Sanyo Xacti VPC-HD1 product features:
* Digital media camera takes combines the functionality of a digital camera with a digital camcorder
* Records 720-pixel high-definition digital video and high-quality 5.1-megapixel digital still images simultaneously
* Clear 2.2-inch, OLED (Organic Light-Emitting Diode) display with 210,000 total pixels
* Highly efficient 10x optical zoom lens and 10x digital zoom
* Compact, […]

CamcorderInfo has a review of the Samsung SC-D365 and writes, “On the surface, the SC-D365 seems an attractive offer. With multiple card compatibility, solid manual control, a mic input, and most importantly, a low price tag, what’s not to like? Well, it turns out there’s a fair amount. The video performance is terrible, really […]

CamcorderInfo gives us a first impressions look at the Sony HDR-SR1 and writes, “We’re incredibly excited by this camcorder. We thought this was going to be a year of better developments on the low end, but, Sony suprised us with something truly amazing for a last minute holiday season push with these new models. […]

CamcorderInfo has a first impressions look at the Sony HDR-UX1 and writes, “Sony’s new HDR-UX1 is a camcorder that defies categorization, and is unlike anything else available on the market in several respects. It is the first AVCHD camcorder (along with the hard disk drive HDR-SR1) and the first DVD camcorder to record high […]

The Hitachi DX-BX35A offers the following features:
* Records video and still images
* 16:9 recording mode for DVD-RAM, DVD-R, and DVD-RW formats
* 2.7-inch LCD display; 25x optical, 1200x super digital lens
* Video-to-Photo Frame Grab Tool allows you to pull photo stills to an SD card
* CinemaRes uses entire CCD to capture both video and […]

CNET Asia has a review of the Sony DCR-DVD755 and writes, “the DVD755’s 690,000-effective-pixel video looks pretty mediocre–it’s soft, with purple fringing, severely blown out highlights, and the occasional motion hiccup. That’s for video shot outdoors, in the type of diffuse afternoon light photographers like best. Indoors, the video also becomes visually noisy–even with […]

Digital Content Producer takes a look at the film quality produced by three camcorder: Sony HDR-FX1, Canon’s XL H1, and JVC’s GY-HD100.
The winner: “the JVC, which costs $3,000 less than the Canon XL H1 and offers true progressive frames, good resolution, and smoothness throughout.”
Read the full article here.

CNET has a review up of the Sony Handycam DCR-SR100 and writes, “Fast power-up, responsive zoom operation, and generally zippy autofocus contribute to the Sony Handycam DCR-SR100 ’s fluid performance. … Unfortunately, the touch screen itself is awkward to use and isn’t as bright as some camcorders’ LCDs. … There’s a lot to like […]

DVFormat reviewed the JVC Everio GZ-MG77U and wrote, “There are no tapes or DVD media to buy, fumble with or lose, there are no heads to clean, and you can forget the traditional rewind/fast forward button. Those are some of the positives. On the other hand, you have to rely on your computer, DVD […]

Earlier this month, IT Reviews reviewed the Ulead VideoStudio 10 Plus and wrote, “it’s breathtakingly easy to apply good effects and transitions, and it’s breathtakingly easy to over-use them to the point of wrecking your production. Responsibility for the latter lies with the user, of course, and you’d be hard pushed to pin the […]

CNET reviewed the JVC GR-D650 last month, and wrote, “In low light, image quality is better than that of many other cameras in the GR-D650’s class, thanks to the camera’s automatic gain control. This reduces noise significantly in low-light conditions, though it also causes color to lose saturation as well as a noticeable amount […]

CamcorderInfo reviewed the Sony DCR-HC46 last month and wrote, “Sony camcorders are simple machines to operate. Their Easy mode and their touch screen LCD menus have a powerful draw for the beginners and technologically disinclined. These conveniences come at a steep cost, however. Manual controls are curtailed, and do not include shutter speed, aperture, […]

This week at Digital Camcorder Reviews, we’ll be on a bit of a holiday posting schedule. So we’ve lined up a catch-up week, catching up on a few great reviews that were written before this site came into being.
We’ll be back to regular posts next week.

