Panasonic PV-GS400 Camcorder Review by Robin Liss Published on Jul 26, 2004 12:15 PM
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The PV-GS400 is a great camcorder and, in my opinion, offers the best value of any camcorder I’ve ever reviewed. Panasonic has taken last year's PV-DV953 (Review, Specs, Recent News, $899.88), which delivered three CCDs and unprecedented manual control options for an unbelievable price, and found ways to significantly improve upon it. Now, after releasing three more consumer 3 CCD camcorders, Panasonic may be close to perfecting the art with the PV-GS400. Most significantly, the PV-GS400 upgrades the PV-DV953 with large 1/4.7-inch CCDs, which produce truly stunning video both in normal and low light. In addition to its excellent image, the PV-GS400 offers a great four-way hybrid ring for controlling focus, zoom, shutter and iris. When you throw in additional manual control, audio control, a great zoom controller and 4 megapixel stills, the PV-GS400 unquestionably offers better value than any other consumer camcorder on the market today at just under $1,500.

Video Performance (8.5)
The Panasonic PV-GS400 includes three CCDs, each at 1/4.7 in. with 1,070K gross pixels and 700K effective pixels for video. This is an upgrade in CCD size from the 1/6-inch CCDs on the PV-DV953, which it replaces. The relatively large size of the PV-GS400's CCDs puts it in close competition with the least expensive 3 CCD camcorders from Canon and Sony, the Canon GL2 and Sony DCR-HC1000, respectively.

At 3000 lux, the Panasonic PV-GS400 shines. With the vibrant colors forming a well-balanced spectrum, the Panasonic PV-GS400's performance results show crisper colors than the camcorder's lower sibling model, the PV-GS200. The GS400's grayscale is well defined and clear, from sparkling whites to pitch blacks. On a subtler note, the washing and blurring between colors that usually occurs at 3000 lux and other bright light levels (and does appear on the GS200) is absent in the GS400's chart results. This is particularly apparent when one compares the lighter green, violet, and blue shades on the GS200 chart to the GS400 chart. Colors in general are better balanced with the GS400 than with the GS200; this is evident when one compares the reds in both charts. The GS400's reds run consistently crisp and bright throughout, matching the intensity of the other colors of the spectrum, while the GS200's are indeed more intense than the other colors in the spectrum.

When compared to the Panasonic AG-DVC30 (Review, Specs, $1700.89) at 3000 lux, the GS400 performs comparably. While the AG-DVC30 presents less vibrant or rich colors, it presents them with less noise than the GS400. The AG-DVC30 offers extremely crisp and well-balanced colors with almost no noise.

All in all, the Panasonic PV-GS400 performs great in bright, out-of-doors settings. Its three CCDs and wealth of manual control give the user great video quality and plenty of options to tailor their footage to unique and individual outdoor environments.

The Front (9.0)
The dominant frontal feature of the PV-GS400 is without a doubt the Leica Dicomar lens. As with the PV-DV953, a closer look reveals a focus ring wrapped gracefully around the 43mm filter diameter of this piece of glass, with a focal length of 3.3-39.6 mm.

A pop-up flash rises above the lens, immediately behind the focus ring. Programmable settings include: forced flash, no flash, and automatic. The flash button, which switches between these settings, is located beneath the LCD. The flash is engaged when a low light setting is detected, and can also be switched on manually.

Below the lens on the PV-GS400 is a black infrared sensor with a switch on its right side for automatic, manual, and AE lock modes. To the left of the lens barrel, on the front of the tape mechanism, are the record light and the white balance sensor. Try not to obstruct the white balance sensor with fat fingers.

Right Side (9.5)
As with the PV-GS200, the PV-GS400 features a top-loading tape mechanism. This is very convenient, particularly during tripod operation, as bottom-loading camcorders require removal from the tripod mount for tape switching. Panasonic wisely maintained this design feature on the PV-GS400. The tape mechanism also features a textured rubbery surface that's remarkably easy to grip. The cushioned finger grips stand as an upgrade from the PV-DV953.

