I'm looking to buy a camcorder, I've always been a big fan of randomly recording stuff, but have never owned a proper camcorder.

I get payed in 2 weeks so I'm looking for a decent camcorder to fit my needs, in the price range of around £200, preferably Mini DV.

All I want is something that has a relatively good in all light conditions, and something that has a microphone that will pick up my voice without me having to shout.

Any advice strongly appreciated

My dad bought a camcorder a while back (before HD and DVD camcorders were out) and every time we record video, the machine itself is so loud that it records the noise it makes into the videos. Very annoying! >.< I haven't looked into camcorders lately so I wouldn't know which to suggest to you. I would personally get a High-def hard drive camera, they cost around $1000 CAD. They look pretty cool too.

Definitely stick with Mini DV in that price range. I've also been looking for one around that mark or a little higher because I'm going interrailing over the summer. The AV Forums have a really good section on camcorders here : http://www.avforums.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=61

Three that seem to be most recommended are ~£150 Canon MD101, ~£200 Canon MD160, ~£250 Panasonic GS320. Hope that helps some.

Not sure how much 200 euros is in dollars. I saw a decent HD camcorder on Amazon for $600 last week. I'd suggest MiniDV. Not a fan of non-physical media.

I was looking at the MD101, but i heard it suffers from the mic being overwhelmed by the motor sound quite badly. It was £127 on Amazon, so I was gunna buy it, then the next day it shot up to £170 so I thought again.

I was also looking at the Panasonic NV-GS80 and the Sony HC27E.

I'm sort of swaying towards the Sony, it apparantly has a better mic and works better in dimmer light conditions but I really dunno.. Is there anybody with any experience with either of these?

Thanks for the advice.

I saw a Panny for about £170 in Jessops! Looked pretty good!

If you can afford it, get a camera with a 3CCD chip. The Panasonic ones in the sub £300 bracket are your best bet in my opinion.

I can afford something around £200 max. I'm really eyeing up the Sony Handycam DCR HC27 now, seems pretty perfect for me and relatively cheap, about £170 on Amazon.

Anybody used this camcorder before?

Did you make a purchase ramsy? Just wondering what you went for and how you have found it.