The Camcorder has met the Jetsons !
Pros:
Astounding features, incredibly portable, no moving parts, HD video all for under $800 !!
Cons:
Does not include an HDMI cable.
The Bottom Line:
What an incredible feature set! Optics, resolution, battery life, ultra-light, no moving parts, true colors which don't fade in low-light - a must have for the price!
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Overall Rating:
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Author's Review
I've been a relatively "early adapter" when it comes to buying new video camera technology. I started back with the 8 mm analog Sony "handy-cams", moved to the digital Super-VHS 8 mm RCA mini-camcorders and now am at this junction in the evolutionary road of video camera development. I had grown tired of bulky cameras, finicky tape transport mechanisms, digital video "artifacts" blasting across the screen upon play-back, horrible battery life and hum of the tape transport motor if I use the built-in microphone. I've wanted a high-definition (HD) camera for a while, but was unwilling to spend the $3,000 plus for the cameras when all I wanted it for was casual use.
Enter the VPC-HD1000 camera. Wow. No moving parts. Fits in the palm of your hand or an ordinary digital camera bag. It is high definition, 1920x1080 resolution for true 1080i resolution. Amazing f 1.8 wide lens with almost no distortion. What a wonderful time to have this camera when memory is so relatively cheap. No need to record to a spinning hard drive, tape or miniDVD. An SDHC memory card of 4GB size will record 50 minutes of HD video! Double that recording time for an 8GB memory card! Soon 16GB and 32GB cards will be around the corner. Imagine the possibilities!
This camera is so light, transportable and breath-taking in performance. It records wonderful stereo sound with nary a peep from any internal moving part! The 2.7" screen is great for viewing in most light conditions. Speaking of light conditions, the camera works incredibly well in even low-light and office light conditions. The battery life is remarkable at over 200 minutes! If you wish, 4 Megapixel still photos can be shot all day long with this beauty.
With High-Definition video comes the possibility for High-Definition shakes and jitters from the person holding the camera. This was one of my biggest concerns. My last JVC video camera had image stabilization that was okay at best. Somehow the people at Sanyo have managed to put together an image stabilization system that is nothing short of miraculous! The system essentially knocks-out up and down and side to side movement in either telephoto or wide mode! Wow. I am impressed. No sea-sick viewers now.
Advanced videographers can take advantage of multiple video settings, manual focus adjustments, aperature adjustments and other modes and resolutions (all the way down to VGA). I won't bore you with the many settings, but suffice it to say you'll be happy with the camera no matter what skill level you come from. The most unbelievable thing about the camera is its price: less then $800.00. You won't be disappointed.
