Performance

The Samsung SC-DC164 features a 1/4.5" CCD with 680K gross pixels. This is larger than the average chip size, but the same pixel count. Resolution is largely dependent on the number of pixels, and low light performance is largely dependent on chip size. Why the discrepancy with this particular chip? It could be for a number of reasons, probably related to lower manufacturing costs. What we can tell you is that this is not a very good chip.

At 3000 lux, the DC164’s most noticeable feature is its lack of apparent sharpness. The picture looks fuzzy and just makes a mess of the fine detail that most camcorders are able to obtain. Color performance is surprisingly decent, which is likely a combination of the larger imager and some in-camera saturation. The grey scale, however, has a slightly reddish tone in patches. And despite all the decent colors, the noise is terrible.

By comparison, the Sony DCR-DVD105 was brighter overall, and reported much more fine detail, despite having the same pixel count and a smaller imager. This camcorder, and the next model up, the DVD205, were the only other camcorders that could match the Samsung’s color performance. No camcorder, though, had any problem topping the Samsung in sharpness.

The Sony DVD205 has a slightly larger CCD than most entry-levels (1/5.5") and a much higher pixel count (1.07MP). The picture was very sharp, comparatively, and color balance was excellent.

The VDR-D100, Panasonic’s entry-level DVD camcorder, has slightly paler colors, and noise levels were high, but not as high as on the Samsung. The Panasonic distinguished itself by showing much more fine detail, and on the whole was a preferable image. Finally, the Canon DC100, their entry-level, had a color spectrum that relied too heavily on the greens, and was not as balanced as the Samsung. Again, though, the Canon DC100 could capture alot more fine detail.

No one should expect great picture quality from an entry-level DVD camcorder, but nearly every other camcorder had a better overall performance than the Samsung. It’s simply not a player in the DVD market.

{column='Video Performance' models='Sony DCR-DVD105,Sony DCR-DVD205,Panasonic VDR-D100,Canon DC100'}

Video Resolution* (9.6)*

The Samsung SC-DC164’s video was tested for its resolution by shooting a standard ISO 12233 resolution chart. Stills from that footage were then run through Imatest imaging software. In 4:3 aspect ratio, the camcorder produced 360.0 lines of horizontal resolution (with an average clipping of 1.9%) and 266.5 lines of vertical resolution, yielding an approximate resolution of 95940.0. In 16:9, the camcorder produced 451.1 lines of horizontal resolution (with an average clipping of 0.99%) and 264.6 lines of vertical resolution, yielding an approximate resolution of 119361.06. The score is based on the 4:3 resolution as a standardization method.

Clipping occurs when Imatest cannot read a percentage of the information in the black/white line edge. In this case, some of the pixels had bottomed out (all channels read zero) due to in-camera sharpening. This is common in lower-end camcorders, and can cause some inaccuracies in the resolution scores.

The chart below shows how the SC-DC164 fared against the competition.

{column='Video Resolution' models='Sony DCR-DVD105,Sony DCR-DVD205,Panasonic VDR-D100,Canon DC100'}

**Low Light Performance ***(3.0)*

The Samsung SC-DC164 was tested for its low light performance at low light levels, 60 lux and 15 lux, which might correspond to a fairly lit room at night and a room lit by a single bulb at night. These are difficult environments for an camcorder to perform, and entry-level camcorders have an even more difficult time.

At 60 lux, the SC-DC164 lost a great deal of color information. Saturation levels obviously shot up; what was a pretty good color balance in bright light became quite uneven in the this light. The yellows became golden and the greens blurred together. Noise levels became very high, and there were patches of blue noise that appeared in some parts of the image. The reddish levels of the grey scale that we saw in bright light also got worse.

The Sony DCR-DVD105 produced better colors and, more notably, much better color balance – not that different from the color balance in bright light. And as in bright light, the fine detail was better. The Sony DVD205 actually produced more blue noise than the DVD105, but had stronger colors overall and a much higher apparent sharpness.

The Panasonic VDR-D100 was brighter, likely a result of its strong auto gain. The colors are less saturated, and it had some trouble making out fine detail. Noise levels are high, but did not overrun the image like the Samsung does. The Canon DC100 was slightly brighter, and had better color balance. Noise, however, was worse than the Samsung.

At 15 lux, the Samsung SC-DC164 was completely devastated. Noise had overwrought the image, there was almost no color, and nearly all detail had been lost and it could not focus. Normally, a camcorder can manage to retain at least one of these factors. But, no.

The Sony DVD105 also lost of its color, but managed to retain a fair amount of dine detail. Yes, noise was high, but it’s not in charge – not like on the Samsung. The DVD205 went the other way, with a little color retention, but more loss of fine detail. Blue noise was also a problem. Still, they were both far superior to the Samsung.

