JVC Everio GZMG57 1.3MP 30GB Hard Disk Drive Digital Media Camcorder with 15x Optical Zoom

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Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 2.8 x 2.8 x 4.2 inches ; 12 ounces
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B000I5W7IK
• Item model number: MG57
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #8,110 in Camera & Photo (See Bestsellers in Camera & Photo)

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  Camera & Photo > Camcorders > Hard Disk Drive

• Date first available at Amazon.com: May 2, 2006

Product Description

Manufacturer Description

Just keep on shooting! Nothing to load, nothing to eject, nothing to finalize. Everio is designed to eliminate your worries. Just keep on shooting, because the built-in large capacity hard drive easily stores hours and hours of your video inside a lightweight compact camcorder. Plus shoot thousands of digital still images. So whether you're at home or on the go, you'll always be ready to record or playback your memories.

Smart Advantages of a Hard Disk Camcorder

No risk of erasing previous recordings by mistake. You won't ever record over those once-in-a-lifetime events. Recording starts automatically from the blank space on the disk.

No cost for or need to buy additional recording media. No tape or disc is required The Everio G Series provides an all-in-one solution, ensuring no interruption during long time recordings, so you won't miss a moment. No media to lose!

Easy deletion of unwanted scenes So you don't have to worry about getting it right the first time, safely select and erase entire scenes in an instant to free up disk space. Use your camcorder with a freedom never before possible!

Direct access to scenes you want No need to Fast Forward or Rewind. Just click on the thumbnail image and watch your memories come to life. Makes sifting through hours and hours of accumulated footage a breeze.

Simple editing is made possible inside the camera. Fast, quick downloading to your computer via USB 2.0. Drag and drop editing software provided for Windows and Macintosh computers.

Long-time recording to shoot hours of video on the large capacity built-in hard drive. Now you can record entire events such as vacations, sporting events and more, without worry.

More Everio GZMG57 Advantages

1/4.5-inch 1.3-megapixel CCD The GZ-MG57 is equipped with a high-resolution 1.3 million pixel 1/4.5-inch CCD that can capture still images with a resolution of 1152 x 864 pixels.

Compact and lightweight design With a high-capacity 1.8-inch hard disk drive built into a compact body that weighs-in at less than 1 pound, Everio G camcorders are the perfect companion to record your moving and still memories. No tape, no disc. Experience the camcorder that's small, compact, with less to carry, and so easy to use.

MPEG-2 DVD-movie quality video Get up to 37 hours of recording with 30GB internal hard disk drive. Using Everio's high-quality MPEG-2 data compression format, you can record DVD-movie quality video at a variable bit rate. The average bit rate is 8.88 Mbps with Dolby Digital audio for a superior video and sound quality. The Everio's drop protection system keeps your camcorder safe

The Everio's drop protection system keeps your camcorder safe

Hard disk drive protection and stability To protect the hard disk drive from shocks and vibrations, Everio G camcorders incorporate the latest hard disk protection technologies, allowing carefree, active camcorder use.

Polymer shock absorbers

Floating suspension (shock absorbers) Cushions the hard disk from vibrations using polymer shock absorbers.

16:9 widescreen shooting and playback The 2.7-inch widescreen LCD offers a 16:9 aspect ratio for wide cinematic video shooting. Naturally the playback picture can be enjoyed in full widescreen dimensions on the LCD or on a connected widescreen TV. This clear LCD cuts surface reflections and glare to maintain a clear, visible, bright view.

Designed for Easy Shooting and Viewing

Stick control Easily navigate through multiple functions with one-finger control. Everything from menu item selection to changing camera settings for recording and playback.

15x optical zoom with 800x digital zoom 15x magnification with full optical quality. Digital zoom takes you up to 800x.

Power-linked operation Automatically turns on the camera when you open the LCD so you can shoot right away, and turns off the camera when you close the LCD so you won't waste power.

Index/Data button Gives you one-touch confirmation of disk capacity and battery life. Press the button to check the remaining recording capacities in all four recording modes. Press it again to check remaining battery and recording time.

Auto flash and sensitivity Illuminate your videos with the Auto Illumi. Light. Everio G camcorders can automatically turn on and off the light or give you the control. What’s more, new video processing assures high sensitivity and a high signal-to-noise ratio.

Data battery Allows you to check the remaining battery power by % and remaining recording time in minutes at the touch of the Index/Data button, even while the camcorder's power is off!

Easy to Share

Easy video access Easily locate your desired video clip by either thumbnail, date or event selection icon. The event selection icon allows easier management for your video and still files. Conveniently select the desired icon before or after you record. There are 30 preloaded icons that can be selected such as "Birthday". These category icons can easily open all files associated with the corresponding topic. The icons can also help in creating playlists for on-camera playback, downloading to a PC or burning to DVD.

Easy video viewing

DVD-quality picture on the big screen: Just hook up to a TV and enjoy Everio’s high-quality MPEG-2 video on a large screen TV. Play just the clips you want in the order you like, pre-arranged right in the camera into a movie Playlist. This can also be done with the provided remote control. Simple AV and S connection for dubbing or making a DVD: With the AV cable (S-Video interface also available) connected directly to a VCR or DVD recorder, you can copy Everio movie clips and playlists as many times as you like to a VHS tape or DVD disc for easy sharing with a wide audience. Every copy’s high quality is the same.

Easy printing with PictBridge/DPOF support: With PictBridge, digital stills can be output to a compatible printer with just one cable connection. Also, DPOF (Digital Print Order Format) information lets you easily order digital printing of your shots from a photo studio.

