Samsung SC-DX103 DVD Camcorder

by Samsung

Product Details

• Item Weight: 15.5 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Shipping: This item is also available for shipping to select countries outside the U.S.
• ASIN: B0014GUBJO
• Item model number: SC-DX103
• Average Customer Review: 2.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,307 in Camera & Photo (See Top 100 in Camera & Photo)
• Date first available at Amazon.com: April 28, 2008

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

Zoom in on your subjects without moving an inch. The powerful 34x optical zoom lets you shoot even the farthest objects and still get high quality images. A 680K pixel CCD produces crystal-clear, remarkably detailed images that are easily captured with the digital image stabilizer. Blur caused by unsteady hands, is now a thing of the past. What you see is what you get with the SC-DX103 DVD camcorder. Your homemade movies never looked this good!

Samsung SC-DX103 Highlights

680K pixel video CCD Get bright, bold images in high resolution with a 680K pixel CCD. Better than conventional camcorders, the SAMSUNG SC-DX103 has digital quality, which offers superior color and amazing details.

SD/MMC card slot Enjoy more storage and flexibility. The SC-DX103 memory card slot offers you the option of using an SD card, or MMC as a flash memory card to record still images or movie clips.

720 x 480 pixel movie resolution A 720 x 480 pixel resolution will create crisp, crystal-clear images that are more lifelike than ever before.

Digital image stabilizer Eliminate blur with the digital image stabilizer. It minimizes unwanted picture shaking caused by hand movement during recording.

Capture visions farther than the eye can see Samsung's powerful 34x optical zoom lens bring the world closer without sacrificing image quality.

2.7-inch LCD viewfinder With the 2.7-inch wide LCD, you don't have to miss anything. Using a 16:9 wide-screen format, the 2.7-inch wide LCD enables you to catch more of the action and ensures that the entire image is recorded. Once your movies are captured in widescreen format, you can enjoy watching them without having to lose any of the images on your HDTV screen.

Product Description

Samsung DVD Camcorder w/680K Pixel CCD and Swivel Grip

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

42 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars i'm satisfied, July 14, 2008

By 

Leflweuch Wausseux "llush" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Samsung SC-DX103 DVD Camcorder (Electronics)

I got the Samsung DigitalCam SC-DX103 from retail for $277 (without tax) to record my brother play the piano @ the Manchester Music School. There was a $680 Sony HandyCam with the Dolby 5.1 surround sound and really high quality video recording, but I didn't want to pay $400 extra & I doubted if the sound quality (my DigitalCam has Dolby Stereo sound) would be significantly better on the Sony Handycam because most of the costs would go to the video quality & not audio. So, for my purpose of recording a concert, I thought that this should suffice.

It did - there was a bit of booming in the sound quality when I recorded myself playing piano but it wouldn't matter. At first, I thought that the camcorder might actually be terrible buy - because after I made several test tries I played the videos from the camcorder & the sound was awful. Actually, the camcorder's speakers are mediocre & they sound terrible when they play the piano recording, but the actual recording's audio is not bad --> if you play the recording from a computer or a tv it should be fine.

The video quality was okay. In fact, the camcorder's software would make the recording really crisp & clear, but the only thing that made the whole thing "ok" was the smaller resolution of the recording--> doesn't look necessarily crisp on a tv. the video was fine in all circumstances except in really dark environments. then everything would turn unpleasantly gray. there's a c. nite function - which i haven't used but i looked up & i think it's a special mode for dark situations.

the lcd has backlight function which, according to wikipedia, increases readability in low light conditions.

it also has wind cut function if you want to cancel out of noises caused by heavy winds.

its zoom is - 34x optical & up to 1200 x digital. i tried the optical zoom @ 34 x, but i realized that my hand shaked too much (i.e. heartbeat) --> made me wonder if the 34x was just a hype & it was actually completely useless. then in the menu i found the anti-shake function that did reduce the shaking significantly (but there still was some shaking) at maximum zoom. the shake is almost unnoticeable in normal zoom.

