JVC's Everio GZ-MG20, MG30, and MG50 lineup
By Ryan Block 
posted June 14th 2005 8:41AM
posted June 14th 2005 8:41AM
Last year JVC really shook the camcorder boat with their
Everio series devices, which incorporated some 4GB
CompactFlash MicroDrives (i.e. 1-inch hard drives) in a shock-resistant internal mount as their preferred recording
medium. Well, looks like they're back, and this time their new GZ-MG20 has a 20GB hard drive, their MG30 will have a
30GB hard drive, and both feature an 800,000 pixel CCD, 2.5-inch screen, SD slot, and USB 2.0. They've also got a
higher-end shooter called the MG50 that will offer a 1.33 megapixel sensor, and tones down the 25x optical zoom to 15x.
The only thing we wish this puppy'd do that it don't is record in something other than MPEG-2.
P.S. They added full Mac support this time.
[Via I4U]
Only MPEG2 recording???
A real waste of time if you plan to edit video in any mainstream NLE (Premiere, FCP) since MPEG2 is a delivery only format not suited for video edting.
I'll stick with miniDV.
says that it has mac support... but not super clear about whether it'll work with anything other than their bundled software. i would hope it wouldn't have to rely on it.
but seriously now that the recording capacity has been increased 8-ish-fold... is it really too much to ask for to at least have an *option* to record in something more normal (but large filesize) like DV? HDV? for those of us not wanting to burn straight to DVD that is. USB 2.0 is nice i guess... Firewire might be nicer...
I'll agree with the other post that mpeg-2 only recording is a waste since you'll have to reconvert the cideo stream in order to edit it. Of course if they recorded in DV, that 30GB hard drive isn't going to get you far (about 2 hours) and being that it isn't removeable.... you get the idea.
Some video editors can edit MPEG-2 directly. Two low-cost examples are VideoRedo and Womble, which are popular among users of the Panasonic SV-AV100 (another MPEG-2 camcorder).
If you only cut on I-frames, then you can avoid re-encoding, so you preserve the quality of the original MPEG-2. However, if you cut between I-frames or perform an operation other than a simple cut, then you must re-encode the frames that are involved in the operation.
That seems pretty cool though the MPEG-2 only recording is a deal-breaker for me. Anyone know anything in terms of price? If its cheap enough it might persuade me to take a look.
JVC keeps introduicing these hard drive based before the previously announced models even hit the shelves!
Apparently there is a "JVC Studio" pop up store near times square. Anyone know the address/location/cross-streets?
Thanks.
I will wait for a HD H.264 version :p
I noticed no firewire, which makes sense, since you will transfer data-to-data via camcorder-to-pc; you don't need playback to download movie to pc. Very convenient! Unfortunately, only mpeg2-formatted...unless you only want raw transfer, it needs to be re-encoded to avi to edit for cuts, titles, audio, and effects. Having said that, are there any video editing softwares out there that can do the above features, on native mpeg2? I already bought mine at Best Buy for $758, out the door for $971 including the 4-year warranty (a critical necessity considering you'll be juggling around a 20gb hard drive everywhere you go).
Does this use a 2.5" HD or a micro drive?
What I'm thinking is if it's possible for $80 or so, to buy a 60-80GB notebook HD and upgrade this?
I think Ulead Media Studio Pro also edits MPEG2 natively (without decompressing the entire file).