Re: Camcorder for autox

["Jan Schmidt" <jschmidt@kumc.edu>]

Brian
I bought my first camcorder about 10 months ago. It is an RCA  in  VHS format 
and has 32X Digital zoom. Got it on closeout at Sears for $400 and it is 
excellent except it doesnt have the foldout screen , but of course you can 
replay it thru the viewfinder. The tape format won't affect your downloading to 
a computer. I have never used mine for in car taping, but there is a guy in our 
region that built a lightweight aluminum box for his vhs and bolted it to his 
formula ford roll cage to protect it from sand, rubber and other debris. The 
bottom line is Vhs is the most convenient format for replay when you get it 
back home. No goofy jacks or adapters. Two hour tapes are cheaper too.
Good luck,
Bill Schmidt rx7 cs KC region

>>> "Meyer, Brian J" <Brian.Meyer@Wichita.BOEING.com> 03/12 8:05 AM >>>

About a month ago, my wife decided that we really should get a video camera
to record the priceless moments of our kids growing up (ages 2 and 5). I had
to agree - though I was thinking of how great it was gonna be to finally
have in-car recording! :-)

Which brings me to my question. What features should I look for in a
camcorder?

I'd like to be able to review my run just after completing it. I could
probably use a LCD flip-out screen but since the camera will probably be
behind my head it may be difficult to view from the drivers seat.

Speaking of the LCD screens, most that I've seen don't reverse the image
left-to-right when you flip the screen over for viewing from the front. This
means a mirrored image of the course would be played back. I've only seen
one unit that reverses the image side-to-side and top-to-bottom when I flip
the screen over. It's a ProScan Hi-8, but it costs a bit more then I want to
spend.

I'd like to be able to put the video output on my PC. Will I need high
quality format (Hi-8) to do this?

Would a remote camera offer any advantage?

Finally, I'd like to keep the total cost under $500. Is this even feasible?

Since this topic comes up on the list nearly twice a year or so (I shoulda
been paying more attention last time) please respond direct. If you're
interested in the same subject, send me a note and I'll forward you the
responses or a summary.

Thanks,
Brian Meyer
'90 CRX si - CSP
Wichita Region SCCA