The Panasonic VDR-D100 had noise levels nearly rivaling the Samsung (and believe me, that’s not easy), but some colors managed to peek through. Also, the Panasonic did not have any focus issues. The Canon DC100 was not much better, and looked similar to the Panasonic, but with stronger colors. Noise was definitely a problem.

The Samsung SC-DC164 also offers a Color Nite mode, which gives you the options of a digital replication of a slow shutter, either 1/15th or 1/30th of a second. The results, seen here, are pretty bad. Yes, the image is brighter, but the noise levels and loss of detail are significant. Also, these stills do not show the intense motion blurring that occurs with these settings. We recommend avoiding this camcorder altogether for low light purposes.

{column='Low Light Performance Performance' models='Sony DCR-DVD105,Sony DCR-DVD205,Panasonic VDR-D100,Canon DC100'}

Wide Angle* (9.0)*

The SC-DC164 was tested for its wide angle in both 4:3 and 16:9 modes to determine if the camcorder possesses true widescreen. In 4:3, the camcorder produced a wide angle of 45 degrees. In 16:9, the camcorder produced a wide angle of 56 degrees. This dramatic increase in the width of the field was not accompanied by any loss of information to the top and bottom of the image. This is the best kind of widescreen.

Format

Compression* (5.0)*

The SC-DC164 compresses video into MPEG2 files, the standard for all DVD camcorders and many hard disk drive and card-based camcorders. MPEG2 is a slowly dying compression format, as smarter compression formats like MPEG4 and H.264 take over. DVD camcorders capture at a maximum data rate of 8.5Mbps, often rounded up to 9Mbps. MiniDV compression has a much higher data rate of 25Mbps. Bit rates do not solely determine video quality, but they do factor.

Media* (5.0)*

Users new to DVD camcorders must take care to buy the right media. There are a lot of formats out there, and no model can use them all. The SC-DC164 is compatible with DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD+RW, and DVD+R (Dual Layer), all 8cm / 3.5-inches. This a pretty good selection of media, and should suit most everyone’s need.

Editing* (5.0)*

The DVD format can prove slippery for some video editing software, particularly ones that are a couple years old. The problem is correctly importing the files, which can be split into various types of sub-files depending on the manufacturer. MiniDV camcorders, on the other hand, find almost universal acceptance. Of course, DVD gives you the time advantage – MiniDV must be captured in realtime.

The SC-DC164 ships with two discs full of software, DV Media Pro 1.0 and Ulead Video Suite SE DVD v9.0. The second disc contains two pieces of software, a rudimentary and a slightly less rudimentary video editing program. This is not pro-level by any extent, but the program is better than a lot of bundled software.

Tour

**The Front ***(7.5)*

The Samsung SC-DC164 is Samsung’s entry level DVD camcorder for 2006, and based strictly on its appearance, it seems to be courting the entrenched Sony market. The size and overall shape of the Samsung will remind people of Sony’s DVD camcorders, but in terms of design details and user interface, there are notable differences.

The front of the SC-DC164 is topped by the Samsung lens capable of an impressive 33x optical zoom, the most powerful optical zoom on the consumer market. The lens hood is a continuation of the lens barrel and contributes to a very simple front-end configuration. Below the lens is the remote control sensor concealed by a smooth plastic cover with a metallic appearance, and near the camcorder’s base is the onboard stereo microphone.

To the left of the front-end features is the DVD compartment, distinguished from the brushed aluminum color of the body both by its graphite color and the fact that it looks like a distinct unit, melded onto the main body. This division between the DVD compartment and the main body will strike some users as inelegant, and is the biggest aesthetic difference between Samsung and Sony DVD camcorders.

**The Right Side ***(6.0)*

The right side of the SC-DC164 is primarily occupied by the DVD drive mechanism door, which opens towards the front of the camcorder. This allows the door to easily swing open, free of the hand strap, which can get in the way of some DVD drive doors. However, the door extends all the way to the camcorder’s base so that if the SC-DC164 was tightly affixed to some tripod heads, it could be difficult to open. The front-loading design is from the shooter’s perspective a little less accessible than Sony’s top-loading design, but it is slightly easier to load. A choice between front vs. top-loading DVD drive doors comes down to user preference.

Behind the hinge, and sharing the brushed aluminum color of the main body is the mode dial which is easy to use, and closely follows Sony’s mode dial style. On this model, the mode dial is inset into the right side of the camcorder body rather than the back (as on Sony’s DVD 105)

Running all the way along the base of the right side of the SC-DC164 is a nicely padded hand strap. Unfortunately, the strap is hindered in that the left side does not closely fit the shape of a palm and the camcorder seems to be heavily weighted on the left side. In fact, Samsung has added a bulge to the bottom left edge of the camcorder which appears to be an attempt at ergonomics. But, it only worsens the sensation that the SC-DC164 is listing to the left. This is not a comfortable camcorder to handhold – not surprising, perhaps, given that this is part of Samsung’s introductory DVD line. We’ll be looking for improvements next year.

