Im thinking of getting a sony hadycam HC51, how do you charge, can this be done off the mains?

Question

i know im a nob and this is something i guess everyone will know but im new to camcorders and i need to know before i go on my trip (10th march), can i charge the cam right off the mains box or do i have to spend out on a charger?

also my pc dont have firewire can i still put my film onto the pc useing USB (i dont mind if i lose frames)

thank you everyone and im sorry for looking stupid but as i told you before ive never had a camcorder before

Answer 1

not stupid - everyone starts somewhere.

You can charge the battery while it is in the camera and the camera is off. You need to have the camcorder's AC adapter plugged into the wall.  Most of the AC adapters are 120v-240v auto sensing/switching, so you just need the right plug. Some people have extra rechargeable high capacity batteries so while they are using one, the other is charging in an external charger.

You will not be able to transfer video from the miniDV tape using the USB port. Only the DV port with a firewire cable connected to a firewire cable on your computer - if you don't have one, install one. They are cheap and easy to install if your desktop has an available PCI slot... or if a laptop, an available PCMCIA or Express slot.