Steve'sDigicams

timtak · Dec 25, 2005, 7:41 PM

I live in Japan, and the Japanese are lagging behind on the hybrid front. There are camcorder-styled cameras fromSanyo and Panasonic, but most of the hybrids such as those by Mustek, NISIS, Goodmans etc are not even available in Japanese stores.

Before I knew of the existance of "hybrids" I checked out which of the digital 'still' camera's available here have 640×480 at 30fps and found out there are quite a few. Most have microphones, some of them have image stabilisation. Importantly for me the 'still' digital cameras are available second hand.

Importantlyagain,many digital cameras are made by famous camera manufacturers (Canon, Olympus) or with lenses from famous camera manufacturers (Sony / Carl Zeiss) so I guess they have good "glass."

So other than the look of the thing (camcorders tend to look more like a gun, or DVD camcorder, digital cameras tend to look more like cameras) why would one go for a hybrid, other than price (I can get digital 'still' camera's second hand and failrly cheaply or at the same price as the hybrids).

Incidentallly, herearea couple ofvideos taken with my Sony Cybershot DSC-T1 (not famous for its picture quality - the "Carl Zeiss" lens is a let down! But the size and sony-feel is cool.)
http://tinyurl.com/dgd4f
http://tinyurl.com/7a4w8

I will be looking to purchase another camera ("still" or hybrid), because I want the feature that I will raise on another thread.

Tim

fishycomics · Dec 25, 2005, 7:58 PM

you want a digital still camera with video. then best to shop arund and collect a major brand. with optical.

If you want a gadget camera for the pc the hybrid is for you. fits in te pocket takes stils/vids on the go mp3 and movie player. economy is the key. camcorder is for families and trips. sorry

timtak · Dec 25, 2005, 8:12 PM

Thanks fishycomics

There are some cheap digital cameras available second-hand. So economy does not seem to apply.

I am thinking of an Olympus c-770 (the last Olympus to have an external microphone jack it seems) and I can get one at about 120 pounds second-hand but under guarantee.

Tim

fishycomics · Dec 25, 2005, 8:37 PM

I luv olympus and you should be pleased, i cannot speak for the camera I own a d490zw/o sound wish I had sound on it

fishycomics · Dec 25, 2005, 8:37 PM

I luv olympus and you should be pleased, i cannot speak for the camera I own a d490zw/o sound wish I had sound on it

timtak · Dec 25, 2005, 8:55 PM

Thanks fishy.

There are two going at 25000 yen (124 pounds). I guess I will purchase one of them.

While there is a lack of hybrids, there are a lot of second hand digital cameras here in Japan.

Tim

sgspirit · Dec 25, 2005, 10:20 PM

The main difference between dsc's that take video, and the hybrids, is that most of the dsc's don't compress the video. So the videos they take look great, but they fill up the memory cards very fast. The hybrids mostly use MPEG4, and the dsc's are starting to adopt that.

Other than the more expensive ones, hybrids don't have optical zooms, while all dsc's do. Most hybrids have mp3 players, while no, or almost no dsc's have that.

Hybrids are more likely at cheaper price points to have image stabilization and remote controls than dsc's. The Digilife DDV-810 even has a histogram display.

Most of the latest hybrids have video-in ports, while no, or almost no dsc's have that.

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Dec 25, 2005, 7:41 PM	#1
timtak Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 80	I live in Japan, and the Japanese are lagging behind on the hybrid front. There are camcorder-styled cameras fromSanyo and Panasonic, but most of the hybrids such as those by Mustek, NISIS, Goodmans etc are not even available in Japanese stores. Before I knew of the existance of "hybrids" I checked out which of the digital 'still' camera's available here have 640×480 at 30fps and found out there are quite a few. Most have microphones, some of them have image stabilisation. Importantly for me the 'still' digital cameras are available second hand. Importantlyagain,many digital cameras are made by famous camera manufacturers (Canon, Olympus) or with lenses from famous camera manufacturers (Sony / Carl Zeiss) so I guess they have good "glass." So other than the look of the thing (camcorders tend to look more like a gun, or DVD camcorder, digital cameras tend to look more like cameras) why would one go for a hybrid, other than price (I can get digital 'still' camera's second hand and failrly cheaply or at the same price as the hybrids). Incidentallly, herearea couple ofvideos taken with my Sony Cybershot DSC-T1 (not famous for its picture quality - the "Carl Zeiss" lens is a let down! But the size and sony-feel is cool.) http://tinyurl.com/dgd4f http://tinyurl.com/7a4w8 I will be looking to purchase another camera ("still" or hybrid), because I want the feature that I will raise on another thread. Tim

Dec 25, 2005, 7:58 PM	#2
fishycomics Moderator Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: NYC NY Posts: 9,683	you want a digital still camera with video. then best to shop arund and collect a major brand. with optical. If you want a gadget camera for the pc the hybrid is for you. fits in te pocket takes stils/vids on the go mp3 and movie player. economy is the key. camcorder is for families and trips. sorry

Dec 25, 2005, 8:12 PM	#3
timtak Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 80	Thanks fishycomics There are some cheap digital cameras available second-hand. So economy does not seem to apply. I am thinking of an Olympus c-770 (the last Olympus to have an external microphone jack it seems) and I can get one at about 120 pounds second-hand but under guarantee. Tim

Dec 25, 2005, 8:37 PM	#4
fishycomics Moderator Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: NYC NY Posts: 9,683	I luv olympus and you should be pleased, i cannot speak for the camera I own a d490zw/o sound wish I had sound on it

Dec 25, 2005, 8:55 PM	#6
timtak Member Join Date: Dec 2005 Posts: 80	Thanks fishy. There are two going at 25000 yen (124 pounds). I guess I will purchase one of them. While there is a lack of hybrids, there are a lot of second hand digital cameras here in Japan. Tim

Dec 25, 2005, 10:20 PM	#7
sgspirit Moderator Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 887	The main difference between dsc's that take video, and the hybrids, is that most of the dsc's don't compress the video. So the videos they take look great, but they fill up the memory cards very fast. The hybrids mostly use MPEG4, and the dsc's are starting to adopt that. Other than the more expensive ones, hybrids don't have optical zooms, while all dsc's do. Most hybrids have mp3 players, while no, or almost no dsc's have that. Hybrids are more likely at cheaper price points to have image stabilization and remote controls than dsc's. The Digilife DDV-810 even has a histogram display. Most of the latest hybrids have video-in ports, while no, or almost no dsc's have that.