Panasonic PV-GS300 Mini DV Camcorder
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- Recording System: NTSC
- Camcorder Type: Digital
- Recording Media: Mini DV
- Optical Zoom: 10x
- Weight: 0.99 lb.
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Double your image resolution without HD
Pros
Double the image quality of 1CCD camcorders
Cons
Still-image capture is half the quality of Digital Cameras
Recommended it?
Yes
The Bottom Line:
If you are about to capture on video precious images for family or work, go and get a 3CCD camcorder.
INTRODUCTION
The Panasonic PV-GS300 (GS300) is a member of one of the four new waves of camcorders that are trying (and in my case succeeding) to replace Standard Definition camcorders (which have been around for many, many years) without having to move to an HD camcorder.
The four waves, in my opinion, are: flash-based ultra-portables, disk-based camcorders (with a squarish body for some reason), dvd-burning camcorders and 3CCD camcorders. All of them only record Standard Definition (SD) video that is readily watched in today's and, for 4:3 captured video, yesterday's televisions. The first three waves use the same image sensor technology 1CCD or 1CMOS sensor. The fourth wave uses tree CCDs.
Are 3CCD camcorders 3X better than 1CCD camcorders? No, in my opinion, they are 2X better. Let me present my technical argument at the bottom of the epinion.
VIDEO IMAGE QUALITY
Comparing with a Sony two-year old 1CCD camcorder (DCR-HC21), the video image quality startlingly shows a visible enhancement in quality, how is that possible? By allowing more sensing elements to capture your video. Also, the image quality is better in low light conditions (less noise), how is that possible? Also by allowing more sensing elements to capture your video.
The 3CCD marketing materials point out to better color, theoretically that is possible but the DV format prevents you from getting as much color as the 3 CCD sensors allow, please take a look at the TECHNICAL DISCUSSION at the bottom for clarification.
To my eyes the image has double the resolution, the image is noticeably sharper.
STILL IMAGE QUALITY
When I looked at the marketing materials for the GS300 they claimed that the camcorder can serve as a still-image camera as well as a camcorder, you can even take still images as you are videotaping. I tried to take still images in 16:9 or 4:3 modes and, though the image looks OK, it is not even half as good as a dedicated digital camera like the Canon A70 which my wife and I have enjoyed for many years.
ERGONOMICS
The User Interface, at a higher lever than the Menu items, which I will not describe in detail, is good enough. In the rotary wheel, next to the right-handed camcorder start/stop button, you can select between camcorder record, camcorder playback, still-image capture, still-image display and PC access modes. Inside the rotary wheel where is a useful joystick. Each one of the rotary settings is going to modify the Menu items accessible by the Menu button and joystick, so don't expect to be able to change the date of your camcorder while doing camcorder playback since, for some reason, it is not relevant then, it is only relevant during camcorder recording.
There is an auto/manual/manual-focus setting button on the left side of the camcorder, under the LCD display, which allows you to go from full auto, which is good enough for outdoor or indoor moving or still images, to full manual where you can control every aspect of your image including focus.
There is a still-image capture button above your camcorder start/stop in about the same place as where a camera would have its take-picture button, kudos for ergonomics here, though I wish that the still images where even as good as my many year old Canon A70. I guess if you are going to do two major consumer tasks, it is better to do one really well than both being mediocre.
To get your precious images or video out of your camera you have: IEEE 1394 (need your own cable), USB and Analog video and audio outputs (both with supplied cables).
The 10X zoom is very handy and easy to access at the top-most part of the small camcorder, the zoom even doubles as a volume control for video playback.
The overall on-off slider switch is between the still-image capture button and the camcorder start/stop and rotary wheel/joystick. There is a mode that you can select to go instantly into pause to quickly record precious memories as soon as you open the LCD or pull the view finder (which only works when pulled out by the way).
In addition to a large 16:9 (widescreen) LCD you can also see images in a color viewfinder. You will be surprised how often you need to use a viewfinder when capturing outdoors and a full color viewfinder is an awesome addition. Try finding fruit in a busy fruit tree without a color viewfinder...
