Making the HD Camcorder Leap with Sanyo’s Xacti VPC-CG10

Over the last three years I have not been shy about airing criticism of the newest wave of low-cost flash memory camcorders shooting alleged high-definition video. My critique has largely rested upon video quality being lower than established tape-based HDV camcorders and the difficulty of editing footage shot in the highly compressed AVCHD format.

The last time I posted on the topic was about a year ago when I took on Kodak’s entry into the field with the first HD camcorder priced under $200 the Zi6. I started to warm to the concept based upon the low price which then also makes higher quality videography more widely accessible. I never had a chance to get my hands on a Zi6 until very recently when I was in a store to check out a different model of inexpensive HD camcorder, which I’ll get to in a moment. The Zi6 takes on the Flip camcorder style form factor. That is, it’s shaped like a bar-style cellphone, with a lens on one side and a screen on the other. The controls are largely limited to record, stop and play with the intent to keep operation simple and easy.

Finally this year I began seriously to consider taking the plunge with one of these small HD camcorders. There were two motivations. First, I realized that I barely used my miniDV camcorder any more, bogged down by its relatively large size and the hassle of having to capture tapes in real-time. Second, I tried to make some videos using my digital camera. While the camera’s specs say it shoots video in a resolution equivalent to full standard definition DV (640×480) I found the resulting footage to be really lacking in quality. On top of that, the video files were recorded in a relatively inefficient and obsolete format.

Although the simplicity of the Flip-style camcorders hold some appeal for me, I’m really not sure I can be satisfied with their lack of manual adjustments, zoom and other basic camcorder settings. I recognize how the average user probably doesn’t care and doesn’t miss them, and that the Flip brand camcorders have succeeded because they deliver good video with absolute operational simplicity. But I’m a bit more of a power user than that.

Then I got wind of Sanyo’s newest and least expensive camcorder in their Xacti line, the VPC-CG10. I was enticed by both the price, under $200, and the fact that it has a real optical 5x zoom. Sanyo advertises the model as a “Dual Camera” because it is both a 10 megapixel still camera in addition to shooting 720p HD video. I learned that the Radio Shack near work had the Xacti and a few other low-cost HD cams in stock and stopped in on my way home to check them out.
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Flip weighs in with pocket-size HD

The folks who brought you the original pocket-size, one-button Flip camcorder have now released their high-definition version. For the last couple of years I’ve expressed skepticism at both tape-less video recording and the true viability of HD in inexpensive cameras. But recently I’m coming around to the idea, primarily because the cost (under $250) is starting to jive with both the utility and convenience of these camcorders for all sorts of independent media production purposes.

Kodak made the first salvo in the pocket HD-cam arena with their Zi6, which has received decent reviews. Flip’s new Mino HD camcorder just received praises from the New York Times’ gadget reviewer David Pogue. The reliable Camcorder Info also gives it a positive review, ranking it ahead of Kodak’s HD cam.

While it doesn’t seem to offer HD on par with what you’ll see on DTV or with one of the HD camcorders from a major player like Sony or Canon, both reviews emphasize the higher quality than any of the standard-def pocket cams. One strange design choice that both reviews note is that there is a video out jack for standard-def video, but not for high-def. So you can watch your videos directly on your TV, but not in HD. To view HD you have to download the video to your computer.

Each time I write one of these posts I say something like, “I’m going to have to check one of these out.” But I’ve yet to do so. Maybe the holiday season will lead to some super discount deal online that I can exploit, though buying a camcorder is not high on my list at the moment.

Since there is no manual control or microphone input, these cameras are best for recording video in situations where a typical camcorder would be too unwieldy, inconvenient or impossible. However, I think that paired with one of the new-generation digital audio recorders (like a Zoom H2) you might be able to do a decent job recording a lecture or similar event. Just put the audio recorder up close to the subject (or near a PA) speaker, then sync the sound in your editing application, like iMovie or Premiere. Sure, the audio recorder is one more thing to carry. But together with the camcorder they’re still smaller than a typical miniDV, DVD or hard drive camcorder alone.