**The Back ***(7.0)*

The back of the SC-DC164 is capped on the left by an extendable viewfinder and on the right by the microphone port cover. The viewfinder itself is very similar to what you’d find on many other consumer camcorders – uncomfortable, poorly designed for long-term shooting, but OK in a pinch. The eyepiece is made of hard plastic, and seeing the video image clearly entails placing your eye at a precise distance and angle to the viewfinder nearly forcing you to press your eyelid against it. If the eyepiece were made of soft rubber, the experience would be tolerable, but pressing your eye against a tiny, hard plastic object when you are in motion is uncomfortable, if not dangerous. But in terms of abominable usability, this eyepiece is like most on the consumer market. The viewfinder has a diopter adjustment on its right side, accessible, when its extended.

The microphone port is a welcome addition to this camcorder, as few entry level consumer camcorders share this very useful feature. The placement of this port is questionable, because a mic jack would get in the way of shooting with the viewfinder, but we’d much rather see a poorly placed mic jack on a low end unit than none at all. (Hello Sony and Panasonic…) The jack is protected by a port cover that seems adequately durable and swings well out of the way.

The Mode dial is below the Mic port on the right edge of the camcorder, and unlike Sony’s mode dial, is set into the camcorder’s side, but operated from the back. Two small blue LED lights to the left of the dial indicate camera or play mode. The Record button is below the LED’s and located very close to the Mode dial. In another case of poor placement, the Rec and Mode controls are located so close together that one risks activating one or the other inadvertently - another design issue we hope Samsung corrects in this camcorder’s next iteration.

The Battery occupies the rest of the SC-DC164’s back side below the viewfinder and to the left of the controls. The battery release is on the camcorder’s underside – yet another less than optimal placement because it precludes swapping batteries while the SC-DC164 is tripod mounted.

**The Left Side ***(4.0)*

While the rest of the camcorder’s body is unusually unadorned, the left side is chock full of controls, most of which are located inside the LCD cavity. While we prefer controls to be more accessible when the user is shooting – i.e. fully accessed from the rear, as in Panasonic’s joystick-based interface, the controls are well-marked. Unlike the Hitachi DZ-GX3100 which also places critical controls in the LCD cavity, Samsung has at least provided real buttons rather than a barely usable touch membrane.

A few controls lie on the main camcorder body above the LCD cavity and just forward of the viewfinder: The Quick Menu button, which brings up the image control submenu; the OK button used during menu navigation; and the Easy Q button, which places the SC-DC164 in full Auto or Easy mode. The top row of buttons inside the LCD cavity, from left to right are a Disc/Card format selector switch; a Display On/Off button; and the Menu button, used to access the full menu. In the next row there is a button for Manual Focus/Auto Focus/Multi Display, which selects focus settings in camera mode and a display of multiple thumbnails in playback mode, and +/- volume control buttons. The bottom row contains the Color Nite button on the left, and VCR/function buttons to the right. The camcorder’s Multi Card Slot is below the VCR/function buttons, and opens from below.

To the right of the LCD cavity is a large vertical port cover housing, from top to bottom, a charge indicator light, USB jack, Multi cable jack and the DC in jack. This port cover, unlike the mic jack cover, is very poorly designed. Opening it requires that the LCD be open, and its plastic hinge barely opens  wide enough to permit access to the ports – a few more millimeters of clearance in a case like this would make a world of difference.

The LCD screen features both 4:3 and 16:9 modes with poor color, seems pixilated, and no onscreen or on LCD controls. It seems to be a very poor screen. 90 degrees from body, 270 degree rotation, flips into the cavity.

The Top* (6.0)*

The top of the SC-DC164 is very simple, split into a lens barrel half and a DVD loading bay half. The only interface controls on top are the zoom control and the photo shutter button, both located on the DVD loading side. This side also has a lip, meant to provide a good grip for the shooting hand. Unfortunately, the right side is a bit too tall, and small hands might not be able to reach the lip. The left side of the top is the lens barrel which is long and narrow with no notable features.

Auto/Manual Controls

Picture & Manual Control
Automatic Control (3.0)

The automatic controls on the SC-DC164, which include exposure, shutter speed, focus, white balance, and more, were of pretty poor quality. By and large, the adjustments were too quick – jarring shifts from one exposure level or white balance setting to the next. Automatic focus is very bad, and tends to "breathe" (steady, rhythmic focus going in and out) except when focusing on distant objects. Combine this with the terrible video performance, and you’ve got a real dud on your hands.

Unlike most manufacturers, Samsung does not offer many automatic/manual hybrid controls – those one-touch type controls that make you feel like you’re part of the shooting process, while the camcorder is still making most of the decisions. They do include some Program AE modes for specific shooting situations. They include: Auto, Sports, Portrait, Spotlight, Sand/Snow, and High Speed. There is also a Back Light Compensation (BLC) which brightens the image overall to compensate for underexposed subjects standing in front of a strong backlight (i.e., a window or snow).

