February 12, 2009: Panasonic will release six new camcorder models in Australia before the end of March.
The 2009 line-up was announced at a regional briefing in Singapore on 9 and 10 February, which was attended by Photo Review. Consisting of four high definition models plus two standard definition models, this year's offerings feature a choice between SDHC card and HDD storage options.
Leading the range are two Full High Definition (FHD) AVCHD camcorders with a sophisticated 3MOS sensor system based on three 1/4-inch type (3.6 x 2.7 mm) 1920 x 1080 FHD chips that provides a total resolution equivalent to 9.15 megapixels. Both models support a best-in-class low light recording to a minimum of 1.6 Lux. Each model is equipped with a large-aperture Leica Dicomar 12x optical zoom lens and an Advanced Optical Image Stabiliser (O.I.S.).
The new FHD models, the HS200 (lower) and TM200 (upper) feature AVCHD recording with a 3MOS image sensor plus a 12x optical zoom lens.
The HS200 (RRP $2299) is a hybrid camcorder with an 80GB hard disk drive (HDD) and SHDC/SD card slot, while the TM200 (RRP $2099) comes with 16GB of built-in solid-state memory plus an SDHC/SD card slot. Both models feature a 2.7-inch wide touch-screen, Intelligent Auto (iA) for video that includes AF Tracking, Face Detection, Intelligent Contrast Control and Scene Detection for still and moving images. They also include a 5.1-channel surround sound system with five microphones plus a Zoom Mic function.
The SDR-HS20 model combines an 80GB hard drive with SDHC/SD card recording.
The compact SDR-SD records only to SDHC/SD memory card s.
The HS20 (RRP $1649) and SD20 (RRP $1099) models also support AVCHD video recording at 1920 x 1080 pixels, the former recording to an internal 80GB HDD or SHDC/SD memory card, while the latter is a card-only model that weighs just 267 grams. Both feature Leica Dicomar 16x optical zoom lenses with Advanced O.I.S. stabilisation plus the same iA functions as the HS200/TM200 models. A 1.9-second Quick Power-On function allows recording to start from standby mode in less than two seconds or combines with Quick Start to allow recording to start in 0.6 seconds.
The new standard definition SDR-H80 model.
The new standard definition models feature powerful 70x zoom lenses plus Advanced O.I.S. and iA. The SDR-H80 (RRP $829) offers hybrid recording with a 60GB HDD and SDHC/SD card slot. The SDR-S26 model (RRP 549) records only to SHDC/SD memory cards. Both models feature an Easy YouTube uploading function that pre-formats video recordings for uploading to social websites. The upload mode in VideoCam Suite is automatically activated as soon as the camcorder is connected to a PC.
The SDR-S26 model comes in three colours: red, blue and black.
Both models feature a 2.7-inch wide Auto Power LCD that automatically adjusts the brightness of the display to suit the viewing conditions. An o.8-secodn Quick Start mode ensures shooting opportunities aren't missed. Both camcorders are equipped with a world timer function that eliminates the need to manually reset the camcorder time when crossing time zones.
The SDR-H80 and SDR-S26 are due for release this month with the other models appearing in March. Full product details can be found at www.panasonic.com.au.
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