DURABILITY
I have had the camcorder for three weeks now, I will update this section of the review over time. So far, no issues whatsoever.
SUMMARY
I am very much enjoying the much more detailed images from my camcorder which I am about to use to capture our first son's first days/weeks/months/years. The camcorder is light and the ergonomics are excellent. The wide variety of ways to get images out of the camera are excellent and the features are varied enough for high-quality Standard Definition video recording, good job Panasonic!
TECHNICAL DISCUSSION
1CCD camcorders have a CCD sensor with color filters on top of each pixel. The color filters are arranged per the Bayer pattern (U.S. patent # 3,971,065) and allow the single CCD to capture and output the following pattern per sensor pixel (showing three lines with the first three pixels out of 640x480, 720x480 or 854x480 pixels for NTSC cameras):
G R G
B G B
G R G
where B is Blue, G is Green and R is Red. Every pixel needs to have Red, Green AND Blue components in the RGB color space which looks like this:
RGB RGB RGB
RGB RGB RGB
RGB RGB RGB
so how do you go from the first pattern which only has 9 R, G OR B components to 9 RGB components for 9 pixels? You have to make up the missing components. Does that work? yes, every 1CCD camcorder and digital camera does about the same thing except for cameras based on the Foveon sensor (Polaroid X530 and Sigma SD9, SD10 and SD14) which truly capture the three R, G and B components per pixel.
So isn't 27 R, G or B components 3X more than 9 R, G or B components? Mathematically yes, except that the miniDV format converts from R,G,B to Y,Cb,Cr:
YCbCr YCbCr YCbCr
YCbCr YCbCr YCbCr
YCbCr YCbCr YCbCr
and then "drops" Cb and Cr components to end with:
YCbCr Y YCbCr
Y Y Y
YCbCr Y YCbCr
The eye is most sensitive to intensity and less sensitive to color. Y is the Luminosity/intensity component and Cb and Cr are the Chroma (Color) components so Consumer Electronics manufacturers agreed to drop most of the color components leaving behind enough for most people to be happy with their captured images. So even if you have more RGB components, the DV format does not allow you to capture and display all of them, I vote for 2X image quality vs. the potential 3X image quality.
I am familiar with Bayer processing since I am designing a Professional camera with 3CCD or 1CCD options right now and been working with Digital Video since 1993.
The Panasonic PV-GS300 (GS300) is a member of one of the four new waves of camcorders that are trying (and in my case succeeding) to replace Standard Definition camcorders (which have been around for many, many years) without having to move to an HD camcorder.
The four waves, in my opinion, are: flash-based ultra-portables, disk-based camcorders (with a squarish body for some reason), dvd-burning camcorders and 3CCD camcorders. All of them only record Standard Definition (SD) video that is readily watched in today's and, for 4:3 captured video, yesterday's televisions. The first three waves use the same image sensor technology 1CCD or 1CMOS sensor. The fourth wave uses tree CCDs.
Are 3CCD camcorders 3X better than 1CCD camcorders? No, in my opinion, they are 2X better. Let me present my technical argument at the bottom of the epinion.
VIDEO IMAGE QUALITY
Comparing with a Sony two-year old 1CCD camcorder (DCR-HC21), the video image quality startlingly shows a visible enhancement in quality, how is that possible? By allowing more sensing elements to capture your video. Also, the image quality is better in low light conditions (less noise), how is that possible? Also by allowing more sensing elements to capture your video.
The 3CCD marketing materials point out to better color, theoretically that is possible but the DV format prevents you from getting as much color as the 3 CCD sensors allow, please take a look at the TECHNICAL DISCUSSION at the bottom for clarification.
To my eyes the image has double the resolution, the image is noticeably sharper.
STILL IMAGE QUALITY
When I looked at the marketing materials for the GS300 they claimed that the camcorder can serve as a still-image camera as well as a camcorder, you can even take still images as you are videotaping. I tried to take still images in 16:9 or 4:3 modes and, though the image looks OK, it is not even half as good as a dedicated digital camera like the Canon A70 which my wife and I have enjoyed for many years.
