Camcorders in the Digital Age: Are They Worth Your Investment?

Key Takeaways

• Camcorders are designed for handheld video, easy control access.
• Camcorders have optical zoom/stabilization, reliable performance for casual use.
• Camcorders offer long battery life, continuous recording, and an easy wall power option.

With DSLRs, mirrorless vlogger cameras, action cams, and, of course, your smartphone camera, you may think that there’s no place for the humble camcorder anymore. That couldn’t be further from the truth! While most people probably don’t need one, if you’re serious about making videos, you should give a good camcorder serious consideration for one or more of these reasons.

Better Ergonomics

Camcorders are designed to be handheld for video. That might sound obvious, but DSLRs and mirrorless cameras are still designed to take photos, and few people would use them to shoot video handheld unless you mount them on a gimbal. Likewise, your phone is OK for shooting a quick video clip, but if you want to use it for longer videos, you need some sort of handle, gimbal, or grip.

A good camcorder feels like slipping on a comfortable glove. You can shoot with one all day if you need to. The design is such that you can operate the most important controls one-handed and those functions work with physical buttons, so you don’t need to mess around with a touch screen for key functions.

Great Optics

The optics in even the average camcorder are almost certainly better than the glass in your phone, which mainly relies on software tricks to elevate the quality of your footage. However, when compared to DLSRs or mirrorless cameras, things are a little more complicated.

For example, I host a YouTube channel where we use a mirrorless Canon camera with a roughly $800 Sigma lens. This offers an amazing image with soft bokeh , and natural cinematic depth of field, but it’s not exactly practical for general-purpose use.

Yes, if you have a camera with swappable lenses,and you can pick the perfect lens for each occasion, but that’s not practical when you aren’t shooting something that’s rehearsed with multiple takes possible if you need them.

If you want to film your children’s sports events, or you’re on vacation and taking things as they come, a camcorder will likely have great optics that will cover most situations without any special effort or part swapping from you.

Sony

It’s pretty normal to have 20x or 60x optical zoom and lens stabilization built into the camcorder, and while it’s not going to give you all the different fancy lens effects you can get with an SLR lens kit, for practical purposes you’ll be happy you’re packing a camcorder.

No Overheating or Battery Stamina Issues

I love using our mirrorless setup for YouTube, but we only shoot in ten minute bursts. If you try to film for more than about 30 minutes, you can be sure the camera will overheat and shut itself off. Likewise, if you’re shooting on your phone for long stretches, it’s a race between the camera getting too hot or the battery running out first.

Not so for a camcorder! This camera was designed to shoot video, and shoot video it will! All-day, every day. Take the Sony FDR-AX43 as an example. It’s rated for just short of 4 hours of continuous shooting on a single charge. Though, of course, in real-world situations you’re more likely to get three-ish hours on a charge, and it depends on many factors. Nonetheless, try doing that with a phone or DLSR!

It Can Run From Mains

Out of the box, camcorders generally come with the ability to run straight from the wall. For DSLR and mirrorless cameras, you usually need a dummy battery accessory, and, of course, you can do this with your phone, but both are less practical and convenient than a camcorder. Either way, the aforementioned overheating issues don’t go away when you plug these other camera types into the wall, but a camcorder can take it. Assuming your memory card is large enough, you don’t have to worry about battery swaps, and you can freely switch to battery and back again as needed without stopping your recording.

It All Adds Up!

There are numerous other small advantages that apply to most, if not all, camcorders. For example, the microphone on a good camcorder is almost certainly better than any DSLR or phone, where you really need to connect to an external mic. Camcorders are less fragile, generally more weatherproof, and you can get rugged models or those that can shoot underwater, which is easier than converting your DSLR or phone, and potentially less expensive if things go wrong!

While camcorders are not popular anymore, and not many big brands still make them, these cameras are still a worthy tool in their niche, and if you want a well-rounded video-making kit, it’s definitely something to consider.