TheNHBushman.com

iDear DV-30 Has Returned From The Factory!

I need to test it out for at least a week before finishing my review.  It’s a strange unit alright!  The store guys tested it out and it recorded a continuous video until the card was full, and it saved the video flawlessly.  What I discovered is that the factory had set the video quality to the lowest setting.  I shot a few test clips with it on that setting and the video is noticeably pixilated, even jagged in some conditions, but it absolutely did save large file videos with no issues.  This lowest quality setting is unacceptable to me, so I set it back to the highest quality level.  I did a couple of test videos of 15 minutes duration and the unit exhibited the exact same problem that I returned it to the factory for in the first place: locked up and requiring a hard reset (battery removal).  The really weird part is, last night I performed more testing on the high quality setting over several hours and I could not get the unit to fail!  So, for some strange reason, its working!  I need more time with the unit to discover the reason for the discrepant test results.

The videos that I have posted to the blog recently were made with the DV-30, but processing by YouTube renders the video of a lower quality than the original file.  Still, the videos are very watchable.  Recently I made a VCD of some of the videos I shot with the DV-30 and I was surprised by the quality of the images for a camera that cost less than NT$6,000.  I will be using the DV-30 to shoot Customer information videos and making VCDs for them.  I have no reservations about recommending the DV-30 for such business documentation purposes.  Its also great for shooting family events and making VCDs to share with family and friends.  The only caveat that I need to reiterate is the limitations it has when photographing in low light conditions.  Its just not very good indoors unless its bright.  I found that normally illuminated home interiors are insufficient to produce acceptable results.  Still, the DV-30 is more than just a toy video camera.  It’s a useful tool.

I have a very full schedule over into December, including Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia.  At some point during this time period I will have enough experience with the DV-30 to give you the full 2nd half of the review.  In the meantime, feel free to ask specific questions (blog comment) and I will answer them in the blog comments area.