The camcorder has a low light performance enhancer, Color Nite, which is controlled via an external button in the LCD cavity. Color Nite slows the shutter speed to either 1/30th or 1/15th of a second. This is a digital effect, and can cause some serious image degradation like blurring.

There is a one-touch button to switch the camcorder into Easy Q mode, the "idiot proof" setting which essentially blocks the user from doing anything but turning the camcorder and video record on or off.

Overall Manual Control (6.0)

The overall manual control on the SC-DC164 is fair. Manual controls include shutter speed, exposure (in EV steps), focus, and white balance. While we liked the navigation on Samsung’s MiniDV camcorder, the SC-D365, just a few modifications in design have made all the difference in handling the SC-DC164. Yes, the main menu has a clear and navigable layout. And yes, the abbreviated Quick Menu is also well-laid out and convenient. But while the D365 had rear-mounted Menu and Quick Menu buttons, and used the zoom toggle and shutter button as navigation tools, the DC164 has a poorly designed joystick on the left side. The Menu button is in the LCD cavity, but the Quick Menu button is above it. The layout makes no sense, and operation is a chore. You’ll find more detailed gripes in the Handling section below.

The Main Menu

The Camera sub-menu, part of the Main Menu

The Quick Menu, totally separate from the Main Menu, contains most of the manual controls. *

The menus, seen here in animated gifs, are simple and effective. The main menu contains many of the manual controls and all of the date, time, and language controls settings. The Quick Menu contains all the manual controls that pertain to image quality: image stabilization, Program AE, white balance, Digital Effects, shutter speed, and exposure.

Almost every other manufacturer either gives you more controls, more effective controls, or better handling. Canon has more manual controls and a well-placed joystick. Panasonic offers aperture in f-stops and gain controls in dB. Sony has simpler handling, even though it is through the touch screen LCD.

Zoom (5.0)

The zoom on the DC164 is of very poor quality. While it is the raised toggle design we like to see, the toggle is thin and loose. It offers almost no resistance, so getting a tight control of the zoom speed is difficult. Like nearly all zoom toggles, it is pressure-sensitive, and gives you about three speeds of zoom. The toggle is well-placed for the forefinger, so you'll have no problen finding it in a pinch. There are no alternative zoom methods. Sony offers secondary zoom control buttons on the LCD panels of all their camcorders.

Zoom Power/Ratio (33.0)

The SC-DC164 offers an incredible 33x optical zoom, surely one of the few justifications for buying this camcorder. This is exactly one factor larger than the JVC entry-level MiniDV camcorders, which have a zoom of 32x. Zoom enthusiasts are a small but demanding market, ranging from ornithologists to private eyes to good old-fashioned perverts, and they may finally have their demands met.

The digital zoom extends to a maximum of 1200x. Our savvy readers know, of course, that digital zooming degrades image quality exponentially, and that coming even close to 1200x would result in nothing more than a jumble of blown-up pixels. If 33x optical is not doing the job, though, you can go into the menu and cap the digital zoom at 100x, 200x, 400x, and 1200x.

Focus (6.5)

The manual focus is not great, which is a shame, as the automatic control is not very good either. The control is engaged via a button labeled "MF/AF" in the LCD cavity. Then the + and – buttons (also the volume buttons) are used to make adjustments. There is one major benefit to the Samsung’s manual focus system – unlike every other manufacturer of consumer camcorders, the DC164 has a scale that appears along the right hand side of the screen tell you where in the focus range you are.

Exposure (Aperture) (4.0)

The exposure control is located in the Quick Menu. The scale of control is quite large – thirty increments in EV steps – which gives you a lot of room to explore for the correct exposure. The question is, of course, what are these increments representing? These are not full EV stops. These are thirty increments, 00 to 29, of some kind of EV values. It’s a good, wide range, but will not satisfy real manual control enthusiasts. There is no direct aperture control, as you'll see on Panasonics. Due to the poor placement and handling of the joystick, accessing the exposure is less than ideal - not nearly as good as Panasonic and Canon, but right on par with Sony, whose controls tend to be buried in the touchscreen menu.

*Shutter Speed (3.0) *

Shutter speed control is located in the Quick Menu, and includes options for 1/60, 1/100, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, 1/2000, 1/4000, and 1/10000 of a seconds. Getting to the controls is not fun, given the less-than-delightful, out of sight joystick. The actual range of controls is pretty good, although Panasonic gives you more range. Most Canons do not go quite as fast; the DC100 has maximum shutter speed of 1/2000, but has a lower minimum shutter speed of 1/8. Sony gives you no shutter speed control at all.

