Foscam FI8918W Wireless IP Camera, White (2-Pack)

We are first time parents and added a Summer Infant video baby monitor on our baby registry. We had to return it because of interference problems I detected with our wireless Internet. My wife and I work from home several days a week and unfortunately for me, the majority of my work calls are VOIP (voice over IP), which needs reliable Internet access and speeds.

This Foscam 8918W IP-based wireless camera was the only video solution I could find that was zero-interference, but also happened to still be the cheapest!

LITTLE BIT OF HISTORY:

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Every wireless video baby monitor I've researched runs at 2.4ghz. They may not put that in the description, but when I track down the manufacturer specs, it states 2.4ghz. Your wireless Internet/WIFI also transmit at 2.4ghz. Even the newest 802.11g and 802.11n transmit at 2.4ghz and 5.0ghz. My smartphone's WIFI as well as my wife's Netbook only works at 2.4ghz, not 5.0ghz. My Internet router also works at 2.4ghz and is not dual band.

WHY IS THAT A PROBLEM?

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After the baby, when I returned to work, I noticed strange lockup issues on my phone and horrible call quality for VOIP. I thought the Internet seemed slower and pages would sometimes lockup. After a lot of searching, I stumbled upon someone mentioning interference from their baby monitor, ding, ding, ding! Sure enough, I unplugged the video baby monitor and ran an Internet speed test, and I was getting 95-100% of my throughput rate. I plugged in the video monitor and the throughput rate plunged to 10-40%! I unscrewed the antenna on the baby monitor and throughput improved to about 40-60%. I unplugged again, and wah-lah, back to 95-100% again! It was quite clear that the 2.4ghz that these video baby monitors transmit on, also affect other 2.4ghz devices, such as my wireless Internet.

WELL, WHY ISN'T THE WIRELESS FOSCAM AN ISSUE??

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If the majority of all wireless Internet devices like your phone, laptop, tablet, router transmit at 2.4ghz, why isn't the wireless FOSCAM an issue??

Answer:

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The wireless FOSCAM *IS* an IP-based device that communicates through the IP standard to other wireless Internet devices like your phone, laptop, tablet and router. Basically, it plays well with alike 2.4ghz devices. The wireless video baby monitors that you buy at baby stores are standalone devices. They *transmit* over the 2.4ghz frequency any which way they can, they are not standards based on a common protocol, like IP is for Internet devices.

OTHER RESEARCH FINDINGS:

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We have a Philips Avent AUDIO-only monitor that runs on DECT wireless. DECT wireless transmits at 1.9ghz, which means there's zero interference with any 2.4ghz device. Repeating the same speed tests, there's no reduction in throughput with DECT.

Unfortunately, in all of my research, I could not find a DECT *video* baby monitor, only audio.

MY CHOICES:

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Option 1

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We could keep our 2.4ghz video baby monitor and switch all of our wireless devices to 5.0ghz. Well, that means I would have to buy a 5.0ghz router AND a 5.0ghz wireless network adapter for my wife's netbook and our phones could not use 5.0ghz WIFI in the house and we'd use our cellular data plans. In fact most of the consumer tablets and phones out there, likely do not use 5.0ghz wireless. That was definitely not an option.

Option 2

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Use a USB web cam; this was not feasible, because to use a USB web cam you need a computer and the baby's room does not have a computer, nor do we have any spares laying around.

Option 3

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Duhh, what about a wireless IP web cam?? Why didn't I think of that earlier? After a lot of research, I came upon the Foscam brand and while reviews were mixed, I filtered out the ones where technical-knowledge may have played a factor and decided to go with this. I'm a tech-geek and setting this up was not difficult. I did use uPnP for the first time on the Verizon FIOS router, after trying static port mapping and other methods to no avail. (You need this ONLY if you want to view your wireless IP web cam over the Internet, versus while you are only at home)

USAGE AS A VIDEO BABY MONITOR

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Awesome, simply awesome. Once you have this properly setup (and the supplied instructions were actually pretty decent), you can log into any web browser, specify the IP address of your wireless FOSCAM and control the camera (pan, tilt) and set 10-preset views. Even better, if your smartphone (Android, iPhone, Windows Phone) makes use of your WIFI and has an IP-camera app (all of the mentioned have several), you can use your phone to monitor and control the camera. If you make use of uPnP and allow the FOSCAM port through your home router, then you can watch (and control) your FOSCAM from anywhere you have Internet access. Yes that's right, at work, at Starbucks, etc. You will set-up various login account types and passwords for access.

For our baby's room, there's a preset view for the crib, the rocking chair, the changing table and the door to see if we closed it or not. I can press 1, 2, 3, 4, etc and switch views. Or I can manually move the camera to the right/left and up/down with my phone app or laptop's web browser. One time we weren't sure where we put the empty baby bottle and didn't want to disturb the baby. We used my phone to pan the camera and found where I had placed the baby bottle on the dresser! Sometimes if I am finishing up dinner and the wife has gone to soothe the baby, she can motion her arms for "more milk" without having to open the door to the bright open floor plan or yell anything to disturb a half-asleep baby.

My only slight gripe is that the night-time infrared lights do not seem to have a dawn/dusk option, meaning they are always on. For the past 5 months or so, they have been on 24/7 and still seem to work great in complete darkness, it's almost eery. Even in the daytime, the camera is smart enough to show color when there is enough light and in completely darkness, the picture is greyscale, but still very useful.

