Panasonic PV-GS12 Camcorder Review

by James Murray
Published on Jul 9, 2004 1:00 PM



The periwinkle and dark-gray body of the Panasonic PV-GS12 reflects its bargain price; you can own one for US$399.95. Its 1/6” 680K CCD, 2.5-inch LCD screen and black-and-white viewfinder are complemented by the possibilities inherent in 20X optical/800X digital zoom. SD memory card and Mini DV tape allow for multiple file format options for capturing still and moving images. This camera weighs merely .88 pounds; its light weight and small size make it a good option for a consumer who wants to travel comfortably and still have a camcorder with them.

Video Performance(6.0)
The Panasonic PV-GS12 has a 1/6-inch 680K CCD located behind the 20X optical lens. The overall color for the camera at 3000 lux, and other bright light levels, is evenly unsaturated, with a crisp overall image. The yellow is a bit compromised, as is the blue, but the colors at 3000 lux are consistent for the most part, if a little flat. The grayscale is even throughout, although the jump between the two lightest bars is rather abrupt. The PS12's automatic adjustments to focus and exposure during capture is decent, especially for the price.

The Front (7.0)
The front of the Panasonic PV-GS12 features a 20X optical lens in the upper left hand corner. Beneath the lens and lens barrel, the user will find the LED light, which can be used in low- or no-light situations. Beneath the LED are the white balance sensor and the remote control sensor. At the bottom of the front of the Panasonic PV-GS12, beneath a hard plastic port cover, there is the A/V-out headphones jack and an external microphone jack. (The PV-GS12 has no accessory shoe, so a microphone would need to be handheld, or the camera altered manually by the user.) Heavy use of the port cover will probably tear the flimsy tab that connects the port cover to the body of the camera. To the right of these features, and half way up the camera body, is the zoom stereo microphone. This feature allegedly allows the user to attain a more articulate audio recording based upon the envelope of sound being attained. However, in the back of the manual, the manufacturer warns that this feature may not work if ambient sound is too great. It appears, that in general, this feature merely heightens or decreases the sensitivity of the microphone.

The Right Side (8.0)
The right side of the Panasonic PV-GS12 is largely consumed by a top-loading cassette cartridge, with a textured body to provide what can be assumed to be a pseudo-metal aesthetic, paired with the idea that this texture will help with camera comfort and ease in handling. The major appeal for a top-loading cassette cartridge is that, if using a tripod, it is not necessary to take the camera off the tripod and ruin a shot, just to switch tapes. A hand strap wraps from the back to the front of the Panasonic PV-GS12 in the lower half of the camera body, and is secured with two strap holders built out from the camera body.

Beneath this strap, in a horribly awkward position, the user, after much irritation and manipulation, will finally circumnavigate the strap to discover another port cover, under which they can expose a USB port towards the back, and a FireWire DV port towards the front. This port cover, like the one located on the front of the Panasonic PV-GS12, is imbued with an overt sense of fragility and weakness. Its poor placement made it essential to wrangle the cover off, a process that left me with the feeling I’d already greatly shortened the port cover’s lifespan. The only way to make this ordeal any easier is to remove the hand strap completely whenever the USB or FireWire ports are in use.

The Back (6.5)
The battery port is located on the back of the Panasonic PV-GS12 to the left bottom side. Masked until the battery is removed, the user can use direct DC-in power, although it is not possible to both charge the battery and power the camera at the same time… something to be noted if long periods of shooting are essential to you. Directly above the battery, the electronic viewfinder is situated in a half-moon rubber eyepiece. The viewfinder itself displays only in black and white. It is also impossible to use the LCD screen and the viewfinder simultaneously. The viewfinder can extend from the body of the camera by merely pulling on the eyepiece. Once extended, it is possible to adjust the dioptic setting for the Panasonic PV-GS12.

To the right of the viewfinder is the mode dial for in-camera options. Represented through a series of differently colored symbols, the mode dial allows the user to select among tape recording mode, tape playback mode, card recording mode, picture playback mode, and PC mode. The grooved dial is silver, and absurdly clumsy and simplistic. Beneath the mode dial, the small black Quick Start button will, when the camera is turned on, allow for recording within 1.3 seconds. Below this button, the on/off switch for the Panasonic PV-GS12 surrounds the record button for the camera. The switch can only be activated when the small blue button located on the tip of the switch is depressed; only then can the unit slide back and forth between on and off.