Located immediately behind the cushiony finger grip is the zoom toggle, elevated just enough to enable good control over zoom speed and located conveniently for the index finger. The zoom toggle is followed immediately behind by the photo button. Below the photo button, on the far left edge of the tape mechanism/handgrip, is a semi-hard rubber port cover which reveals the USB, a Remote/Mic port with phantom power, and an A/V input/output port that also functions as a headphone jack. There is also a secondary record button to the right of the tape mechanism, on the right side of the lens barrel just below the pop-up flash. This allows for start and stop record functions with a hand operating the focus ring.

The Panasonic PV-GS400’s strap runs horizontally along the bottom edge of the right side, conveniently supporting a hand gripping the tape mechanism. The strap is narrow, as are many of Panasonic’s. While the narrow strap is not intrusive, it does seem less sturdy. Surprisingly however, the strap is very trustworthy. The strap snaps in and out of place on the front end, and can be converted into a wrist dangling strap by snapping it into the secondary metal bracket on the back, although the PV-GS400 seems too large and expensive to let dangle. The layout of the right side of the camcorder (arguably the most important area, because it's where your hand falls) is quite good. The rubber grip with textured plastic is easy to hold, and no plugs or buttons will get in the way of your hand.

The Left Side (9.0)
On the left side of the PV-GS400, the LCD reigns supreme. Its size has been upgraded from the PV-GS200's 2.5 inches to 3.5 inches, and the difference is noticeable, to say the least. To the left, the LCD terminates into the lens barrel which contains three buttons; they include two buttons to switch the functionality of the focus ring, one switching between focus and zoom and the other switching between iris (exposure) and shutter speed. Panasonic smartly put three raised bumps on the middle button. This way, you can feel your way to the right button without having to look (similar to how the F and J keys on a Qwerty keyboard always include little bumps). The third button is for white balance options of indoor, outdoor, and manual set. Below these buttons on the side of the IR receiver is a three-way switch for changing between full auto control, manual control and manual settings lock. I think that Panasonic was very smart in placing these buttons where they did, in the most natural and accessible place possible.

Underneath the LCD, a row of buttons runs along the left side of the exposed bay. They include Wide/Pro-Cinema mode, flash, a recording check button, and a backlight button. The recording check button allows for playback of the last few seconds of what was just recorded. Also, if the recording check button and backlight button are pressed together, they function as a record button when recording from another source. The SD card slot is hidden under a large panel that flips open using a slider along the bottom edge of the LCD bay. This is a snazzy feature carried over from the PV-GS200. Several buttons cover this panel; they read: Soft Skin, TeleMacro, Multi/picture-in-picture, Advanced Magic Pix, and Menu. There is also a four-way pad with a central button. This pad is used during VCR playback and as a menu navigator.

The Top (9.0)
At the rear of the PV-GS400 is the camcorder’s color viewfinder. Unlike some Panasonics, but similar to the PV-GS200, this viewfinder can be pulled back and extended about 45° towards the eye. Coupled with the huge upgraded LCD screen on the GS400, this offers great viewing capabilities for the user. The viewfinder’s dioptric adjustment device is located on its underbelly. Next to this, on the right, is a wide angle/telephoto zoom toggle that doubles as a volume button when the GS200 is in playback/VCR mode. This toggle is elevated to add smooth zooms at variable speeds with good mobility to the index finger, as the finger will not rub against any obstructing material. The still photo button is immediately behind the zoom toggle, dressed in handsome silver.

Moving farther up towards the lens, on the top of the PV-GS400, one encounters an intelligent accessory shoe directly ahead of the viewfinder in line with the lens, which is greeted on the right by the delightfully squishy finger grip atop the tape mechanism. It’s nice to see that Panasonic has maintained this squishy element from the GS200 to the GS400. Immediately in front of the finger grip is the eject slider used to open the tape mechanism.