Some minor Caveats:

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1. The infrared lights glow red in complete darkness, but are not obtrusive and do not wake up the baby. We have noticed her staring at them a couple of times, but it hasn't affected her going to sleep at the same time. When I go and stare at them, they are not bright at all.

2. If you read the reviews, you can essentially dismiss using the audio portion of this camera. You may hear static on the audio if you do not move the antenna to touch the power cord yea I know that sounds crazy. You can remove the antenna completely and the static noise will go away too and likely you can still view the webcam. Besides all of that, I didn't deduct any stars because none of our phone apps support the audio portion anyways, they only transmit (and control) video. So we haven't lost anything we couldn't use to begin with.... Using a laptop web browser like IE, yes, you can hear the audio, but we use our phones as a monitor 99% of the time.

OVERALL:

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Best Price:

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Go into any baby store and the wireless video baby monitors (with pan/tilt and nightvision, etc) are $180-$300!! The total price of this 2-pack is about $154 as of this writing. This means each camera is only $77 ! I bought 2 for other uses, but you could buy a single FOSCAM wireless camera for $80-$85 total.

Convenience:

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Any device that can get to the Internet (phones, spare phones even without sim cards, tablets, etc) can be used to view your FOSCAM wireless camera (with the right account and password). (External internet viewing can be blocked easily, so that you can securely view it only within your personal WIFI network at your house)

Zero Interference:

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Becaused this is an IP-based wireless device, there is no interference with your Internet speeds that store-bought video baby monitors *will* affect.

Love this Kit works great with surveillance indoors and outdoors and i can see it all on my smartphone Love It

Buy Foscam FI8918W Wireless IP Camera, White (2-Pack) Now

These little cameras do everything you need and you will be amazed how well they work in total darkness. It comes with two sets of antennas but they didn't bother telling you why. I used the small ones and they work just fine.

Read Best Reviews of Foscam FI8918W Wireless IP Camera, White (2-Pack) Here

I've reviewed the outdoor Foscam FI8904W. My experience with that was great. These FI8918W indoor ones are awesome. They are indeed the 3.6mm wide angle view. The picture quality is pretty good, especially in natural daylight. They do produce a washed out image in low light once the IR LEDs come on or when you just have the house lights on. The ethernet connection works as it should and so does the wifi connection. The IR LED's come on automatically when they detect low light conditions. The panning and tilting is very quiet and not distracting at all. The browser software works as it should, but I use a 3rd party software to control multiple cameras. These pick up audio and can send audio, so 2-way communication is pretty good for what it is. The presets for the views is the best feature; I believe you can set up to 10. I like that the power indicator led is not on the unit, but rather on the AC adapter itself. The mounting hardware is ok, just use your own screws. The included screws strip easily and are of no use. The included 9dbi antennas work well when outside, providing a stronger signal overall. But I decided to use these inside the home, so the factory ones are sufficient. The 9dbi antennas are really big, so it can be unsightly if you mount the camera out in the open with these aftermarket antennas.

The only thing I don't like is the network LEDs. At night it flashes and draws attention to the cameras. I'd rather these camera be as discreet as possible. There is an option in the camera on the web browser to turn the network lamp off. I've checked that box for each camera I have, yet the network LEDs still flash away, so that is why this product gets 4 stars instead of 5. I've made sure to make all these changes via IE as these Foscams and other economical cameras were designed to be used with this particular browser.

As in my other review of the outdoor Foscam, I am using a Windows environment, so I have no issues thus far. Setup was very easy and all the functions worked. As soon as you plug in the camera to the outlet and connect the ethernet cable you are ready to begin. Install the camera finder software from the included CD-ROM. Run the program and it will show you the IP addresses of the Foscam cameras. Copy and paste that IP address into your web browser and you are will gain entry into the camera. Default user is "admin" and there is no password. Now you should be able to view the camera in your network and make whatever adjustments you need to make. You can go wireless if you want to, set motion detection, set alerts, etc.

This review reflects the quality of the product and the integrated browser software. If you are having problems setting it up for viewing outside your network, that is an issue outside of the manufacturer's hands. Anyone with a good amount of networking knowledge can get this done in due time. If you think you are decent in networking, hire someone, because chances are you have no idea what you are talking about. Don't overestimate and overinflate you abilities and understandings because you will only confuse the professionals you are speaking with. Just pay someone and save yourself the aggravation and don't mislead the general populous with your negative reviews when you are the problem. Or actually make/buy dinner and get a 6-pack for that one guy everyone goes to for computer problems. He's willing to help only when you get your head out of your butt and stop blaming everyone for why you can't get it done. When you ask for professional help, check your ego at the door. I don't go in telling a mechanic I know all this and that about cars when I go in for an oil change; that's just crazy talk people. Oh. And I also fix cars... Please stop calling me unless you're willing to pay for my time. My wife wants me home eventually... :(

Want Foscam FI8918W Wireless IP Camera, White (2-Pack) Discount?

I do like these cameras and have purchased 4 over the years. One has died on me and it was a lost cause trying to get it replaced. But while they work they work great. I use them with a Synology Disk Station and they work seamlessly with their software. My only complaint is that the night vision is very short. You basically have to walk within 10 feet of the camera for the motion sensor to pick you up.

