I'm in the market for a new camcorder. I want 1080p w/ HDD. Seamless upload to iMovie-11. Good lens (30x Op) Budget is around $500. What are my best options?
iMac, OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.2)
You can narrow it down from these lists:
iMovie 11 - cameras supported:
http://help.apple.com/imovie/cameras/en/index.html?lang=en_US
iMovie 9 - cameras supported:
Klaus:
Thanks for the list. However, I have already seen it and found a lot of possibilities, but no real advantage of one over another. Also, what does this comment mean " iMovie does not support footage recorded in 1080-60p from this Camcorder"? Is Sony producing camcorders that are beyond iMovie? Also, what is the best format? I've seen articles railing against the AVCD, but are MPEG 2 or MPEG 4 the better way to go? If so, why? Lots of product out there with varying prices and features. I was hoping that someone had already researched the subject and could provide some insight into what is really important. I just want an easy to use HD camcorder that works well with iMovie and doesn't cost a fortune. Any thoughts?
Thanks!
D.
are MPEG 2 or MPEG 4 the better way to go?
No. mpeg2 is the final delivery compressed version of a standard DVD and is not intended for editing.
Not all versions of iMovie can handle 1080-60p footage.
It really isn't possible to advise you further, as I am not familiar with every video camera on the market, or even with the capabilities of every version of iMovie!
Best way forward? Find a camera that appeals to you, check if it works with your version of iMovie, and/or ask here for further advice! 🙂
Duane, what choice did you make?
For me the Canon VIXIA HF G30 HD is perfect and the the AVCHD format is great in iMovie.
How did you transfer the video files to your Mac? I just got the Canon VIXIA HF R52, and I have video on the camera's memory I want to transfer to my MacBook Pro. The Transfer Utility software called out by the manual is for PC.
Best Camcorder Options for Mac / iMovie
