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Dare I say Canon: Cheap-A-- !

MrMacMan

MrMacMan

macrumors 604
Original poster
Jul 4, 2001
7,002
11
1 Block away from NYC.
Sorry for the rant ahead of time, but this has been ticking me off.

[/rant on]
So my parents have been bugging me to get their video off my Digital Video Camcorder.

I agreed, I didn't expect it to be hard:
1) I got the pictures off easy, I loaded it up, a disk appeared, I copyied the photos... easy enough because of the USB <---> Video Cord

Problem 1) So I open iMovie up... says camera aint attached
me: '... yes it is, I just got the pictures off it'
iMovie: 'No Camcorder Attached'

I flip some switches to change camera modes, no dice.

Prob 2) Okay, I have this hefty manual (3 Different Languages!) ... I'm looking... and looking... What the hell... they don't tell me how to get the video off!


This can't be true, so I keep looking, NOTHING, this tells me squat.

Prob 3) Okay, so I must need a new iMovie... I check versions
iMovie: 3.0.3
Current Release of iMovie: 3.0.3

Well that doesn't help me... And apple says it supports this model... um... where am I going wrong?

Prob 4) Apple mentions Firewire, I know I connected with USB... Well Since the Manuel says nothing and Canon's website says nothing, I guess this is a USB video interface (/me thinks slow transfers).

Well, I'm looking on the sides... on the bottom no other possible ports! Where is this hiding!

Good Part 1) I call Canon, No wait what-so-ever, I talk to a Guy with almost 0 seconds waiting.

Prob 5) He says Firewire needs to be connected...
Me: ...Okay... Where is that?
Him: In the front
Me: I see a lens... a speaker...
Him: Underthat, there is a pop out, plastic peice.
Me: ... uhhhhh?
Him: Just pop it off
Me: Okay... :pops off peice that looks like it doesn't pop off: Ah okay, there is the firewire port!
Him: Great, now you can connect.
Me: B...But I don't see where this wire is :searches box: I don't see a wire.
Him: Canon doesn't include the Wire.
Me: What was that?
Him: Canon doesn't ship Firewire cords with the camcorder.
Me: No way, How are you suppose to get this Data Off if you don't have it!
Him: They only cost like... $40 bu
Me: Thats Outrageous! How can you not ship the nessary wire and not put it in the manuel to TELL me I need the wire.
Him: Its probably less, like $30 at Circuit City or Best Buy.
Me: How can you not give me the wire?
Him: After you plug the wire in iMovie will take over and your really all set to go.
Me: Uh huh, is there anyway to get my Video out without the wire?
Him: Is there anything else I can help you with?
Me: Er, I guess not, but if you can pass along the message to Atleast mention you need a Wire, or on the website... or manual or somewhere...
Thanks for your... help.


Okay Canon, this is my rant, why the hell wouldn't you:
Tell me I needed one OR BETTER
Give me the wire?

Its just absurd.

Completly Absurd.

[/rant off]

Come ON!

There is no excuse for that!

The Camcorder is Great, but What the hell.

No way.

No reason they should cheap out on necessary parts!

--MrMacMan
 
Saves cost for them, my Samsung digital video camcorder didn't come with one, no biggy, just went to the store and payed $8 for a 6 ft. long 6pin to 4 pin cable.

<-edit-> sometimes they are not needed, so no need to pay an extra amount for it.
 
Yeah but they didn't even mention it.

I mean okay, cost, great, but now they aren't gonna get my money, some generic company will.

Loss for them.

And Loss since Their over 300 page manual could have covered importing video!!!!
 
i guess its the same way that many printers don't have any cables...i had a spare usb one lying around so it isn't a big issue to me but for some people it is.

i'm confused about what cable you don't have a 6pin to 6pin or a 4pin to 6pin.....Not to sound pretentious but many modern mac users have atleast one of those for an ext hard drive or an ipod or an isight....
 
I don't think any video camera comes with a firewire cable. I have a JVC and I had to go out and buy my own firewire cable. I'm sure the need for a firewire cable is mentioned in the manual someplace.
 
I have an older CanonDV camera and it came with a 4 pin to 6 pin firewire cable. But my Epson 2200 printer that cost $600 didn't come with one and that was a more recent purchase.

