Panasonic HDC HS9 - Expert Reviews

Review summary: Panasonic deserves credit for its attempt at the HDC-HS9 ($999 MSRP). Featuring a 60GB hard disk drive and a three-chip CCD imaging system, the camcorder's most attractive feature may be its small size. The design suffers for its slim figure, however, and

Verdict: Overall, the Panasonic HDC-HS9 is a decent all-around camcorder, and has proved popular in the market, but fails to best address the needs of any particular audience. Better video performance can be found from the Canon HF10 and HF100 or Sony HDR-SR11 / H

Review summary: panasonic hdc-hs9 review: This year's high-def hybrid camcorder from Panasonic is of the much more useful SD card/hard-disk variety. There's 60GB of on-board storage and 1080p recording at 25fps.

Pros: Ample hard-disk room for high-def footage, Records video to SD/SDHC cards, Smallish size

Cons: Colours oversaturated, Feature poor, Inconvenient joystick location

Verdict: Unless you can find a killer deal, the HS9 comes up short both in features and image quality zing.

Review summary: Hi-def camcorders are shrinking so rapidly, they make singer Amy Winehouse seem positively plump. A great example is the new Panasonic HDC-HS9, a combination 60GB hard disk drive, SDHC...

Pros: Ample HD storage; compact and lightweight

Cons: Poor video and still quality; menu and icons need updating; poorly placed joystick

Review summary: Panasonic's camcorder is a strong and solid performer, especially with HD material

Pros: Great pictures; Compact yet robust build; Plenty of features

Cons: A bit heavy; Awkward positioning of joystick; Mini HDMI not included

Verdict: If you can get around the challenging location of the joystick on the Panasonic HDC-HS9, you'll be delighted by what this solid performer is capable of