White Balance (7.0)

The SC-DC164’s white balance controls are in both the Quick Menu and Main Menu. The presets include Auto, Indoor, and Outdoor, which is  sparse for a consumer camcorder. Most offer at least one extra indoor setting for lighting types – either fluorescent or incandescent – or a few outdoor options. There is also a full manual setting, called Custom WB. Making the adjustment is a little vague. Normally, there is some kind of blinking icon that stops when the balance is set. This is normally accompanied by a noticeable shift in the look of the picture as white balance sets. None of that happens here. You push the button, the icon blinks once, and it’s pretty much the same looking image as it was before. This is either a testament to the accuracy of the automatic white balance or an indication of the poor quality of the manual white balance. Our inclination is that the answer lies somewhere in between.

Gain (0.0)

There is no manual gain control on the SC-DC164. Only Panasonic gives you full control over the gain, in dB increments. JVC allows you to turn the auto gain on and off.

Other Manual Control (0.0)

There is no other manual control on the SC-DC164.

Still Features

Still Features* (3.75)*

Still features on the SC-DC164 are rather limited, but given the performance, that’s no great loss. It captures stills to SD, MMC, and MemoryStick (not the smaller MemoryStick Duo) cards; you cannot capture stills to DVDs. Cards are inserted into the bottom of the body, making it impossible to load when it’s on a tripod. The still size is fixed at 800 x 600, with quality options of Normal, Fine, and Super Fine. Why they would bother with three quality settings of a picture so small is a bit perplexing, but there you have it.

The Main Menu is largely the same, but the number of manual controls is significantly reduced from the video mode. Normally, they carry over directly. On the DC164, you lose Program AE modes, digital effects, 16:9 mode, image stabilization and shutter speed. You retain, however, manual focus, white balance, exposure, and backlight compensation.

There are few special features here which seem to be an attempt to market this as a hybrid. The camcorder offers PictBridge compatibility with select printers, but there is no flash, and… who are we kidding? A 0.48 megapixel image is never going to come close to replacing a dedicated still camera, which even the lowest end model can shoot at 8 times the quality.

While in video playback, you do have the option of transferring images that you like to the flash memory cards as stills, simply by pushing the still shutter button.

Still Resolution* (0.7)*

The Samsung SC-DC164’s stills were tested for resolution by shooting a standard ISO 12233 resolution chart and running those stills through Imatest imaging software. At its best, the camcorder produced a resolution of 73148.468. As the chart below shows, this was a poor performance, even by entry-level standard.

{column='Still Resolution' models='Sony DCR-DVD105,Sony DCR-DVD205,Panasonic VDR-D100,Canon DC100'} 

Still Performance* (1.75)*

The stills on the SC-DC164 may be slightly larger than the average entry-level DVD camcorder (800 x 600 versus the average 640 x 480), but those extra pixels are not put to good use. The image quality is absolutely terrible. I know we say this a lot about camcorder stills, and it’s the truth, but these are particularly bad – not the bottom of the barrel, but underneath the barrel.

There is virtually no color in the DC164’s stills. It looks as though it was shot at low light, rather than 3000 lux, though that was not the case. It has only slightly more fine detail than it did in video mode. The whole image lacks focus, as well, though we assure you that this was the best of the bunch from testing. Between the lack of color, the lack of detail, and the poor focus, you should never take a photo with this camcorder.

Comparatively, the Sony DCR-DVD105 produced a good deal more color, though these stills were certainly flawed in their own way. Noise levels were terrible, and tended to make subject outlines fuzzy. It could not capture any more fine detail than the Samsung. The DVD205, the next Sony model up, captures stills as large as 1152 x 864. It’s stills are, naturally, much sharper and of a higher resolution. Color reproduction was terrible, with no balance at all. The yellows and greens were high, and there was almost no red to speak of. However, this too was marginally preferable to the Samsung. At least there are colors to play with in Photoshop. It doesn’t seem that there is much to be done with the Samsung’s stills.

The Panasonic VDR-D100 does not even have the ability to capture stills, but it’s near-entry-level MiniDV camcorder, the PV-GS39, does. The GS39’s 640 x 480 stills were very noisy, but had far more color – not good, just more color, and having to choose between them is like picking between two rotten apples. Finally, the Canon DC100 shoots at 1024 x 768. The Canon’s stills are of a much higher resolution, and were the best looking of any of these camcorders – comparatively great color balance, a crisp image, and relatively low noise. Of course, none of these come close to a dedicated still camera, but if you absolutely must take a few stills with your camcorder, only the Canon would suffice.

{column='Still Performance' models='Sony DCR-DVD105,Sony DCR-DVD205,Panasonic PV-GS39,Canon DC100'}

Handling and Use

Ease of Use* (6.0)*

The SC-DC164 is not difficult to use, but it is not enjoyable either. If you have no interest in anything but pointing and shooting, you can put the camcorder in Easy Q mode and your troubles are over. In Easy Q mode, nearly all interface, accidental or otherwise, is denied. Ease of use is of course, largely dependent on automatic controls; if the picture looks so bad that you are forced to step in and intervene, it's no longer very easy, is it? Unfortunately, the automatic controls are not very good (see the Automatic Controls section above for more details).

