Bonica Snapper Dive DV??

[scubamickey]

I am wondering about this underwater video setup. It is cheap, I know. But I can't afford a $1,000+ video camera setup right now. I am looking for a camera that I can use for dive vacations to take video and edit them on my computer. Does anyone have any experience with this video camera/housing? Any advice? Price is $579


The Bonica Snapper Dive DV underwater digital media camcorder features the innovative XP system (stands for extra protection) that safeguards the camcorder against moisture by having a completely water-tight silicone skin around the camera, much like a dry suit. While inside the Skin, the camcorder is an all-weather camcorder fit for all outdoor activities. The Skin protects the camcorder from rain, snow, sand and scratches. When the camcorder is inside the hard housing, it is ready to be submerged to 180'. In case moisture gets inside the housing, the digital camera is fully protected.
The Bonica Snapper Dive DV is a miniature camera that resembles some digital still photo cameras in its vertical layout. It has an 2.4' LED display monitor built in for new levels of power and space efficiency with increased light output and faster response times over traditional displays.
The Bonica Snapper Dive DV does not use video tape for recording but uses ASF file format onto inexpensive SD cards. In fact, a 4 GB card will record over 90 minutes of video. Because the recording process uses no moving parts, the card can be reused far more times than a video cassette. 5.0 Mega-pixel digital stills, digital stabilization, and a built in video light are just some of the many features this stylish camera comes with.


Key Features



Housing
•Easy to use buttons allows full control of the camera while underwater
•Maintenance-free silicone main seal

Snapper Skin
•Made of flexible silicone rubber
•http://www.bhphotovideo.com/images/shim.gifRated to 12' (3.65 m) with skin
•Allowing full control of the camera
•Tempered optical glass lens port

Camcorder
•Shoot video or 5.0 Mega-pixel digital stills
•http://www.bhphotovideo.com/images/shim.gifBuilt in Video light and flash
•Large 2.4" LCD screen
•http://www.bhphotovideo.com/images/shim.gifDigital stabilizer
•Uses SD cards up to 4 GB
•http://www.bhphotovideo.com/images/shim.gif3x Optical zoom and 4X digital


http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=12694&A=details&Q=&sku=473144&is=REG&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

 

[aHeavyD]

i guess this is ok if your snorkeling, the rated depth is 12 feet that you posted.
In suba diving the only way your going to keep the depth is mostly from beach diving.

 

[scubamickey]

i guess this is ok if your snorkeling, the rated depth is 12 feet that you posted.
In suba diving the only way your going to keep the depth is mostly from beach diving.

Read the summary again. The depth is 180' with the housing. The 12' in the specs is for the camera alone with just the skin.

 

[dukeh20]

I bought one from a local dive shop. Since I'm in central Illinois and we have a foot and a half of snow on the ground, I have not had a chance to get it wet yet. It came in a Pelican type case with all the accessories. I bought a bunch of 1 gig SD cards at staples and I've played around with it a bit. I plan to take it to Coz in May and will post a review after I have a chance to use it.

 

[scubamickey]

dukeh20: May I ask where you bought and what the price was? Since posting this afternoon I found another site that sells it for around $50 less. I'm wondering if the hard case is standard or if it was included by the place where you purchased yours. B&H only says it comes with a carrying bag. Who knows what that means

Thanks and have fun on your trip.

 

[Dive-aholic]

B&H does look like it doesn't include the housing. Here it comes with the housing.

 

[diversteve]

B&H does include both the skin and the housing for $579. Click on the Item Includes tab.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/con...144&is=REG&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

640x480 resolution and an unknown lux rating. I'm underimpressed. Still for the money I guess it's a reasonable option.

For comparison a Canon A630 with a 2GB card will give you equal or slightly better quality with the limitation of only about 15mins. of video. But you can also shoot 8MB stills. For about the same money including housing and card. It appears you still need to buy the card($60) for the Bonica.

 

[scubamickey]

B&H does include both the skin and the housing for $579. Click on the Item Includes tab.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=12694&A=details&Q=&sku=473144&is=REG&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

640x480 resolution and an unknown lux rating. I'm underimpressed. Still for the money I guess it's a reasonable option.

For comparison a Canon A630 with a 2GB card will give you equal or slightly better quality with the limitation of only about 15mins. of video. But you can also shoot 8MB stills. For about the same money including housing and card. It appears you still need to buy the card($60) for the Bonica.

Actually, according to the spec. the canon you mention shoots up to 1 hour or 1gb:

With a highly flexible movie mode, you can create the movie that's perfect for any application. Select from VGA (640 x 480 pixels) and QVGA (320 x 240 pixels), with frame rates of 30 fps and 15 fps for recording up to 1 hour or 1GB.

With a highly flexible movie mode, you can create the movie that's perfect for any application. Select from VGA (640 x 480 pixels) and QVGA (320 x 240 pixels), with frame rates of 30 fps and 15 fps for recording up to 1 hour or 1GB.

It only comes with a 16mb card but that's not a big deal. I can buy larger capacity ones.

I see your point. If I'm going to by a small resolution video camera I might as well buy a high res digital that takes small video.

 

[diversteve]

Yeah but you're not going to like video shot at 15fps. 30fps is going to be relatively artifact free in most situations.

I was guessing at the time based on my buddy's camera with a 1GB card. At 30fps. he was shooting just over 7min clips with a few stills mixed in. If you want to see the quality, PM your e-mail address and I'll send you a short clip.

 

[scubamickey]

I can't find any mention of it only shooting 640x480. All it says is that it has a 5.0 megapixel resolution.