Panasonic SDR-S26 SD Camcorder (Black)

Uh people...this is a sub-$200 camcorder NOT a commercial grade HD unit!

I have read all the reviews I could find here and elsewhere about this camcorder and I came away with the impression that the more critical opinions stemmed from unrealistic expectations or poor reading comprehension from the reviewers themselves.

As it turns out I was right.

This is an inexpensive and very compact and lightweight standard definition camcorder designed for the casual user who does not want to sink a whole month's pay into just to record some personal events.

First the good and bad:

Pros:

1) Unusually small and lightweight this is easily carried in a jacket pocket.

2) The startup time even when not set in Quickstart mode is five seconds. Nice way to capture surprises on the go.

3) The iA mode which automatically sets the iris shutter white balance and other major aspects of recording works pretty well even though resorting to the manual settings is still required for some unusual applications.

4) The incredible 70x optical zoom is unparalleled in a camera at this price point.

5) The Optical Image Stabilization is considerably more effective than the more common digital stabilization found in all other cameras in this price range. Just don't expect to get away with using the full 70x zoom while hand holding it though!

6) The MPEG2 format used for recording is easily handled under my admittedly eccentric choice of operating system Linux.

7) The SDHC storage medium allows random access to recordings easy deletion no moving parts and a storage medium that is handled under even Linux with a cardreader. Also the camcorder itself is recognized under Linux so the files can be manipulated through the integral USB port if desired.

8) The manual settings allow the user to adjust for unusual conditions such as low light just as long as you READ THE MANUAL FIRST then experiment a bit on your own.

9) The camcorder is almost noiseless in operation so there is no clicking from a DVD whirring of a hard drive humming of a DVC drive motor or motor from the lens being zoomed in and out.

10) The integral lens cover which is built into the front of the camera surrounding the lens cannot be lost.

11) The barrel surrounding the lens area is threaded allowing accessories such as wide angle and zoom lenses and filters to be screwed in for special applications. Those accessories are easily found right here on Amazon.

12) Hey! It even comes with a proper printed manual a rarity in this day of PDF manuals available only on CD-ROM or via websites.



Cons:

1) It would have been nice if Panasonic had added a microphone jack to allow a separate microphone to be used. However the integral microphone works rather well on its own.

2) In certain applications especially indoors the image can take on a reddish cast when using the default iA setting. This is easily overcome by adjusting the white balance for incandescent lighting though so no real problem.

3) The battery life of ~1 hour is rather short and requires opening a cover on the bottom to replace when discharged. I already ordered two spares and a standalone charger.

4) This may be looked at as good or bad depending on your opinion but the battery does not charge with the cable plugged in while the camera is in use. I actually look at this as a good thing since it does not wear out the battery by discharging it while it is charging which can cause premature failure of lithium-ion batteries. It simply runs directly from the power cord when plugged in which is no real problem as far as I am concerned.

5) Even at the MagicPix setting designed for extreme low light this camcorder will not work in a completely dark room. I don't really even worry about that. If I really wanted to record in such extreme conditions I would spring for a considerably more expensive night shot camcorder. It still does pretty well in low light as long as there is at least 2 lumens of light present.



My opinions on this are that this is unusually good for a camcorder in its price range especially for its two main selling points of its fantastic 70x optical zoom and optical image stabilization.

It is so simple to operate that even a young child could understand it using the nicely automated settings.

Yes there are some circumstances that call for manual intervention but the people griping about this especially those attempting (apparently) to take footage inside a cave would be well advised to READ THE MANUAL and not expect the impossible from such an inexpensive camcorder.

I was able to take some nighttime footage with this with only sodium and mercury vapor light illumination and it did pretty well.

And while it is true that my naked eyes are good in light far lower than this can handle I have a more realistic expectation of it than some of the more critical people out there.

I intend to have a family member use this next year for my wedding and I am confident that it will work just fine for that too.

Nice work Panasonic!More detail ...

JVC GZ-MG750 80 GB HDD Camcorder

Excellent camcorder at a great price!

This is a wonderful compact camcorder for filming family and sporting events. I prevously had a Sony handcam which uses DV tapes but it finally broke down after 10+ years. This JVC camcorder is about 1/4 the size and weight of my previous one so it's handy to put into my purse. I also looked at the new Sony handycams but I was not impressed by their image stabilization. The JVC camcorders were much better. The controls are pretty easy to operate. I read the manual front to back but I was able to show my husband how to use the basic controls in 5 minutes. He probably could have figured it out himself since it's fairly intuitive. I like how the camcorder turns on automatically when you open the screen. We tape our daughter's gymnastic competitions so the 45X zoom is fantastic since the equipment is usually far from the spectators. The zoom button is a little hard to operate with your right finger since it's also holding the camcorder but you can also zoom using the screen. The picture quality is fine if you want better you might want to get the HD version. For the price it's definitely a good buy.