If you have slightly more ambitious aspirations, but technology can still frighten you, we must report a split decision on the operation. The menu layout is clear and comprehensible, but the navigation controls are terrible. Normally we like a joystick control, but it is poorly placed and not very easy to handle.

If ease of use is the deciding factor , we look towards Sony. This is their specialty, and no one does it quite as well. Panasonic tends to have menus that can be perplexing to beginners, but after some practice, handle very well . Canon lies right in the middle, and we've heard few complaints from novices about learning their way around the DC-series of DVD camcorders.

Handling* (4.0)*

Handling the SC-DC164 is one of the weaker points of the camcorder. The biggest problem is the placement of the joystick and buttons, located above the LCD and inside the LCD cavity on the left side. Not only is the joystick completely out of sight when shooting, but it’s so small and squat that making effective movements is not really possible. We’ve seen worse controls, but this is pretty bad.

*The mode dial, which toggles between the record and playback modes, as well as power on/off. *

If the joystick is bad, the placement of the rest of the buttons is worse. There are no fewer than 10 buttons packed into the LCD cavity, all out of sight of the shooter, and none of them can be differentiated by touch. This is not such a big deal for the Display button or the VCR buttons, but if they went to the trouble of taking manual focus out of the Quick Menu and making it a dedicated button, then they should at least make it recognizable by touch.

You can read the Manual Control section above for a complete breakdown and images from the menu, but in terms of handling, Samsung has created a real quandary. The menu layout is very clear and straightforward, particularly the Quick Menu, which streamlines the manual controls into a single, abbreviated menu. But manuevering through the menu is done with the joystick, which as mentioned above is a poor control. So overall, navigating the menu leans toward the difficult. It’s a shame that the great menu design could not be coupled with a decent body design.

Portability* (7.0)*

The SC-DC164 does not differ appreciably from other DVD camcorders in terms of portability, measuring 51.5 mm x 87.5 mm x 121.5 mm (2.02" x 3.44" x 7.78") and weighing in at 425 grams (.936 lb). That makes it easy to stash in a backpack or medium-sized purse, but too big to fit in a pants pocket. Miniaturization of DVD camcorders has not proceeded as quickly as with MiniDV camcorders, due to the large size of their disc compartments. The SC-DC164 includes a carrying case which is a nice addition to the package that most competing camcorders lack. The case has room for the camcorder, accessories, and a few extra DVDs.

LCD/Viewfinder* (6.5)*

The DC164’s LCD is a 2.7" widescreen with a decent reported resolution of 230K pixels. These numbers are surprising, as our experience with the DC164 showed it to be a very poor LCD. This was partly due to the abysmal video quality, but after watching the video on a separate monitor, the LCD was clearly not helping things. The viewfinder is color electronic, but the manual gives no specs as to resolution and size.

Battery Life* (5.6)*

The SC-DC164 ships with the SB-LSM80 battery pack, which is estimated to have 55 minutes of shooting time in XP mode with the LCD open. We tested this claim by shooting under similar conditions. No zoom or manual control was engaged. In total, the battery lasted for 56 minutes and 32 seconds. This poor battery performance can be topped by most other manufacturers. Fortunately, Samsung does offer another long-life battery, the LSM160 as an option.

 

 

 

 

Audio/Playback/Connectivity

Audio* (6.75)*

The audio options on the SC-DC164 are decent. The front of the camcorder houses a built-in stereo mic. If this option does not satisfy you (and it should not), then you also have the option of using the microphone jack, located in the rear next to the viewfinder. This is a great feature to have, and is rare on camcorders at this price range. No other DVD camcorders have it until you reach the top Panasonic model, the VDR-D300 (some Hitachis have this option too). Sony offers expanded audio options with their DCR-DVD305, DCR-DVD405, and DVR-DVD505, but you have to go through their proprietary shoe rather than a universal audio jack.

There is a Wind Cut feature located in the menu that cuts some of the low rumble that wind causes. There is no audio dubbing feature, which is just as well. Any simple editing program would let you add as many extra audio tracks as you like.

VCR Mode* (6.5)*

The playback on the SC-DC164 is a simple operation, as it is with most DVD camcorders. Thumbnail images of each clip are created, six to a page. The joystick is used as the primary navigation device. Our biggest complaint with playback was the incredibly slow reading speed of the DVD. Between turning the camcorder and displaying the thumbnails, it could take as long as 15 seconds. It may not sound like much, but trust us, it’s aggravating.

There are a number of advanced playback options, if you'd rather work inside the camera instead of through editing software. You can get clip information, add titles to clips, create playlists, title the playlists, delete portions of a clip by adding in and out points, and creates names for the DVD discs.

The VCR controls are located on the left side in the LCD cavity. The buttons are small, but they have a good response.