In front of the accessory shoe is the GS400’s stereo microphone. While I cannot imagine Panasonic had space on the front of the camcorder for such a feature, considering the huge lens barrel, it would have been a welcome improvement if the manufacturers had moved the microphone to the front. An on-front microphone does have its drawbacks, however, especially with a lot of hand activity in the front while operating the zoom ring.

Ahead of the stereo microphone is the flash for still photography which is flanked by a secondary record button on the right and a panel of ring control and white balance buttons on the left.

The Back (8.5)
The back of the PV-GS400 is consumed by the battery port and DC in, which is actually a smaller battery-type module which fits into the battery slot, while the battery charges on an external device. The viewfinder resides above the battery port, with the camcorder’s mode dial to the immediate left. The mode dial offers modes of video recording, photo recording, and playback (all from and to the MiniDV tape), as well as options for photo recording, playback, and PC mode for the SD card.

Below the mode dial, which has been upgraded from the cheap plastic of Panasonic’s cheaper camcorders to a handsome, sturdier material, is the Quick Start button, which allows for spontaneous starts when you need to capture video quickly. This is followed by the power switch, which holds the primary record button in its center. Like the PV-GS200, the PV-GS400 has a skillfully hidden port panel which reveals the S-Video and FireWire ports.

Picture and Manual Control
Automatic Control (6.0)
The PV-GS400 is certainly a manual shooter's camcorder, but that's not to say that it does a terrible job of automatic control. The PV-GS400 has a button towards the front of the camcorder on its left side which switches the camcorder from full automatic to manual or AE Lock modes. (Semiautomatic, if you will.) I really like this clear differentiation of shooting control modes. It's something that Canon pioneered, and Panasonic has put on other camcorders. However, it hasn't been as clear on this year’s models. The green Auto mode certainly isn't as visible and as foolproof as Sony's Easy Handycam mode; however, it gives clear distinction to those users who want to shoot and not have to think about it.

The auto functions of the PV-GS400 seemed to respond fairly well, and I don't really have any complaints about them. The reason the PV-GS400 doesn't get an 8 or 9 for manual control is that, while it's not a hard camcorder to use, it doesn't have any of those innovative features which you might find on a Sony camcorder. This year's Sonys include nice Spot Metering and Spot Focus features, as well as an "Easy-Handycam" button that makes operating them a breeze. Automatic ease of use isn't the PV-GS400's strong point. Frankly, though, that doesn't trouble me much.

Overall Manual Control (8.5)
Manual control on the Panasonic PV-GS400 is outstanding, especially for a consumer grade camcorder. The PV-GS400 gives you manual control over focus, zoom, shutter speed, aperture, gain, and white balance. They've added to the typical camcorder manual controls with picture controls, including sharpness, color, exposure and contrast. (To read about these features, go to the "Other Features" section.)

If you place the front mode switch in its middle position, it will put the PV-GS400 in full manual mode. Panasonic, however, includes a third mode, AE Lock, which is the far right option on this switch. AE Lock fixes the manual shutter, iris and white balance settings that you have set, allowing you to adjust only the focus and zoom manually. It's a really great feature which lets you set your image settings and not worry about bumping a button and accidentally changing them. It also allows you to let the camcorder set the iris, shutter and white balance automatically, lock those settings, and then adjust zoom and focus on your own.

When I realized that the PV-GS400's focus ring went four ways, controlling zoom, aperture and shutter speed, I was ecstatic. The manual control on the PV-GS400 is very similar to that of Panasonic Broadcast's AG-DVC30. The AG-DVC30 is Panasonic Broadcast's lowest-end professional MiniDV camcorder and, although it's not priced very well and isn't great as a true broadcast camcorder, the AG-DVC30 shares a super hybrid focus ring with the PV-GS400.

Sony pioneered the idea of a hybrid focus zoom ring with their MicroMV DCR-IP220. While no one mourns the death of MicroMV, we certainly missed the hybrid focus zoom ring, until it was brought back on the Panasonic AG-DVC30. With the AG-DVC30, Panasonic one-upped Sony, or rather two-upped them by adding manual shutter speed and manual aperture control to the focus ring.

