Customer Reviews

Sharp VLSD20U Digital ViewCam with 3" Color LCD Screen

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This Sharp camcorder is easy to use and takes great video. I researched camcorders for a few months before purchasing this camera. It is inexpensive for a digital camcorder. When transferring the tape to VHS you lose very little clarity. My recommendation is to buy this camera if you are in the market for camcorder that takes great video and is easy to use.

My sharp camcorder is a little small to handle there is no place to hold it without having a problem using a fuction. Picture and sound are good. Camera is some what hard to keep steady when filming. I could't order a extra battery from Amazon.com they do not carry them when i did find one it was $80.00. that takes the edge off the good price. If i could i would send it back and buy another model of sharp camcorder.

My wife and I were having our first child. My father-in-law said I should have a digital camera and a video camera. I wanted a product that would combine the two (...). I didn't know much about them when I started my hunt. I was aimed at the Sharp product from the start because of its style, no viewfinder, a simple LCD screen acts as viewfinder and monitor, also I liked how the screen and camera can twist 270 degrees from each other. Here are some things I really liked: mini-DV format; 660,000 pixel CCD, this is very important for the image size; manual control of focusing, color, etc.; ability to shoot single images (9 or 16 in group) at 1/10 second separation for fast moving sports; digital image stabilization; ability to brighten forground objects against a bright background; ease of use if you read the instruction manual; and availability of Sharp developed software and cable for image transfer to the computer. A few tradeoffs: basic battery is short lived, longer life battery is available, and AC/DC adapter provided and charging is quick; slight motor hum/whine that is picked up by microphone when recording, not serious problem because the frequency is such that any voice or other sound will cover it up and if you do not think about it you will probably not hear it; and I could not find it in any store and had to purchase over the internet (this turned out very easy and great). Conclusion, buy this camcorder and the software, for the features and the money you cannot lose. P.S.: be careful not to compare pixels in camcorder to digital camera, a $150 digital camera, 1.3 mega pixel will beat a $700 camcorder, 0.7 mega pixel. An important question to ask is what resolution will the camcorder create images at for sending on the internet? An average I found was 640 x 480, about 0.3 mega pixel.

I researched for about 2 months and this was the best deal on a digital camcorder out there. Takes great video and is incredibly east to use. Only issue - you will need to buy software for this item to do any video editing.

I love this little camera. It's ease of use, huge LCD, compact & light weight features are all items that make this camera great! I hate viewfinders, I also hate the buttons of most cameras being on the side of the camera, where I can't read them unless I move the camera around. This camera's buttons are right under the screen where you need them. You never need to use a monitor with the 3" color LCD. I also own a very high end Hi8 camera (Canon L1)which is way too complicated for me to enjoy all the features. I love this camera.

The Sharp VLSD20 offers one characteristic you won't find in too many rival products. You want to pick it up and use it more often, because its peculiar form encourages use. Sharp shaped it short and wide, like a window rather than a weapon. As you use it, you feel you're a less threatening and intrusive presence than most camcorder users. That catapults this product and a few other similar Sharps into a league of their own.

People seem unusually eager to pick up the VLSD20 and play with it. It's approachable, a little toylike. It's also extraordinarily simple to use. Commonly-used controls mostly fall perfectly to hand, the record button and the zoom control neatly under your right thumb. (I remain astonished at the number of rival camcorders intent on hiding key controls.) The handgrips sit in the right place. My wife, a fine photographer but no tech-head, understood it straight away. And its size encourages you to throw it in a bag and take it out into the world, increasing your chances of actually filming video with it. Which is why you bought it in the first place.

You cannot, of course, prop it against your head to steady it, the way you can with any eyepiece-equipped camcorder. What you can do is cradle it in your hand at hip level, your arm in an "L" shape and the screen tilted up. You'll find yourself in a shooting position at once less obtrusive and more stable than the traditional head-level camcorder stance.

Or you can use a tripod - which, in the absence of highly sophisticated optical image stabilisation, keeps the subject steady in the frame better than any other method. And on a lightweight tripod, the little gizmo maintains that same remarkably unthreatening demeanour.

