Hitachi DZ-HS300A Camcorder Review

by John Neely
Published on May 2, 2007 4:00 PM

Intro Performance
Format Auto / Manual Controls
Still Features Handling and Use
Audio / Playback / Connectivity
 Other Features
Comparisons / Conclusion Specs and Ratings
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Audio (3.0)
The HS300A records linear PCM Dolby Digital audio via MPEG2 format. While the MPEG2 format is frequently popularized amongst DVD, SD card and HDD camcorders, it does not match the aural crispness of an mp3. Nevertheless, the HS300A’s sound was fairly decent. During playback, there was a minimal amount of white noise accompanying the video. The built-in microphone is conveniently placed at the front of the HS300A, promoting anti-finger muffling audio recording through left and right speaker channels. The camcorder has no mic input and no level controls.

Playback (2.25)
The HS300A offers playback in DVD, HDD, and SD modes. Their function menus are virtually identical: camera, record, date, and LCD/EVF setups. DVD and HDD share the same Administrative menus: program AE, white balance, EIS, digital zoom, and mic filter. SD mode encompasses all of those features except the mic filter, as it is not needed for recording stills. Wading through the convoluted architecture of Hitachi’s menu system is vexing, to say the least. The operator is required to fiddle with the left side of the camcorder, wasting time and losing focus. Panasonic’s rear-mounted joystick would be a great subject of study for the engineers at Hitachi.

The structure of the menu is fairly straightforward and playing back recorded footage is not rocket science either. In DVD mode, the Disc Navigation button brings up a screen with individual thumbnails representing recorded scenes. Using the circular menu selector, you can scroll through each scene for playback, much like a DVD menu, only you can delete the ones you don’t want. The HDD playback menu is the same deal, but allows you to dub onto DVD discs in order to free up hard disc space, which is a modest 8GB. You’ll need a lot of backup discs. In SD mode, you’ll see the same menu which allows you to select and delete stills. Playing back recorded footage is simple and Hitachi gets points for implementing a standardized menu across the board for each mode in order to avoid navigational confusion.

Connectivity (5.0)
There’s not much to choose from here. You’ve got your USB terminal in the front alongside the A/V out jack. The SD card slot is located on the bottom of the camcorder and is accessed from the LCD cavity. Good luck snapping a bunch of stills using a tripod, although why would you want to take stills with a maximum resolution of 640 x 480? The battery-shaped DC input fits into the battery chamber and connects to an external battery charger. The only downside is that you can’t charge the battery and use the camcorder at the same time.






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