Labs

The camcorder's 8GB hard disk stores just under two hours of recording at the highest quality settings, which is equivalent to two MiniDV tapes. You can also record directly to DVD, which limits you to 20 or 30 minutes depending on the settings, or copy recordings from the hard disk directly to DVD.

Alternatively, you can transfer video from the hard disk to your PC via USB, although you can't simply drag and drop files from the camera. Instead you must use the supplied software, which is an annoyingly slow process.

Behind the widescreen LCD there are seven touch-sensitive

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buttons for regularly used functions. The menu system is controlled by a small joypad on the side of the camcorder. It's a little awkward to use unless you reverse the LCD screen and fold it back against the body.

The camera has an unpowered accessory shoe and microphone input, so you can mount an external microphone if you wish. There's no flash or video lamp, though, and still photographs are limited to a low resolution.

PERFORMANCE

The battery lasted for just over an hour when recording to DVD, but this improved to an hour and a half when using the hard disk.

Video shot in static indoor scenes is on a par with that from Canon's MVX460. In low light, however, the video was rather dark and the MPEG2 compression reduced detail levels. Outdoors it produced vibrant colours and reasonable detail, but pans were again spoilt by MPEG2 compression. It shoots widescreen video with an impressively wide angle.

VERDICT

Some users may appreciate the ability to record video on a hard disk and burn DVD copies immediately, but Canon's DC19 costs less and produces better-quality video.