IOGEAR HDMI v.1.3c CAT-2 Series 1000 Cable, 9.8 Feet GHDMI1003P (Black)

I have an older IOGear HDMI cable (had it for a couple years now) that's never given me trouble. The older one came in a really fancy package and cost a fortune. I was a little skeptical when I found this one priced this cheap. It doesn't feel quite as well made as my first IOGear cable (and it was simply packaged in a plastic bag). But for the price, it's better than expected.

If I ever need another HDMI cable, I'll definitely buy another IOGear.

After searching locally for HDMI cables and refusing to pay $20 or $30 for

a simple cable, I searched Amazon and found this cable.

I love the braided type jacket that I/O gear used, and the connectors on

the ends are solid and extremely good quality.

I liked this cable so much once I installed it, I purchased (4) additional

cables in shorter lengths to outfit the rest of my entertainment center and

my desktop PC.

Don't spend any money locally on cables, way to expensive!!

I ordered these on a Monday and they hit my doorstep Wednesday afternoon.

Saved me over $100 bucks compared to buying these at any local store.

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I used this to hook up a DVR that is located in another room,ran this HDMI cable to my HD TV and boom

there it is GREAT PICTURE!Would recommend to fam/friend for sure. Works perfectly!!!!!

Read Best Reviews of IOGEAR HDMI v.1.3c CAT-2 Series 1000 Cable, 9.8 Feet GHDMI1003P (Black) Here

These have gold-plated contacts and heavy braided covered wire. And the IOGEAR one is inexpensive. I have everything in my two home theater systems connected by these. The added bonus is they're 6 1/2 feet long. Most other are only 6 feet. That extra length may come in handy it did for me fit perfectly in my application.

Wait until you see the braided covering. Doubt you'll ever wear it out. Makes running the cable through the sharp-edged access holes drilled in your furniture a breeze. No danger of hurting the wire.

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Can't say much about a cable.....it's long and can reach my television from my pc....and it works. SOUNDS LIKE 5 STARS OUT OF 5 TO ME! Good job hdmi-cable, you're awesome.

Brite Strike TOC Wireless Tactical Observation Camera with Color LCD Monitor

Great Fiber Optic Scope. Very affordable price. easy to look in tight places and maneuver thru cracks or holes. Will order again when the need arises.

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TriVision Ip66-rated Waterproof Outdoor Ip Network Camera, Infrared Night Vision Max 45 Feet , Buil

I purchased several of the TriVision NC-107W (appears to be similar to the Sharx Security SCNC2607), TriVision NC-107WF (this unit, similar to the Sharx Security SCNC2700 with a non-detachable antenna), and TriVision NC-306W (appears to be similar to the Sharx Security SCNC3605N) wireless IP security cameras over the course of the last month. All three TriVision camera models provided very good first impressions, but in several cases those good first impressions diminished. If it were not for the stability problems of some of the NC-107WF units, this camera would easily achieve a 5 out of 5 rating; as a direct result of the stability problems, as a _security_ camera this model would be lucky to achieve a 3 out of 5 rating.

Positives:

* Extremely compact design at about an inch deep, making it easier to disguise as something other than a security camera. The power light may be disabled, and black electrical tape works well to cover the white lettering on the camera body. The infrared lights may also be optionally disabled.

* Very well written manual.

* 640 x 480 resolution at 30 frames per second is likely higher resolution than old style CCTV type DVRs solutions (the resolution may be set to a lower value and the sound quality is adjustable).

* Video is recorded in Apple QuickTime standard format, which is viewable by the Windows 7 Windows Media Player (but not the Vista version of that program) and the video format is compatible with the Windows Live Movie Maker application (free from Microsoft).

* Includes MultiLive software that allows simultaneous connection to as many as 36 TriVision cameras per computer. The MultiLive software features motion detection, with automatic recording to a specified file location (this capability was tested for a week with a single camera, motion detection works but was slower to activate than the motion detection built into the camera, and the Windows 7 color scheme automatically changed to Basic when the MultiLive software was running).

* Includes an automatically downloaded ActiveX control that allows viewing live video from a camera using a web browser.

* Includes a NC Setup utility which quickly locates Trivision cameras on the network (all cameras send a full broadcast packet to port 22330 roughly every 3 seconds the NC Setup utility sometimes fails to see any network attached cameras, even if a Wireshark packet capture shows the full broadcast packets).

* Integrated storage of video on MicroSDHC cards (all cameras tested with SanDisk 32 GB MicroSDHC cards).

* Automatic upload of video and still frames to FTP servers (tested with Microsoft Windows 2003 Server's FTP service and a Synology DiskStation DS212+), a feature which seems to require the additional cost memory card.

* Automatic sending of still frames to email (not yet fully tested, did not seem to be successful in sending to an onsite Microsoft Exchange server).

* Allows remote viewing of camera video from outside the network (not yet attempted, but there seems to be no reason why this would not work once the network firewall was configured to permit connections and port forwarding was enabled on the firewall this setup is supposedly automated with routers that support universal plug and play (uPNP)).

* Connects wirelessly to 802.11b/g/n WEP and WPA2 encrypted networks (tested with multiple Cisco Linksys E2000 routers acting as access points, and industrial class Cisco Aironet 1252 and 1262 access points) with and without SSID (network name) broadcasting, and wired through a 10/100 Ethernet port.

* Automatic light intensity adjustment, automatically switching to black and white night vision if the automatic infrared lights are enabled (the lights must be disabled if the camera faces a window).

* Two-level user access security to the camera for administrators and regular users.

* Allows download of video from the optional integrated storage media, so that the video may be played back on a connected computer once the download completes.

