HD Camcorders Guide and Reviews

Panasonic HDC-HS300

Executive summary about Panasonic HDC-HS300 by Lori Grunin

hard drive camcorders

The good: High-quality video; solid performance; electronic viewfinder; full manual feature set.

The bad: Touch screen not responsive enough.

The bottom line: A very good prosumer HD camcorder, the Panasonic HDC-HS300 still isn’t as good a deal as the similarly featured but flash-based TM300 and has the same annoying touch-screen interface.

Specifications: Video input type: Camcorder; Optical sensor type: 3CMOS; Optical zoom: 12 x.

Price range: $1,264.95 - $1,499.00

Panasonic’s trio of top-of-the-prosumer-line HD camcorders-the flash-based HDC-TM300, and hard-drive-based HDC-HS300 and HDC-HS250–in many ways vastly improves over older models such as the HS100 and SD100. While the company replaced the awkward ring-based manual operation with an equally awkward touch screen, the improvement in video quality and performance make these a far better bet.

The three models incorporate the same 12x zoom f1.8-2.8 lens–the same lens as the HS100/SD100–as well as the same trio of 1/4.1-inch 3-megapixel 3MOS sensors, with an effective resolution of 2.07-megapixels each for 16:9 video. The real 3-megapixels for the predawn sampled AVCHD video finally break the resolution barrier; normally, 3-chip systems use lower-than-HD resolution sensors, which don’t seem to produce terribly sharp HD video.

The TM300 and HS300 share the same higher-end features as the HS100–manual focus ring, EVF, accessory shoe, and microphone input–while the HS250 trades those for a more compact design. Both the HS250 and HS300 have a 120GB hard disk.

Weighing 1 pound, 2 ounces, with dimensions of 2.9 inches wide by 2.8 inches high by 5.5 inches long, the HS300 is the heaviest and largest of the three and is larger than competitors like the Canon Vixia HG20.

In contrast to the older models, only the optical image stabilizer button lives inside the LCD recess, and most of the controls have been replaced by a hybrid button/touch screen interface. (Panasonic recommends a Class 4 card.)

Above the LCD on the body are the Intelligent Auto and 3-second prerecord button; on the LCD’s bezel are zoom and record controls, a delete button, and Q(uick) Menu and Menu buttons. Through the Quick Menu you choose video quality, time lapse, picture size, onscreen display options, LCD brightness, and guidelines. Via Menu you select options such as where to record (hard drive or SD card) and choose from a handful of scene modes. Plus there are options for Digital Cinema (24p) mode, mic options (surround, zoom or focus; bass settings; and levels), and display options like Zebra and histogram. Pressing manual focus switches the lens ring operation between zooming and focusing. The Function button brings up three options on the touch screen: white balance, shutter, and iris.

In auto mode, there’s spot AE and AF, backlight compensation, intelligent contrast, fade, soft skin mode, telemacro, and MagicPix night mode. The video quality is quite good, showing none of the artifacts that plagued the older models. Low-light video looks a bit soft, though not nearly as soft as we’ve seen in previous models, and remains quite noise-free.

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JVC GR-D850

Executive summary about JVC GR-D850 by Michael Patrick Brady

jvc mini camcorder

JVC’s GR-D850 is a refreshingly unpretentious camcorder that not only keeps its operation simple and direct, but provides excellent, high-quality video as well. If you don’t have a lot of money to spend and like the versatility of the MiniDV format, this is the camcorder to get.

The JVC GR-D850 is a MiniDV-based, ultra-compact camcorder. Compared to other ultra-compact camcorders on the market, it is relatively inexpensive at around $215.

Specifications: Video input type: Camcorder; Optical sensor type: CCD; Optical zoom: 35 x .

Price range: $179.95 - $190.05

Description: The JVC GR-D850 is a MiniDV-based, ultra-compact camcorder. Compared to other ultra-compact camcorders on the market, it is relatively inexpensive at around $215.

Pros: Has a 35x optical zoom, which is somewhat more powerful than some similarly priced camcorders. Offers manual focus adjustment, whereas many camcorders have only auto-focus. This product weighs just 14.8 ounces without battery and media, which is very light.

Cons: None noted, given available product data.

Suitability: Built for capturing the everyday moments, since it easily slips into your jacket or bag. This camera’s built-in light will facilitate shooting in dim environments.

