Sharp VL-Z5U

Pros: Moderate price. Small size. Ample features. Excellent quality recordings. Large, bright LCD screen.

Cons: No night light. No accessory hot shoe. Proprietary battery. No IEEE1394 (firewire) cable included.

The Bottom Line: This is an excellent value and excellent performing camcorder. Highly recommended.

Review: I bought this SHARP VL-Z5U camcorder two weeks ago because I wanted to replace my ten year old Sony 8mm camcorder. I saw this camcorder on display as a closeout item. The first thing that got may attention was the size and ergonomics of this ...

Pros: Easy to read LCD, battery life, size, auto settings, video quality in and outdoors, price

Cons: nothing worth noting

The Bottom Line: Very satisfied with the results of both audio and video. The test was showing the movies to my grandchildren. They loved every minute.

Review: So many Mini DV's out there priced in the $1000.00 plus range with conflicting reviews forced me to ...

Pros: Competitively priced, sleek design, Great camera for recording under poor lighting conditions(gain-up feature).

Cons: Lacks features

Review: The camera speaks for it self. Competitively priced with its sleek design makes for a worthy opponent for the higher priced units. Great camera for recording under poor lighting conditions (gain-up feature). I originally purchased the Canon ZR65MC Mini ...

Pros: Stylish, compact, quality videos, clear LCD, clear audio.

Cons: Relatively short battery life.

Review: I bought VL-Z5U model, and I am very pleased with its performance so far. It has crystal clear LCD. Even in very low light conditions, it produces very quality videos. However, do not try to capture an image in total darkness because the camcorder does no ...

Pros: price, flexibility, ergonomics

Cons: menu toggle switch too small

Review: I've only had it a few days, but I believe I picked the right camera for the price. It has more features than I realized, and it is easy (with a little patience) to edit on a Mac. ...

Pros: Size, swivel design great audio, clear video picture, simple operation. Pre set scene menus

Cons: No external mic input, hot shoe or lanc input. Poor still image quality.

The Bottom Line: I would recommend this camera to anyone who wants a quality Digital Camera, without breaking the bank! Easy to use, great quality video and audio. This camera represents great value!

Review: I have only had this camera 1 week, but already I love it! I use a full featured Semi Pro Camera for work (Cost over $5000.) so I do have a high level of expectation. The video and audio quality are great, and the single handed operation, with the ability ...

Pros: Great camcorder that is very affordable. Nice features and decent picture quality. Easy to use.

Cons: Tape gets stuck in machine and won't eject. Tiny buttons. No flash or night light.

The Bottom Line: Can be great buy, but tape eject is a problem. Buy with caution!

Review: This camcorder is a great buy, there is no doubt about it. All of the things stated in the previous reviews are right on the money. The experience I would like to share is that the tape gets stuck in the camera and sometimes won't pop out like it ...

Pros: NONE. Known hardware failure makes it utterly USELESS, at any price.

Cons: Camcorder is easily rendered USELESS, until professionally and somewhat expensively repaired.

The Bottom Line: COMPLETE RIP-OFF! The DEW-sensor problem can happen at any time, rendering this camcorder useless. Sharp knows, but WILL NOT stand behind their products and hide behind RUDE customer service.

Review: Well, where do I start? I originally bought this camcorder through Amazon.com, which also had a $50 rebate. I was traveling when I received it and bought a camera bag and other accessories. I threw away the original box, which had the UPS symbol. ...

Pros: Very small.

Cons: Utterly unreliable because of the dew problem. Zoom button quite hard to use (too sensitive)

The Bottom Line: Avoid, in my experience.

Review: I had had this camera for about 6 months when it became harder and harder to use because the dew indicator would come on all the time (and prevent me from using it). After putting up with this for a while, I contacted Sharp, got them to pay for the ...