* Allows defining four motion detection sensitivity areas on the camera so that motion in one or more areas of the camera picture does not trigger video capture.

* Allows periodic (for example once every 30 minutes) capture of the camera picture to an FTP server or email.

* Recorded video may be broken up into 60 second intervals (configurable between 10 and 600 seconds) to make certain that the video is transferred quickly to a FTP server recording will continue for a user specified duration after motion detection ends. Continuous recording is also possible, but only to the optional internal memory card.

* Supports mobile devices (iPad, Android, BlackBerry) through third party software, as outlined in the manual (tested as working OK with the "IP Cam Basic" app on a Motorola Xoom when setting the camera manufacturer to Sharx, also works with the Synology DiskStation Surveillance Station when setting the camera manufacturer to Y-Cam).

* The mounting stand, while a bit primitive, works well for mounting the camera to a window sill or attaching to a metal beam with a user supplied beam clamp.

* Configuration is not terribly difficult, but is a bit time consuming when multiple cameras need to be configured.

* Cameras are able to automatically synchronize with external time sources (NTP servers found on the Internet), however the time on the cameras tends to drift a bit more than what is acceptable.

* Very good color accuracy in captured video.

Negatives:

* 640 x 480 resolution is decent if the subject captured by the camera is within about 15 feet of the camera; however the need for high definition video capture is quite clear after watching several thousand video clips created by the cameras.

* While the camera probably is capable of 30 frames per second at 640 x 480 resolution, motion in recorded videos is often accompanied by several short pauses in the motion.

* Viewing the cameras using the MultiLive software seems to temporarily disable the built-in video capture and FTP uploading capability, this also seems to be true when using the Synology DiskStation Surveillance Station to monitor cameras.

* The live web-based video stream of the camera is only compatible with Internet Explorer, and the video stream does not scale down in size if a smaller zoom percentage is specified in Internet Explorer, although the edges of the video stream will be cropped at smaller zoom percentages. The restriction of only working with Internet Explorer means that, for instance, a Motorola Xoom tablet cannot be used to watch live streams of video from the cameras through a web browser.

* The NC Setup utility seems to be a bit unreliable, intermittently not able to see cameras from one computer, while the software works fine from another computer at the same time; the broadcast packets sent by the cameras, which is used by the NC Setup utility, cannot be disabled.

* Retrieval of video from the internal memory card is often a slow process.

* Uploads to FTP servers (both types tested) occasionally fails, leading to some corrupted videos.

* There are two options for taking still frames when motion is detected and uploading those videos to an FTP server one of those options does not honor the specified destination directory setting.

* While the cameras connect wirelessly to 802.11b/g/n networks, and also work with 10/100 wired Ethernet connections, the stability of those connections is poor on all EXCEPT the TriVision NC-306W outdoor cameras and two of the TriVision NC-107WF cameras that I tested. Problems include complete lock ups where the cameras record nothing to the internal memory card (possibly heat related, seems to happen most often when the NC-107W / NC-107WF cameras are exposed to direct sunlight for more than a few minutes the white colored version of the cameras might survive better in direct sunlight); falling off the network (happens even when a Cisco Linksys E2000 is moved within 12 feet of the camera) and not attempting to reconnect ; losing DHCP settings and failing to recover (one camera automatically reverted back to using the IP address 192.168.0.100 twice, while an hour later one of the other cameras kept repeatedly broadcasting DHCP requests every 3 to 7 seconds despite the DHCP server responding to the camera roughly 0.0002 seconds after each request hardcoding an IP address is a work around for this problem; and inconsistent ping times that might cause network monitoring software to false alarm outages (3456ms ping time surrounded by a 21ms ping and a 23ms ping).

* The automatic light intensity adjustment feature may contribute to some areas of the picture becoming completely whitewashed due to indirect sunlight this problem seems to affect the NC-107W camera much more than the other camera models, although there occasionally appears to be a slight whitewash effect near the top of the NC-107WF camera's video.

* Motion detection seems to still need a bit of development. Moving an object (a person or a car, for instance) directly toward the camera may not trigger motion detection until the object is within 10 to 15 feet of the camera. Motion detection seems to work well when the object is moving from one side of the picture to the other side, often triggering in a second or less. On a windy day with a couple of cameras pointed through windows, it is not uncommon to see 500+ one minute videos of tree branches swaying in the wind during a 10 hour time period.

* Long term durability of the cameras is still a significant unknown.

Description of the Attached Video:

The video shows an example of video captured by several NC-107WF cameras, and a color accuracy comparison with a NC-107W camera in an industrial setting. The first half of the video shows some of the problem areas of the camera when the cameras are pointed through a window and image issues when the cameras are exposed to varying degrees of sunlight. The second half of the video shows video clips labeled "Caught on Camera" (demonstrating the cameras' motion detection capabilities), and a color accuracy comparison with the NC-107W camera. The video clips were imported into the Windows Live Movie Maker application where subtitles were added, and the video was output as a 640 x 480 resolution WMV video file with no apparent video or sound quality loss the occasional pauses in the video were present in the MOV files recorded by the cameras. The timestamp at the top-left of the video was added automatically by the cameras during recording.