The Left Side (7.0)
The left side of the Panasonic PV-GS12 is equipped with a standard flip-out LCD screen, which is engaged by pressing the lever located on the right bottom portion of the casing. Once open, the left side features a 2.5-inch LCD screen with the ability to rotate 180 degrees in one direction. Beneath the LCD screen, the user will discover a four-way control pad, located centrally in the recessed portion of the camcorder. Choices are up/still/pause, down/fade/stop, fast forward/+/right, rewind/-/back, and enter/play. These controls are entirely dependent on the mode the user is in, be it playback, record, or in-menu options. Beneath these controls, in a clear dark-blue casing, the housing unit for the optional SD card can be opened easily using the switch to the left of the unit itself. Going up the right side of the camera from the SD card are the auto/manual focus slider, the Menu button for LCD screen usage, and the multi/p-in-p viewing buttons. Moving left along the top of the recessed portion of the camera body from this button, are the soft-skin button, the Magic Pix button, and the record button. Beneath the record button are the backlight button and the light button for triggering the LED lights located on the front of the camera beneath the lens. Recessed near the upper right corner, almost too small to see, is a button to reset the camcorder’s settings, should the camera become too convoluted with presets. The 20mm round speakers take up the top left side of this area.

The Top(7.0)
The open/eject button for the tape cartridge is located towards the front of the camera. When pushed forward, it allows the user to manually open the cartridge. Towards the back of the camera, the user will find the ill-placed wide-angle/telephoto zoom toggle, which doubles as a volume control during playback. When my hand was using the safety strap, the middle of my finger rested on the control, so I was entirely restricted in my ability to make adjustments easily. Behind the zoom toggle, the unlabeled still-image shutter button is raised slightly from the body of the camcorder.

Picture & Manual Control
Automatic Control (5.0)
The automatic controls for the Panasonic PV-GS12 cover White Balance, Auto Focus, Shutter Speed, Iris Adjustment, and preset digital effect functions – mainly overused mix-board effects like wipes, strobes, mosaic, and picture-in-picture. If the settings become too overwhelming, there is a reset button for controls located in the recessed LCD area of the Panasonic PV-GS12.

Overall Manual Control (4.5)
The manual controls for the Panasonic PV-GS12 control zoom, focus, aperture, gain, exposure, audio quality, and shutter speed. The intricate workings and on-screen LCD display make it so that manual controls become quickly avoidable, made so complicated that, even if a user is familiar with camcorder manual control, using the ones on the Panasonic PV-GS12 will be a challenge for even simple shooting. The on-screen menus were fairly straightforward; however, the lag time and resistant buttons made actually selecting the proper options a tedious task.

Zoom (7.0)
Manual zoom on the Panasonic PV-GS12 is controlled through the zoom toggle located on the top of the camera body, towards the back. When pressed to the left, the wide-angle portion of the zoom is deployed; when pressed to the right, the telephoto will be engaged. The closest macro shot the Panasonic PV-GS12 is capable of shooting is approximately 0.8 inch from the lens of the camera itself. The PV-GS12 has an optical zoom of 20x and a digital zoom of 800x.

Focus (3.0)
Automatic focus is the default for the Panasonic PV-GS12, unless the focus switch on the left side of the camera is engaged. It is only possible to use the manual focus while shooting with the LCD screen. The viewfinder will only engage when the LCD screen is closed. To use the manual focus, first press the switch downwards. The manual focus symbol will then appear in the upper right hand corner of the LCD screen. Then, press the right and left buttons on the four-way keypad to adjust the focus of the image. To exit manual focus, slide the selector back up to automatic focus.

Exposure (Aperture)/ Gain (5.5)
To access shutter settings for the Panasonic PV-GS12, enter the manual/automatic settings by pressing the slider down from to the manual setting. When engaged, press the enter button (located in the center of the four-way keypad) until the aperture settings are displayed. By pressing the left and right keys, the user can then choose between F16 (closed), through to +18dB. Anything over 0 is considered to be gain; anything under 0 is an f-stop setting. Settings closer to +18dB will cause the image to appear brighter — the reverse is true for settings closer to F16. To exit the manual exposure settings, press the automatic/manual settings slider up to the automatic setting.

Shutter Speed (5.0)
To adjust shutter speed, set the automatic/manual focus to manual. Press the enter button in the middle of the four-way keypad twice, then press the right and left buttons on either side of the enter button. The shutter setting will appear onscreen, and is adjustable in the following increments and settings: 1/60,1/100,1/120,1/180,1/250,1/350,1/500,1/750,1/1000,1/1500,1/2000,1/3000,1/4000,1/8000. To undo the manual setting, merely slide the manual/automatic focus switch back to the automatic position.

White Balance (6.5)
The White balance for the Panasonic PV-GS12 can be controlled through the same system as the shutter speed and focus features: slide the automatic/manual focus switch to manual, and press the enter button in the center of the four-way keypad once. Once within the white balance adjustment controller, the user will see AWB beneath the manual symbol on the LCD screen. By pressing right or left, the user is allowed to scan through white balance options through a system of symbols exhaustive enough to merit reading the manual for proper identification. Settings range from 10,000K to 1,000K, and are represented by a series of obtuse symbols.

