DDV-7300: Worth It?

[spitfirees20]

Exactlly as the title states, is this a good camera? I was looking at some sample videos and pics and they are pretty awesome for the price. At first I wanted a go-hd, but the videos from this camera, while a lower resolution, seems to look alot better. Plus, this camera also has a ccd sensor as opposed to a cmos sensor, and it shows. Check out the samples in the ebay link.

http://cgi.ebay.com/DDV-7300-3X-opti...QQcmdZViewItem

So, does anybody have any personal experience with this camera, or know anything that I don't know about it?

[Type2]

spitfirees20 wrote:

Exactlly as the title states, is this a good camera? I was looking at some sample videos and pics and they are pretty awesome for the price. At first I wanted a go-hd, but the videos from this camera, while a lower resolution, seems to look alot better. Plus, this camera also has a ccd sensor as opposed to a cmos sensor, and it shows. Check out the samples in the ebay link.

http://cgi.ebay.com/DDV-7300-3X-opti...QQcmdZViewItem

So, does anybody have any personal experience with this camera, or know anything that I don't know about it?

Don't always assume that CCD is good and CMOS is bad - It's the physical size and implementation of the CCD or CMOS chip in the camera that makes the biggest difference. For example, Aiptek absolutely refuses to put a decent frame buffer in their hybrids - as a result, the Go-HD video (etc) look 'wavy'. AFAIK, CMOS chips are great for low noise, high sensitivity. I would presume that the Go-HD, with proper frame buffering (prolly never gonna happen) would look absolutely fantastic. As a further example, the Sanyo HD1000 (1080i) uses a large 4mp CMOS chip, while the (inferior) HD700 (720p) uses a small 7mp CCD chip/sensor. I own the HD700 and the video is stunning. I also own the GO-HD, which is inferior to the HD700. Each technology has different quirks.

To answer your question. I would not buy it.

[spitfirees20]

What would you recommend instead? The forums around here mention so many cameras, I just don't know what is considered the best bang-for-the-buck hybrid around.

[Yulaw2k2]

I bought this camera for christmas. I had a thread about it, didnt really do a review about it.
But im returning it tommarow.
Overall i really liked the camera, i love the big LCD screen.
The Light sensitivity was not that great in dark rooms for the recording video.
If my camera worked fine, other then the light issue in dark rooms, i thought the camera was amazing for just being a camera and camcorder.
Im returning it because the microphone is retarded....
When i first got it, it worked great, i loved it, took perfect audio and video
then the next day....
it became unreliable, there was alot of white noise, and then LOUD whistleing.
In some videos it was so loud you could not hear anyone talking.
And...it does not play mp3's as digilifes main website says, and any video i put on it from my computer locked it up...so it didnt do very good at playing movies and stuff back..
I would prefer the ddv-730
i think thats it....
has more fun stuff haha.
but i would not be returning it if the mic was working properly

[sgspirit]

Yulaw2k2 is the only participant here who has used the 7300. And as you can see, his experience doesn't instill confidence. There's just no way to know how problematic the 7300 is.

I should be getting a 730 tomorrow, and will post some reactions as soon as I can. However, the 730's have ceased being available on eBay, which is pretty well the only North American source for them. You might want to email 3cdigital to see if she can get you one, if it turns out they're ok.

I know everyone wants to make sure they make the exact best purchase in a hybrid or any other digital camera. I'd say the first two steps are to use the Hybrid List to see what cameras have the feature list you want. Then decide on a price bracket. Then see what's available. The older less capable models are generally available at electronics stores, while the newer ones are mostly limited to eBay.

Since you can't really tell if the camera's still or video performance will meet your needs/expectations, you should regard the first hybrid purchase as a bit of an experiment. You may love the first one. Or it may make you realize what features you'd like to improve on for your next camera. Be assured that within 1 month to 2 years there will be better cameras out that you just have to buy. Therefore, don't regard your first one as any sort of a permanent purchase. Keep us posted on how things go, and we're always here to offer advice.

[Type2]

spitfirees20 wrote:

What would you recommend instead? The forums around here mention so many cameras, I just don't know what is considered the best bang-for-the-buck hybrid around.

I would probably say the best bang for buck is the Aiptek A-HD. It can be had for around $99 I think. If my budget was absolutely no more than $125, that is what i would probably buy. It's probably 90% as good as the Aiptek Go-HD. Be aware that both the A-HD and Go-HD suffer from poor microphone quality, as the audio I believe is limited to 32kb/s mono (i.e. less than a 128kb/s mp3). I know for a fact that my Go-HD is. Plus the sensitivity is screwy - sometimes too much, sometimes not enough. My Go-HD is waaay sensitive and clips a lot.

If your budget is a bit more than that, say a bit over $200, I think the Sanyo CG6/CG65 are pretty good bets. I haven't heard many complaints about them. AFAIK, the audio quality is great. These are not HD.

If your budged is $299, keep an eye on Amazon.com and swoop up a Sanyo HD700. They have occasional fire sales. The audio and video is great. If you look through the threads, around page three titled " Aiptek Go-Hd vs. Sanyo HD700 in *low light* situations " I discuss my thoughts in detal. Normally the price is around $500 and i dont feel it is worth that much.