Panasonic PV-GS19 Camcorder Review by David Kender Published on Jul 21, 2005 10:00 AM

Compression (8.0)
The PV-GS19 (Review, Specs, $244.74) records video and stills to MiniDV, a much better alternative than DVD in terms of video quality. DV compression is the standard by which we judge other compression formats.

Media (8.0)
6.35mm MiniDV tapes are the recording medium for video on the PV-GS35. SP and LP modes are both available, shooting 80 minutes and 120 minutes, respectively.

Stills can also be recorded to the MiniDV tape or to an SD card. They record in JPEG format at 640 x 480. Sizes for SD cards range from 8MB to 1G, but will likely increase in size as the technology progresses. The web camera feature records Motion JPEGs in 320 x 240.

Editing (8.0)
Editing from MiniDV is easy, and any program – from the simple iMovie to Final Cut Pro and beyond – will readily accept the format via the USB or DV connection. This is far more flexible a medium than in DVD camcorders, which often require the manufacturer’s proprietary software in order to edit the footage.

In-camcorder editing is understandably overly simple, but the features are convenient. Fade In / Fade Out allows for automatic fades in both the video and the audio every time you hit the record button. Also, stills can be grabbed from video during playback and recorded to the SD card simply by hitting the Photo Shot button.