JVC Everio GZ-MG20 20 GB Hard Disk Drive Camcorder w/25x Optical Zoom

Our Price - $499.99

6 Used - from $357.00

3 New - from $499.99

JVC Everio GZ-MG20 20 GB Hard Disk Drive Camcorder w/25x Optical Zoom

Don't tape it. Don't worry about reloading discs either, because the palm sized GZ-MG20 records over 24 hours of video on its high-capacity 20 GB hard disk drive. So when you are on the go, vacationing or at a family event, pack your lightweight Everio and go. There are four recording modes allows you to record the way you want. The ULTRA mode will record over 4.5 hours of almost DVD movie quality. The FINE mode will record at DVD camcorder quality for over 7 hours. Either way, the high quality MPEG-2 recordings are the same format used as a DVD. There will be no quality loss when burning to DVD. Plus, no cassettes or discs to lose. Every Everio camcorder is designed to simplify your life. The built-in hard disk drive allows you to easily delete unwanted scenes and rearrange your footage even on the go. This Everio's multi-connectivity allows you to get connected and share all your memories. Your own portable video scrapbook - from JVC. Long recording time and easy to use features in a palm sized hard disk drive solution.

The revolutionary JVC Everio G series hard-disk camcorders offer unprecedented storage capacity, eliminating the need to carry tapes, discs, or any media at all--yet can record up to seven hours of DVD movie-quality video. They also record more than 10.5 hours at a quality level comparable to a DVD camcorder?s 30-minute mode. Recording-time capabilities for all four models in the Everio G series are impressive: The GZ-MG20 and GZ-MG40 offer 4 hours and 50 minutes of recording time at DVD quality and 25 hours at lower-resolution Internet quality; the GZ-MG30, GZ-MG50, and GZ-MG70 record for 7 hours and 10 minutes at DVD quality and 37 hours at Internet quality.

The GZ-MG20 fits in the palm of your hand.

The GZ-MG20 has a 20 GB hard disk, is truly palm-sized, and weighs less than 14 ounces with the battery attached. Its design is similar to a MiniDV camcorder?s, which means that it?s comfortable to hold and operate, and includes a large, 2.5-inch flip-out LCD monitor for easy recording.

Playback is easy, too, with multiple connections allowing convenient TV playback, dubbing to a VCR or DVD recorder, transfer to a PC or Apple Macintosh for DVD creation, editing, or posting on the Internet, or even burned directly without a PC to a full-length movie DVD disc using an optional DVD burner.

MPEG-2 Video Recording for DVD-Movie Quality Footage
The GZ-MG20 offers an impressive 4.5 hours storage at 9 Mbps, and over 7 hours at 6 Mbps. The high-quality MPEG-2 recordings are in the same format used in DVD, so there's no quality loss when burning them to DVD, and no time- and quality-wasting conversion.

The JVC GZ-MG20's 3D NR technology reduces video noise by 30 percent, even in low light.

3D Noise-Reduction Technology
Conventional noise reduction offers limited accuracy since it compares field A and field B that make up a frame with different sets of odd and even scanning lines to compensate for noise. JVC?s 3D noise-reduction technology compares field A to field A, and field B to field B across two frames so that the scanning lines are identical and noise can be reduced more accurately. As a result, signal-to-noise ratio is improved by 2 dB and noise is reduced by about 30 percent. Flicker is eliminated and color reproduction is improved, enhancing overall picture quality.

25x Optical Zoom with 800x Digital Zoom
With the powerful 25x zoom, an image is enlarged 25 times without jagged edges. Images can be further enlarged up to 800x when combined with the digital zoom.

Get close to the action with optical and digital zoom options.

Random Access to Recordings
The benefits of recording video to a hard disk are the same benefits that have made hard disk-based audio players so popular--random access to quickly locate desired material, and the ability to effortlessly delete unwanted material and easily rearrange the playback sequence. What?s more, there?s no danger of mistakenly recording over something that?s to be saved.

Browse recorded scenes easily with the thumbnail image index.

Scene selection is made easy thanks to on-screen index images, so the large amount recorded won't become a hindrance to quick accessibility. And with remote control operation, it is possible to connect the Everio G camcorder to a TV and operate it from a distance, just like a DVD deck. Playlist operation allows recording of desired clips directly to DVD with the optional DVD burner, or directly to VHS or other analog input devices with the S-Video or Composite video output for perfect copies every time.

Hard-Disk Protection and Stability
A challenge in designing and building a hard-disk camcorder is protecting the disk from shocks and vibrations. One way this is done in the Everio G camcorders is through a unique floating suspension system that effectively dampens vibrations through advanced polymer shock absorbers. Another security measure familiar to notebook PC users is its gravity-like force sensor system that automatically senses sudden acceleration such as in a free fall situation, and turns off the power to defend the hard disk so that a head crash can be avoided in many cases even when the unit is dropped.

Confirm remaining disk capacity and other details with the GZ-MG20's intuitive graphical display.

Make Full-length DVDs Easily, With or Without a Computer
In a unique collaboration with Apacer Technology Inc., JVC and Apacer developed a new DVD video burner that connects directly from the Everio G. Just select the playlist or file, or simply copy it all--one touch creates a full length video DVD to watch on a DVD player, with no need for a personal computer. For those who want to edit with a computer, JVC includes software for use with both the Windows and Macintosh platforms. Provided Pixela Capty MPEG Edit EX and optional Capty DVD for making DVD Video software provide seamless integration into the Apple Macintosh computer world. Of course Everio G is compatible with iPhoto for still pictures.

