Digital-Camcorder Reviews

The quality of the 26x zoom is incredible, and even the lower powers of digital zoom that this camera has are incredible. Imagine being able to clearly read 3pt type from 15 feet away on the viewfinder. And that's just the beginning.

Unpacking the box, I found out that I was glad that I'd purchased a USB smartmedia reader. The only cables supplied were the standard dubbing cables and a serial transfer cable. Standard serial transfer being slow as it is was not an option. That cable is now stashed collecting dust.

The camera was easy to set up and get running right away. I popped the 8mb smartmedia card in its slot, the battery in it's little hideout, and a new blank tape in the tape compartment. The single hardest thing was figuring out how to attach the lens cap to the hand strap. Velcro is your friend (the hand strap pad velcroes shut over the strap adjustment, by undoing the strap pad, you slip the cap cord onto the strap. A very neat, if unintuitive, design)

Still pictures: 640x480 is limiting, but I mostly use this for web work and don't like to publish anything much larger than this. I would like to have some extra area though to make sure I get everything and crop down. Quality is superb in good direct lighting, decent in low light or indirect light.

Video Capture: Surprisingly clear. The camera, as with all such devices, makes a good webcam if you have the right interface hardware. I use a WinTV card for vid capture and discovered that the 450 will 'follow' action around if you leave it still on the tripod. Good for those people with a cam setup that move around a lot. It will automatically pan within its scan area just a few degrees to each side, but enough, usually, if set up correctly.

VCR Mode: A neat feature that I was totally unaware that the machine had until I got it home. If you plug the 'output' ports in so that they're receiving information instead of sending it, you can record on the camera like a VCR.

All in all: I'd recommend this little cam. My only complaint was being limited to 640x480 on still pictures. Cabling was standard and not unexpected. Optics and zoom are exceptional, 26x optical zoom is a big plus. IR and zero-light features are great. Still pictures, though limited in size, can fit 500-1500 depending on quality on a 64mb SM card.

4 1/2 stars

I did a lot of research before settling on this digital camcorder. It has everything one would want from a digital camcorder and for a very good price. I have been particularly impressed with the 26X optical zoom Canon lens which comes with this unit. The LCD monitor is sharp and brilliant in color. In addition, this camcorder includes plenty of features most notably, an IEEE 1394 port, S-Video output, and a remote control. I also think the menu system is very easy to use despite many reviews I read which indicated otherwise. In fact, this camera is so easy to use I did not have to read the manual in order to figure out many of the camcorder's features. Now to the important stuff. The video quality is great but make sure your environment has plenty of light. I find that when I shoot indoors the natural light is not enough in some instances. The same goes for the digital still pictures. The quality is decent. But if you are looking for great pictures go with a digital camera product. It is nice that this camcorder includes the digital still camera but let's not forget it is a camcorder first.

My only complaints on this product are as follows:
The camcorder is a little bigger and heavier than most competing Mini DVs. However, it's still smaller than the average camcorder.
I do not like the SmartMedia card. It has only 8MB of memory. I would have preferred a compact flash card or SD memory.
The worst feature is that the camcorder connects to the PC via a serial connector. I am not sure why Sharp did not include a USB connector. To download pictures from the camcorder to the PC takes some time via the serial connector.

Overall, it is a great Mini DV camcorder for a first time buyer and it's competitively priced. I am very happy with this purchase.

If you are looking for a camera/digital camcorder that is in the ... range, this may very well be the camera for you ...In deciding which camera to buy, I initially shopped the Sony and Canon offerings but was dismayed by how quickly the price goes up when you start to tack on the features. That's when I saw the Sharp VL-WD450U. What a great price for the features that you get:

Its 26X optical zoom is much more powerful than that of most MiniDV camcorders, and its low-light performance is terrific! The LCD panel flips around so that your subjects can see how they look on camera, and the color LCD eyepiece viewfinder automatically switches on so that you can catch the action, too. The Gamma/Brighter adjustment button, which can fine-tune the exposure to brighten skin tones when they appear dark without changing the overall exposure level, is really a cool feature.
Plus the detachable microphone (it slides into a little slot on top; but you don't always need to use it because the camcorder also has a standard built-in microphone under the lens) has a highly directional pickup pattern and is less affected by the motor noise generated within the camcorder. And you can zoom in on points and the mic will only pick up sounds from that point and filter out other sounds, which is really neat!

Like Sony's popular Nightshot feature, this camcorder sports Super Cat's Eye, which lets you shoot video in complete darkness. But the normal shooting mode has excellent low-light performance too. Of course the camera allows you to take stills onto an 8mb memory card and download in to your computer. It also comes with the IEEE Link for downloads of video at over 400mbs! The camera comes with RCA-type jacks for video and audio, an SVideo Input/Output.