There is essentially one supplier of the Trivision security camera, ATC LLC, so I thought that I would also provide a comment on the supplier in this review. Individual orders of the NC-107W and NC-107WF security cameras shipped quickly through U.S. mail, with the camera enclosed in a thin cardboard box inside a large plastic mailing envelope. A larger order of four NC-107WF and NC-306W cameras shipped by FedEx, arriving the day after shipment except that the four NC-306W cameras were not included in the box and no packing material was included in the larger box to prevent the smaller boxes from shifting position in the larger box. At 6 AM the morning after the package arrived, I received a somewhat frantic email from the supplier stating that they mistakenly shipped eight of the NC-306W cameras, rather than the four that were ordered due to a "system's issue", with a request that I either return the four extra cameras (prepaid return shipping was offered) or pay a discounted rate for the extra four cameras (thoughts of toner pirates were dancing through my head as I read the email). An hour after the supplier's email was sent I returned a replying email requesting tracking numbers for the eight NC-306W cameras, since none were included in the package that was received. 24 hours after the original email I received a response from the supplier stating that due to a "system bug", none of the NC-306W cameras shipped four of the NC-306W cameras arrived the next day. While this shipment resulted in a bit of panic, I am willing to consider this problem to be caused by a computer glitch and not a case of a supplier attempting to over-ship a product and then expect the recipient to pay for the over-shipment (one of the methods employed by a toner pirate). In all orders, the cameras were shipped without shipping charges.

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Sony DCR-TRV330 Digital8 Camcorder with Built-in Digital Still Mode

This camera was a birthday gift from my sweetheart and isundoubtedly the best there can be for ME ! But for all you guys outthere here's what I found out.

1. Being digital hasadvantages... better resolution, color's great etc. Editing, however,is not so easy takes time and the right tools (e.g. 'AdobePremiere') so consider tapes being your primary storage medium. I'vemade VCDs and they're worth it but the quality is significantly lesserthan on tape.

2. Requires lots of light outside it'sbeautiful... inside JPG-like artifacts appear (also, colored dots ona perfectly white wall) But this is acceptable if you're *not* lookingfor professional quality.

3. Optical Zoom is great 25X one ofthe highest and definitely comes in handy. I've turned off digitalzoom (MoreThanYou'llEverNeed X) since it reduces picture quality and Ican anyway do it on the computer while editing. 25X optical is enoughfor most needs.

4. Picture stability (steady shot technology) isgreat shots from a moving car are stable.

5. Buttons are a bit tooclose to each other in my first exp., at a friend's party, I must'vemissed a cycle of on/off so, we got to see shots of table tops, walls;) and cleanly missed the action ;) fortunately this lasted for onlyabout 5 mins before i realized. The recording indicator is easy tomiss when you're concentrating on the subject (and if you've had ali'l too many beers ;))...

6. Memory stick stills taken in mediumlight again have JPEG artifacts and paying extra $... (over DCR-TRV230with no memory stick you *can* take stills on tape) for this is notworth it if you have a digital camera already. However, your cameramight not have 25X optical zoom so think about it. This camera usesthe same chipset for video and stills. In more expensive models, thereare two chipsets.

7. Night shot (shooting in darkness) sounds greatand works great if you don't mind loss of almost all color and agreenish tinge to everything. To our party, however, it gave a 'BlairWitch' effect everyone loved it. It's better to have some normal(intruding) light source attached to the CAM.

8. MIC is verysensitive and sound has been amazing throughout.

9. LCD is great -less dotty than DCR-TRV530 and uses less battery (1"smaller).

10. The bundled battery lasts for about 75 mins on an avgso you want to buy a backup for trips. Charging to FULL was somewhatslower than I expected.

This camera has some built-in editingfeatures which I am yet to explore fully.

To transfer the video tomy computer for editing, I had to shell out an extra $... for aFireWire kit. The installation on Windows 2000 was quite painless itdid everything for me except plug in the card physically.

Overall a4 rating a great camera and worth the money you put in even inthis recession.

My fiance and I just purchased this camera and boy was I impressed! This is our first camcorder but not the first one I have used. It's light weight make it easy to handle. And the steadyshot works quite well. My hands are quite shaky but you could never tell by watching something I taped! The picture quality is good, but I am only using the standard A/V cables. Once I get the S-video cables I should see a dramatic upgrade in picture quality. The battery it comes with isn't the best, only about 90 minutes fully charged. I particularly liked the nightshot feature. Although the images come out in a green tone the picture quality is outstanding. I was fooling around with it in a pitch black room and you could see everything clear as day(green of coarse). The LCD is exceptionally smaller than the 530 but it is still big enough to fit most people's needs. Of coarse if you want to save battery power just don't use the LCD. The only thing I can't comment about is the still picture option. I just spent a large sum of money on a straight up digital camera so I don't need to use that option. So I am sorry I can't help you out there! Overall the camera is excellent and I would suggest it to anybody looking for a new camcorder.

Buy Sony DCR-TRV330 Digital8 Camcorder with Built-in Digital Still Mode Now

I must say its a decent camcorder. It has a easy user interface for downloading into my computer. Video quality was excellent . Unlike other people who bitched that under low light conditions that the picture was more grainier then earlier versions of Sony camcorders I found this to be not the case. This has been my 3rd Sony camcorder that I have purchased in the last 12 years and as usual I found it to be an excellent product. BE SURE TO FILL OUT THE ONLINE REGISTRATION AS YOU WILL BE REWARDED WITH AN 12 MONTH FREE LABOR EXTENSION OF YOUR WARRENTY! Oh yeah the only bad thing was that the mike is too sensitive for me.....