For Windows PCs, the CyberLink DVD Solution bundled with Everio G models comprises three applications that make it easy to make full-length DVD movies. A standard 4.7 GB single-layer DVD-R/RW disc holds over one hour of an Ultra mode movie, and over 90 minutes of a Fine mode movie.

• PowerProducer offers easy saving and authoring of video clips in any order to DVD, even directly from a USB-connected camera, so users can share original DVDs with anybody who owns a DVD player. The software makes it easy to locate and transfer video files residing on the camera?s hard drive. Saving to DVD requires only a PC with 256 MB RAM, 700 MHz or above Pentium III, USB 2.0 terminal, and a DVD burner.
• PowerDirector Express offers feature-rich, non-linear editing so users can flex their creative muscle with titles and even mix stills with videos. PowerDirector Express also converts movies to a variety of file formats to send via the Web or e-mail. Supported formats include DV-AVI, Windows AVI, MPEG-1 and MPEG-2, as well as Windows Media Video and RealVideo that can be streamed uploaded or streamed over the Internet.
• PowerDVD conveniently plays back video clips and DVDs with Dolby Digital audio.

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JVC Everio GZ-MG20 20 GB Hard Disk Drive Camcorder w/25x Optical Zoom Reviews

Sony Vegas doesn't recognize the MOD format the video files are saved in, so again I did a few minutes of research to find out that you can simple highlight the MOD part of the file name/extension, backspace 3 times and type MPG. What I did was set it to M mode, shutter speed to 1/30 and set it to cloudy. After researching, and changing settings, with help from a review on a similar camera, the indoors picture is pretty good. The lense comes with threads to attach wide-angle lenses, and filters to make the picture even better. This instantly converts it to MPG format, which Vegas and all of my other playback programs recognize. Indoors is another story, out of the box the low-light conditions pretty much blacked out the playback.

With the lenses and filters I purchased for this it actually has it to a B-. First off, I want to say that the camera shoots pretty good footage outdoors, not at all superb quality, but passable for just archiving personal footage. It takes a few minutes of tweaking to get it right indoors, but most cameras aren't cut and dry to begin with. all in a camera a little over 5 inches long. The hard drive is so easy and convenient.

I didn't bother installing any of the included software because I use Sony Vegas to edit video. I was really pleased with this camera, and recommend it to anyone who really needs a good camera, but nothing extravagant- for people who rarely use it. Sound is great, for a built in speaker it was almost one of the best I've heard on a simple video camera. You can also gain up while in this mode for a brighter picture, but it does add some grain.

I agree with the many other users who have experienced the "Condensation, Operation Paused" defect on their JVC GR-XXX. I would disagree - it is a recognized problem, but its your problem, not theirs. Despite numerous others reporting this problem, JVC says its not a recognized problem.

2) Hard drive. 4) Downloading to the computer is a breeze. 3) Ease of use. Nice not to not ever have to buy blank tapes or discs. It's barely larger than a can of soda. Everyone seems to like it for the most part. 5) Reviews from other owners.

The controls are well designed. Very happy with my purchase. Had most everything figured out in no time. The 5 main reasons I purchased this camcorder:. 1) Size.

The quality is awesome, the ergonomics is just super (the four way stick in the LCD for starters), the transfer capabilities are nice (just plug it in to ANY PC and it becomes an external hard drive with video files, although you have to rename the.MOD to.MPG), and the zoom/frame rate is great. Other than that, the camera is perfect for trips; it's amazing to see that the product turns out to be as good and heavenly as it was advertised. (Upto 32X optical and.5-4000 fps - this is really good for shooting as you like). Also the digital stills are like crap; I mean 640x480 stills, worse than the ones in the cell phones. for the first time. But the overall thing is that you can shoot the videos and then transfer and burn them to your DVDs.

For those who complain about the grainy stuff, try changing the frame rate yourself - lower frame rate for poorer lighting condition (so that the poor lighting gets registered on the CCD more slowly but rigidly), or change the white balance. If you can add 90$ more the 4 hour battery will make this cam one of the best. I have had very little lighting problems , and that too only when shooting at really bad lighting conditions (in night for eg). Some personal gripes (from the stand point of a HDD camcorder), are that you can't record from a video source directly :D, and that you need to wait for 4 seconds before you can start recording after switching it on (it shows the same JVC animation every time, possibly to warm up the HDD meanwhile), and that you need to recharge it often if you are shooting it with the provided battery. I have owned a JVC VCR way back, and it was pretty good too, and that made my judgement about a industry first HDD camcorder from JVC. the problem is, with such a camcorder you would want to shoot everything that moves and is colorful and waste the 20GB soon enough.

The software is a little daunting. The freedom from tapes and discs is nice feature.

They couldn't replace it with a new one. We were initially given a run-around, but Amazon gave us a good discount on the camera that made us happy.

will also run longer w/o interruption to change discs or tapes. The camera seems to have a sharp picture and excellent sound.

It is amazingly small. Follow directions very carefully.

It seems like a great choice for general home video. When we received the camera, it had been previously used.