Michael Perlman

Canon is out with the HR10 ($1,199 MSRP), virtually identical to the HG10, but recording to DVD. Will Canon make it a trifecta, or will the frustrations of the DVD medium upset the applecart?

The DCR-DVD910 is Sony\'s top dog for standard definition DVD camcorders this year. It\'s a bit of an odd duck, though, and difficult to account for. Priced at $649 MSRP, it\'s within site of much better high definition camcorders. Sony makes little attempt to win you over to the DVD910, either. It has no mic, headphone jack, or other enticement for the camcorder enthusiast who wants to remain in standard def. The strangest thing of all is the sensor and processing system, which is identical to its high definition cousins, the HDR-UX10 and HDR-UX20. In essence, it has all the potential of those camcorders, but discards all of the good picture quality before processing.

The Panasonic VDR-D230 ($499 MSRP) is a mid-level DVD camcorder. It’s a crowded market at this price point, but the VDR-D230 manages to distinguish itself. It features the typically strong set of Panasonic manual controls along with optical image stabilization and a handful of special offerings. We also found some pleasantly surprising results in the performance. All told, this is definitely a camcorder worth considering.

The DCR-SR42 is Sony’s entry-level hard disk drive (HDD) camcorder. It may not be the best entry-level HDD overall, but it’s a decent value for the money.

The second generation of AVCHD camcorders have been rolling onto shelves in recent months, mostly offering mild upgrades or occasional downgrades. Panasonic is trying a different route. The HDC-SX5 combines the media from both of its first-generation models, DVD and hard disk drive (HDD). While the company managed to scale back from the monstrous girth of the HDC-DX1, it failed to address some of the fundamental problems with DVD load times and preposterous battery size. Even with a few new features tossed in – notably full 1920 x 1080 recording and an active accessory shoe – it still leaves us asking why we would choose this over the flash memory card-only HDC-SD5.

The SC-DC173 ($369 MSRP), an entry-level DVD camcorder, doesn’t have Sony’s ease of use, Canon’s performance, or Panasonic’s handing, but by piecing together bits from each, it ended up with a decent camcorder. Sure, we have a lot to complain about, but what entry-level model doesn’t inspire some “what were they thinking!” moments? The SC-DC173 is not a powerhouse, but it just might do the job.