Mac Compatible? One of the reviews from Penn Nayme says that this camera isn't compatible with Macs. The reviewer says it only comes with USB connectivity, but the product description mentions Firewire. Anyone know for sure whether or not this camera is compatible with Macs/iMovie?Thanks*Edit: Okay, I just read C.Carr's review and he mentions that there's Firewire connectivity through iMovie. I'd still like to hear from any Mac users their thoughts on this camera.Thank you for your responses S. Wands and V.M.Disanto. Much appreciated! Mac Compatible? One of the reviews from Penn Nayme says that this camera isn't compatible with Macs. The reviewer says it only comes with USB connectivity, but the product description mentions... » Read More Mac Compatible? One of the reviews from Penn Nayme says that this camera isn't compatible with Macs. The reviewer says it only comes with USB connectivity, but the product description mentions Firewire. Anyone know for sure whether or not this camera is compatible with Macs/iMovie?Thanks*Edit: Okay, I just read C.Carr's review and he mentions that there's Firewire connectivity through iMovie. I'd still like to hear from any Mac users their thoughts on this camera.Thank you for your responses S. Wands and V.M.Disanto. Much appreciated! « Show Less
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Indeed, there is a DV (FireWire IEEE 1394) connection on the GS500, enabling easy transfer of video to any Mac with a FireWire port! You have to buy your own 4-pin to 6-pin connecting cable, but other than that, this product is *COMPLETELY* compatible with Macintosh!
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I've only had the camera a couple of days but it seems to work fine with my Mac when connecting using a 4-pin to 6-pin Firewire cable. I haven't done any exhaustive testing but I've been able to connect and get video into iMovie and Final Cut Express. So so far, so good.
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Did you ever figure out how to use your Sony Handycam DCR-DVD108 with your Imac/Imovie? I still haven't -- but there has to be a way, right? I gave up a while back, but am now ready to try again. Please let me know if you have any tips.
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I don't use video and the FZ35 forum isn't getting much attention, now that it is discontinued. Try searching through the discussions on this forum site. This question has been asked and answered several times. I think the same procedure applies to the FZ28, FZ35 and the FZ40 regarding Mac.
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Dear friend,Did the software make your Sony DCR-SR42 compatible with your Mac? We're looking at purchasing the Sony ourselves?Thanks.Sincerely,Mac
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I just bought this camera, plugged it in today to my Macbook Pro, used the dv/firewire cable. It works fine with iMovie with no tweaking. But downloading is in actual time, so slow. just rewind your tape, put the little wheel on view and hit import.
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I have a macbook pro (older, but running Snow Leopard) and it does download to imovie '09. Found out how to get around Sony trying to sabotage mac users from someone else on the internet, here is his tip: "I was able to import movies from my Sony HDR-CX100 using a USB cable by first opening iMovie, and then pushing "USB Connect" in the first screen, and then "Disk Burn" instead of "USB Connect" in the second screen. This produced an icon, which I did not get when I pushed "USB Connect" in the second screen. Once the icon appeared, the movie showed up on iMovie and I was able to import it." My experience was that only had to hit the "usb connect" to make it happen, not disc burn. But be patient, can take a while for your mac to find the files. I will say, Sony's intentional lack of compatibility with mac is almost enough to make me take the camera back though. I just purchased and may still return, even though it is a great camcorder.
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I have a MacBook Pro and just connect my Handycam to my Mac via the included USB cable. iMovie pops up and imports the clips just fine, with one annoying inconvenience: it imports each clip about 3 times and I have to delete the duplicates. I am running the Leopard OS and maybe that's the difference. However, very displeased with the short recording time, and the horrible video quality. My daughter's still camera takes MUCH sharper movies. What's the deal?
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Howard, I found this camera to be unusable and sent it back. I bought the dlink DSC 5020L and it works great...Mac OS compatible too.
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I have had no trouble at all uploading to my Mac from this camera. I have worked in both iMovie and FCPX with no glitches at all.
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I've got an Intel-based mac, but I think it's probably more an issue of the software - so you should be fine, provided you are sporting the latest OS and iLife. I've now tried it with both iMovie 08 and FCP (whatever the most recent is). It's very straightforward in iMovie. Here's a crappy example of something I shot, imported and uploaded in under an hour:http://www.vimeo.com/1033464Ridiculously easy with iMovie. Not as straightforward with FCP. You have to find the HDV profile best suited to the camera (I'm still experimenting).
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Thanks B. Wickens!I've continued my research and it turns out the problem is not the brand of the camera but the AVCHD codec itself. Most video editing applications don't support it yet. So indeed you can copy the files to your hard drive in a Mac but you need a program that can read them.Turns out the latest Final Cut Pro does indeed support AVCHD and also the iMovie '08 (not '06).My favorite recoding application is VisualHub but I haven't been able to determine yet if it will read AVCHD and convert it to something else.
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when you compare this camera with modern cameras you have to consider 2 factors: image quality (lens optics, compression, low-light behavior, etc) and media management (tape based vs file based, stock availability, the time it takes to capture the footage, etc.). This camera has a Canon L lens, which would cost more than the camera itself if Canon where to offer it as a stand alone lens. This is probably the closest one: http://amzn.com/B000AZ57M6 For that reason alone I would pair it next to anyone. I capture my footage through a black magic card installed on a mac pro, and I always do a full capture. The capture is NOT done through firewire but rather through the component signal output from the camera. I capture straight to a QT Apple ProRes HQ, and voila! HiRes footage that's compatible across platforms. The only draw back is that the capture is done in real-time. It's taped based so you should avoid playback as much as possible to avoid head wear. I suggest you get a separate deck or HDV camera (like the Vixias by Canon http://amzn.com/B00114PN1U ) strictly for playback. The SD slot is only for taking pictures and uploading custom picture-style presets.
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I'm wondering the same thing... i cannot even upload the file from my camera onto my Mac.. i'm confused because my Sony T90 uploaded video without any problem. Please can someone answer this question
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The Pixela software referenced by C. Suntra did the trick for me, although it does require that extra step of interpreting the footage into iMovie-friendly format. I've gone back and forth about keeping or returning the camera since it's not Mac-friendly, but have decided to keep it. I've learned that there really aren't any current hard drive camcorders on the market that are Mac-friendly. The Amazon price was the best I found after shopping around.
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I have used this camera on my emac for a year or two. It came with a Macam disc, but this program is easily downloaded. I was trying to source a webcam for a friend and I got an ancient logitech but with the macam softwear it came on straight away.Pat (Australia)
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Hi,What is your operating system...PC window or Mac? I am looking for a camera that will work as a webcam also and it seems that Fujis are ones mentioned, but have not found any info on which cameras or how to hook up. I see no one replied to your posting, but wondered if you ever got the S700 to work as a webcam as i am very interested in this camera...thanks
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When i download my movies from this camera to my Mac, there is a disconnect between the video and the sounds. It's like a delay. Very annoying as i use it mostly for short clips of concerts. Also, there is a long delay between when i push the button for a photo and when it actually takes it (the photo). Are there fixes for for this? Operator error or is this the camera? Really thinking about selling it. But then what? I researched this for a long time and am disappointed.