Upside
Sitting on the highest rung of Panasonic's camcorder line-up, the HDC-HS200 is a high-definition model that contains a brand new 3MOS sensor last seen on the HS100 from 2008 and Leica optics that reaches to 12x optical zoom. Previously, the HD range from Panasonic camcorders of old featured 3CCD sensors.
We had a brief hands-on session with this little unit in Singapore, and overall we were pretty impressed with its ease of use and clear image quality. Inside the demure unit, which is clad in silver and grey plastic, sits an 80GB hard drive and SD recording capability — a feature which Panasonic is quick to tout as "hybrid". It's capable of capturing still images at 10.6 megapixels, and has a touchscreen which proved to be quite responsive.
Panasonic claims that the new 3MOS technology allows for accurate image rendition with definition throughout dark and light situations. There's also five microphones embedded, meaning audio output is in full 5.1 channel surround sound.
We thought a novel test for the HS200's optical image stabilisation would be riding around a trishaw in Singapore's Chinatown district. Several close shaves with oncoming traffic and realising that the only barrier between us and several tonnes of bus was a thin metal awning really was the best way to find out if the functionality really worked. Much to our enjoyment, it did, capturing our high speed antics in relatively blur-free HD video. At times though, the HS200 did struggle to keep up with the action, displaying a warning on-screen that the camera was being moved too fast.
Among the list of other features are face detection, intelligent contrast control, Panasonic's intelligent auto functionality, and AF/AE tracking. We found that locking onto a subject was relatively easy; simply press the touchscreen to select a target.
Downside
At the Singapore launch of the Lumix cameras and camcorder range, Panasonic announced a top of the line, feature-laden model called the HS300. It's similar to the HS200 except it features a manual focus ring and electronic viewfinder. Unfortunately, if the HS300 sounds like your perfect camcorder, it won't be available in Australia — your next step up is Panasonic's range of broadcast video cameras.
Stylistically, the HS200 is quite similar to the HDC-HS9 but fortunately does away with the cumbersome joystick that hampered our enjoyment of its predecessor.
Outlook
With the inclusion of the 3MOS sensor and a host of other new features, the HS200 is a big upgrade to the Panasonic camcorder range of old, and at AU$2,299 we certainly hope that it lives up to its hefty price tag. Set for release later this month, stay tuned for our full review of the HS200 soon.
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