Still Performance(4.0)
Still performance for the Panasonic PV-GS12 is entered through moving the mode dial to the red camera icon. The format for still picture images is 640x480, and images can be recorded to either card or tape. The number of images recorded to card is entirely dependent on the size of the memory, and the size/quality of the images being recorded. A user can purchase multimedia cards or SD memory cards for external memory, when not using tape.

VCR Mode (5.5)
VCR mode for the Panasonic PV-GS12 is engaged when the dial mode is switched from regular image capture (represented as a film camera) to the play-button icon. The VCR controls are all located under the LCD screen, and are the secondary function of the four-way keypad: Enter/play, fast forward/right, rewind/left, down/stop, and up/pause. To record while in VCR playback, the user need merely press the record button at the left upper corner of the four-way keypad. It is not possible to view the playback through the viewfinder – only through the LCD screen.

Low Light Performance(4.6)
Under low light conditions of 60 lux and 15 lux, the Panasonic PV-GS12 maintains color accuracy consistent with the results achieved at 3000 lux. However, overall grain and noise increase dramatically, as the gain is boosted when in automatic. The discoloration on the resolution bars is minimized at 60 lux, and disappears entirely at 15 lux. Also, the grayscale itself is evened, leaving the abrupt changes that occurred at 3000 lux in favor of smooth transitions between scale steps. The overall crispness of the image decreases, in accordance with the lowered lux settings.

At 15 lux, compared to 60 lux, coloration of the PV-GS12 is unmistakably duller, with a gray curtain of noise falling over the whole image. While it would be nice to see more saturated yellows and greens, indeed the whole light side of the spectrum, the Panasonic PV-S12 reproduces a pretty balanced spectrum, considering its CCD size and, frankly, price.

LCD/ Viewfinder(5.5)
The Panasonic PV-GS12 is equipped with an electronic viewfinder, which can only be engaged when the LCD screen is closed completely. This stops the user from being able to access manual controls and shoot in a simultaneous manner, foisting automatic control upon the user. The electronic viewfinder is black and white, another shortcoming of this product, although the ability to adjust the eyepiece to bring it past the end of the battery makes using the viewfinder a feasible option, at least. The LCD screen is 2.5 inches in size, and flips out to the left using a switch located on the bottom of the panel. It can rotate 180 degrees, but can only be spun upwards. The LCD screen also adjusts slightly past 90 degrees, allowing for a more efficient viewing of screen/menu button control usage.

Audio (6.0)
The stereo microphone for the Panasonic PV-GS12 is located on the front of the camcorder’s body, to the left. It has a sensitivity of —50 dB, and can be adjusted through the zoom microphone and windscreen settings on the camera. To turn on wind reduction, enter the tape recording menu and turn the wind cut setting to “on.” Then, exit the menu, to continue use with the new options in place. The same process is used for enabling the zoom microphone, but rather than wind cut, highlight zoom mic within the menu and turn the option to “on.” Playback for audio is provided by the round 20mm speaker housed underneath the LCD screen. If sound quality is important, it is suggested that the user use an outside sound system. There is also a port for external microphones; however, such units would have to be handheld, or at least attached to the body in a modified design, due to the lack of an accessory shoe on the Panasonic PV-GS12.

Handling (6.0)
The handling for the Panasonic PV-GS12 pairs awkward design with the frustration of small buttons and convoluted menu structures. The on-screen controls have some logic to them; however, the latency on the buttons and the lack of sensitivity at appropriate moments makes any convenience quickly dissipate. The LCD solarizes with each slight adjustment, making viewing an eye-level affair. The viewfinder’s black and white screen and small size forces the LCD into use and, when matched with the lack of manual options when using the viewfinder, the Panasonic PV-GS12 has once again made a compelling case for the disappearance of badly conceived viewfinders.

The VCR playback works consistently and, having stuck to a universal template for its controls, most users will find it easily accessible without constant consultation of the manual. The top-loading cassette cartridge is great, allowing for tripod use and tape changes to coexist perfectly. There’s no need to worry about losing your shot when you change tapes with this camera.

Ports(8.0)
The Panasonic PV-GS12 is equipped on the bottom of the right side with the capability for USB or FireWire cables. On the front of the camera, towards the bottom, the Audio/Video port is situated under a separate port cover.

Other Features (5.0)
Widescreen Mode
Although the Panasonic PV-GS12 does shoot in a “16:9” format, this is merely an illusion achieved through image stretching.

MPEG
The possibility exists for MPEGs, using the USB and FireWire ports that are standard on the PV-GS12 camera.

Analog to Digital Pass Through
The port on the Panasonic PV-GS12 is only capable of Video Out function.