Samsung Press Release excerpt
Samsung’s SC-D963 Mini-DV Mega Pixel camcorder features a 1.1 MegaPixel CCD with 26x optical zoom. The SC-D963 features a 2.5″ LCD color viewfinder, SD/MMC slot and 32MB built-in memory.
The Mini-DV Mega camcorders feature true Samsung flexibility with 1152 x 864 digital still image capture, MPEG4 video recording and webcam capability. The […]

Samsung has announced the Samsung SC-D365, a camcorder featuring a 680k pixel CCD for superior quality picture in a small package. MPEG4 recording, webcam capability, and 800×600 still image capture keepsthe SC-D365 a cut above in versatility and convenience; USB 2.0 and PictBridgeâ„¢ technology make file transfer a snap.
The SC-D365 also features a 33x […]

The Samsung SC-D363 Mini-DV Compact camcorder features a 680k pixel CCD for superior quality picture in a small package. MPEG4 recording, webcam capability, and 800×600 still image capture keeps the SC-D363 a cut above in versatility and convenience; USB 2.0 and PictBridgeâ„¢ technology make file transfer a snap.
The SC-D363 features a 30x optical/1200x digital […]

CNET has a review up of the Sony Handycam DCR-DVD305 and writes, “the DVD305’s 690,000-effective-pixel video looks pretty mediocre–it’s soft, with purple fringing, severely blown out highlights, and the occasional motion hiccup. That’s for video shot outdoors, in the type of diffuse afternoon light photographers like best. Indoors, the video also becomes visually noisy–even […]

The Samsung SC-X210WL is a sports camcorder which sports a wireless remote lens unit so that you can shoot real action footage without worrying about and cables. The remote now has a 15-foot range.
The SC-X210WL will be available in September.
Samsung SC-X210WL specs:
* MPEG4(ASP)
* F1.8-2.4 lens, 18.6mm
* Battery: 1hr. 10min.
* USB 2.0
* Supplied Accessories: AC […]

PCMag has a review of the Sony HDR-HC3 and writes, “In both real-world and lab tests, the HC3’s video footage, when viewed on either an HDTV or a computer monitor, offered exceptionally clear details and the subtlest of textures. … My main concern is that the camera has limited external controls, such as a […]

DigitalTrends has a review up of the JVC GZ-MG505 and writes, “the results? Better this go-round but no prize ribbon. Video had much less digital noise than previous Everios I used. In fact, it was like night and day, the results were so much better. Where this camcorder disappointed was its color rendition. Although […]

The 60GB hard drive of the DCR-SR80 camcorder captures up to 41 hours of video in long-play mode (3Mbps) or up to 14 hours of footage in high quality mode (9Mbps). The DCR-SR60 and the DCR-SR40 models have comparable recording times with 30GB of internal memory - up to 20 hours of footage in long play mode and more than seven hours in high quality mode.

The Panasonic PV-GS180 offers the following features:
* 2.3 Megapixel CCD image sensor
* 2.5 inch LCD display
* 10x optical zoom, 700x digital zoom
* DV output
* Hi-speed USB 2.0
* MotionDV Studio video editing software

Sony has just announced the upcoming release of the DCR-SR60, a standard definition hard drive camcorder with the following features:
* 30GB hard drive (up to 20 hours of video in LP mode)
* 680K Advanced HAD CCD with 1/5.5″ CCD imager
* Carl Zeiss Vario Tessar 30mm lens
* 12x optical zoom
* 800x digital zoom
* Dolby 5.1 […]

The Sony HDR-SR1 is a hard drive-based high definition camcorder using the new AVCHD format. It encodes video up to 24 megabits per second to the internal hard drive, and is the first hard drive based camcorder to record in full high definition.
The Video can be stored on either a DVD-R disc, the […]

