Отзывы о Видеокамера Panasonic HC-V260

The picture quality is phenomenal....IF you have really good lighting.We've been using this to record our football games under the lights and have had great success in newer fields with spectacularly bright lighting. When playing at a field with adequate lighting, the picture can be beautiful one minute and the next it's almost black and white. It's awful when that happens multiple times throughout a game.I'll answer some questions others have already asked me:No, the camera position never moves. It's in the press box, on a tripod at all times.No, the lighting doesn't change.Yes, it's easily reproduced.No, I would not recommend this for low light recording, unless you enjoy black and white.

I've had this camera for a couple of months now, and I am pleasantly surprised by it. I've never owned an HD camera, and this is my first new camera purchase in about 15 years or so. I've been using my phone camera for most pictures or borrowing my wife or daughter's digital still camera for the occasional need. This camera is many times better than my Droid phone camera mainly because of the versatility. That is, the phone camera isn't great for video, or zoom and slow motion playback or low light situations. I scrubbed Amazon for quite a while before purchasing, reading all the reviews I could find on other cameras looking in this price range down to about 1/2 the price of this camera. Although this one didn't have many reviews, and wasn't cheap, it was well-liked by those who purchased it, and now I know why. It has a bunch of advanced features which I haven't used but I will detail the ones I have used.The camera fits in my pocket reasonably comfortably, it's slightly larger than my wallet. It's a touch wider than my hand when I hold it but comfortably fits in the palm of my hand. The controls are easy to use once you get used to them. There are 3 modes, playback, video and still. The still pictures are quite impressive. I sold a car on eBay and the pictures were huge and very crisp on my computer. They were amongst the largest pictures on eBay after I posted them, larger than most of the car dealers selling anyway. I believe it's 4.3 megapixel, but not all megapixels are created the same. I think this 4.3 quality is better than a 4 megapixel camera phone.The video quality is exceptional. Oddly, on playback using my TV this camera seems to have better video quality than most of the HD programming I watch on Dish Network. I'm not sure how that can be possible, but it is better. I can see every hair on my daughter's head and every blade of grass when I watch a playback. During video recording, there is a box that appears around faces, apparently it's recognizing and focusing on those faces.I've used this camera in several challenging situations and found it to be very good. I've used it low light for example, and it has a built-in light that comes on automatically. We were at a restaurant recently which was dark, and I recorded video for a few seconds and the image was somewhat dark, but the light automatically came on for both the video mode and still picture mode (flashed). The people whom you are recording might find the light annoying (in video mode as it stays on), but as the cameraman the playback image looks great - you can turn off the light manually, easily.The zoom is pretty incredible. I was recently at Brewer's baseball game, from the 1st base line I was able to zoom in on the center fielder to fill the frame, he was about 500-600 ft away from where I was sitting. Zooming out, I turned the camera back on myself and my son for a nice wide angle shot at arms length. During playback on my TV, I could even see the thin stripes on the center fielder's shirt. The stabilization (anti-shake) mode (OIS) allowed me to see the players on playback with no noticeable shaking or movement on my part. With the OIS turned off, I could not hold the camera steady enough for the long range zoom shots. You don't need a tripod to steady the camera but I've used a tripod and it works well with this camera.The battery life is pretty good about 3 hours of use or so playback and at least an hour or more in record mode reduce. I'm thinking about getting the larger battery as although it might heavier, it would be nice to have the extra battery life and a spare battery.I also recorded my golf swing using the high-speed record mode. Although I couldn't get the super-slow motion playback that you see on TV golf, but I was able to stop the club head fairly well for my purposes anyway. I could see my driver shaft was bending quite a bit which was a surprise. I was also able to see the club shaft angle fairly well during playback. The controls for playback in slow motion are a little clumsy but not too bad once you get used to it (press the pause button, then hold down the FF or Rewind buttons).I plan to use the camera for recording my daughter's lacrosse games this school year. I expect from what I've seen that it will work well for that purpose as well.The biggest complaint that I have is that still pictures have a problem with red-eye when using the flash. Even when the person isn't looking directly at the camera, the center of the eyes are red. It's an annoying problem that I can't seem to fix. Other than that I've been pretty happy with the camera's usability and quality.Accessories:The camera comes with a detailed user-manual, a charger, 2 connector cables, and a CD disk containing software for IBM-compatible computers. However, just plugging it into my Mac computer worked fine with without any additional software.The two cables included: a USB cable for connecting to your computer, and cable to attach to your TV for pl