In a genius move by Panasonic, the broadcast and consumer division have collaborated in a way we typically only see out of Sony, putting a hybrid ring on the PV-GS400. Professional camcorders have lenses similar to those used on an SLR still camera. Those lenses use rings to control zoom, focus, and sometimes aperture and shutter speed. It'd be great if we could have four independent rings on every consumer camcorder, but that isn't very likely. The next best thing is a hybrid ring.

The four-way hybrid ring on the PV-GS400 is unquestionably the best way to handle picture control on a consumer camcorder. Your hand naturally falls around the camcorder lens, and the hybrid ring allows you to casually adjust the core picture elements that will make your videos look terrific. Sony resurrected their original hybrid ring from the MicroMV graveyard on their recently released DCR-HC1000, but that ring controls only zoom and focus. The PV-GS400's four-way ring smokes the touch screen manual control on the DCR-HC1000, and even the jog dial control on the Canon GL2.

Zoom (8.5)
One of the weakest points of the PV-DV953 was its zoom control. The PV-GS400 includes an increased zoom of 12x, improved over the PV-DV953's 10x. I gave the PV-DV953's zoom a 5.0 score because the zoom slider was hard to use and didn't allow you to reach variable speed zooms very well. Panasonic has solved this problem with the hybrid zoom ring. The four-way hybrid ring can be switched into zoom mode with the touch of a button.

The zoom ring is pretty good. It takes a little practice to get used to it, since you’re not actually tuning the zoom elements but rather a small sensor which controls the camcorder's zoom. The speed of your zoom isn't based on how fast you turn the ring, which would be intuitive. However, turning speed and zoom speed are proportional. If you turn the zoom really fast, you'll go from 1x to 12x in a half turn. If you make the same half turn at a very slow pace you'll only go from 1x to around 5x or 6x. Panasonic could certainly improve the ring and its responsiveness, but you can get variable speed zooms with the ring quite easily once you get to know it. It's certainly better than no ring at all. I was surprised at how fast a zoom one can get on the camcorder using the ring. You can jump from wide to telephoto in less than a second – faster than I've seen on any camcorder with a zoom slider or rocker.

The one problem I found with the zoom ring is that it is very hard to get a slow zoom control. It's nearly impossible to do a slow crawl with the PV-GS400's ring. The ring seems to have a threshold: If you turn the ring at slow rate, the zoom will increase or decrease with small jumps, turning on and off.

This inability to get a slow zoom on the PV-GS400's ring is remedied, however, by the zoom slider. If you decide that you don't like the PV-GS400's zoom ring, or if you want to control another picture element with the ring, you can always use the PV-GS400’s zoom slider. Although it looks identical to the zoom slider on the PV-DV953, I think Panasonic has really improved the zoom slider (something I complained about in my PV-DV953 review). I was able to get and hold many variable speed zooms on the PV-GS400, including incredibly slow and incredibly fast ones. I was very impressed with the slow crawl that I could achieve and, more importantly, hold on the PV-GS400; I counted 38 seconds from full wide to full telephoto. That is an incredibly slow zoom. The ability to get and hold such a slow zoom with the zoom slider certainly remedies any quirks which the PV-GS400's zoom ring has. That slow of a zoom is what the pros use. At the same time, you can jump from full wide to full telephoto in less than two seconds.

I'm not sure how they did it, but the zoom slider on the PV-GS400 acts wonderfully, letting you go incredibly slow or incredibly fast, or anywhere in between, and hold that zoom as long as you'd like. Combined with the zoom ring, the PV-GS400 has outstanding zoom control and performance, fully deserving its 8.5 score.

