Camcorders: The Evolution of Technology

Camcorders that can be held in the palm of your hand or that can capture high definition video were not always available. At the beginning of this video capturing technology, camcorders were used only by TV crews and the film industry. Any thought of using these cameras for home use was an unlikely dream. Camcorders, specifically HDV camcorders, have come a long way from what once was. Many individuals may even remember when captured film was placed on tape. How has video capturing technology evolved since its beginnings?

The first type of home video capturing device was available in 1963 and the system was large, bulky and difficult to carry around. A few years later in 1967, Sony introduced the first PortaPak. This enabled you to capture video by using two pieces: a large black and white camera and a VCR unit. The PortaPak wasn’t as large and bulky as the first system, but the two pieces made it difficult for just one person to operate.

In 1982, JVC introduced the VHS-C format. These were small cassette tapes that could be used in VCR players. This made the camera much smaller and lighter. Full-sized VHS cassette tapes began to be used in 1985. Hitachi, Panasonic and RCA were the first to create cameras using these larger devices. These full-sized camcorders were shoulder mounted and offered up to three hours of record time.

When the 1990s came around, camcorders took a step into the digital era. What were once full sized VHS cassette tapes became the DV and the miniDV. These allowed for more audio, video and, more importantly, were much smaller than before. DV was designed for recording onto magnetic tape and is less popular, whereas miniDV is one of the most popular formats for camcorders. MiniDV is much smaller than DV and these camcorders are generally lightweight and more compact. They provide strong color and are ideal for importing video content onto a computer.

Today, camcorders have taken a different approach and HDV camcorders are the latest technology on the market. Many of these camcorders will use the same MiniDV tapes that have been used previously while others will use internal memory.

HDV camcorders have added several features to the video capturing market. These devices can record more than twice the resolution of other cameras, provide clearer images and are much easier to carry around. This type of video and audio are encoded using lossy compression. Lossy compression is a way through which some of the data is lost. This is done in hopes that the data will yield content that is different from the original, yet similar. For editing purposes, video captured on HDV camcorders can be uploaded to a computer for editing without losing any quality.

Even though this HDV camcorders technology already sounds advanced, further advancements are constantly being made. News of camcorders that are compatible with Blu-Ray and 3D are underway, as well as plans to upgrade HDV camcorders.

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