Read Best Reviews of Sony DCR-TRV330 Digital8 Camcorder with Built-in Digital Still Mode Here

I love my sony dcrtrv330! i have taken it everywhere with me this summer. It is small and compact enough to carry around and gets the job done very well. The digital still camera function isn't the best. But i suggest just exporting frames from your actual video tape for that. Its very easy to do and you can get it in higher quality as well. You can also avoid closed eyes and the like b/c you can choose frame by frame what to do. i definitely recommend you get a ieee 1394 firewire adapter card to get better connectivity with your computer. The usb is fairly useless! Works better in brighter lights but does fine even with no light at all! I love mine and will never own anything else but a sony in the future!

Want Sony DCR-TRV330 Digital8 Camcorder with Built-in Digital Still Mode Discount?

The product comes with a starter package complete with a battery, charger, memory stick, cables, tripod, and various cables neatly tucked into a carrier the size of a shaving kit. The plug and play features and the MGI software provide easy installation via the VCR, computer, or still photos. Unfortunately, you'll have lots of fun exploring images but then your battery dies during the 4th quarter of your son's football game, and you miss the winning play! Buy a backup battery and a 32MB memory stick to catch all of the action! Great product.

Canon PowerShot SD630 6MP Digital Elph Camera with 3x Optical Zoom

I have had tons of digital cameras before and I have always sold them on eBay to get rid of them. Canon is by far the best digital camera I have ever owned. I previously had an SD10 for the last 3 years and am still happy with it. 3 yrs is a long time for me considering I am a bit of a techie that likes to change all of my electronics whenever a new one comes out. So for me the SD630 is finally a well deserved upgrade...

LOVE IT. The LCD screen is amazing and there are tons of new features that I did not have on my SD10. Everything with this camera is terrific. The only thing and only thing I can say is that there is not a battery meter, the meter only shows up when it is already running out of battery. This was the same for the SD10 and it was quite annoying. Anyways, definately buy a backup battery just in case.

Other than that, you cannot go wrong with this camera...

I just received my Canon SD-630 in the mail today and can already say I am very happy with my purchase. I had been researching cameras the entire week, looking for the right one for my needs.

When I went to the store, Best Buy, I had written down a few camera model numbers that caught my eye. Over the next few days it was interesting to see how my perceptions of these cameras had changed. I had at first liked the 7.1 Megapixel Sony I had put at the top of my list at Best Buy. I based this on merely the camera having a high megapixel count and the looks of the outer casing. But after getting on Amazon and reading product descriptions, going over reviews, and looking at shots submitted by customers all of my original perceptions changed.

While the Sony may have looked good and had a higher megapixel count than my Canon, it was the features that attracted me to the SD-630. I liked that it had some interesting options to play around with besides just the usual camera settings like outdoor, indoor, etc... Besides the basics, the Canon has options like Color Accent and Color Swap. These features really let you produce some unique prints without having to do any post manipulation with programs such as Photoshop. I myself had done similar work with photos using Photoshop, to make certain objects color while the rest of the image remained black and white. But this takes time depending on the object and its nice to be able to achieve the same results without any work! Its also very easy to use and I took some great shots in no time.

Another camera I was interested in was the Kodak V570. After reading the feature list on this camera, such as the Panorama Stitch and Wide Angle Lens I thought it was perfect. Plus the pictures I viewed looked very cool when incorporating these modes. But some of the reviews on the camera turned me away somewhat. Such as having to use the supplied dock as well as Kodak software just to upload the images to my computer or charge the battery. I like the flexibility of the Canon, allowing you to transfer images via USB cable or memory card without having to use any other software. The battery charger is also very compact, no cords or large battery trays, just a simple charger that has a folding plug for easy transport (the charger is the size of a small cell phone probably smaller).

Yet I still liked the Panorama Stitch option that the Kodak offered and was really considering this camera as my final pick. So I decided to go back to the store and look at these cameras again now that I had done the research and knew what I was looking for. It was a whole different experience than my first visit to Best Buy. When I played with the Kodak it just didn't live up to what I had hoped for. I was put off by the button layout and the overall feel of the camera when compared to the Canon. After finally figuring out how to do the Panorama Stitch, while it was a cool little feature, it just wasn't all that great on the camera. The screen is small and when your grouping so many different images together, 3, its hard to really see what you are doing and to get a shot exactly as you want. I'm sure after some use I would get use to it, but to get the full effect you would have to upload the image to a computer and look at it from there to see if it came out the way you intended. The camera just seemed simple in terms of functionality.

The Canon, which I had tested out before this camera, was a whole different story. I really liked how everything was laid out and the big screen made looking at images so much easier. Thus when you used an option such as Color Accent, you could really get a sense of how the final product turned out and decide if you were happy with the shot (or needed to do a retake) without having to view the image on a computer. It has so many different options to play with that are very useful in the simplest terms; such as Vivid Colors. I took a few pictures of the same objects using this mode and some in just Auto. You can really see a nice subtle difference and in some cases the colors just pop when compared to normal. It is very nice to use and is a great compliment to the camera. Simple features such as this are excellent and let you take great pictures without having to adjust manual settings. But if you would like to tinker with manual options, the camera leaves plenty of room to do this as well (which was another feature I was looking for, as I wanted to get more involved with the camera over time).

