[tksjmartin]

I have an older Handycam bought in 2004 - Model DVD 201. I have read the advice from others, wanted to know what firewire do I buy that will fit this camera?

Is it worth the $300 plus for a Miglia Directors Cut II for the purpose of transfering my videos?

I have a IMac 10.4.10

[Pensacola Tiger]

Originally Posted by tksjmartin

I have an older Handycam bought in 2004 - Model DVD 201. I have read the advice from others, wanted to know what firewire do I buy that will fit this camera?

Is it worth the $300 plus for a Miglia Directors Cut II for the purpose of transfering my videos?

I have a IMac 10.4.10

According to what I've been able to find with a quick search, that model does not have Firewire, only USB. Check your user manual to confirm.

If all you are trying to do is transfer a video, see if iMovie meets your needs before spending $300 on software. Your iMac, if it is a recent model, should have come with a version of iMovie.

[tksjmartin]

Ok I checked the imovie and it will not recognize anything. The computer knows there is a componet attached but it thinks it is a disc not a camera.
So if all my movies are on a mini disc, how do I get them to a format that the mac can read?

[Pensacola Tiger]

Originally Posted by tksjmartin

Ok I checked the imovie and it will not recognize anything. The computer knows there is a componet attached but it thinks it is a disc not a camera.
So if all my movies are on a mini disc, how do I get them to a format that the mac can read?

You say that the camera is recognized as a disc. Can you see any files on it? If you try to import with iMovie, can you browse it?

[tksjmartin]

Cannot see files, cannot import. Is there a way to transfer the files to a regular size DVD?

[Pensacola Tiger]

Originally Posted by tksjmartin

Cannot see files, cannot import. Is there a way to transfer the files to a regular size DVD?

I'm not sure what that would accomplish.

I did some research, and your camcorder doesn't record in a format supported by iMovie. It records directly to a mini-DVD in the standard DVD format. The files are probably .VOB files. So what you need is VOB to MPEG conversion software. Try Handbrake for this.