Hi. I'm planning to buy a camcorder for my partner for Christmas, and am hoping someone here can help me choose which one to get.

I'm looking to spend between £200 - £300. Will I be able to get anything decent for that price. My partner is quite a keen photographer already, so ideally I'd like to get him something that isn't too simple to use.

On doing a quick search on the internet, I've come across the JVC GZ-MG330 . What are people's opinions on this one?

Thanks for your help.

' Nothing too simple ' - now that is an unusual request !

I guess as with stills cameras all vidoe cameras are pretty strightforward to use on a basic level but most modern stuff also has a bewildering array of man pleasing menus, widgets and doodads.

Have a look at the sticky in this section - that outlines some considerations.

There are lots of different types of camra about now. Manufacturers and shops are producing lots of models that record to a small hard drive ( like inside your pc) like the camera you mention.

Advantages of this format are no tpaes ( a selling point for some) with capacity for 6 ish hours on the drive.
Disadvantages, because you have no tape any stuff you want to keep must be stores on a PC, whereas many people like to be able to keep the tapes of things they film. DV tape cameras also record in a better way that facilitates editing.

For reasons of flexability and ease of editing people who get into editing video ( thats the really fiddly bit) do often prefer a tape based format. That would be my choice as a film maker, but it isnt my money.... and perhaps he will prefer the H drive camera because thay are precieived as more ' modern ' ???

If you think he is the type to really get into new pastimes a mic input is useful but hard to find - cam mics are good for casual use but if he gets keen he will soon want to start playing with mics to get great sound, but hard to find on budget cams.

Thanks very much for your help, lots to think about!

I think he hinted that he'd like a hard drive camcorder a while ago, but I can't really ask him as it's supposed to be a surprise. A mic socket might be a good feature for him in case he could use it for his work (journalist), but if these are more expensive as you say then it would be more than my budget can stretch to.

Do you or anyone else have any specific recommendations for a hard-drive camcorder on my budget?

There are not really any huge lemons - reccomendations, specific ones, are not really that helpfull as people will just say ' get the one i got ' .

What type of journalist is he? Maybe you should be getting him a stills camera instead? I hope he doesn't work for the News of the World (lol).

The JVC GZ-MG330 camcorder is a good choice. It is great for its price. It’s got lots of space and it’s very compact very easy to use. However the still picture quality is not the best and that for someone who is keen on photography may be a bit of a disappointment.
There are a couple of others in a similar price range – again hard drive camcorders, The Panasonic SDRH40EBS /invt/sdrh40ebsPanasonic : SDR-H40EB-S and the SONY DCR-SR 35 Sony DCR-SR42 My Digital Life
which have better quality still pictures. ( It might be worth checking if he actually wants a camera with hard drive)
Have a look at some reviews for these digital cameras Camcorder : Reviews, Prices, Comparative guides and Buy OnlineSee what other people think. And don’t forget to check out the prices as if you shop around you will be able to get a better price.

Let me know how you get on