Panasonic HDC-HS100 Reviews: Panasonic HDD storage camcorder

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Product Features

Optical Zoom Ratio	12
The amount by which the camera optics (lens) can bring the subject closer.
Media Format	HDD
This is the type of storage that your digital camera or camcorder uses to save images to. The main types of card media format: Compact Flash Micro SD MMC (Multi Media Card) SD Card (Secure Digital) SDHC (Secure Disk High Capacity)
Digital Zoom Ratio	700
Not to be confused with optical zoom, digital zoom enlarges a portion of the image thus simulating optical zoom. In doing so, some image quality is lost.
Image Stabilisation	Yes
If a photo is taken at a slow shutter speed, or at a long focal length, the effects of ‘hand shake’ will be amplified. Some cameras come with built-in image stabilisation which is designed to act against this to produce sharper images. It’s great for low light shots without a tripod, like at a gig.
resolution (Megapixel)	1.83
Resolution (Pixels)	1920x1080
A camera sensor, that captures the photograph, is measured in pixels. The number given here is the horizontal amount of pixels followed by the vertical quantity of pixels. The more pixels a camera sensor has, the bigger and higher quality the image will be.
Manual Focus	Yes
Almost all modern cameras have autofocus. Manual focus allows you to override the autofocus and set the distance yourself. This is especially useful if your camera is struggling to focus in a low-light or confusing scene.
Dimensions (mm)	74x76x138
The size of the device in millimetres, in width x height x depth.
Battery Life in Hours	1.83
Battery life is important if you travel a lot. Long train journeys can be a pain if you don’t get more than 3 hours of life out of your laptop. It’s worth remembering that a lot of trains offer power sockets now so don’t be put off by a low battery life unless your lifestyle demands ultra portability.
Weight (g)	420
The weight of the product in grams.
Docking Station	No
A docking station, also known as a cradle, is used to rest your equipment whilst it charges and also allows transfer of data to a computer.
Monitor Resolution (pixels)	300252
Screen Size in Inches	2.7
Screen size is measured diagonally from corner to corner.
16:9 Recording Format	Yes
USB Port	Yes
Socket for connecting devices such as a computers and other components
Hard Disk Capacity in GB	60
Hard Disk capacity is measured in GBs which stands for Gigabytes. A gigabyte is 1000 MB or megabytes. The more GB you have the more info like photos and music you can store.
Remote Control	Yes
Waterproof	No
If your camcorder is waterproof you will be able to film under water which is perfect for diving and snorkeling.
Digital Still Photography	Yes
A Digital Still Photography function on a camcorder allows you to use the camcorder as if it was a digital camera. Camcorders with photo function often save to a separate memory card such as an SD Card.
Night Recording	Yes
Night Recording is a special mode that allows you to record in low light situations.

Also known as: Panasonic HDC HS100

60GB HDD/SD Card Hiybrid 3MOS Full-HD Camcorder

The HS100 is a hybrid model that records full-HD images onto either an SD (or SDHC) Memory Card or the built-in 60-GB hard disk. A 32-GB SDHC Memory Card** can hold around 12 hours of recorded video clips, and the 60-GB hard disk can hold around 23 hours (both in HE mode). This gives the HS100 a total capacity of around 35 hours of full-HD recording. The HS100 can copy recorded video images from the SD Memory Card to the hard disk, or vice versa, with easy operation.

The HS100 features the 3MOS sensor, developed by Panasonic based on its proven 3CCD technology. Compared with a conventional 1MOS, Panasonic’s new 3MOS system captures more vibrant, true-to-life colours, greater detail and richer gradation. Also, the MOS sensor’s light-receiving area is about double* that of a CCD sensor, so sensitivity is higher. That realizes much better low light performance down to 2 lux. * Compared with the HDC-SD9/HDC-HS9

The Manual Ring is provided for users who want more creative freedom in their image production. In the HS100, users can enjoy precise, responsive fingertip control over five key settings — zoom, focus, iris, shutter speed, and white balance.

The iA function automatically activates several convenient shooting functions. These include Advanced O.I.S., which compensates for hand-shake to eliminate blurring; Face Detection, which adjusts the exposure so faces are captured perfectly; and Intelligent Contrast Control, which helps ensure proper contrast. Also included is the Intelligent Scene Selector, which determines the shooting conditions and automatically selects the scene setting that will provide optimal results. (Face/Scenery/Low light/Spot Light)

The Leica Dicomar lens system used in the HS100 comprises 12 lenses in 9 groups, including aspherical lenses to improve resolution and contrast and an LD (low-dispersion) lens to prevent colour bleeding. Also, a special multi-coating process is applied to all lens elements to minimise chromatic aberration, so images are crisp, clear, and free of flare and ghosting. The use of a highly-refractive lens also made it possible to have both 12x zoom power and a compact body.

• More info at Panasonic's website
• User manual