Ports* (7.75)*

The ports options on the SC-DC164 are generally good. In a hard plastic port cover located just behind the LCD cavity, you’ll find a high-speed USB 2.0 connection, an AV in/out jack, and the DC power-in jack. The placement of the ports here is smart. Cords sticking out won’t get in the way of anything. The mic input is placed on the rear, just next to the viewfinder. This is not quite so smart, as a cord jutting out in this location would prevent you from using the viewfinder with your left eye. Still, it’s hard to complain about a mic input, as you don’t see them that often in entry-level camcorders. The same goes for the AV in/out; most camcorders at this price only offer an output signal. An input allows you to use analog-to-digital conversion. Do you have a bunch of old Hi-8 tapes that you wish you could digitize? Here’s your chance.

Other Features

Widescreen/16:9 Mode* (8.5)*

The DC164 has true widescreen capture, meaning that the field of view is significantly wider than the 4:3 image, with no loss of information to the top and bottom. While the camcorder does have a 2.7" widescreen display, the actual process of switching between aspect ratios is buried in the menu. This is an odd and sad choice. If you have true widescreen, help people find it! It’s one of the few redeeming features on the camcorder.

Scan Rates/24p* (0.0)*

The SC-DC164 does not offer any frame rates other than the native 60 interlaced frames per second. Very few camcorders offer any frame rate options.

Other Features* (4.0)*
*Digital Effects *- As you might expect from a camcorder that seems to have every feature thrown in but the kitchen sink, there are plenty of digital effects to keep you busy – if you’re into that kind of thing. As with other consumer camcorders, these effects are applied to footage in-camera, and apply stylized effects to footage. From a quality standpoint, effects are better applied in a PC-based editing program, but if you’re looking for a visual gimmick, you may find some of these looks appealing. The SC-DC164 includes digital Art, Mosaic, Sepia, Negative, Mirror, Fade-in/Fade-out, and a few others.

*WindCut *-The The SC-DC164 includes a Wind Cut feature which helps to reduce the sound of wind on the camera-mounted microphone. Wind cut is a digital filter that blocks out low-end sound similar to the buffeting noise caused when wind hits a mic, and are helpful if when recording conversation or narration in windy conditions. Wind Cut does not work with external mics, and does reduce the overall fidelity of recorded audio, so the feature should be shut off unless it is needed.

*Color Nite *-Color Nite Mode is engaged by pressing its button in the LCD cavity, and slows the camcorder’s shutter speed to 1/30 or 1/15. When using this mode, a number of effects, digital zoom, and 16:9 Wide are not available. The user’s manual notes that "When using Color Nite, the focus adjusts slowly and white dots may appear on the screen, this is not a defect." While auto focus impairment is a typical byproduct of shutter speed adjustments like Color Nite, we’re not sure what Samsung means by "white dots" on the screen, but this may refer to noise. Users who want to use this mode would be advised to test it out in advance to determine if it will yield acceptable results.

*Back Light Compensation (BLC) *- The BLC button is located in the LCD cavity, and is an automatic setting that compensates for subjects who are in front of brightly lit backgrounds. Without BLC, very bright surroundings can cause camcorders to automatically close down the shutter to a degree that underexposes the subject in the frame. BLC essentially instructs the camcorder to overexpose the image as a whole so that the subject does not appear too dark. BLC is a common feature on consumer camcorders like the SC-DC164 and it’s a brute force adjustment that won’t work for all skin tones in all situations, but it can be helpful when the camcorder closes the iris too much.

Comparisons/Conclusion

Comparison
Sony DCR-DVD105* *
Comparing the Samsung SC-D164 to the Sony DCR-DVD105 is a study in contrast. On paper, the Samsung should smoke this stripped down Sony. It’s got more manual control options a bigger CCD chip and to cap it all off – it’s MSRP is only $449, or 50 bucks less than the Sony. But specs sheets can be, and often are deceiving. While the DCR-DVD105 is by no means an exciting camcorder, it does deliver the goods in terms of great Auto controls, solid if no stellar video quality, and Sony’s famous ease of use. And the Samsung? It’s 1/4.5" CCD is larger than the Sony’s 1/6" chip, but delivered some of the worst video quality we’ve seen. And while it does offer lots of manual controls, an audio input, not to mention an Easy button just like Sony, it's all wasted on a camcorder that just can’t deliver a good picture. Go with the DCR-DVD105 if you’re looking for an entry-level camcorder that’s very easy to use.

Sony DCR-DVD205**
The DCR-DVD205 offers more than the DCR-DVD105, but it is priced at an MSRP of $600. With such a large price differential, the question in this comparison is whether the Samsung SC-DC164 offers a better value despite its abysmal video performance. The DCR-DVD205 equals the Samsung in LCD screen size at 2.7", but the most important advantage is its excellent 1/5.5" chip. This chip delivers a sharp and richly saturated image that puts the SC-D164 to shame, and is markedly better than its step-down cousin, the DVD105. Sony’s camcorders offer little to users who want manual control, but this Sony is a refined product while the Samsung feels like a work in progress.