The Sony HDR-UX1 is the first AVCHD format camcorder. It records high definition to a standard DVD disc using the AVCHD format. The HDR-UX1 also has the ability to use a Dual Layer Disk, which allows the capture of up to 1 houro f HD footage. Audio is recorded in Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround […]

JVC announced the release of the GY-HD110U, an update to its production-quality GY-HD100U HDV camcorder. The GY-HD110U offers the following new features:
* Black & white viewfinder display mode
* Simultaneous use of both eyepiece viewfinder and tri-mode LCD display when powered by Anton Bauer or IDX battery system
* Selectable mirror mode on vertically flipped LCD […]

Sony has just announced the upcoming release of the DCR SR40, a standard definition hard drive camcorder with the following features:
* 30GB hard drive (up to 20 hours of video in LP mode)
* 680K Advanced HAD CCD with 1/6-inch CCD imager
* Carl Zeiss Vario Tessar 30mm lens
* optical zoom
* 800x digital zoom
* Dolby 5.1 […]

CNET has a review of the Hitachi DZ-GX3200A and writes, “The DZ-GX3200A’s video quality is about what you’d expect from a midprice MiniDV camcorder. At low compression, video was sharp with some motion artifacts and edge crawl, along with a bit of blooming. At higher compression levels, banding showed up more often in areas […]

Ulead VideoStudio 10 Plus Reviews
PCMag has a review of the Ulead VideoStudio 10 Plus, and is impressed enough with its features to give it an Editor’s Choice, writing, “Though Ulead’s VideoStudio isn’t the best pure video editor in its class, it’s quite capable, and no tool converts DV tapes to DVD faster. More important, none […]

CNET has a review up of the Hitachi DZ-GX3100A, giving it 6.2 out of 10 and writing, “Performance was almost identical to that of the DZ-GX3200A and the DZ-GX3300A, with a speedy start-up, comfortable zoom control, and pleasingly responsive autofocus. The electronic image stabilization was effective to about 75 percent of the camera’s zoom […]

PCMag reviewed the Sony DCR-SR100 last month and writes, “In the action clip, the DCR-SR100 did a much better job than the GZ-MG77U did in quickly locking into autofocus. There was a bit of artifacting, especially on the signs we use in our tests. On the EIA resolution chart, the DCR-SR100 scored a decent […]

Instructables has detailed directions for building your own underwater housing for your miniDV camcorder:
“Scuba housings are not cheap to buy, but they are cheap to build. Home Depot parts + internet mail order + time = Housing for about $70 worth of parts. Start your cam recording, seal it in the housing, edit later. […]

CIO Tech Informer reports that Sony is set to unveil its new AVCHD camcorder next Wednesday. The AVCHD format was created because studies have shown that camcorder users prefer using DVDs as recording media versus tape or hard-disk.
“AVCHD has been developed by Sony and Matsushita Electric Industrial (Panasonic) as a way to allow […]

The Sanyo Xacti HD1a records in HD and also takes camera stills. Features include a 5.1 megapixel sensor, 16:9 still picture mode, in-camera editing capability, 320 x 240 MPEG-4 recording mode that can play on your iPod, and uses miniDV media.
Via Engadget.

Verbatim has announced their new Mini DVD+R Double Layer, 8cm write-once discs which provide camcorders with continuous 55-minute DVD recording.
More information can be found in the press release below.
Verbatim Press Release
Verbatim, a pioneer in developing advanced DVD and Double Layer technologies, today announced their new Mini DVD+R Double-Layer (DL) disc. Measuring only 8cm in […]

Camcorder Info has a detailed review of the Hitachi DZ-GX3300A and comes to a very straight-to-the point and blunt conclusion: “While the DZ-GX3300 might be the best that Hitachi has to offer, it is easily the worst high-end DVD camcorder we’ve seen this year. We wracked our brains trying to figure out why someone […]

The Sony DCR-HC96 offers similar features found in the Sony DCR-HC46, and also includes a three-megapixel Advanced HAD CCD, three-megapixel stills, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T* Lens, digital still image capture in 16:9 and 4:3 aspect ratios, and built-in flash.