I truly love this camcorder. It takes very good video as well as very good still shots. It is compact and generally easy to use. Like any sophisticated camcorder there is a learning curve in order to obtain the best quality video or stills given the lighting conditions. For the most part I use the automatic setting but am starting to experiment with manual settings. For most people though you can just pick this up an shoot and get very good results. I also like the stabilizer feature, which has two settings. Battery life is very good and memory is unlimited since it uses flash memory cards. You do, however get best results when using the high speed memory cards. You pay more but there is a difference in quality. I highly recommend this product and think you get a lot for the money. Since there is no hard drive, it is very reasonably priced. Lastly, this is still a superior alternative to phone cam/video because of the HD and features. I would still buy this product again. I have numerous Panasonic devices (Blue-Ray player, 50" Plasma, dig.cam) and have not been disappointed with any of their products yet.

This is a replacement for my 10 year old Panasonic camcorder so the first thing I noticed is this thing is SMALL, but they are all pretty small compared to my old camcorder. Without going into too much detail I'll just note the things I found much better than I expected and the couple things I am a little disappointed in. I don't have experience with any other new camcorders so I can't say this one is better or worse than any of the other new models.Pleasantly surprised:- The image stabilization feature is very very good.- The video picture quality is impressive.- The battery lasts longer than it is suppose to (manual says 50 minutes but I get double that).- The software that comes with it is certainly good enough for me and is easy to use. It allows you to arrange your clips into a video and write it to a standard DVD in standard definition, to a standard DVD in high definition or to a blu-ray disc. You can delete portions of clips, add transitions between clips, add text to a clip (first clip only) and build a menu screen.Things that are a bit of a disappointment:- The automatic white balance isn't the greatest. Within a single lighting environment and a single shot the auto white balance will vary from a little too yellow, to a little too blue to just right. I've given up on auto white balance and now use manual white balance. Manual mode is a bit of a hassle but worth it to avoid the white balance swings the automatic setting produces.- The wind cut filter can't be turned off in auto mode. This isn't a big deal to me now that I use manual mode (because of my white balance complaint) but if I did want to use auto mode there are times you need to have the wind cut filter off or the sound will get totally messed up (like when an audience is clapping along to a song).- Low light recording is fairly noisy. It isn't horrible. I decided it is acceptable for my use but my 10 year old camcorder did better in low light.Everything else about the camcorder is about what I expected. It's easy to use, nice zoom range, still camera mode can't compete with a real still camera but that shouldn't come as a big surprise. Overall a very nice camcorder for the money. Is it the best camcorder for the money? I have no idea, but I can say I'm happy with it and it is capable of producing very nice video with just a little effort as long a there is sufficient light.UPDATE - one month later: I've had the camcorder for over a month and have shot 10+ hours of video with it. I'm still impressed with this little camcorder. It can produce some beautiful video. I'd give it 5 stars if the white balance worked a little better. I still stand by my original comments.One software feature I discovered and like a lot is the ability to capture a still photo from the video. I'm sure all video software has this feature but it is new to me. With the still capture feature you can get a 3.6 inch x 6.4 inch 300dpi jpg from the video. The software allows you to look at the video frame by frame so you can capture a still picture at just the right moment. This is very nice for making small snapshot photos, particularly of fast action subjects. One maddening thing about most still cameras is shutter lag (the delay from the time you push the button to the time the picture is taken). Many times great shots are missed because of that delay but by capturing still images from the video you can always get the shot at just the right moment! It's a fun feature.UPDATE #2 - 2 months later: I've shot over 20 hours of video with this camcorder now and I'm still very happy with it. I purchased a sandisk 16GB card (holds about 2 hours of video) and I'm keeping an eye out for a Vw-VBK360 extra battery for use on vacations. The Vw-VBK180 battery that comes with the camera lasts at least 100 minutes of actual use yet is only suppose to last 50 minutes. I don't know why I'm getting so much time out of it! I do shut off the camera between shots (by closing the viewing door) but doesn't everybody? Seems like a natural thing to do.I still use manual mode for white balance. I'm much happier with the results using manual white balance rather than automatic white balance. The auto white balance in my old camcorder as well as the white balance in my daughter's little Flip camcorder works fine but not in this new camcorder. It's my only real complaint.I did a little test to compare my old camcorder with the new camcorder in low light conditions. The new camcorder produces a fairly noisy video in relatively low light but my old camcorder produces a pretty nice video under the same low light conditions. I'm not talking very dark - living room, in the evening, lit with 2 floor lamps. But I found a flaw in my test! What I discovered is both camcorders produce fairly good video in STANDARD DEFINITION (note: the new camcorder only records in HD but the software provided with the camcorder allows you to convert it to standard definition). It is on