Panasonic VDR-D100**
If the Samsung SC-D164 has a selling point, it would be its wide range of manual controls, and perhaps its impressive 33x optical zoom. The Panasonic VDR-D100 offers all this…and more. Its video performance is adequate for an entry-level DVD camcorder, rivaling the Sony DCR-DVD105 and far exceeding the Samsung. Its manual control set is similar to the SC-D164, including shutter speed, iris and gain, and its optical zoom is nearly as good at 30x. The combination of extensive manual controls and solid picture quality makes a much more compelling case than Samsung’s extensive manual controls with terrible picture quality. The Samsung does add an audio input and a still photo function which the VDR-D100 lacks, and it’s MSRP is $50 less. On all other counts, the Panasonic comes out on top.

Canon DC100**
Samsung’s SC-D164 offers some competition for the Canon DC100 which shares its initial price of around $450. The DC10 has better manual controls than the Sony DVD105 and DVD205, but Samsung’s camcorder offers more true control. The Samsung also has an audio jack and can record stills to memory cards, both features that the Canon lacks. In terms of video quality, the Canon was disappointing but it still bested the Samsung. This comparison is a toss-up by virtue of a relatively small gap in video performance between the SC-DC164 and the DC100, but we can’t recommend either camcorder. If you are dead-set on a Canon DVD camcorder, the DC10 costs only around $20 more than the DC100, and is a solid performer.

Who It’s For
Point-and-Shooters *(4.0)*

There are lots of point-and-shoot users out there – people who like to leave their camcorder in auto mode at all times.  Some of these casual videographers are technophobes, and others just prefer not to spend time thinking about settings like exposure and focus when their camcorder can do it for them.  If you fall into one of these camps, this is not the camcorder for you because the video it produces is worse than any competitor.  Go with the Sony DVD105 or 205 – they work very well in Auto mode.

*Budget Consumers (3.0)
*Street prices for this camcorder may run significantly below the MSRP of $450, and it may be available for less than other DVD camcorders.  For buyers on a budget, the SC-DC164 might be the ticket – but only at a big discount off the list price.  A used Panasonic or Sony camcorder from last year would still be a better value because it would produce better video. 

Still Photo / Video Camera Hybrid* (1.0)*

The SC-DC164 performs poorly in any image recording mode – video or still, so we can’t recommend it to people looking for a decent hybrid performer.

*Gadget Freaks (1.0)
*For gadget freaks, this Samsung offers some interest.  While the video it produces is terrible, it is packed with more features than any other entry-level DVD camcorder from its 33x zoom and on-screen focus meter to its external mic jack and memory card slot, its great on paper.  Samsung deserves kudos for packing these features into a low-end unit, but until the imaging improves, the SC-DC164 is only worth a look on the showroom floor.

*Manual Control Freaks (2.5)
*Manual control freaks care about video quality, and they know how to milk every ounce of performance from their camcorders.  For these users, the SC-DC164 tantalizes with its plethora of manual controls accessed via the well-conceived Quick Menu.  Unfortunately, the camcorder’s video performance doesn’t do the manual controls justice.  Panasonic’s VDR-D100 is a much better choice because it delivers video worth tweaking, and has a better interface and feature set overall.

Pros/ Serious Hobbyists (1.0)

Pros and serious hobbyists will not find this camcorder of interest because it produces such poor video. If Samsung manages to significantly improve video performance while retaining the or improving the current feature set, things could change, but until then experienced video makers won’t give the SC-DC164 a second look.

Conclusion

The Samsung SC-DC164 looks good on paper. If a specs sheet was all it took to warrant a purchase, we might all be walking around with Samsung camcorders in our hands. A decently sized imager, a mic input, 800 x 600 stills - what's not to like. Well, if you've read the review, you can see that there is actually a whole lot not to like. Performance was poor across every category and that alone knocks it out of competition with the entry-level Sony DCR-DVD105, Panasonic VDR-D100, and Canon DC100. Additionally, the SC-DC164 has poor handling, due to an oddly-placed and misshapen joystick.

The question that lingers after reviewing the Samsung SC-DC164 is 'why?' Why did they make it? And who will buy it? The answer is an unfortunate one, but true nevertheless. There's a sucker born every minute, and many of them are bound to pass through the doors of Best Buy and Circuit City in search of a camcorder. A technologically-unsavvy consumer matched with a unscrupulous or disinterested salesperson might just be the perfect combination for a Samsung purchase.

Samsung is coming up in the world, there's little doubt of that. And 'the little company from Korea that could' has their eyes on Sony, the current mega-boss of electronics. We should expect them to make a serious grab for video camcorders in the next few years. But that fact of the matter is that they're not there yet. And the SC-DC164 is certainly not there yet.

You may consider yourself warned.

 

 

Specs/Ratings

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