Hi i recently bought this Sony Handycam and since now i have been transfering my videos to my computer through the usb port through windows movie maker at 640x480 resolution. I have always been disapointed in the video quality and i'm wondering if investing in a firewire port/wire would allow for better quality on my computer? Thanks
Firewire is the only way to capture video from a miniDV camcorder. The USB cable is for capturing pictures from the camcorder, not video. Your camcorder, more than likely has a 4 pin output port, and if you have an input port on your computer, it is more than likely a 6 pin port, so you need a firewire cable with a 4 pin plug on one end and a 6 pin plug on the other. Check, to confirm, before getting the cable. And, don't buy a cheap firewire cable. I paid around $37 US for mine, and it is worth every penny that I spent. Let us know how it goes for you.
And, when you are up and running, make sure you capture as DV-AVI files. You need a large hard drive, because the files will take up about 12GB for each hour of video.