Its my belief that they are under so much pressure due to competition that they're cutting costs where ever possible. Its sucks, that's for sure, but it also means that the competition is working. You wouldn't want them to skimp on quality and give you a $10 cable.....;)

D
 
Originally posted by Mr. Anderson
You wouldn't want them to skimp on quality and give you a $10 cable.....;)

D
Click to expand...

and if you pay more than that for regular firewire cable, theres something wrong :D
 
Look, I looked through all the pages that apply and I say nothing.


I mean I don't care that they skimped, oh well you know alot of places are doing that, but I'm pissed about how much time i wasted.


I looked at each place 5 times over, no software patches, no downloads needed, nothing.

And the tech support online didn't work... arg...

If it is $10 good cause I want to buy this tomorrow not wait till I scrape the money together.


arg...

Not to sound pretentious but many modern mac users have atleast one of those for an ext hard drive or an ipod or an isight....
Click to expand...

I'm not rich, I don't have either, I wish I had both, but alas no.
 
sorry dude, but I believe your grant has weak foundation, especially as a mac user. We have had firewire for longer than anybody else !!!

I do not know of any camera today that comes with a FW cable. I am talking video cameras up to $4000. iMovie, like FCP and similar DV editors all work through FW to capture video, because there is no other way of doing it. If you looked at the help for iMovie I bet you would have found out about that.

Anyway, I wish you the best of luck once you get your cable.
 
Dude they rarely include expensive wires with electronics...
Especially cheaper ones.
I mean cmon, any of you who bought a printer lately noticed that they also need a USB wire which is never included.
That's even more stupid. Atleast Camcorder can work w/o firewire cable, printer cant work at all...
It really isnt a big news and nothing to get really pissed about.
Just get the damn wire....
 
Whatever, I just wasted like 5 hours ripping my hair out trying to find what the hell was wrong.


All they needed to do was mention it... but nope...

:(

No where... :(

And no the camcorder (atleast I have not found a way) cannot work without it.
 
I commizerate...

I was totally stunned when I openned my Espon Photo Stylus 960 to find that they didn't include any interface cable at all -- no FW, no USB, no parallel, no nuthin'!

I was guaranteed, 100%, absolutely certain to be completely unable to use their product without a trip back to the store. What kind of system is that, I ask you?

And, of course, there was zero indication of this at any point in the purchase proccess. I agree -- it's not so much about asking me to buy the cable, but rather not even having the common courtesy to let me know that I need to. Subpar.
 
Usually it says on the box whats included with it, atleast it did on my camcorder. Thats how I knew. Weird that they didn't do the same on those items.
 
cables not included

with printers it makes a bit more sense to not include a cable (I've sold tech in retail for 5 years) and the reason we were told is that the vendors don't know where the printer would be placed in a room so including a 6' cable when a 10' is needed or vice versa would be costly.
 
Just thought I would let you know that my Canon ZR50 came with a firewire cable. Maybe I was just lucky. I also have that port in the front of my camera under the lens

P.S. page 12 tells you all the things on the camcorder right hand side....also says go to pages 88, 92, 102, 110

Hope that helps
 
Slightly OT: Maybe it's just in Europe, but with the last two Macs I bought new, there's been a 4pin -> 6pin firewire cable in the box with them.

However I've never seen a Firewire cable in the box with a Canon consumer camcorder. In fact the only time I've ever seen a Firewire cable in a Canon box was when I got my XL1S at work.
 
Originally posted by gello2424
Just thought I would let you know that my Canon ZR50 came with a firewire cable. Maybe I was just lucky. I also have that port in the front of my camera under the lens

P.S. page 12 tells you all the things on the camcorder right hand side....also says go to pages 88, 92, 102, 110

Hope that helps
Click to expand...

So do i.

Mine did not ship with the cable.

I have the ZR50 (popular model?)

Only on page 102 do they tell you its 'commerically available'.

And they put all those under 'editing'... meh.
 
Printers and camcorders generally don't come with cables. printers don't come with one because the offer more than one way to connect to the computer, and offering cables for each way would get expensive, my DV camera came with a usb :rolleyes: cable, but I already had a 4-6 pin fw cable that came with my computer (hence the DV in iMac DV).
 
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