But what really makes the camera is its Canon Lens (which in my opinion makes or breaks a Camcorder). The Image quality is as good as the ... Sony and Canon Camcorders (don't let the 460,000 resolution fool you, it looks MUCH sharper than that).

So if you are not a professional and are just looking for a great deal on a Camcorder to take production quality home movies then this is probably as good as they come.

I found this camera(...) on Amazon three months ago and was amazed with the picture quality and comfort of use of this camera at the price. I am giving the camera a full thumbs up after about 3 months of use!

I like the no viewfinder concept... (I wear glasses and it is a pain to look thru viewfinders!)

The camera has a IR remote and a reversible viewscreen which allows me and my wife to take our pictures without anyone elses help. Just turn the camera towards you and you can see yourselves on the small LCD screen and use the remote even to zoom upto 10X. (It has digital zoom, but a purist like me cannot use digital zoom!)

(...)Of course, I had an old AMD K6-350 Desktop running Windows 98 -(...) I set the films

I am finally happily creating great home movies with lots of special effects at a premium price (...) and recommend everyone to do the same. Do not waste money when you can save! DV quality is within your reach for under $500!

Happy DV editing!

My wife and I were having our first child. My father-in-law said I should have a digital camera and a video camera. I wanted a product that would combine the two (...). I didn't know much about them when I started my hunt. I was aimed at the Sharp product from the start because of its style, no viewfinder, a simple LCD screen acts as viewfinder and monitor, also I liked how the screen and camera can twist 270 degrees from each other. Here are some things I really liked: mini-DV format; 660,000 pixel CCD, this is very important for the image size; manual control of focusing, color, etc.; ability to shoot single images (9 or 16 in group) at 1/10 second separation for fast moving sports; digital image stabilization; ability to brighten forground objects against a bright background; ease of use if you read the instruction manual; and availability of Sharp developed software and cable for image transfer to the computer. A few tradeoffs: basic battery is short lived, longer life battery is available, and AC/DC adapter provided and charging is quick; slight motor hum/whine that is picked up by microphone when recording, not serious problem because the frequency is such that any voice or other sound will cover it up and if you do not think about it you will probably not hear it; and I could not find it in any store and had to purchase over the internet (this turned out very easy and great). Conclusion, buy this camcorder and the software, for the features and the money you cannot lose. P.S.: be careful not to compare pixels in camcorder to digital camera, a $150 digital camera, 1.3 mega pixel will beat a $700 camcorder, 0.7 mega pixel. An important question to ask is what resolution will the camcorder create images at for sending on the internet? An average I found was 640 x 480, about 0.3 mega pixel.

small enough to take everywhere.....it's been all over the world and through some tough climates and still works great! Large LCD for viewing eliminates the need for a view finder, which most people don't use with todays DV camera. Functions easy to access. Takes 37mm filters. Suggest purchase of two batteries so you can cut back on down time when shooting. Liked it so much....getting one for my son in the military!! Looking for underwater case...if available.

This is the Best camcorder I have ever owned,
it has none of the problems
I had with the JVC DV camcorder I previously owned.

This has a 26X zoom lens,
a Zoom Mic, Gama brightness enhancement,
Digital Zoom and Pan in Playback,
Analog video input, Real RCA Jacks on the camcorder itself,
Digital Still camera on smartmedia cards
(it's not the best digital still camera, but it's not bad).
3" LCD Screen,

Super Cat eye for recording in the dark
(OK it's monochrome, but you can actually
record in total darkness within 10')

It's Very Easy too use once you get used
to the unusual menu system.

I've had no problems with it,
it works great!!!!!!

The only complaint I have about it,
is the size, it's a little too large,
especially compared to the Tiny JVC's,
but on the other hand I've found it much more durable!
I haven't had to clean the recording heads
all the time Like on the JVC.

As with all digital camcorders,
I suggest you buy an extended warranty,
these things have a tendency to break,
My JVC broke 3 times in 5 years,
and it cost about [$$$] to repair them,
so an extended warranty is a must!

The other thing I would suggest
is always use Panasonic LP tapes,
because a lot of people have complained
about problems with Sony tapes on the VL-WD450U.

I bought this camera after seeing the reviews on amazon.com, in particular that it was durable. I enjoyed doing videos with it. But very soon after the warranty expired, the video stopped working. It still worked as a VCR, but not as a camera. When I sent it for repair at one of the Sharp partners, the bill to repair would have been higher than the cost of the camera!!! So be aware that this is not in fact a durable camera, and Sharp USA did nothing to help the confidence of this ex-customer.

I bought my camera 2 month ago and i am deligthted.
As the product is discontinued by sharp is a little difficult to find accessories.

Lens cap broke, but other than that, I love this camera, It handles well while accompanying me all around the globe