The only disappointment for me is that JVC camcorders output in their proprietary .MOD format which is not readable on my old MAC 10.4x Tiger OS. I found a s/w program that supposedly converts various formats that the MAC can read but the output resolution was awful. I ended up using the JVC supplied Pixela s/w to create a DVD that I can play on the TV. The Pixela s/w is OK and you have to do some reading in order to figure out what you want to do but it does the job. I wish I can use iMovie on the MAC since it has more features and is easier to use.More detail ...

Kodak Zi8 Pocket Video Camera (Black)

Best camcorder if you're on a budget and need external mic input

Check out my sample footage video on Youtube. On Youtube search "djeror zi8 low light"



In my previous review of the Kodak Zi8 I was pretty frustrated at the fact that whenever I used the built in microphone the recorded videos had an annoying high pitch whine that made the audio from my videos almost unusable. Kodak recognized that this was an issue and created a firmware update that fixed the problem. It also fixed a few other things like the previous issue of the image getting darker as you zoomed in. They seem to have fixed all of the major problems with this firmware fix.





I do tech product reviews so I need the following things:



- External mic input - most of my videos are shot wearing a lapel mic

- Macro mode - I have to get close to little tiny screens

- SDHC memory - I go to all day trade shows I need 10+ hours of video

- Power options - I need to be able to shoot while AC power is plugged in or use a large external battery.

- Under $200 - I'm poor.



Because of these requirements no other camcorder can fit my needs. One cool thing about this camera is that it is much more upgradable than the other pocket cameras on the market.





Con:

-The built in microphone is OK now that they fixed the whining noise but it's still not amazing.



Work-around:

- Don't use the internal mic... I use an Audio Technica lapel mic for 1 person interviews.Audio Technica ATR-3350 Lavalier Omnidirectional Condenser Microphone For events I ordered a Sony stereo mic to use instead of the built in mic. Sony ECM-DS70P Electret Condenser Stereo Microphone . Although I wish that Kodak made the internal mic better for the most part I am kind of excited that the Sony stereo mic will give me much better sound than any of the standard internal mics that any of the pocket cams have.







Con:

-Electronic Image Stabilization (EIS) sucks a lot of juice. Also the Zi8 uses a proprietary battery rather than cheap swappable AA's. Battery life when shooting non-stop is 1hr 16min in 720p 60fps with EIS on. If you turn off EIS you get about 1hr 41min at 720p 60fps.



Work-around:

- Use the USB to power cable that comes with the camera in conjunction with an external battery source. This is a must if you are going to be recording for more than an hour with EIS cause that's about what the internal battery will give you. Tekkeon TekCharge Rechargeable Li-Poly Battery You can just stick this battery pack in your pocket and connect the charging cable to the Zi8. This will allow you to record for a super long amount of time. I haven't tested to see what my total record time with the battery pack will be but it should be around 5X the standard recording time. (about 6 hours with EIS on almost 9 with it off) This gives you the best battery life of almost any camcorder. Sure it's an extra cost but when you're at an all day trade show you don't have to worry about running out of juice.







Con:

- Image stabilization can't rescue video you shoot while moving around. Any camera motion makes video awful.



Work-round:

- Accept the fact you should probably be using a mini tripod with this camera or at least stand still. Also although it takes a bunch of time to process if you have the new iMovie the image stabilization processing you can do is light years beyond what the EIS in the Kodak Zi8 can do.





One more important note. Make sure you buy high speed SDHC memory cards for this thing. If your SD card is not fast enough the camera will record for like 2 seconds and then stop with an error. It took me a while to figure out why the camera kept stopping recording when in HD mode but worked fine in SD mode. It was because of my old SD card. You need to make sure your SD card has a write speed of at least 9MB/s if you want to record in 1080p. These high speed cards cost more but you need them for any camcorder that is going to record HD video to them it's not just the Zi8. I think most Class 6 high speed SDHC cards should work.



If you want to get the most out of this camera plan on spending an extra $100 - $150 in order to buy upgrade items. Personally I've come to the conclusion that the extra expenses were worth it. It all depends on what you plan on using the camera for. For a typical mom purse cam this would not be my recommendation I would say go with a Flip Ultra HD. But for someone with particular needs like mine this camera may be the only one that fits the bill.More detail ...