Ubuntu friendly camcorders

[tidris]

One more thing to look for is the size of the image sensor (CMOS or CCD). The larger it is the better the quality of the videos indoors and in low light in general. However the larger the sensor chip the more expensive the camcorder will usually be. So if you buy a model with a small sensor don't expect great videos in low light.

My Samsung HMX-H100 has a small sensor and it makes grainy looking videos in low light, but I got what I paid for, and I expect to take most of my videos outdoors during daytime. This model does 1080i but not 1080p. However it also does 720/60p which works very well for the kinds of videos I like to take (with lots of fast moving scenes). Of course, if someone gave me a new camcorder with a huge image sensor and 1080/60p mode, I would be more than happy to accept it .

If you want to see what a 720/60p video looks like, here is one I took recently:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJXHWCFN42Q


As for USB speed, you should be able to get at least several megabytes per second transfer speeds from a modern digital camera or camcorder that has a USB2 port. It isn't enough for the computer to have USB2 port, the camera itself also needs to have a USB2 port to get the higher speed, and if there is a USB hub between camera and computer, the hub also needs to have USB2 ports.

[metol]

I guess this is a good reason to not jump on the latest and greatest update. I am sure that it will be fixed. This is one reason I continue to run 8.04 and will probably wait a couple of months after 10.04 is released to upgrade. It sounds as if there might be a problem with your USB drivers, maybe they are holdover from 9.04. By chance, do you have good transfer rates with something other than that camera, e.g. a hard drive running thru that USB port, or some other device???

All other USB devices seem fine on 9.10. My external hard drive transfers at around 25Mb/s but this is in MSC mode (Mass Storage Class). I think the problems is that my camcorder only uses MTP mode (Media Transfer Protocol). Works fine in 9.04, but I suspect something is not right in 9.10.

I am sure it will be fixed and I have reasonable workarounds. Just a temporary inconvenience. Thanks for your help and suggestions.

[dillandriskell]

First of all, you have a really steady hand tidris! You got some really good shots. Your Samsung looks like more than enough for what I could possibly ever need it for, so I'm definitely looking into that particular model.

Image sensor size, another thing I'll keep in mind! Being a half-nocturnal insomniac I probably want to invest more in this field. I just checked and luckily I do have USB 2.0 (which I was surprised to find as my computer's over 8 years old) so that's good.

Of course, if someone gave me a new camcorder with a huge image sensor and 1080/60p mode, I would be more than happy to accept it .

Haha, if I ever have any just lying around I'll let you know

[lisati]

I have a Sony DCR-SR45 which both Windows (XP & Vista) and Ubuntu see as a 30GB hard disk. The quality isn't the greatest I've used - it's automatic setting sometimes have trouble coping in poor light, particularly if there's backlighting, but it has spot-focus and spot-exposure which can be quickly used to set things manually if needed, and I think its resolution is only 720 rather than 1080. (Edit: it can take stills, but it doesn't have a flash, so the lighting needs to be good)

I also have a couple of tape based cameras (one a Digital-8 model by Sony and a MiniDV model by Panasonic) which can be used with FireWire/i.Link, though getting them to work with Ubuntu would need some tinkering with the firewire drivers.

(confession: I do most of my video editing with Windows)

EDIT: Sample footage, which has had a little bit of processing can be found here:

Sony DCR-SR45 (HDD, USB) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gThbOBaUhDU (sunlight, editing could have been better)

Sony DCR-SR45 (HDD, USB) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uUheQ2o_zNo (performers on stage inside, soundtrack has had backing track added)

Panasonic NV-GS27 (MiniDV, firewire) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNm1aD74r0o

Sony DCR-TRV147E PAL (Digital-8, firewire) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pB7TYjF8UV8

[dillandriskell]

I have a Sony DCR-SR45 which both Windows (XP & Vista) and Ubuntu see as a 30GB hard disk. The quality isn't the greatest I've used - it's automatic setting sometimes have trouble coping in poor light, particularly if there's backlighting, but it has spot-focus and spot-exposure which can be quickly used to set things manually if needed, and I think its resolution is only 720 rather than 1080.

I also have a couple of tape based cameras (one a Digital-8 model by Sony and a MiniDV model by Panasonic) which can be used with FireWire/i.Link, though getting them to work with Ubuntu would need some tinkering with the firewire drivers.

(confession: I do most of my video editing with Windows)

Thanks! That's another model I'll look at. I've got a Sony right now that I'm ditching because it's tape. If you're looking for good video editing software for Ubuntu I'd recommend Pitivi. I haven't used it yet but I've heard a lot of good things about it. I've been Microsoft free for over two years now and I'd hate to turn back now for this

I wonder if you can get the more advanced video editors to work on Ubuntu with Wine though? Like Sony Vegas Pro and Adobe After Effects. I wouldn't want to shell out a thousand dollars for Adobe After Effects though unless I was sure it worked! Or better yet I wonder if there's freeware out there that can come close to After Effects? Hmm, definitely worth looking in to.

[spegru]

Hi lisati. My brother has one of those Sony DCR-SR45 cams and is using ubuntu based Linux Mint (down to me!). When you plug into ubuntu, what exactly happens and is there anything special you have to do to extract the videos from the cam? Also what format do they come in?

thanks

[RedRat]

Hi lisati. My brother has one of those Sony DCR-SR45 cams and is using ubuntu based Linux Mint (down to me!). When you plug into ubuntu, what exactly happens and is there anything special you have to do to extract the videos from the cam? Also what format do they come in?

thanks

A bit more information would be helpful here. How does the camera output? e.g., FireWire, USB, etc. Also, what version of Mint? i.e., is it based on 9.04, 8.10, 8.04, or is it the new RC1 based on 9.10?

[spegru]

Unfortunately i dont have the camera to hand as my brother has it in New Zealand an I am in UK.
However I am told it uses USB.
My brother and i are both using Gloria - so ubuntu 9.04 based.
My bro is not that tech so I am helping remotely
I just want to know if there was any special tricks to get the thing to appear as an external hard disc. If it just comes up as a disc then maybe he just hasnt spotted it!

[gordintoronto]

All other USB devices seem fine on 9.10. My external hard drive transfers at around 25Mb/s but this is in MSC mode (Mass Storage Class). I think the problems is that my camcorder only uses MTP mode (Media Transfer Protocol). Works fine in 9.04, but I suspect something is not right in 9.10.

I am sure it will be fixed and I have reasonable workarounds. Just a temporary inconvenience. Thanks for your help and suggestions.

When I connect my Samsung F30 to a 6-year-old system running Karmic, files transfer at 4 MB/sec, same as when I connect to my new computer running Jaunty. Both computers see the Samsung as an external hard drive.

[metol]

When I connect my Samsung F30 to a 6-year-old system running Karmic, files transfer at 4 MB/sec, same as when I connect to my new computer running Jaunty. Both computers see the Samsung as an external hard drive.

Thanks for the info... do you know if you are communicating in MTP mode?

I did a little more digging and found the following error in dmesg after connecting the camcorder:

device descriptor read/all, error -110

I found the following Ubuntu Bug Report (unique to Karmic kernel 2.6.31) which closely resembles the issue that I am having. I will certainly post here once I find a solution or the issue has been resolved.