Steve'sDigicams

sgspirit · Sep 10, 2005, 1:56 PM

Regarding the 810's focus distance, I was comparing it to the Megxon. The Megxon appears to have no manual focus adjustment, while all the Diglife's I've seen have a 3-position manual focus. This allows more accurate focusing than any attempt to cover from closeups to infinity with a completely fixed lens. It's somewhat like the "old" style cameras that had a dial for focus adjustment.

I'm supposed to get the 810 on Monday, and I'll post comments as soon as I can. I will check what control there is with the flash.

Yes, the inability to see dim subjects in the screen is yet another downside of the decision not to put optical viewfinders on these cameras. But generally, if it's too dim to illuminate the screen, it's too dim to film. My only exception to this is if I take a shot at night of something too distant for the flash, and important enough that I don't care about color, and use editing software to reveal the subject matter. One thing to watch out for is putting your finger in front of the flash, which I am in the habit of doing.

The characteristics of controlling the screen are typical of more expensive cameras, and I don't know of any hybrids that have these things. Some of the top end ones might.

I have taken videos of children's indoor birthday parties with the Digilife, and the results were ok. If someone waved a hand, for instance, the hand would be blurred. But for anything moving slowly or stationary, the results were more than acceptable. The bright colors were very nicely reproduced. Just make sure light levels aren't dim, and have the brightest light source behind you. At such an event, the sound levels are sufficient to make an impression on the Digilife's weak microphone.

You might want to take a look at the D'zign and IJoy cameras, which have LED flashes usable for video. Of course, they have many other limitations....

skyl1ne · Sep 18, 2005, 4:07 AM

Is it necessary to use a 'high-speed' SD memory card with the
Digilife DDV-720 or S670? Is it preferred? Thank you...

skyl1ne · Sep 18, 2005, 4:07 AM

Is it necessary to use a 'high-speed' SD memory card with the
Digilife DDV-720 or S670? Is it preferred? Thank you...

fishycomics · Sep 18, 2005, 8:11 AM

what does your pocket say? i use a standard sd car on any unit and works fine in my eyes

sgspirit · Sep 18, 2005, 9:48 PM

skyl1ne,

Welcome to the forum!

Digilife cameras are rated at a maximum throughput of 1.8megabits per second. This equates to something like a 12x card. So just to be safe, say 24x would be more than adequate. 60x cards are 9mbps, so they're overkill, which means you're paying for performance your camera can't use. I think "high speed" is 30x, but the use of the term may depend on the card manufacturer.

skyl1ne · Sep 18, 2005, 10:09 PM

Thank you for the information. I purchased the Digilifes from eBay and expect shipment soon so I haven't had a chance to read the manual. In the meantime, I was able to pickup a 512MB card from Buy.com for $16.93 (after $10 rebate) Base on the specs below, it looks like it might be too slow for optimum video recording.

Kingston 512 MB Secure Digital Card (SD/512)
[/b] Features

Small - about the size of a postage stamp (24mm X 32mm X 2.1mm) [/*]
Spacious - up to 512 MB of storage capacity [/*]
Secure - built-in write-protect switch prevents accidental data loss [/*]
Fast - data transfer rate up to 2 Mbps (average) [/*]
Flexible - compliant with the Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI) portable device requirements [/*]
Reliable - lifetime warranty [/*]
Simple - as easy as plug-and-play [/*]
Economical - low power consumption is easy on batteries [/*]
Efficient - average write speeds of 1.5 MB/sec. [/*]
Supports Windows XP, 2000, 98, 95, NT; Macintosh OS and OS/2 Warp [/*]

sgspirit · Sep 18, 2005, 10:49 PM

Yes, it looks like the 1.5mbps speed will affect the videos. You may find they are a bit choppy, or have audio dropouts. That's a very good price, though. The card will work just fine for stills and MP3.

Did you buy both an S670 and a 720?

skyl1ne · Sep 18, 2005, 11:17 PM

>>Did you buy both an S670 and a 720?

Yes, after winning the S670, the 720 came through new for $63. After reading your reviews, I thought I'd checkout both and give one as a gift. After much research, I found your reviews the most helpful/informative.

Superjack · Sep 28, 2005, 9:06 PM

Hey Skyl1ne, which camera did you keep and which was given away as a gift? Also, where did you find a DDV 720 for 63 bucks? Superjack

skyl1ne · Oct 4, 2005, 10:43 AM

I gave the S670 as a gift to my mother and kept the 720 which I was able to get on eBay new for $63 due to it being somewhat misclassified. In other words, there was almost little to no competitive bidding. Also, won a new 720 for $76 that way, but the guy refused to deliver it. At any rate, both cameras are excellent. I dropped the 720 on the sidewalk and thought it was all over, but after putting the battery cover back on , it worked flawlessly. Added the strap right afterwards. Enjoy/use it much more than my Sony Handicam.

