Sony DVD camcorders and macbook

I have the Sony DVD403 DVD camcorder. I bought it just before I bought the MacBook. As I have seen in other posts it doesn't seem to be the best camera for use with Mac. Has anyone got this type of camcorder and actually managed to find out a way to use it with iMovie/iDVD? Selling it and getting a new one doesn't seem like an option for me right now....

hi again,
Michael is right - Toast can do this... also helpful perhaps is the ~20$ application Streamclip...
all the details (and the recipe if using Toast) are in this thread from the Roxio forums:
http://forums.support.roxio.com/index.php?showtopic=1996
there's also the free program called Handbrake which can read video_ts folders and then render the movies to other formats importable into iMovie...
cheers

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    Hi Phyllis,
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    1. Can the iMac read a mini-DVD?
    NO! it has a slot-in drive, you can kill it by using non-standard size/shaped disks....
    2. Will I experience a loss in quality when I import from Mpeg 2?
    For sure! mpeg(2) is a playback format, tricking the eye... the basic principle, why 1h mpeg2 is just 2GB, but 1h miniDV is 13GB: it doesn't store every frame of video (1sec=30 frames), just "differences". If you want to edit such stuff with frame-precision, your Mac needs a lot of computation to "estimate" the content of each frame=VERY lossy process! (not, because a Mac cannot esitmate, but.......;-) )
    3. iM sends some commands to cameras (play, ff, rew, rec)... these commands are not understood by a dvd-camcorder......
    4. you get tapes even in Ivorycoast (we had that lately here....), but mini-dvd-r....?
    5. you get miniDV cameras with a MUCH better pic quality then any miniDVD camera....
    6. tape has a longer lifespan then dvd-r (Hi Lennart! <inside joke>)
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    8. ......... forget that miniDVD thing........... ;-))

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    I have a Sony DVD Camcorder (DCR-DVD 92) and I have recently shot a lot of footage which is now on my computer. The file extensions are .BUP, .IFO, and .VOB. I am able to import some of the files into final cut but they are shortened to only a few seconds each when in reality, they were shot for several minutes. Is there a way to make these work or to convert the files so they can be edited in Final Cut Pro 5?

    mrescobar 1 1,
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    Graham K. Rogers wrote:
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  • Sony DVD Camcorder to iMac

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    welcome TeamIguana to the  board ...
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