JVC Everio GZ-HD6 Camcorder Reviewby David KenderPublished on Mar 20, 2008 9:28 PM 
|
|
Ease of Use (6.5)
The GZ-HD6 (Review, Specs, Recent News, $0.00) may seem intimidating from its stealthy black exterior, but the simplified menu system and handy onboard options make this camcorder a friendly piece of machinery. First off, JVC has slimmed down the number of external controls from the formidable GZ-HD7 (Review, Specs, Recent News, $0.00) (Review, Specs, Recent News, $1529). The GZ-HD6 just has a cluster of buttons located in the LCD cavity and along the LCD panel. This way, novice shooters will not get bogged down by a wealth of options. On the other hand, advanced shooters will long for that buttery focus ring, Aperture Priority and Shutter Speed buttons, and wide viewfinder found on the GZ-HD7. Also, the Focus Assist button was much better placed on the HD7 and HD3 (Review, Specs, Recent News, $1279.00), in the front, than it is here in the LCD cavity. The GZ-HD6 is far more consumer-oriented than its hulking older brother, so power shooters—you’re out of luck.
The GZ-HD6’s Function menu is just what a Function menu should be. It contains all manual controls and a few other options like Tele Macro and Zebras. With one press of a button, you have easy access to Exposure, Shutter Speed, White Balance, and Aperture Priority. You can also apply special Effects and adjust Sharpness. However, if all of this is too heavy, you can switch the GZ-HD6 into Auto mode and the Function menu is disabled. All image adjustments are made automatically, but you can still access the Administrative menu. In that way, JVC’s Auto mode is similar to Panasonic’s, while Sony and Canon provide a full Easy mode to cater to bewildered shooters.
In terms of media, the GZ-HD6 is set. A 120GB HDD will give you almost 10 hours of video in the highest quality, which is pretty absurd. While a monumental storage capacity should be a major perk, just think of all the archiving and sorting you’ll have to do if you allow clips to pile up on the HDD—pages upon pages of Epcot adventures can seem like a doomed maze with “It’s a Small World” playing eternally in the background. If you want to save a few bucks and simplify things, the GZ-HD5 is identical in every regard to the GZ-HD6, but with a 60GB HDD. On the bright side, think of all the cash you’ll save on tapes and DVDs, along the pain of real-time capture and lengthy Finalizing. If you want to edit with the GZ-HD6, it will require some trickery, but not as much magic required for AVCHD video.
Handling (6.6)
When the monstrous GZ-HD7 was released, it put a dent in the Earth. All other camcorders cowered in fear—the GZ-HD7 was and still is among the biggest truly consumer camcorders on the market at almost two pounds and over seven inches in length. Then along came the GZ-HD3 (Review, Specs, Recent News, $1279.00), which was just a watered down version of the GZ-HD7. JVC lopped some weight off and sized down the dimensions, but the GZ-HD3 lost that prosumer feel we gushed over with the GZ-HD7. On the handling front, the GZ-HD3 is still a force to be reckoned with. The new GZ-HD6 is even lighter and smaller, despite its massive 120GB HDD, but loses more of the pro-like feel we praised.
The GZ-HD6 feels solid in hand—this is a well-constructed camcorder. The giant HDD serves as the right side grip, and is plenty to grab onto for a majority of hand sizes. Unfortunately, JVC skimped on the hand strap—it’s like roll-down windows on a Cadillac. The GZ-HD6’s hand strap is thin, coarse, and devoid of padding. It’s also anchored too low, forcing the camcorder to tilt away from the hand at a 45 degree angle. At this price point, we expect more than a novelty-grade hand strap and wonky placement. Between the weight and the hand strap, a long day of shooting with the GZ-HD6 can be quite taxing.
 |
|
|
The joystick on the JVC GZ-HD6 |
|
The GZ-HD6’s Joystick is small, yet is not as painful and ill-placed as the Panasonic HDC-SD9 (Review, Specs, Recent News, $0.00)’s. Located on the edge of the LCD panel, it gets the job done. A rear-mounted joystick that allows for one-handed operation would have been more convenient. Focus is controlled directly by the Joystick and you can apply NightAlive, Backlight Compensation, and Program AEs instantly. It’s fair to say that JVC simply attached too many features to the joystick. No matter which way you move it, you activate one or more controls. This can be terribly confusing for beginners, considering the camcorder’s reliance on icons rather than plain-text explanations onscreen to show what has been activated. The lack of dedicated buttons is a particular problem during playback, when play, pause, rewind, and other common controls are absolutely obfuscated.