We got this camera over 3 years ago and we LOVE it. Great video quality, easy to use and also takes great pictures so that you don't have to lug a camera around if you don't want to.

This item is a pica of junk. I got it 6 months ago I didn't run it until a week ago when out on a trip. I flip it open and there was a error mass. HDD Error Occurred. They tell me that I have to send it in for repair for $111.10 to look at it at Panasonic. The hard drive is a pic of junk.I now have a new paper weight.

wish it had more memory, we keep filling it up and forgetting to of load the files before we start using it again

Before this we had a Sony Handycam. It was great overall, but not good in low-light (like say, a living room on Christmas morning). We did months of research and came across this Panasonic. It is WONDERFUL in low-light and pretty much every other light. Another reason we got it is the higher video quality and the "future" of video, going to AVCHD. The only complaint we have is that this is not nearly as user-friendly as the Sony. The sony you literally can plug in and go. This panasonic requires file conversions, downloading, etc. It's not convenient if you want to upload vids on the web.

I first purchased the Sony HDR-CX110, in the same price/feature class as this Panasonic. If you are considering each camera, here's what I can tell you. Be forewarned that I have only had today to play with the Panasonic, and I have only used each model in Automatic mode. I will post updates if I discover anything significant:SONY HDR-CX110:Wins:+Size - the Sony is much smaller, easily fitting into my cargo/tactical pants pockets;+Image quality - the Sony has much better [on fully auto mode] color and contrast;+Both an HD and an SD camcorder - Can make AVCHD or MPG, in-camera!;+10mm Threaded Filter compatible - The Sony has a manual lens cap, and a filter thread on the outside of this. While you won't be able to protect your filter with the cap, you can at least keep your lens protected;+Manual Lens Cap - User preference, but I like having fewer "automatic" moving parts to break-down.Looses:-Image Stabilization - not strong enough for my hand held video needs - I believe the IS on this model is digital only - you can spend a couple hundred $ more for the CX300, which has Optical IS, you might find better IS [out of my price range];-Artifacts - I noticed several blocks in my video test. I don't know if this was from the digital image stabilization trying to figure out how to handle lake water on a windy day, or something else. I did not notice this in the Panasonic, but have only done limited testing.Panasonic HDC-SD60:Wins:+Lighting - Panasonic SD60 has built-in video light and still flash - these will probably be of limited use, in only close quarters, but there if you need it. In preliminary testing, these both worked fairly well;+Image Stabilization in this model is optical, and includes two modes - regular, for simple hand-held video, and "active" for filming while moving. Both worked well, much better than the Sony, but will not completely eliminate camera shake.Looses:-Size - While still quite small, this camera is large when compared to the Sony [longer and heavier]. I probably won't be carrying it in my cargo/tactical pants;-Automatic Scene Mode - It takes much too long for the camera to adjust to lighting conditions, and it cannot seem to find the right color temperature for indoor lighting - I have not played with manual mode, yet, but many reviewers write that the manual mode is much better;-No SD mode - only writes AVCHD files;-Automatic Lens Cap - User preference, but this seems to be another piece to breakdown;-No Filter Threads - Can this really cost much to implement? I can't install a polarizer, UV or any other filter to enhance my video or to protect the lens.Conclusion:I tried the Sony first, because of the ability to change it from an HD to an SD camcorder at the push of a button - Writing either AVCHD, or Standard-Def .MPG files, when appropriate. After I discovered that the Sony IS was limited in its ability, I returned the Sony for the Panasonic. The Panasonic's IS is much better, but the Sony does seem to have much better image quality [Automatic modes tested, only!].Overall, I'd choose the Sony, but only if using a tripod most of the time. I'll keep the Panasonic for hand-held videoing.