The Sony DCR-HC46 includes the features of the DCR-HC36, and adds a one-megapixel Advanced HAD CCD, one-megapixel stills, 2.7-inch wide (16:9) touch panel SwivelScreen LCD, and supplied Handycam Station cradle.

The Sony DCR-HC36 features a 680K-pixel Advanced HAD â„¢ CCD, Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar lens, 2.5-inch hybrid SwivelScreen touch panel LCD, color viewfinder, Memory Stick Duo media slot and supplied remote.

The Sony DCR-HC26 MiniDV Handycam® Camcorder offers a 680K-pixel Advanced HAD ™ CCD, Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar lens, 2.5-inch hybrid SwivelScreen touch panel LCD, and color viewfinder.

PCMag has a review of the Canon DC40 and writes, “The overall quality is quite good, although the Sony DCR-DVD505, with its larger LCD screen and an easy-to-use touch screen, is just a bit better. I was disappointed in the DC40’s Night or Super Night mode. It’s designed for use in low-light situations, but […]

The Hitachi DZ-GX3200A offers 2.12-megapixel resolution, with a maximum resolution of 1600 x 1200. The camcorder also supports the following four formats: DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, and DVD-RAM. As well, there’s support for SD memory cards.
Other features include:
* Video-to-Photo Frame Grab tool
* Sleep/Restart feature
* record in either 4:3 standard aspect ratio or in 16:9 widescreen […]

CamcorderInfo has an indepth review up of the Sony DCR-DVD105 and writes, “On the whole, the picture is rather soft-looking; it lacks crispness around the edges and borders. Thankfully, however, there is not much in-camera sharpening. With low-resolution chips, sharpening can often have a detrimental effect on the look of curves and diagonal lines. […]

CNET has a review of the Hitachi DZ-GX3300A and writes, “Similar to last year’s DZ-GX20A, the Hitachi DZ-GX3300A’s video quality is about what you’d expect from a midpriced MiniDV camcorder. At low compression, video was sharp with some motion artifacts and edge crawl, along with a bit of blooming. At higher compression levels, banding […]

The Sony DCR-DVD403 features Dolby ® Digital 5.1 Creator, which incorporates built-in, multichannel microphones, so you can record your home movies in 5.1 channel digital surround sound.
Other Sony DCR-DVD403 features include:
* 3.3 (gross) Megapixel Advanced HAD â„¢ CCD
* 2.7-inch wide hybrid SwivelScreen â„¢ touch- panel LCD screen, allowing switching between 16:9 and 4:3 aspect […]

PCMag has a review up of the Sony DCR-DVD505, and gives the camcorder an Editor’s Choice: “My tests revealed video footage that nears the quality of miniDV camcorders. My “talking head” footage had just the right amount of color saturation and contrast. I was definitely impressed with the skin tones. I also found the […]

The Pure Digital Point and Shoot camcorder is a compact, affordable, easy-to-use camcorder for making home movies. It doesn’t have a lot of fancy features - for example, it lacks optical zoom - but it’s target consumer is one who just wants a camcorder that will make home movies easily, with just a push […]

The Sony DCR-SR100 Handycam has 30GB hard disk drive storage and built-in Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound. Supports an optional Bluetooth microphone for enhanced center channel sound. Three-megapixel Advanced HAD CCD, three-megapixel, digital still capture in 16:9 and 4:3 aspect ratios, built-in flash, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonnar T* lens, 2.7-inch wide (16:9) touch panel SwivelScreen […]

The JVC Everio GZ-MG77U is a compact hard drive camcorder offering the following features:
* 2.2 Megapixel CCD for high-quality digital stills of up to UXGA (1632×1224) image size
* 7 Hours of High-Quality MPEG-2 Video Recording (Average 8.5Mbps, 720×480/60i in ULTRA mode) with Dolby Digital Audio (MOD file)
* Up to 37 Hours of Recording with […]