Menu (6.5)
The GZ-HD6’s menu system are relatively simple, but Panasonic still leads the pack in clean, well-organized, and intuitive systems. All manual controls that directly affect how the image looks are located within the Function menu, which is accessed by pressing the Function button. The Function menu allows for quick image adjustment on the fly and includes extra options like Zebras and Sharpness control. The Function menu contains the following options: Adjust Brightness, Shutter Speed, Aperture Priority, WB, Effect, Tele Macro, Zebra, and Custom Setting.
The Focus Assist menu
The Administrative menu can be reached by pressing the Menu button in the LCD cavity. The GZ-HD6’s Administrative menu contains a handful of categories with corresponding options. Unlike the Sony HDR-HC7 (Review, Specs, Recent News, $0.00) (Review, Specs, Recent News, $1128.56)’s Administrative menu, which seems like an endless scroll, the GZ-HD6’s menu options are far more condensed. Administrative menu options are as follows:
| Administrative Menu | |
| Video | Quality, Zoom, OIS, Gain Up, Wind Cut, Rec Media For Video, Scene Counter, External Mic Level, x.v. Color |
| Image | Quality, Image Size, Gain, Continuous Shooting, Self-Timer, Rec Media For Image |
| General | Language, Clock Adjust, Date Display Style, Date/Time, Preset, Bright, Monitor Backlight, Drop Detection, Focus Assist, Remote, Demo Mode, Operation Sound, Display, Display on TV |
| Output Setting | Video Output, Component Output, HDMI Output, HDMI Color Setting, HDMI Enhance Setting, i.Link Output (Dub) |
| Media | Clean Up HDD, Format HDD, Format SD Card, Delete Data on HDD, Video No. Reset, Image No. Reset |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
Selections from the Administrative menu |
|
When you’re not engaged in a menu, the joystick itself has four different “quick access” functions: Down controls Focus, Left triggers NightAlive, Up engages Backlight Compensation (BLC), and right activates the Program AE scroll menu.
Portability (6.25)
JVC’s third-generation HD camcorder is the smallest and lightest yet (the GZ-HD5 weighs a little less than the GZ-HD6, given the smaller HDD). JVC compacted the length and shaved a few ounces in certain areas to give the GZ-HD6 measurements of 79mm x 73mm x 138mm (3-1/8” x 2-7/8” x 5-7/16”) and a weight of 590g (1.31 lbs.). Even with a 120GB HDD, the GZ-HD6 is still smaller than the GZ-HD7 and GZ-HD3. Nevertheless, this camcorder is still a tank. There’s no way you’ll be able to fit it in a pocket or pair of pants without ripping your clothes at the seams. You’ll need a small or medium size camcorder bag with pouches for extra batteries. No need to worry about tapes or DVDs—the GZ-HD6 is all hard drive. You also might want to look into the included neck strap—it’ll save your arm on those long Disney Land days. With a solid construction, the GZ-HD6 is built to last—no Canon HV20 (Review, Specs, Recent News, $903) parts here. Just go easy on the port covers.
LCD and Viewfinder (5.2)
The GZ-HD6’s 2.8-inch wide LCD screen is the camcorder’s central monitor, as there is no viewfinder. The LCD screen has a resolution of 207,000 pixels, flips out 90 degrees from the body of the camcorder, and rotates up to 270 degrees. JVC lopped the viewfinder off to keep weight down and save space, but advanced shooters will long for the alternative viewing pane. The GZ-HD7’s viewfinder is one of the best in the camcorder world, sporting a wide rubberized eye cup and extending outward to clear the battery. Along the LCD panel you’ll find the Battery/Index button, Joystick, and Function menu button. The LCD panel is a central control strip, and most shooters will end up gripping the LCD screen with their left hand. The GZ-HD6’s LCD hinge is not particularly rock solid, so two-handed shooters will have to treat it like an egg.
Battery Life (9.6)
We tested the life of the GZ-HD6’s BN-VF815U battery pack by recording continuously in manual mode with OIS disabled and the LCD flipped open. Since the GZ-HD6 has a 120GB HDD, there was no need to stop and erase video clips to free up more space—ample time was left after the battery had quit, even at the highest quality setting. The BN-VF815U battery pack lasted a total of 95 minutes and 45 seconds (1 hour, 35 minutes, and 45 seconds). The GZ-HD3 lasted almost as long with a total time of 91 minutes and 46 seconds (1 hour, 31 minutes, and 46 seconds), while the monstrous GZ-HD7 churned out a disappointing 76 minutes and 40 seconds (1 hour, 16 minutes, and 40 seconds). All three camcorders ship with the BN-VF815U battery pack.