I love this camcorder! Have used it for almost 2 years now. The clarity and zoom is great when recording my family, friends, and kids. The night shots are also very clear, not fuzzy at all like my old camera. The size is also small, compact, and lightweight and easy to carry around stuffed in my purse or cargo pockets! Love, love, love!!!

There might be other cameras out there that work as well, but this one is "perfect". I've filmed countless scenes, trips, weddings, and everybody who watches my short movies always compliment how clear the picture is. It's never let me down. The 1500x digital zoom is simply amazing and I've had fun with it zooming in on distant buildings, objects and people. I've even stopped using my telescope to observe the moon...

Ok, so I am a long-term Canon user who used to have a Canon HF200 until milk accidentally got spilled on it, so I took the chance to try this camera after a friend recommended it. This is one fantastic camera.Pros:1) Comfortable size2) Manual shutter speed and iris controls3) Excellent autofocus, particularly in dim light conditions4) Very good battery life5) Great wide angle (from 35 mm) to a great zoom (25x and 35x with the intelligent zoom- more on that later)6) Fantastic image stabilization7) Competitive still picture qualityCons:Low resolution touch screen with a lot of icons takes some getting used toReview. The autofocus in this camera works great. In a busy scene it identifies quickly the object that it needs to focus on and it does this very accurately. The image stabilization is great, it is called O.I.S stabilization that helps counter camera shake and even works well when filming while walking. The lens is superb. Particularly impressive is the range that it covers. Many other makes and models are not wide angle enough (Canon HFS200 starts at 44 mm, Sony 550 starts at 39mm) so when filming indoors or close to the action you may not be able to fit it all in. This camera starts at 29.5mm which is fantastic. Similarly this camera goes to an OPTICAL zoom of 25x which extends to a whopping 35x with the Intelligent Zoom function on. This is NOT a digital zoom that simply deletes resolution in order to give you a very fuzzy, blown up shot. Instead, it selects lower detail areas to reduce resolution while maintaining a very good level of detail. The result is a barely noticeable drop in image quality. In terms of still photo quality just like no still camera makes excellent videos, no video camera makes excellent still. However, all in all this camera produces very respectable stills. Battery life is excellent. Lasts around 2 hours 15 minutes. Yes, several cameras offer a longer battery life, but they are also bigger and heavier. Hard to find a better battery life in a 9.7 ounce, 2.0 x 2.6 x 4.4 inch camera. The camera is extremely easy to use, fairly straightforward and intuitive. The only gripe is that the camera tries to pack so much information into the touch screen that it feels cramped and takes some getting used to.Summary: This is a great camera that strikes the balance between features and price. Light, easy to use and great image quality.

