Choosing A Camera

Given a choice between the AG-DVC30 and the HDR-FX1, everything except price taken into account, which camera would you go with and why? These are basically the cameras we are considering getting and I was leaning more towards the FX1, although I'd love to hear from some more experienced users. Thanks!

 

I don't know much about the Panasonic, but I know next to everything about the FX1. So far as I can tell, the main difference between the two is that the HDR-FX1 is an HDV camcorder that will allow you to record 1080i (and essentially 540p @ 60 and 30 fps).

Incidentally, I am interested in selling my HDR-FX1 for around $2200 CAN + shipping. (It would come with a hard case, an extra battery, 2 filters and everything that came in the original box.) If anyone is interested PM me your offer and we can discuss locations/shipping.

-Spiff

 

I've never touched the FX-1, but I have a DVC-30. It's not an HD camera, so there's no comparison there, but the DVC-30 does do everything it's supposed to do very well. The movie like mode, while not being true progressive, is still very nice. The image controls are excellent, even though accessing them through the menus is a bit inconvenient. The low light performance and overall feel of the image pleases me more than the XL-1 I used to carry, even though the DVC-30 only has 1/4" image sensors. It's small, but still sturdy and doesn't feel like a toy.

I guess it all depends on what you're doing at the end of the day. If you're going to be releasing whatever projects you do in a format that could benefit from HD then think about the HD camera. If good quality DV is good enough for what you do, the DVC-30 is a solid choice. Hope that helps a little.

Art