Why Buy a High-definition Camcorder Now?

Why a high definition camcorder now? Well because HD televisions are here at last! It's been promised for many years but is now appearing in our local retail outlets. With a picture some 10 times sharper than conventional TV and an amazing clarity and richness, the pictures look unbelievably real. Now you can bring that superb quality to your home movies using a high definition camcorder.

What is High Definition Video?

The high-definition camcorder looks very similar to any other digital camcorder, using DV tapes and having all the features we have grown accustomed to; transitions between scenes, easy transfer to PC, stills capability, and so on. But the picture quality sets it apart with audio to match.
How is this all achieved? Well simply more lines and more pixels. HD achieves this through either the progressive scan principle where the lines making up the image appear one above the other at a rate faster than the eye can detect, or 'interlaced' method, that is, two sets of double-spaced lines, one filling in the gaps left by the other. Conventional television uses 480 lines using the interlaced method, HD achieves a minimum of 720.

The improved pixel density makes a very significant difference too. The number of those minute dots increases from somewhere between 100,000 - 700,000 pixels. This number increases to over 1 million with high definition camcorders, dramatically increasing image intensity.

Comprehensive Quality

The capabilities of the HD system demand that the HD camcorder's component parts are up to an equivalent quality. For example, the sharpness of the image means that any blurriness or attack of the jitters is going to stand-out even more. Therefore HD camcorders such as the Canon HV10 uses an optical stabilizer based on gyroscope technology whereas Sony’s HC3 uses a simpler electronic stabilizer. Naturally, lens quality is vital with high-definition filming demanding low image distortion and high image purity.
Lastly, the connections to transfer the image to your PC or HDTV have to be of equivalent quality, such as Sony's use of the HDMI, a single cable carrying high-definition video and audio.

Why Now?

So whether you have a HD television or not, now is a good time to invest in an HD camcorder; you may regret not having done so when reviewing you digital camcorder holiday footage this time next year on your new HD TV!