We bought this camcorder just over a year ago. Up till now we were very happy with it as it was easy to use and created nice video. Then all of the sudden the lens cover decided to stop opening. For those who don't own one, this camera has a lens cover that is automatic...meaning there is a mechanical mechanism in the camera that automatically opens the iris-like cover when you turn the camera on. So now when we start the camera you can hear the mechanism trying to open the cover but nothing happens. So you simply cannot shoot video or take pictures.This would be bad unto itself since we didn't drop the camera or do anything to cause such a defect, but it gets worse. Since we now owned this just over the year warranty period, we have to pay to have it fixed. So i found the Panasonic service center and we shipped it there. Once it got there we started receiving calls that there will be a $45 "diagnostic fee". Uh...the shutter won't open...problem diagnosed. Then there was another fee on top of that, and then an hourly rate on top of that. We have not got it back yet or received the final bill, but it could end up costing the original price of the camera just to get the stupid lens cover fixed.Based on this, I will never ever buy another Panasonic product again. There are two reasons for this. First is that the lens cover should not break in less than 2 years of ownership and with what was really limited use of the camera in the first place. Second is this gouging of customers on repairs. The latter really is something that is intolerable to me and just asserts that they really don't care about you as a customer and that they don't really stand behind their products.

Note: This item is identical to Panasonic HDC-SD60K SD Based Hi-Def Camcorder with 35X Intelligent Zoom (Black)And it is identical to Panasonic HDC-TM55K Hi-Def Camcorder with 8GB Flash Memory & 35X Intelligent Zoom (Black) except for the storage(memory) options. The Panasonic HDC-HS60 Hi-Def Camcorder with 120GB HDD & 35X intelligent Zoom (Black) is also identical in shooting performance, but the large 120GB hard drive makes that model larger.I have only used it a few times, but here are some important attributes I've noticed so far:This camera takes 1080i, not 1080p. Also, it ONLY takes 1080i. There is no option to take 720p or any other resolution besides 1080. This is a bit of an annoyance for me, as the video must be converted if I want to share the video with other people at smaller file sizes.Low-light and indoor performance is GREAT. This was a very important feature for me as I plan to do a LOT of indoor shooting, and this model delivers. Very low light conditions (indoor lighting at night) produce some grain but it's still acceptable on my 42" 1080P LCD.The real optical zoom on the model is 25X, NOT 35X. The "Intelligent Zoom" is a digital zoom mode that supposedly sacrifices minimal quality. You can change the zoom settings, but the factory default is 35X intelligent zoom.I have taken full quality (1080i) video on class 2 SD cards, and it seems to work fine.The auto white balance is very inconsistent. I believe the camera is designed to automatically switch white balance based on the light source, but the algorithm is far from optimal. I will end up with red/blue tinted footage just by zooming in on yellow/white/beige items around my room. There is an option to select and lock the white balance so it is not a dealbreaker, but I wish the automatic white balanced worked better.The battery is charged while mounted to the camcorder, and there is no separate charger. However, the camcorder MUST be turned OFF to charge the battery. I find this setup strange. I want to charge the battery while shooting/reviewing footage, I will have to buy the optional battery charger accessory. On the up side, the battery life is actually BETTER than what the manual states.The camcorder is supplied with a hand strap, but there is NO neck strap. Because the camcorder is so light (even when compared to my ultra-compact mini-DV camcorder) I believe a neck strap is not necessary.There is NO accessory mount. There is no hot shoe, NO threading on the lens. But there is a tripod mount and it is actually metal-reinforced. YAY!

My first camcorder, but I have used several and shopped around a lot before purchasing. The zoom is terrific. I had to keep myself from abusing it while recording to avoid annoying video watchers. Color fidelity gets funky in indoor/low-light conditions. The light on the front of the thing turns on and off based on sensor levels. Probably the least appealing factor. You will have to buy a memory card for it. Videos are recorded in AVCHD format, so make sure you have a program that can read and convert if you are making DVD's etc. Plug and play to TV/monitors through the mini-HD cable (included) is painless. Downloading to computers is easy (again see comment about AVCHD format). No real comment on image stability, but I have been pretty still while using it. A couple of windy days have made for noisy playback, so learn to edit sound too. Good value for the money.