The Hitachi DZ-GX3300A offers 3.3-megapixel resolution at a maximum resolution of 2016 x 1512. The camcorder provides four format choices: DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, and DVD-RAM. The DZ-GX3300A also supports SD cards for storing digital still images.
Other features include:
* Video-to-Photo Frame Grab tool
* Sleep/Restart feature
* record video in either 4:3 standard aspect ratio or in […]

MAGIX Movie Edit Pro 11 product description: “Movie Edit Pro 11 gives you the professional, easy-to-use features you need to create the best in movie production. This software makes it a snap for anyone to transform your digital footage into grea-looking home video productions. Make cuts, build special effects and 3D transitions, and create […]

CNET has a review of the Canon DC40 and writes, “the DC40 operates smoothly and quickly. It adjusts focus rapidly when zooming and panning, for both high- and low-contrast subjects, and swiftly adapts to changes in subject exposure. The zoom switch is quite responsive; in variable-zoom mode, the lens can go from wide to […]

CNET has a review of the Sony HDR-HC3 and writes, “Anyone who is happy enough to let the camera do the work should be pleasantly surprised with the outcome. The automatic features tend to get it right and they’re quicker than one might expect. … A good choice for families wanting to match a […]

The Sony DCR-DVD105 provides the benefits of recording video directly to -R/-RW/+RW DVD media. Features include: 680K-pixel Advanced HAD ™ CCD, Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar ® lens, 2.5-inch hybrid SwivelScreen ™ touch panel LCD, and color viewfinder.

PCAuthority has a review up of the Canon DC40, and writes, “The video output is much better than a high quality VHS signal, but not as good as Mini DV. Colours are compressed but still retain a lot of contrast which makes the footage feel more alive. During high motion scenes, the compressed signal […]

Trusted Reviews has a review up of the Sony HDR-HC3E and writes, “If you’ve used the HDR-HC1E or Sony’s more professional HDV models for any length of time, you can’t help feeling disappointed by the HDR-HC3E’s lack of prosumer features. All that video quality, with so little user control. But then there’s the price. […]

LaptopMag has a mini-review of the Canon ZR700 and writes, “Video quality was a bit blown out in daylight, with objects showing evidence of purple fringing when fully zoomed to 25X. In low light, image quality suffered from excessive noise, appearing slightly muddy.”
Read more about the Canon ZR700.

The Sony DCR-DVD505 has all the features of Sony’s DCR-DVD405, and adds a two-megapixel ClearVID CMOS sensor, four-megapixel digital stills, a 3.5-inch wide (16:9) touch panel SwivelScreen LCD, a dual record function to capture video and three-megapixel stills simultaneously, and smooth slow record function for slow motion video.

The Sony DCR-DVD405 provides the benefits of recording video directly to -R/-RW/+RW DVD media. Other features include three-megapixel Advanced HAD CCD, three-megapixel digital stills, built-in flash, Carl Zeiss Vario-Sonar T* ® lens, 2.7-inch wide (16:9) touch panel SwivelScreen LCD, digital still image capture in 16:9 and 4:3 aspect ratios, color viewfinder, built-in Dolby Digital […]

The Sony DCR-DVD305 provides the benefits of recording video directly to -R/-RW/+RW DVD media. Other features include one-megapixel Advanced HAD CCD, one-megapixel digital still images, Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar ® lens, 2.7-inch wide (16:9) touch panel SwivelScreen LCD, digital still image capture in 16:9 and 4:3 aspect ratios, color viewfinder, and Dolby Digital 5.1 surround […]

The Sony DCR-DVD205 provides the benefits of recording video directly to -R/-RW/+RW DVD media. Other features include one-megapixel Advanced HAD CCD, one-megapixel digital still images, Carl Zeiss Vario-Tessar ® lens, 2.7-inch wide (16:9) touch panel SwivelScreen LCD, digital still image capture in 16:9 and 4:3 aspect ratios and color viewfinder.

