The VDR-D100 is only a touch bigger and heavier than the DC19, but it feels bulkier in your hand. Despite this it's comfortable to hold and the controls are easy to reach. The lens is protected by a traditional lens cap. There's no video lamp and no way to take still photos.
To flip the LCD out from the body you must press a button, which is an unnecessary nuisance. The display isn't widescreen, but the camcorder can shoot widescreen video with a very wide angle. The well-organised menu system is controlled by a joystick, which you also use to browse clips from the DVD for playback through the A/V output.
The
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1,150mAh battery on the rear lasts for almost two hours of recording. This is the best result from a DVD camcorder in the group, and you may run out of DVDs before the battery dies. The 30x optical zoom is ideal for framing distant objects. As well as the usual DVD-R/RW discs, it accepts DVD-RAM discs. These can be read by a compatible PC drive without being finalised first, saving you time and hassle.
PERFORMANCE
Video from the small 1/6in CCD is disappointing. It's not as sharp and suffers from more noise than video from the similarly specified MV930. The problems are compounded by MPEG2 compression artefacts, which reduce detail and give video shot in low light a soft, fuzzy feel.
Videos shot outside are better, but they still lack detail. Any quick panning shots suffer from compression artefacts that detract from the image quality. On the other hand, the widescreen mode captures a very wide angle that's ideal for filming cityscapes.
VERDICT
The VDR-D100 is about as cheap as DVD camcorders get, but its video quality isn't great. We recommend buying a cheaper MiniDV camera, or saving up for Canon's DC19.
By Seth Barton
SPECIFICATIONS:
DVD-R, DVD-RW, DVD-RAM storage, 30x optical zoom, 680,000-pixel 1/6in CCD, 2.5in LCD screen, USB interfaces, A/V out