Movie quality is wonderful, amazing in low light. Drawbacks are unprotected shutter sticks in a half open position had to manually push it fully open before filming - returned first on after a week. Still problem at times with replacement. Also, must charge battery while attached to camera via cables to wall outlet. Cannot charge one while another battery is in use. My cable lost and replacement not available from Panasonic. Recommend a portable charger directly into wall socket.

my brother in low have same kind but one sold in japan. the japanese one has built in memory and also you can use SDcard to extend. i like it very much. easy to use, fast start battery works good length, fits in my hand (I have very small hands) and so on.when I was researching somebody said it only works with the soft on cd comes with it on PC and that how it does. tried to move the files from on my computer to out-ternal hard drive but didn't work. I have to learn some more about that soon cause my computer hard drive is getting full!

I have only two issues with this otherwise fine product. One is that I haven't been able to figure out how to disable the automatic face detection feature, resulting in a lot of rubber noses and other facial parts when my seated subjects move around a bit.The other is that the Panasonic HD Writer software assumes that I have only a C: drive; even if I redefine "My Documents" to drive D: (a terabyte), the sofware assumes on putting my videos on my "tiny" 160GB C: drive. Panasonic has so far not responded to my query about this, which is inexcusable.I'm using XP SP3 with all latest patches, and the latest version of HD Writer. Now my C: drive is filling up, and I have to manually move video files with Windows Explorer to drive D: and wonder if HD Writer will recognize them if I have to move them back to drive C: in order to make another DVD copy. Bad software design followed by non-existent customer support from Panasonic.Also, MS Windows 7 Compatibility website DOES NOT list the supplied Panasonic HD Writer AE 2.0 software as being compatible with Windows 7.

The video quailty is pretty good. The interface is simple and easy to use. there's tons of features to help out any videographer. The touch screen works great, and gives you more options then just using the buttons on the rear of the body. Its light weight, and fits great in your hand.

I was given a Flip camcorder about a year ago, and really appreciated how useful it was for things like capturing the kids' sporting events. Decided I wanted to improve quality, so tried upgrading to the Flip UltraHD.Flip units are very small, have very easy-to-use (but limited) software to edit videos. But they also have limitations, particularly on zoom and quality. Unfortunately, I found that the UltraHD may have HD resolution (720p), but just uses too low a bitrate to produce HD quality.Decided to try the Panasonic HDC-SD60 as an alternative -- a bit more expensive that the Flip, but less expensive than the numerous $800-range camcorders.I find the unit to be excellent. Easy enough to use, and excellent video quality. (I use it at the highest quality setting (about 16 Mbps). Yes, I've seen some variations in auto white balance, as another user reported -- not during scenes, in my case, but occasionally scene-to-scene. Still, the performance is quite satisfying for casual uses like capturing the kids.A very nice feature is the HDMI-CEC support. I connected this unit to my Samsung TV by HDMI cable, and discovered that the Samsung unit automatically switched to that input, and I could use my TV remote to control playback. (The camcorder renders directions on buttons to use, on the TV.) Very nice! Definitely get an HDMI cable for use with this, and skip the analog cable included with it.I found the software to be lacking. Pretty slow, and I didn't have the patience to fence with it. A key feature it ought to have is an easy way to go through scenes and select those you want to keep, and it doesn't have that. That's my only gripe. I'd probably rate this 4.5 stars, if I could, on account of not having decent software.Of course, there are lots of good third-party packages out there, pretty cheap (sub-$100) these days. I've been trying out Sony Vegas.Keep in mind that you'll need a reasonably recent computer to handle the AVCHD files.

