Digital Cameras Ratings: JVC GRDV3000U MiniDV Digital Cybercam with 3.5" LCD, 16 MB SD Memory Card & High Res Color Viewfinder Review

Average Reviews:
4.0 out of 5 stars

(More customer reviews)I purchased this camera not to long ago so I'm still new to it. Video is pretty good and adjusts to light well. Optical zoom (10x) is nice, but digital does degrade video as with all cameras. I'm happy with still pictures and found out I had set resolution to the third highest level. I will be even happier to see the ones I take on highest level. I bought a few extra memory cards so I can continue taking pictures. 16mb that comes with camera is nice to begin with, but some space is taken up with special effects (sounds). As with most cameras, I'll be checking into extra battery. S-video in and out can be a nice feature seeing I'll be putting home video onto dvd or cvd. Viewer screen is nice size for reviewing and showing pictures or video. Loaded with features that I haven't had a chance to use yet, and you can put camera into total manual and manual focus for videoing far away with other things moving in front where autofocus would be trying to compensate. Onscreen controls are easy to use. DV port to sony laptop took some time to get to work, but heard of alot of people having problems with this with other cameras and computers. Happy so far.

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Product Description:
The JVC GR-DV3000U is a top-flight digital camcorder, and is one of the first with the ability to capture 2-megapixel still images. Plus, it's chock-full of enough features to satisfy just about any amateur videographer, including a 10x optical zoom, 3.5-inch LCD, and manual focus ring.
Lens
JVC put a 10x optical zoom into the GR-DV3000U, which is a good compromise of image quality and zoom power, and should be more than adequate for just about any situation. The digital zoom pumps up the total magnification to 300x, but we recommend using as low a level of digital zoom as you need, as a zoom erodes image quality, particularly at high levels.
Digital Stills
We were pleasantly surprised by the digital still capabilities of the GR-DV3000U. Many camcorders these days come with some digital still mode, some with a 1-megapixel resolution. The DV3000 surpasses all of them with the capability of recording 1,600 x 1,200 stills, which is 2-megapixel resolution. Admittedly, the stills are interpolated up--the camcorder is equipped with a 1.33-megapixel CCD--but that doesn't take much of the luster from the achievement.
Inputs and Outputs
The DV3000U also features a fair number of inputs and outputs, meant to satisfy most consumers. You get the standard IEEE 1394 port, plus S-video analog inputs and outputs for converting all your old footage to digital, or dubbing your footage to cassette.