The video on this camera is also excellent. I remember taking videos on older digital cameras I have used and they were pretty low quality. I do a lot of video editing and such, and found the video option on this camera to be very nice. It really lets you take some quality footage, that if you showed a clip to someone off of your computer they would think it was taken with a camcorder. Another nice thing about the video is that you can use Color Accent and Color Swap, which I did not know was possible until reading the manual. It makes your video much more interesting if used in the right way and adds a touch that would require high level video editing software (AVID, After Affects) to attain. This does it without any other work.

Overall I am very pleased with this camera and would definitely recommend it to anyone who is thinking of purchasing this model. Like I said, after reading reviews and customer feedback on Amazon as well as other sites that tested these cameras, I completely changed my initial impressions of what I thought I was looking for. If I were you I would make sure to go out and test out cameras you have in your Top 3 after reading all the great information found on this site. It really helps you make a confident decision in your purchase, such as the one I made. I had read before that Canon made excellent digital cameras, some of the best available, and can definitely back that up with my experience in just one day of use. I cant wait to use this camera more often and really get to know the many features it has to offer. I made sure to upload some pictures I just took today for others to see, hope this review has helped in some way.

The only things I would seek to improve on this camera would be the addition of a wide angle lens and better construction of the tiny little door that covers the USB connection and AV cable connetion. It seems a little brittle and I would be very careful when opening and shutting it. Im sure it will be fine with proper caution, but if you were to open it fast or tug on it hardly, it could possibly rip and detach. Only gripe I see to express, but nothing too major.

Buy Canon PowerShot SD630 6MP Digital Elph Camera with 3x Optical Zoom Now

This Canon SD630 camera replaced my "garbage" Sony that suddenly stopped working. I love this camera!

PROS:

1. HUGE 3" LCD screen (the main reason I bought this camera).

2. Excellent picture quality.

3. Tons of pre-set settings including "fireworks" (which takes perfect photo's of fireworks).

4. Lots of manual settings if you prefer, including high ISO, white balance, etc.

5. Takes top quality videos (at up to 30 frames/sec at 640X480 similar quality as that of full-featured video cameras).

6. You can upload any WAV and JPG files to personalize all the camera's settings (the sound and picture that shows when you turn on your camera, the sound the shutter makes, the sound of the buttons when navigating settings, etc.).

7. When reviewing your pictures, the built-in "gyro" will flip the orientation of your photo when you tilt the camera going from "portrait mode" to "landscape mode" and vice-versa.

8. The "colour swap" feature will have designers and decorators drooling. You take a picture of say, a house, then aim the pin-point in the middle of the LCD screen at a colour on the house that you want to change and press the shutter button, then aim the camera on the colour you want to change it to and press the shutter button, then voila!, the original picture of the house now appears with the new colour you had just personally selected!

9. It takes only about 15 minutes to fully charge the battery (NB-4L, Li-ion) in the included external battery charger.

10. The "auto create directory" feature is great. You can set the camera to create a new directory every day (or at a certain time) so when returning from your holiday, all your pictures are filed in folders according to the date you took them.

11. The "photo stitch" feature is awesome. Select this feature then snap a picture, rotate yourself a few degrees, take another picture, rotate, etc. The PC software will take all these shots and combine them into one panoramic picture.

CONS:

1. There isn't a visual battery-life meter; it only appears when the battery is almost dead, so it's hard to tell how much battery life you have left until it's too late. I bought a second battery that I carry with my camera just in case.

2. Flimsy cover on the USB and AV/OUT terminals.

3. When you connect the camera to your PC, the camera isn't recognized as a "removable device" (which is preferred with digital cameras), so you can't just copy pictures back and forth in Windows Explorer. The camera requires it's own software to download your pictures.

4. The built-in speaker is located on the top of the camera (it isn't facing you), so it's difficult to hear videos when you're playing them back on the LCD screen.

The "PROS" far outweigh the "CONS" with this camera. I couldn't be happier with my purchase. Prepare to meet new people when you're out using this camera people are amazed at the size of the LCD screen.

Read Best Reviews of Canon PowerShot SD630 6MP Digital Elph Camera with 3x Optical Zoom Here

I purchased this camera as a replacement for my SD-400. I loved the SD-400 except that I broke the LCD twice. I was not about to replace the LCD for a second time so I went shopping for a new camera. I take over 1,000 photos a week on this camera as I use it as a primary tool in my job. They have added a rigid protection barrier for the LCD whih pretty much eliminates my only complaint with previous SD Models. Let me give you my quick Pro / Con List:

Pros:

-Size: It is the perfect size. I can't imagine working with a camera that is any smaller.

-Weight: It is light weight and easily fits in your pocket even after you put it in a hardshell case.

-Picture Quality: Far superior picture quality as compared to other 6 MegaPixel Cameras. This is of course due to the higher quality lenses and the precision auto focusing.

-Availability of backup batteries: Duracell makes an excellent battery for this camera. NB-4L It is fairly inexpensive as Lithium Ion batteries go and it is easy to find.

-SD Memory: It takes SD card memory which make life easier and less expensive.

-3" LCD. The LCD on this camera is very larger and it is beautiful. Feels like I am using my MiniDV Camera.

-Software Interface: This camera is very easy to use and the menus are intuitive and simple to navigate.

-LCD Protection: The LCD is behind a rigid clear protecting surface which seems to be fairly resistant to damage.

Cons:

-Battery Life. This camera does not use AA Batteries so if you have a 512MB card or larger, then you will probably have to charge the battery before you get through the entire card. The large LCD uses a bit more energy so this camera doesn't have as much battery life as its predecessor. The trade off is well worth it in my opinion. I recommend purchasing a backup battery (NB-4L) for those long sessions.