One day out of the box and I'm going to return it to Amazon, but then, I thought I might TRY to work something out. Have you called Panasonic's overseas support? OMG!!! Firstly, I have a brand new mac and I do not want to tether the camera to the computer, but rather use a card reader and it does not work - either empty folders or grayed out. The reason I don't tether is because if a $350 camera shorts out in a bad way, it could ruin a $4000 computer - never tether my camera gear, won't even try it. So, you call the number and the automation asks you questions, asks you for your number - you get the wrong person who has asked for all of your information and that person sends you to another person who, after listening to you repeat your model and listening to your problem says that they can't help you and they appologize, but that department is busy, so please call again. I had already waited 25 minutes to get to this second person. I use Canon gear for still photography and speak to people in USA. Even though the canon camcorders are not up to par with this one in Amazon ratings, I think I would rather deal with people who can get you to the place you need to go in a regular fashion versus run around... now 40 minutes on the phone with an unqualified support tech who can't transfer me because they are too busy nor the tech's supervisor, who is also too busy. If tech support is so busy helping others who need tech support, then you must wonder if this is such a good product? I'm convinced that a Lumix point and shoot will never see the inside of my camera bag. Stick with Canon USA

I tried to turn on my 1 year old Panasonic camcorder to video my daughter's first Christmas. It would not turn on even after plugging it in. This is extremely disappointing considering we have used the camcorder only 10 to 15 times and have kept it stored in a camera bag. I would not recommend a Panasonic product to anybody.

I don't know anything about camcorders. I have been taking a course on using an SLR for studio work and such to shoot pictures of what i do for a living. I needed a quick easy little camera to do video. I was real impressed with the menu system. Its almost as good as NIKON on my slr but its all touch screen and its easy. The screen stays pretty clean when you use it.I have found that going into manual and setting white bal and getting everything to work is over me at this point so I leave it in auto. The level of quality is amazing on camera. When you put it onto your machine - you cant see the video file. The camera breaks up the files into small clips everytime you pause it while shooting. When you get to your computer you have a ton of videos, the software forces you to join them or leave them as small files. This makes editing easy but makes a continuous scene strange. I will work at it, i have only used it for a day. I think all AVCHD cameras are like this.The quality - is insane. Its beyond what a two year old laptop can frame rate. But the sharpness is exceptional and I think anyone will be happy with this. I am glad I went Panasonic. Every Panasonic i have had since I was 5 has been good. Alot better than sony (4 viaos, many cd players and many many stereos, always just ok - always end thier life cycle while I still own them) ----- (Panasonic on the other hand is always still working when I give it away to the next guy and is always just solid. Panasonic is a good brand. I dont know why people buy into that Sony stuff but they do. This is fantastic. Get it with your eyes closed... its a good buy and the best price on Amazon. Hope that helps, i was so impressed I thought you all should know - JJ

I bought this camcorder with the hope of making some great movies. I was... disappointed with the quality when i finally started messing with it. First off, i have a mac, i read on several sites that the AVCHD files were in .mov format. They are in fact in .MTS format, so I have to import them into iMovie, and convert them. Second off, when i actually began doing some test videos, the picture was coming out really grainy, like really really grainy. I even bought a class 10 memory card so that i had the highest data transfer rat, and set the camera to HA (highest quality). I am really disappointed, and am considering returning the camera. This makes me really sad, because my mom and I researched this camera for weeks before she got it as a Christmas present for me. If anyone out there has suggestions for removing the grainyness, please, pleas comment! I do not want to return this camera, because I'll have to shell out an extra $100 so I can get a Sony. Please help!EDIT: This will help all Mac users, iMovie converts the video to half-rez (unless you supposedly have iMovie '11-I haven't tried it yet) So, you can either use Final Cut-Express or Pro, or Adobe Premiere, which will take the raw .MTS files for editing. When you do either of these, the video quality is excellent. There is grain indoors, but it isn't terrible, and most editing programs will be able to decently remove this. I'm glad I decided to keep the camera, it will be great for my filmmaking projects.