Sep 18, 2005, 10:09 PM	#16
skyl1ne Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 6	Thank you for the information. I purchased the Digilifes from eBay and expect shipment soon so I haven't had a chance to read the manual. In the meantime, I was able to pickup a 512MB card from Buy.com for $16.93 (after $10 rebate) Base on the specs below, it looks like it might be too slow for optimum video recording. Kingston 512 MB Secure Digital Card (SD/512) [/b] Features Small - about the size of a postage stamp (24mm X 32mm X 2.1mm) [/] Spacious* - up to 512 MB of storage capacity [/] Secure* - built-in write-protect switch prevents accidental data loss [/] Fast* - data transfer rate up to 2 Mbps (average) [/] Flexible* - compliant with the Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI) portable device requirements [/] Reliable* - lifetime warranty [/] Simple* - as easy as plug-and-play [/] Economical* - low power consumption is easy on batteries [/] Efficient* - average write speeds of 1.5 MB/sec. [/] Supports Windows XP, 2000, 98, 95, NT; Macintosh OS and OS/2 Warp [/]

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Sep 10, 2005, 1:56 PM	#11
sgspirit Moderator Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 887	Regarding the 810's focus distance, I was comparing it to the Megxon. The Megxon appears to have no manual focus adjustment, while all the Diglife's I've seen have a 3-position manual focus. This allows more accurate focusing than any attempt to cover from closeups to infinity with a completely fixed lens. It's somewhat like the "old" style cameras that had a dial for focus adjustment. I'm supposed to get the 810 on Monday, and I'll post comments as soon as I can. I will check what control there is with the flash. Yes, the inability to see dim subjects in the screen is yet another downside of the decision not to put optical viewfinders on these cameras. But generally, if it's too dim to illuminate the screen, it's too dim to film. My only exception to this is if I take a shot at night of something too distant for the flash, and important enough that I don't care about color, and use editing software to reveal the subject matter. One thing to watch out for is putting your finger in front of the flash, which I am in the habit of doing. The characteristics of controlling the screen are typical of more expensive cameras, and I don't know of any hybrids that have these things. Some of the top end ones might. I have taken videos of children's indoor birthday parties with the Digilife, and the results were ok. If someone waved a hand, for instance, the hand would be blurred. But for anything moving slowly or stationary, the results were more than acceptable. The bright colors were very nicely reproduced. Just make sure light levels aren't dim, and have the brightest light source behind you. At such an event, the sound levels are sufficient to make an impression on the Digilife's weak microphone. You might want to take a look at the D'zign and IJoy cameras, which have LED flashes usable for video. Of course, they have many other limitations....

Sep 18, 2005, 4:07 AM	#12
skyl1ne Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 6	Is it necessary to use a 'high-speed' SD memory card with the Digilife DDV-720 or S670? Is it preferred? Thank you...

Sep 18, 2005, 8:11 AM	#14
fishycomics Moderator Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: NYC NY Posts: 9,684	what does your pocket say? i use a standard sd car on any unit and works fine in my eyes

Sep 18, 2005, 9:48 PM	#15
sgspirit Moderator Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 887	skyl1ne, Welcome to the forum! Digilife cameras are rated at a maximum throughput of 1.8megabits per second. This equates to something like a 12x card. So just to be safe, say 24x would be more than adequate. 60x cards are 9mbps, so they're overkill, which means you're paying for performance your camera can't use. I think "high speed" is 30x, but the use of the term may depend on the card manufacturer.

Sep 18, 2005, 10:49 PM	#17
sgspirit Moderator Join Date: Jul 2005 Posts: 887	Yes, it looks like the 1.5mbps speed will affect the videos. You may find they are a bit choppy, or have audio dropouts. That's a very good price, though. The card will work just fine for stills and MP3. Did you buy both an S670 and a 720?

Sep 18, 2005, 11:17 PM	#18
skyl1ne Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 6	>>Did you buy both an S670 and a 720? Yes, after winning the S670, the 720 came through new for $63. After reading your reviews, I thought I'd checkout both and give one as a gift. After much research, I found your reviews the most helpful/informative.

Sep 28, 2005, 9:06 PM	#19
Superjack Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 5	Hey Skyl1ne, which camera did you keep and which was given away as a gift? Also, where did you find a DDV 720 for 63 bucks? Superjack

Oct 4, 2005, 10:43 AM	#20
skyl1ne Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Posts: 6	I gave the S670 as a gift to my mother and kept the 720 which I was able to get on eBay new for $63 due to it being somewhat misclassified. In other words, there was almost little to no competitive bidding. Also, won a new 720 for $76 that way, but the guy refused to deliver it. At any rate, both cameras are excellent. I dropped the 720 on the sidewalk and thought it was all over, but after putting the battery cover back on , it worked flawlessly. Added the strap right afterwards. Enjoy/use it much more than my Sony Handicam.