Panasonic - SDR-H18 Camcorder Review

Overall 4.25 of 5 view all 4 reviews

sathya
Houston, TX

Hard drive rocks...

a person who enjoys quality

Pros

Records to hard drive or SD card, optical image stabilization, 32X optical zoom, comfortable grip

Cons

No macro mode, menu button a bit hard thumb

NOV

2007

Panasonic - SDR-H18 Camcorder —

Hard-drive camcorders have been slower to catch on than I would've thought. Sure, they cost a bit more than their DVD- or tape-based equivalents, but the convenience of having such a large storage capacity--and not having to deal with tape--make them appealing. However, some buyers can't get past the idea of not having removable storage, which is why Panasonic is so keen to point out that their new SDR-H18 can record to either its built-in 30GB drive or to a SD/SDHC flash memory card, without any difference in quality. Of course, it also helps that the company is part of the SD Card Association, and has been on a big push to champion SD memory cards as the next big storage medium for consumer video.

Unlike the awkward body designs we've seen with some recent SD-based camcorders, the SDR-H18 is very comfortable to hold. Part of the reason is that designers had to find a place to put the camcorder's hard drive, which finds its home in the right side of the body--creating an iPod-sized block that is just the right shape for a hand to wrap around. Almost all the camcorder's controls are also on the right-hand side; most of them can easily be reached with either a forefinger or thumb. While I had a hard time reaching and pressing the menu button with my right thumb, you still can access the most frequently used controls--such as backlight compensation, white balance, and shutter and iris controls--by pressing the joystick, so this isn't much of a problem. It would've been nice for Panasonic to put the menu button somewhere more convenient, however.