light quality needs to go out and purchase themselves hotshoe light. Who in their right mind would shoot at 15, 30 or even 60 lux without an external light anyway? Picture quality will be greatly hampered. I believe that next to a spare battery, an external light source is probably the most valuable accessory you can own. This camera comes loaded with all the standard features of the other camcorders in this price range and also has a remote control included, which some of the competitors do not have standard. And on top of that, 3 CCD sensors!!! Simply put, you will not find a better camcorder for the price! Period.