Value: In view of its relatively inexpensive price, this camcorder has great features for the money. Normally, ultra-compact camcorders with comparable resolution tend to cost near $300.

Design

At 17 ounces, the GR-D850 is slightly heavier than its peers, the Canon ZR950 and the Sony DCR-HC62 Handycam, and JVC has designed it to be squarer and thicker than its tall, thin counterparts.

Controls

The GR-D850 LCD bezel also features a button that allows the user to quickly switch between the 16:9 widescreen and 4:3 square aspect ratios. Advanced features like exposure adjustments and video effects can be accessed through the easily navigable menu system.

Outdoor-Friendly LCD

The 2.7-inch widescreen LCD display itself is also quite impressive. It provides an excellent image even in direct sunlight, something the ZR950 and DCR-HC62 had difficulty with and which the Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG9 and Pure Digital Flip Video Ultra were unable to do. This is especially critical considering the JVC camcorder doesn’t have a viewfinder.

Very Good Performance

Compared to other budget camcorders we’ve tested, the JVC GR-D850 offers superior video quality. Because accessing the camera’s settings is so simple, making adjustments to compensate for environmental factors like bright light or deep shadow was a snap. JVC’s Night Alive didn’t fare as well as Sony’s Night Shot: It seemed to slow down the frame rate, making the video stutter and appear choppy. The lighter Canon ZR950 and Sony DCR-HC62 did not perform as well on long zoom shots.

Verdict

With excellent ergonomics and endurance, and better video quality than more-expensive competitors, the JVC GR-D850 is a bargain at $229. While it may be a little bit bulkier, you-as well as everyone you show your vacation videos to-will appreciate the steadier shots.

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Canon HV20 Mini DV/HDV Camcorder

Executive summary about Canon HV20Mini DV/HDV Camcorder by Philip Ryan

canon digital camcorder

The good: The Canon HV20 high-definition camcorder has excellent video quality, nice features, HDMI output, and an accessory shoe.

The bad: Can’t change white balance while shooting; night mode doesn’t help poor low-light performance.

The bottom line: Canon’s HV20 camcorder is a great choice for HD-happy amateurs, but its low-light performance could have been better.

Specifications: Video input type: Camcorder; Optical sensor type: CMOS; Optical zoom: 10 x.

Price range: $1,299.95

Canon’s horizontal design solves certain problems, but also made for a larger camcorder. Part of the reason for its size is the HV20’s nice, big, 10x optical, f/1.8 to f/3 zoom lens, which includes the company’s Super-Range Optical Image Stabilization.

Behind the lens, Canon places a 3-megapixel, 1/2.7-inch CMOS sensor that captures 1,920 horizontal and 1,080 vertical pixels for either 1080i high-definition or wide-screen standard-definition video. For still images, the camera captures 2.76 megapixels (1,920×1,440) in 4:3 mode and 2.07 megapixels (1,920×1,080) in 16:9 mode. Atop the lens, Canon places its Advanced Accessory Shoe. Canon also offers the higher-capacity BP-2L14 and the lower-capacity NB-2LH batteries as accessories. An extra battery is always a good idea if you plan to bring the HV20 on vacation.

Canon locates most of the camcorder’s controls in convenient places. At the same time, other oft-accessed controls–program, shutter- and aperture-priority, cine, and scene modes, along with the white balance, image effects, and still-image mode–hide behind the function button. As usual, Canon puts four buttons below the camcorder’s 2.7-inch, wide-screen LCD.

Unfortunately, Canon doesn’t let you change white balance while shooting, so if you move from one type of lighting to another, you’re forced either to stop then restart shooting or to accept the resulting color cast. To address this, Canon includes cine mode, which can be combined with 24p mode if desired and tries to achieve a film-like look by changing the color and gamma performance.

Speaking of footage, we were very impressed with the video we shot with the HV20. Like the HV10, the HV20 did tend to lose some information in highlights, though it preserves noticeably more highlight detail than most non-HD camcorders, and shadow detail was impressive. Since it’s a single-chip design (as opposed to three-chip), low-light performance isn’t amazing. Canon’s night mode does little to fix this, instead dropping the shutter to such a slow speed that you end up with video that looks like lazy stop-action animation.

Despite our handful of gripes, the HV20 will likely be a big seller for Canon. The HV20’s stunning high-definition video and comfortable operation make it a great choice for nonprofessional, HD-happy videographers.

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