something that amused me was the digital effect function. it has different modes including black & white, negative, art, emboss, mosaic, etc. the emboss & mosaic modes were really artistic & interesting - the camera shows a modified version of my recording (as i am recording) & it looks like some sort of art painting done by picasso.

if you compare this to a similarly priced camcorder - lets say "Sony Handycam DCR-HC30" @ 279.99 (see CNET review),

the samsung camcorder has larger resolution 720 x 480 @ widescreen (vs. 640 x 480), the same low light mode & image stabilization, better video format (mpeg-2 for dvd rather than mpeg-1 for vcd)

the sony contestant has a touchscreen lcd display that samsung camcorder doesn't but CNET says the response on the sony's touchscreen is terrible & I really like the feel & the response of the small joystick on samsung's display, so I'd think that the touchscreen on the sony handycam is a waste of money & samsung made a smart decision in putting a regular display with joystick control while putting that extra money into video quality

both have easy mode (enlarge menus, etc.), the sony lacks the 34x optical zoom (it has 10x)

both weigh .9 Ibs.

so in fact, after writing this review & doing all the research, i actually feel even better with my purchase. i give 4/5 stars (sony would get 3/5 stars)

ah, forgot to mention that if you use smart card for this camcorder, you can take pictures --> you can use it as a camera too.

24 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars I'm sure this will work for some people, but I feel a little misled, September 21, 2008

By 

J.Buckley "JB" (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Samsung SC-DX103 DVD Camcorder (Electronics)

Maybe I'm asking too much for a $250 product, but I feel a little misled. In addition to the MiniDVD record capability it has a flash memory where you can take video and pictures too. The product came out this year, so I thought I could use a couple larger flash memory cards and mainly record video that route. Once I get this, I learn it only takes 2GB cards (no SDHC). So I buy 4 2GB cards and a 3pack of MiniDVDs, figuring I'd just use flash memory and that would be easy enough for most of my recording. The first time I put in an SD card and see that the screen switches from 16:9 to 4:3 on me. I discover that it only records 4:3 on SD. And I learn that it records in MPEG4 for SD memory (versus MPEG2 on the DVDs). I understand their MPEG4 has proprietary codecs, etc. I tried importing video into Sony Vegas, but found it would not read the format off of the MiniDVD. I tried re-ripping the DVD using DVD Decrypter, but that still did not work as once I dragged the video file into Vegas, I got only video (no audio). Also, in general I found the use of the MiniDVD's on this Samsung to be not very attractive. Like many users, I pause when recording. When viewing the recorded DVD, each pause at the end of a segment would show as a frozen image for 2-3 seconds before moving to the next scene, which is very annoying compared to using tapes to record to. Thanks to Amazon's generous return policy, I'm not at a loss. Am seriously considering going the High Def route, as it seems many of those products have less problems (based on reviews here) for someone like me who wants to be able to do some editing of the video I shoot.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars So-So, December 27, 2008

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Samsung SC-DX103 DVD Camcorder (Electronics)

For starters...I'm Rick's 13-year-old daughter. I recieved the Samsung SC-DX103 for Christmas. The instruction manual said it came with a diskette, however I did not recieve one. My uncle got the same camera--again with no diskette. That was OK since I'm not terribly excited with diskettes anyway. I prefer SD cards. A 2GB card holds 143 minutes of normal-quality video--better than an hour with the Flip Ultra. I prefer swapable memory cards over disk space.

The zoom is great (a big step up from the 2x optical zoom I had when I had the Flip Ultra which suddenly stopped working), the only problem is holding the camera steady at high zoom. The still pictures are nice, and the video is decent quality. However, the camera doesn't do so well in dim light.

One thing that really does suck is battery life. The first time I charged it, it charged so quickly--about 20 minutes. I was impressed and thought it would have a good battery life since it was all-digital. I was terribly wrong though. The battery only lasts as long as it's charged for, maybe a little longer. Maybe it's a defective battery pack. I don't know.

Overall, it's a good little camera with decent quality. Do some research before buying is all I suggest.