The JVC Everio GZ-MG505 sits at the top of the Everio G Series line because of its superior image quality, made possible by a 3-CCD imaging device that uses pixel-shift technology to deliver 5-megapixel quality. In addition to native full resolution 16:9 (1173 x 660 x3 effective pixels) and 4:3 DVD movie quality video […]

The Panasonic SDR-S150 is a small and rugged camcorder that records onto SD memory cards. Features include a Leica Dicomar lens, a 3CCD system, Crystal Engine image-processing, and an Optical Image Stabilizer.

The UVCorder is a digital, near-ultraviolet camcorder, designed for viewing scenes in the near-UV waveband in real time on a 3.5-inch LCD display.
From the news release:
Oculus Photonics LLP introduces the world’s first digital, near-ultraviolet (near-UV) camcorder, the UVCorderâ„¢. The lightweight, portable system was developed in response to the need for a digital imaging solution […]

The Mustek DV536 is a hybrid camcorder and still camera. It features an MPEG-4 camcorder and a 5-megapixel still image camera. There’s also an MP3 player and a digital video player, and the device sports a 2.4-inch screen.
More information is in the press release below.
Digital convergence has transformed the consumer electronics landscape, and few […]

The Hitachi DZGX3100A DVD Camcorder sports a 1.3 mega pixel resolution at 1280 x 960 and 15x Optical Zoom and 800x Super Digital Zoom. The unit comes with a 700mAh slim battery that records for over an hour with the widescreen LCD open, Composite and S-Video Inputs, a USB 2.0 cable and PC and […]

The Canon DC40 is a 4.3 megapixel DVD camcorder that also doubles as a digital photo. Features include an RGB Primary Color Filter, DIGIC DV image processor, the Canon Widescreen HR (High Resolution) 16:9 recording for true widescreen video, and a 2.7-inch Widescreen display panel.

CNET UK has an article called “Become a Camcorder Pro“, a great read if you’re looking to do more with your digital camcorder than record the upcoming family vacation for prosperity.
“Many camcorder enthusiasts dream of making a movie that captures the popular imagination. From the nauseating Blair Witch Project to the impressive auto-biopic […]

The Sony HDR-HC3E is a digital high definition video camera in an easy-to-hold compact size.
The HDR-HC3E features higher image quality, a small and lightweight body, and ease of use.

The Canon Elura 100 offers Widescreen HR recording and a 2.7-inch widescreen display panel. There’s also a joystick, Smooth Zoom Control, Level Shot Control, 9point AiAF autofocus and advanced photo features.

The Canon ZR500 is an affordable DV camcorder featuring a widescreen resolution feature and a 2.7-inch widescreen display panel. There’s also 25x optical zoom and 800x digital zoom, Smooth Zoom Control, Level Shot Control and microphone terminal.

The Canon ZR600 is a camcorder in Canon’s affordable ZR series. The ZR600 sports Canon’s Widescreen high resolution feature, a 2.7-inch widescreen display panel, 25x optical zoom, 800x digital zoom, level shot control and digital photo capture. The ZR600 also includes a remote control and the Canon Zoom Browser software.
Check price and availability […]

The Canon ZR700 is an affordable camcorder featuring the Canon Widescreen high resolution feature, which enables full-screen image viewing on widescreen TVs. Other features include a 2.7-inch widescreen display panel, 25x optical zoom, 1000x digital zoom, level shot control and digital photo capture.
Check price and availability of the Canon ZR700 camcorder at Amazon. […]

The JVC GR D650 is a MiniDV camcorder with 15X optical zoom. Other features:
* built-in teleconversion lens
* onscreen menu system
* 1.33-megapixel resolution for still images
* 1.2 lens
* 3D noise reduction system
* Auto Illumi-Light
* 2.5-inch LCD color monitor
* Super High-Band processor, 540 lines of resolution
* Power-Linked operation
Check price and availability at Amazon.com.

Welcome to Digital Camcorder Reviews. We are in the pre-launch phase of our site, but will be up and running very shortly, with regular postings bringing you the latest digital camcorder reviews online, and digital filmmaking news, tips and accessories.
We’ll be posting several catch-up posts, to bring the site up-to-date with the latest […]