Focus (7.0)
The PV-GS400 includes a focus ring. Like the PV-DV953 and the PV-GS200, the PV-GS400 has a spiked pattern around the ring. The focus ring works well, allowing you to accurately adjust the focus. There are two things I don't like about the general focus control of the PV-GS400. First, they don't have Sony's Spot Focus control, which most prosumer consumers won't mind anyway. The second affects all the picture elements controlled by the focus ring. You can't manually set the focus with the focus ring, and then manually set the manual zoom using the ring without losing your original manual focus. You can still use the ring to manually set shutter speed and aperture while holding onto your original manual focus, but since zoom is controlled by the same ring, you'll lose your manual focus if you switch to manual zoom using the ring. This really isn't as bad as it sounds. First, if you're adjusting the zoom, your focus might change (unless you zoom in to set a focus point and then zoom out) and, second, you can always use the zoom ring if you've set a focus using the ring. Even with these two drawbacks, the PV-GS400 offers excellent manual focus control.

Exposure (Aperture) (8.5)
Like the zoom and the focus controls, iris / aperture / exposure are each controlled through the four-way hybrid ring. Panasonic does at least three things right in the aperture / exposure department. For starters, they give it to you in the first place. (Pay attention, Sony, with your DCR-HC1000 and your dubious exposure control which may control something but no one's sure what.) Second, they let you control it through a ring and a well positioned button on the front of the camcorder, instead of burying it in a menu or on a jog dial. (That one's for you, Canon.) Lastly, they measure it in real F-stops, not random numbers.

You can only adjust manual exposure while in manual mode, using the nice switch at the bottom left of the PV-GS400. To engage manual exposure control, you simply press the button on the left side of the camcorder, located where your hand would naturally fall if you were gripping the PV-GS400 by its lens barrel. The button toggles between manual shutter speed and manual iris control. When you’re in manual iris or aperture control, the F-stop rating of the PV-GS400 is displayed in teal in the upper left corner of the screen. (Who picked that terrible color?) You can go to from f/16, to fully open, to manual gain control. As you go from Open to f/16, you get different F-stop ratings. It's really tough to say how many steps there really are between f/16 and Open, because the camcorder adjusts the aperture incrementally between the different readings on the screen. (E.g., the aperture will change between f/2.4 and f/2.8, but the reading won't increase.) I believe it's between 20 and 30. The control is very similar to that included on the PV-DV953, and the PV-GS400’s aperture control is as excellent as the other manual control options on the PV-GS400.

Like the PV-DV953, the PV-GS400 also includes a zebra pattern that can be turned on or off through the menu. The zebra pattern will superimpose diagonal black lines on the LCD screen but not on the tape to reveal overexposed areas. Overall, the aperture control on the PV-GS400 smokes the Sony DCR-HC1000, and I prefer it slightly over the Canon GL2's control only because it is controlled through a ring and not a jog dial. I should note that the only thing I would improve on the exposure section would be the inclusion of Neutral Density filters which could be turned on or off – a feature which the Canon GL2 has.

Shutter Speed (7.5)
Like the exposure control on the PV-GS400, the shutter speed is controlled by pressing the Shutter / Iris button on the PV-GS400's barrel and then increasing or decreasing the shutter speed using the four-way hybrid ring. I really like the fact that shutter speed control is controlled through the hybrid ring. You can set the shutter to 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, or 1/8000. These are the same shutter speeds which were offered in the PV-DV953.

I have two complaints about the PV-GS400's manual shutter speed control. The first is minor: On the AG-DVC30, Panasonic included two great Synchro Scan speeds that allowed you to set the shutter speed based on a computer monitor's scan rate, eliminating those scanning black lines. The second complaint is pretty big: The button allows you to change from manual shutter speed control to manual iris control. If you press the button again, it will switch back to shutter speed control. The PV-GS400 will allow you to set the shutter speed manually, and then set the iris manually, and the camcorder will maintain both manual settings. However, if after setting the iris the user switches back to manual shutter speed, they’ll lose the iris which was set. It would be much better if the PV-GS400 held onto the manually set iris once the user switches back to shutter speed control; however, the upside of this is that it allows users to set the shutter and still have the camcorder manually set the aperture, because it forgets the manually set iris and goes into auto iris.

