Panasonic HC-X900 Camcorder Review

Canon HF G10 Comparison

The Canon HF G10 won our award for Camcorder of the Year in 2011. In doing so, it unseated Panasonic, which had won the award in back-to-back years with the HDC-TM300 and HDC-TM700 respectively. Canon did this by equipping the HF G10 with a brand new sensor and did away with the idea that more megapixels equals better video quality. The HF G10 had fewer pixels than the competition, but still had a decently-large CMOS sensor, and as a result it was able to dominate in our low light tests. It is this kind of innovative design and creative thinking that made the HF G10 a great camcorder.

As good a camcorder as the HF G10 is, we were still looking forward to see what kind of tricks and features Canon would incorporate into its eventual successor. But as of now, the HF G10 doesn't have a successor, and it's looking more and more likely that Canon will wait until 2013 to announce a new flagship model.

In a way, Panasonic took a similar route with the HC-X900M. The camcorder represents a minor upgrade over the company's previous flagship model (the HDC-TM900), so there's not really anything new to get excited about. Maybe this idea of coasting with a good product is representative of our slagging economy and shrinking camcorder market, or maybe Canon and Panasonic were just fresh out of new ideas.

Either way, our choice in this head-to-head matchup is the same as it was last year with Canon vs. Panasonic: the HF G10 takes the cake. With Canon failing to release a new flagship model this year, Panasonic had a clear opportunity to steal the show, but that opportunity was surely missed with the HC-X900M.