What's in the box

GZ-MG57 Everio camcorder, AC power adapter, BN-VF707 rechargeable battery pack, AV cable, USB cable, remote control, shoulder strap, lens cap, and user's manual.

Product Description

Everio for every photo opportunity. JVC Everio camcorder means no tapes or discs. It uses large hard-drive storage for memory - up to 37 hours in ECO mode. It can shoot video and still images - standard and widescreen. Transfer recorded video and still images directly to a PC or Macintosh computer (software provided). Print stills on any PictBridge printer without a PC. Program AutoExposure modes (AE) make shooting images easy. View them on the built-in 2.7" LCD widescreen. Amazingly compact and lightweight, the GZ-MG57US is the camcorder you can take anywhere, anytime. INDEX/DATA button on LCD for one-touch confirmation of remaining battery time, even when off, and hard disk free space Stick Control on LCD for easy operation Easy Direct DVD allows DVD creation via USB connection without a PC (optional accessory required - CU-DV10U) Icon Event Pre-registration for easy playlist viewing and DVDcreation Auto Illumination Light 2.7 16 - 9 Widescreen Clear LCD Monitor Hybrid Digital Image Stabilization Power-Linked Operation SD Memory Card Slot for Extra Data Storage Shoots 4 - 3 standard and 16 - 9 Widescreen selectable Remote Control Program AE (Selection - Stick Control) (Modes - Shutter Priority / Twilight / Spot light / Sports / Snow) (Auto Mode Button) User-Friendly Graphical User Interface Thumbnail Picture mode Icon Playlist/Event Pre-registration On camera Editing Power-Linked Operation Multi-Language On-Screen menus Self-Timer (2sec/10sec) Is PictBridge compatible Unit Dimensions (WxHxD) inches - 2 11/16 x 2 3/4 x 4 5/16 / Approximate Weight (lbs.) -. 75

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

56 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent camcorder. Excellent value., October 24, 2006

By	J. Hann (Billerica, MA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

JVC's G-series camcorders are an excellent value. The GZMG57 is no exception. I bought this for my wife and she is thrilled. She likes the point-and-click simplicity, the millions of features, the simple video browsing (playback) mode, and the quality of the video.

Some professional reviewers rate the JVC lens technology lower than the Sony, because in theory the Sony's lens is superior. In practice, there is no difference. The Sony's touch-screen menus are a big hassle, too.

To us, this model is the perfect mix of features and cost. It takes wonderful INDOOR pictures (as well as outdoor) thanks to a f1.2 lens, has a built-in light (unlike the GZMG7x models), shoots wide-screen (16:9), stores 7 hours of highest quality video, has an SDRAM card (and easy controls to transfer to / from the hard drive), and a 15x zoom.

It also works with our Mac and PC (on the Mac, I recommend that you just use the built-in iDVD software instead of the JVC software).

The Sony SC100 has a much larger hard drive, but that's about it. That's not enough to justify a $250 price differential, IMHO.

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pleasantly surprised, December 24, 2006

By	Cheezr (Boynton Beach, FL USA) - See all my reviews

After reading all the "professional" reviews, i decided to try the MG57 anyway and i am completely pleased. It may not be a top of the line, pro video / coffee maker but it is a very competent video camera.
The manual is actually useful although you dont need it. The menus are easy to use and on "auto" the camera takes very good video or stills.
I chose this over the MG77 because it has a video light (vs. a flash) and I dont expect to take serious still pics with it (although the stills are quite good).
The controls and menus are really well thought out (big change from most gadgets like my cell phone ;-)
the size and weight are very good and the unit is always ready to use, just open the lcd and 3 seconds later you are recording!
Mac SW is supplied for trimming the clips and combining them into one file for burning or opening in iMovie, this sw is simple but easy to use and does exactly what is needed.
This is a very competent little camera and i expect to get a lot of enjoyment out of it.

P.S. Most of my video's are taken indoors and for best results i do manually set the white balance (very easy). The low light video is quite acceptable to me (as good as my sony DC20 but without the tape bother).

29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Camcorder Overall, March 10, 2007

By	Shane (Washington State) - See all my reviews

This is a great camcorder. It is very small, compact, easy to run, and even looks nice. It actually fits in most average size digital camera cases. I've not had it all that long, but so far I am pleased with it. Let me just list the pros and cons; hopefully it is helpful.

Pros:
*30G Hard Disk Drive is massive.
*Recharges in less than 2 hours.
*Can be used while pluged in to the AC adapter/charger.
*Relatively easy to use--self explanatory manual and on-screen display.
*Digital pics are better than I expected.
*Plugs right into TV/VCR/DVD for playback/burning/recording.
*Indoor average light situation was acceptable for me; everything shows up fine (though in lower than average light, the video gets a bit grainy).
*The remote is great--you can put the camera on a stand and use the remote to record and zoom (and use for playback/TV mode).

Cons:
*Battery is only good for about 60 minutes.
*Software is not very good; it bogs down my computer and is not easy to use (Edit 1 October 2007: The software is horrible and almost worthless)
*Light on camera is only good close up (though this was expected).
*Record button is a split-second slow when shutting recording off.
*The view screen cannot bend backwards more than 90 degrees; it only twists up and down.

In summary, I am happy with the camera and think it was worth the money. I may at some point have to purchase or find better software to edit these movies. They do, by the way, play on the newest Windows Media player (version 11?). I also plan on getting another battery for a back-up.