-No View Finder: There is no view finder, means in the really bright sun it is somewhat difficult to take pictures. Although it is not as others I have owned.

I recommend this camera to anyone who wants fantastic quality photos and an easy to use easy to carry camera.

Good Luck!

Want Canon PowerShot SD630 6MP Digital Elph Camera with 3x Optical Zoom Discount?

The Canon PowerShot SD630 is a small yet fierce compact point-and-shoot camera. This little 6-megapixel camera managed to bundle performance and snappy photos into a package you can easily carry in your shirt or pants pocket. I recently upgraded from the Canon SD450, and I am so glad that I got the SD630 (rather than the SD600). THE SD630 is almost identical to its little brother, the PowerShot SD600. The SD630 incorporates the same sensor, lens, and internal components. The only advantage over the less expensive SD600 is its 3-inch LCD screen, but had to lose the viewfinder in the process (which I never used anyway).

The first thing that jumped out and caught my attention is the (relatively) HUGE 3" LCD screen. It provides plenty of room to frame your shot but not so much room to operate the camera. Granted, the pixel count on this screen is the same as the 2.5" screen on the SD600, I still like the larger view. The buttons on the back include a standard four-way rocker control pad, menu, display, and a button for printing when the camera is hooked up to a PictBridge-compatible printer. If you have large hands, you'll probably find its control layout a little uncomfortable, and it doesn't have an optical viewfinder, but the SD630 is still a great compact camera. Once you get the hang of it, the pad allows "easy" navigation around the menu system, and you can directly set options such as the self-timer, continuous shooting, macro, flash, and ISO sensitivity. The top edge of the camera holds the shutter release, the zoom rocker, the power button, and a slider for switching between photo, movie, and playback modes. The zoom rocker is a tabbed ring around the shutter release similar to the SD600, facing the front edge of the camera. Some users have mentioned that it is uncomfortable for large fingers and extremely awkward to operate with one hand, especially when zooming out. I have large/x-large hands, and I find no problems using the controllers.

The Canon PowerShot SD630 has a decent amount of features that give its tiny form a nice amount of flexibility. Canon couples a 6-megapixel CCD with up to 3x optical zoom (35mm-to-105mm equivalent) lens. The lens has a pretty narrow maximum aperture of f/2.8 to f/4.9, with a shutter-speed range of 1/1,500 second to 15 seconds, average numbers for models in this space. The camera has automatic, program, and manual exposure modes with a range of plus or minus 2EV in 1/3EV steps, which is also on a par with the competition. Its sensitivity range goes as high as ISO 800; that's not quite as much as Fujifilm's and Sony's latest offerings, but it will still give you more low-light flexibility than most cameras of its size.

I won't go into the details of the measurements, but I have to mention that it is less than an inch thick with its lens tucked in (great to carry around). It is easier to carry around than the SD450, or my ancient S200 (yes, the CompactFlash version!). I liked that the right side of the body is somewhat shaped/curved, because it lets the user hold the camera comfortably in your right hand.

In addition to standard automatic and manual exposure modes, the SD630 offers a handful of scene modes. One will also find options for photographing beaches, plants, snowy days, and fireworks (not available on the SD450). It even has an underwater mode to use in conjunction with the optional underwater housing (for extra $$). Color Accent and Color Swap modes can filter and change colors in the camera, producing some neat artistic effects. And, the camera has an awesome 30fps VGA movie capture mode, which can be used in conjuction with the Color Accent modes and other features. I've shot a 45 minute movie of my 4-month old daughter (I have a 2Gb SD card) with no hiccups, and I think I could have gone longer.

The SD630 takes a little over a second from power-on to the first shot, and takes about 2 seconds between shots, which increases marginally with flash. I haven't tried the burst mode yet, but it is supposed to shoot at 2.1fps with no buffer constraint on the number of shots.

So far, the photos I have taken with the SD630 were quite pleasing, looked crisp and clear, and nice color reproduction (at least with my poor eyes) at the lower ISO range. However, images become noisy at ISO 400 and ISO 800 (as expected), but still usable. I will be doing a field test against my Digital SLR (Nikon D100), results pending. Also, I have not used the bundled software, which is supposed to be very good.

Conclusion:

I am happy with my purchase of the Canon PowerShot SD630. It is an extremely solid ultra compact, with performance and photo quality that more than make up for its very few design flaws. It's a surprisingly good shooter, and its feature set makes it quite flexible for a camera of its size. It is a more expensive version of the PowerShot SD600 ($50-100 more), with a larger screen and no optical viewfinder. Personally, I don't use the viewfinder, so I am willing to give it up for the larger LCD.

Nikon D5100 Digital SLR Camera & 18-55mm G VR DX AF-S Zoom Lens with 32GB Card + .45x Wide Angl

Great camera and good price on the bundle. The kit lens is actually pretty good too which is unusual. I have added another lens and think my needs are complete.

Package has a lot of items I would have had to buy separately and some others probably not so much but overall a very good deal, minus one star because immediately after it was purchased, the price of the Nikon D5100 and 18-55mm package was reduced by $50.

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Excelente compra, realmente el producto es muy bueno. Estoy en mis primeros pasos en la fotografia y se que voy a disfrutar mucho esta compra.

Read Best Reviews of Nikon D5100 Digital SLR Camera & 18-55mm G VR DX AF-S Zoom Lens with 32GB Card + .45x Wide Angl Here