Comparisons
The Panasonic PV-GS12 is bracketed on either side of its model line with two products similar in specifications, although each has an MSRP of fifty dollars less or more than the PV-GS12. The Panasonic PV-GS12 has a 20X optical, 800X digital zoom, a black-and-white viewfinder, and a 2.5-inch color LCD screen. The camera can be feasibly run as a webcam, and records still images in JPEG format. It can record in both 12-bit and 16-bit audio, and has built-in presets for wind noise reduction as well as a zoom mic feature.

Panasonic PV-GS9 With a MSRP of US$349.95, the Panasonic PV-GS9 is one step beneath the Panasonic PV-GS12 in regard to price. The PV-GS9 has a CCD of 1/6” and 680K pixels. The zoom on this model is 20X with a digital zoom of 800X, but remember that digital zoom is just an enlargement of pixels. The viewfinder is black-and-white, and the color LCD screen measures 2.5 inches in diameter. This camera can be used as a live feed webcam with personal computers, and weighs .88 lbs. As far as color quality and video performance, these the GS9 and GS12 are virtually similar

Panasonic PV-GS14 With a MSRP of 449.95, the Panasonic PV-GS14 is priced slightly higher than the PV-GS12. It is equipped with a 22X optical zoom lens and an 800X digital zoom. Like the PV-GS9, it also has a 1/6” 680K CCD, and a 2.5-inch LCD monitor. The viewfinder is color, however, and the PV-GS14 comes equipped with a zoom mic, for when audio is desired from a more specific single source, I’m not entirely convinced of the virtues of this feature. Visually, the GS14 and GS12 look virtually identical at 3000 lux; however, at lower light levels of 60 and 15 lux, the GS14 produces superior colors, with the exception of some dramatically over-saturated reds.

JVC Handycam GRDX97 The JVC Handycam GRDX97 is equipped with a .17-inch, .680 MP CCD and a rather large three-inch LCD screen. The 12X optical zoom is accentuated by a 700X digital zoom that allows for better opportunities than those presented by the Panasonic PV-GS12. It comes with the ability to record in both Mini DV and SD memory card formats for still and video images. Still images are recorded in JPEG format, whereas the video capture format is a standard MPEG-4. At low light levels, the GRDX97 shines and rises completely above the GS12. The JVC GRDX97 lists for US$479.99.

Canon ZR90 The Canon ZR90 has a 2.5-inch LCD screen and an impressive 22X optical zoom, with a digital zoom registering at 440X. The CCD for the Canon ZR90 is .167 inches and .68 MP, making it comparable to the JVC Handycam GRDX97. It can record to three formats — Mini DV, MultiMediaCard, or SD Memory Card — allowing the user more options for formatting opportunities.

Who it’s For
Point-and-Shooters (5.0)
This camera can only be truly recommended for point-and-shoot consumers, although even they might be frustrated by the convoluted simplicity of the product at times. However, once the controls are adapted to, a camera small enough and light enough that perhaps product setbacks can be overlooked.

Budget Consumers(5.0)
The PV-GS12 is a low-priced camera for the consumer hoping to avoid most manual control complications. However, the camera doesn’t exactly come off as being either sexy or sleek. Not really a model dressed to impress at the family reunion.

Still Photo / Video Camera Hybrid(2.0)
It does have still photo capability, and it is intrinsically a camcorder, so both are possible. There are better models with the same functionality and much greater manual control on the market already.

Gadget Freaks(2.0)
The Panasonic PV-GS12 is definitely not the camcorder for the gadget freak. Its design and visual styling make it appear already dated and, besides the Quick Start button, there really isn’t enough on this camera to occupy the gadget freak for long.

Manual Control Freaks(3.5)
The manual control freak however, might be able to satiate their needs with the Panasonic PV-GS12. Manual controls do exist, and are adaptable to specific shooting situations.

Pros/ Serious Hobbyists(1.0)
The Panasonic PV-GS12 is not a camera that I would recommend for the pro or serious enthusiast.

Conclusion
The Panasonic PV-GS12 is perhaps best suited for a point-and-shoot consumer, although the menu features available on this model are complicated enough to warrant a fair amount of user manual scrutiny. There are manual features accessible on this camera, but they take time to discover and properly set up. With a MSRP of US$399.95, the 1/6-inch 680K CCD does have the major benefit of a 20X optical lens. Although the camera costs only $400, there are better options out there for both point-and-shoot consumers and the manual control enthusiast.

Both sets of users will find themselves facing limitations and complications inevitably aggravating for quick and efficient use. The overall construction of the camera leaves much to be desired, ands the poor port positioning, odd button locations, and low quality in overall design made me feel consistently as though I was using a product whose longevity and quality were questionable.