It's that time of year again. One kid is finally graduating and the other is getting married. If you're going to a graduation or a June wedding and want to capture it for posterity, Retrevo has a few suggestions for some great high definition camcorders and a few digital cameras too. Any one of these HD camcorders might also make a good gift. Let us make these days most memorable with these gadgets.
Just in Time for Summer: All-in-one HD Pocket CamcordersThere's a growing number of camcorders that you can hold with one hand, are small enough to fit in your pocket, and take high definition videos and high resolution digital photos. Although not quite high definition, the amazingly popular Flip Video Ultra Series has taken the camcorder market by storm. It stores 60 minutes of very good quality audio and video on a pocket-sized camcorder. It's small, lightweight, and super simple to operate. For high definition in a similar package and price tag, the Aiptek A-HD has a pistol grip, shoots 720P video and 5 MP stills.
Handheld Camcorder With Lots of Buzz A new super-small Sony camcorder, the $899, Sony HDR-TG1 is vying for the smallest camcorder prize. It weighs 10 ounces, is not much bigger than a small point and shoot camera and stores 1080i video on a flash memory card. It goes on sale on May 30, 2008 and you can pre-order it on amazon.com now.
Some More Light and Small HD CamcordersIf you want more features and storage and don't mind the fact that these camcorders won't fit in your pocket there are plenty of small, full-featured camcorders to choose from that won't break the bank. Tape-based camcorders like the Canon HV-20 at $700 are still an all around good value. The new Panasonic HDC-SD9 stores 1080p AVCHD formatted video on an SD flash memory card. It's very small and light weight and offers image stabilization and face detection technology similar to what's being offered on many new digital cameras. The Sony HDR-SR12 is a bit pricey at $1300 but you get an HD camcorder and a 10 MP still camera with a large 120 GB hard drive and Memory Stick that can store up to 15 hours of HD video.
Prosumer CamcordersJust in case, you want to play in the big league and have a desire to impress the professional photographers at the graduation or wedding then you should consider one of these high quality HD camcorders that turn out broadcast quality video for under $4000. The Canon XH-A1 costs around $3200 and gets very high ratings. Reviewers caution this camcorder is not for novices. The Sony HVR-V1U costs around $3000 and gets high marks for image quality even though some reviewers question its low-light capability.
Powerful New Digital Still CamerasIf a camcorder isn't on the list this year, there are some cool new digital cameras offering features that make it hard to take a bad picture. Face technology that optimizes the picture around flesh tones and faces along with optical image stabilization that calms a shaky camera are two essential features to look for in a compact, point and shoot camera. The Canon SD1100 fits easily in a pocket or pocket book, offers 8 MP, image stabilization and new face technology. The Canon Powershot A560 is a 7.1 MP compact camera with a 4x optical zoom and face technology but no image stabilization.
Be the Life of the Party with This Camera The $300, Sony DSC-W170, is a fun new camera that performs some very cool image editing right on the camera. The "Smile Shutter" works with the face technology to detect "smiling" faces. Software in the camera, called, "Happy Face Retouch," can turn a frown into a smile after a picture has been taken.
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