ERGONOMICS
The User Interface, at a higher lever than the Menu items, which I will not describe in detail, is good enough. In the rotary wheel, next to the right-handed camcorder start/stop button, you can select between camcorder record, camcorder playback, still-image capture, still-image display and PC access modes. Inside the rotary wheel where is a useful joystick. Each one of the rotary settings is going to modify the Menu items accessible by the Menu button and joystick, so don't expect to be able to change the date of your camcorder while doing camcorder playback since, for some reason, it is not relevant then, it is only relevant during camcorder recording.
There is an auto/manual/manual-focus setting button on the left side of the camcorder, under the LCD display, which allows you to go from full auto, which is good enough for outdoor or indoor moving or still images, to full manual where you can control every aspect of your image including focus.
There is a still-image capture button above your camcorder start/stop in about the same place as where a camera would have its take-picture button, kudos for ergonomics here, though I wish that the still images where even as good as my many year old Canon A70. I guess if you are going to do two major consumer tasks, it is better to do one really well than both being mediocre.
To get your precious images or video out of your camera you have: IEEE 1394 (need your own cable), USB and Analog video and audio outputs (both with supplied cables).
The 10X zoom is very handy and easy to access at the top-most part of the small camcorder, the zoom even doubles as a volume control for video playback.
The overall on-off slider switch is between the still-image capture button and the camcorder start/stop and rotary wheel/joystick. There is a mode that you can select to go instantly into pause to quickly record precious memories as soon as you open the LCD or pull the view finder (which only works when pulled out by the way).
In addition to a large 16:9 (widescreen) LCD you can also see images in a color viewfinder. You will be surprised how often you need to use a viewfinder when capturing outdoors and a full color viewfinder is an awesome addition. Try finding fruit in a busy fruit tree without a color viewfinder...
DURABILITY
I have had the camcorder for three weeks now, I will update this section of the review over time. So far, no issues whatsoever.
SUMMARY
I am very much enjoying the much more detailed images from my camcorder which I am about to use to capture our first son's first days/weeks/months/years. The camcorder is light and the ergonomics are excellent. The wide variety of ways to get images out of the camera are excellent and the features are varied enough for high-quality Standard Definition video recording, good job Panasonic!
TECHNICAL DISCUSSION
1CCD camcorders have a CCD sensor with color filters on top of each pixel. The color filters are arranged per the Bayer pattern (U.S. patent # 3,971,065) and allow the single CCD to capture and output the following pattern per sensor pixel (showing three lines with the first three pixels out of 640x480, 720x480 or 854x480 pixels for NTSC cameras):
G R G
B G B
G R G
where B is Blue, G is Green and R is Red. Every pixel needs to have Red, Green AND Blue components in the RGB color space which looks like this:
RGB RGB RGB
RGB RGB RGB
RGB RGB RGB
so how do you go from the first pattern which only has 9 R, G OR B components to 9 RGB components for 9 pixels? You have to make up the missing components. Does that work? yes, every 1CCD camcorder and digital camera does about the same thing except for cameras based on the Foveon sensor (Polaroid X530 and Sigma SD9, SD10 and SD14) which truly capture the three R, G and B components per pixel.
So isn't 27 R, G or B components 3X more than 9 R, G or B components? Mathematically yes, except that the miniDV format converts from R,G,B to Y,Cb,Cr:
YCbCr YCbCr YCbCr
YCbCr YCbCr YCbCr
YCbCr YCbCr YCbCr
and then "drops" Cb and Cr components to end with:
YCbCr Y YCbCr
Y Y Y
YCbCr Y YCbCr
The eye is most sensitive to intensity and less sensitive to color. Y is the Luminosity/intensity component and Cb and Cr are the Chroma (Color) components so Consumer Electronics manufacturers agreed to drop most of the color components leaving behind enough for most people to be happy with their captured images. So even if you have more RGB components, the DV format does not allow you to capture and display all of them, I vote for 2X image quality vs. the potential 3X image quality.
I am familiar with Bayer processing since I am designing a Professional camera with 3CCD or 1CCD options right now and been working with Digital Video since 1993.
