Please help choosing the best camcorder in this collection

[overland3r]

We found 12 camcorders in my fathers house.
They all seem to be working, but I only want to keep one. (obviously the best / newest one)
Please help me to choose, since several seem to be old and it's difficult to find details online to compare them.
Maybe the choice is obvious to an expert.

1. Sony DCR-HC14E
2. Sony DCR-HC19E
3. Sony DCR-HC24E
4. Sony DCR-HC39E
5. Canon MVX35i
6. Canon MV700E
7. Canon MV901
8. JVC GR-D225E
9. JVC GR-D320E
10. JVC GR-D720E
11. JVC GR-D760E
12. Panasonic NV-GSI EG

Thanks for your help!

[Sharc]

We found 12 camcorders in my fathers house.
They all seem to be working, but I only want to keep one. (obviously the best / newest one)

Wrong decision to begin with. The one you keep may fail tomorrow.....

[overland3r]

Ok, you’re right; I’ll probably keep two.

[pchan]

May I suggest that you do a sample DV tape transfer to PC for each camera. Keep at least 2 with the best transfer quality. Sell the rest on ebay. They fetch good price. DV camcorders are mainly used for DV tape transfer to PC. It's not advisable to record video now as HD camcorder can do a better job. File transfer is a lot faster than tape transfer. I suppose you have many DV tapes and it's best you transfer them to PC and store the videos in multiple drives. DV camcorders are obsolete and there is no way of playing back DV tapes without a working DV camcorder.

[Bwaak]

Are they all DV? Things that I would consider:

• Does the Firewire port work?
• Can the computer detect them, when they are connected via Firewire? Does data transfer work?
• Do they have USB capability to transfer full-resolution besides Firewire?
• Which mechanism is more reliable? I would be choosing between Sony and Canon, but I have no data to back it up.
• Do they have analog outputs? If yes, which one has SVideo output? (This is to capture video to a computer that has no Firewire).
• Can their analog ports work as inputs? Can a camcorder be used as an A/D converter?
  • Does it prevent Macrovision-protected video from copying?
  • Does it have TBC?
  • Which TBC is better?
• Prefer one that has both flip-out LCD monitor and an eyepiece: if one fails, another can be used. Make sure that there is a way to switch between the two.
• Prefer one with more reliable controls: joystics and push-wheels can often fail. Prefer simpler one-task controls like simple buttons or switches.
• Prefer one for which batteries and power adapters can be easily found.
• Prefer one with a standard power connector (barrel-type of common size and voltage).
• Prefer one with standard A/V connectors