Other pluses? The VLSD20's picture quality equals anything at this price point. Shown a Firewire port, it will pour digital video straight into your PC for editing. And construction puts to shame a couple of JVCs at a similar price point; the thing feels not unlike a Pentax SLR.

Drawbacks are minor. The screen cannot be folded away, although ours has so far resisted damage. There's no mount for external microphone (you'll need a bulky bracket). The 10x optical zoom range trails several competitors. The snapshot button is too easily pushed, giving you an occasional five seconds of motionlessness. A one-touch manual focus would make life easier. As noted above, image stabilisation works just as poorly as on other comparable products. The remote controls playback, not recording. No product could make better use of a custom-designed carry-pack, but you'll have to buy one off the shelf.

Several friends' camcorders went quickly to the back of the cupboard and have stayed there. The lesson: the best product is the one you'll use. On that principle, the VLSD20 and its Sharp cousins take some beating. This device is unlikely to get shut away.

I found this camera(...) on Amazon three months ago and was amazed with the picture quality and comfort of use of this camera at the price. I am giving the camera a full thumbs up after about 3 months of use!

I like the no viewfinder concept... (I wear glasses and it is a pain to look thru viewfinders!)

The camera has a IR remote and a reversible viewscreen which allows me and my wife to take our pictures without anyone elses help. Just turn the camera towards you and you can see yourselves on the small LCD screen and use the remote even to zoom upto 10X. (It has digital zoom, but a purist like me cannot use digital zoom!)

(...)Of course, I had an old AMD K6-350 Desktop running Windows 98 -(...) I set the films

I am finally happily creating great home movies with lots of special effects at a premium price (...) and recommend everyone to do the same. Do not waste money when you can save! DV quality is within your reach for under $500!

Happy DV editing!

Excellent choice for a digital movie camera. Takes stills from 1 to 16 frames per snap. Hook up to a TV to view movies or review thru the lcd screen, Never had any problems.

April 2002

I found this camera ...on Amazon six months ago and was amazed with the picture quality and comfort of use of this camera at the price. I am giving the camera a full thumbs up after more than 6 months of use!

I like the no viewfinder concept... (I wear glasses and it is a pain to look thru viewfinders!) You also center the frame well - what you see in the LCD is what you get!

The camera has a IR remote and a reversible viewscreen which allows me and my wife to take our pictures without anyone elses help. Just turn the camera towards you and you can see yourselves on the small LCD screen and use the remote even to zoom upto 10X. (It has digital zoom, but a purist like me cannot use digital zoom!)

I bought a Inland Firewire Card (which came with a ULead videosystems Videomaker software)...and am very pleased with the quality of the home VCD that I made from it. Of course, I had an old AMD K6-350 Desktop running Windows 98 - which meant downloading patches for DV editing from inlandfaq dot com site and buying a Maxtor 40GB Harddrive ... to upgrade my old and shaky compaq PC!

I am finally happily creating great home movies with lots of special effects at a premium price .. and recommend everyone to do the same. Do not waste money when you can save! DV quality is within your reach...P>As for still pictures, I find grabbing the DV frames at 780x640 resolution using the DV software is the best way. You really donot need a memory stick or more resolution, it prints upto 5x6 prints, even 8x10s look great if printed on a laser printer... Your pictures look great as 10x zoom lets you take great closeups of just the face! I find my pictures better than ones taken on 2megapixel still cameras as the closeup really makes up for lower resolution esp in natural light conditions.

Happy DV editing!

I have had the Viewcam for a year now, and feel that I can make an adequate review of it now. So here it is. Problems/Repairs: 0. Things that impressed me: Resolution quality over VHS/8mm, low-light capabilities, sound quality, overall size, and that cool swivel action. Things that did not impress me: Cost of DV tapes, Resolution quality compared with newer miniDV cams, still shot pics, battery life. Overall: This is a very handy little camera, and I have enjoyed using it. It had firewire, which is the only way to go if your editing on your PC - and the picture/sound quality is far superior than any other format (don't let the whole Digital8 thing fool you). The price on Amazon was a steal at the time, and I do not regret getting it at all.