White Balance (9.0)
The PV-GS400 has carried over white balance control similar to the PV-DV953. The white balance is set using a button on the left side of the lens barrel, below the focus/zoom ring toggle and the shutter/iris toggle. This is the only area I can find where Panasonic slightly downgraded the PV-GS400 from the PV-DV953. The PV-GS400 includes four white balance modes, indoor, outdoor, auto and manual set. Panasonic removed the fluorescent mode, which was a very nice option, and I'm a little disappointed and confused about why they would take it off.

The way manual white balance is set is really weird. When you toggle the white balance button to the manual mode, a flashing button will appear on the screen. Next, you hold the white balance button down for a few seconds as the PV-GS400 sets the white balance for you. The odd thing about the white balance control on the PV-GS400 is that, after you hold the button for a few seconds, the screen goes black for a few frames and the camera clicks as though it's taking a picture. The button then flashes a few more times. Once it appears solidly, you know the white balance has been set. I've never seen a camcorder go black when setting manual white balance. Unfortunately, this black moment (less than a second, actually) is captured to tape, which could be annoying if you want to white balance while shooting.

Gain (8.0)
As with the PV-DV953 and the AG-DVC30, the PV-GS400 allows you to control gain manually only when the shutter is fully open. It would be nice to have full manual control of gain; however, the fact that Panasonic gives it to you is much better than other manufacturers. The camcorder lets you set the gain from 0 to 18 dB and, like the F-stops, it gives you some settings between each readout.

Still Performance (9.0)
The PV-GS400 packs a one-two punch. For people who really understand video and camcorders, it includes outstanding manual control and three large CCDs that produce great video. For the (sadly more typical) pixel-count-crazy users, the PV-GS400 includes a whopping 4 megapixels, using Panasonic's pixel-shifting technology. The camcorder combines the pixels of each CCD to produce 4 megapixel images with dimensions of 2288 x 1728 pixels.

Although Panasonic made the slight mistake of saying they had the highest resolution stills of any camcorder on the market in their press release – the Samsung SCD6040 takes 4.1 megapixel stills – the stills are nonetheless outstanding. They've improved over the PV-DV953, and the PV-GS400 is one of the few camcorders where I actually think the stills are decent enough to use. Typically, we just recommend that you get a dedicated still camera. I still think you should get a dedicated camera, but the stills from the PV-GS400 are quite good.

The camcorder includes a pop-up flash as well as the ability to record stills at three different resolution settings. Panasonic has added the option to record stills to the SD card while you are recording video at a 1.2 megapixel resolution. It's a nice addition, but it's too bad the camcorder can't record its 4 megapixel stills to SD cards while you're recording video.

VCR Mode (7.0)
The VCR mode on the PV-GS400 is very simple. All of the VCR controls are located inside the LCD screen, which I am perfectly fine with. The PV-DV953 gives you almost all the VCR control that you might need. Frame-by-frame shuttle buttons would be a nice addition.

Low Light Performance (6.0)
Low light environments are the litmus tests for consumer camcorders, and while three CCDs make this an easier job for the camcorder and the user, higher-end consumer camcorders still show substantial degradation under these conditions. Furthermore, for the average consumer, low light performance show be of utmost importance, as standard indoor lighting conditions rarely exceed 220 lux.

We have tested the Panasonic PV-GS400 under many low light levels in order to more accurately approximate when and how the GS400 falters or shines.

At 60 lux, the PV-GS400 maintains the well-balanced spectrum it showed at 3000 lux. Surprisingly, colors remain crisp and well-defined with little to no blurring between shades. The general negative aspect at 60 lux is that the GS400 shows colors substantially less vibrant, bright, and vivid than at 3000 lux, and with more noise. It must be said that, at 60 lux, the GS400 does perform better than the GS200, which offers more blurring between shades and more noise than the GS400. Also, while the GS200's reds look good at 60 lux, the other colors look very dull, especially the yellows.

At 50 lux, there's only a slight difference. The GS400 performs much like it did at 60 lux, with very crisp colors and no blurring. An increase in noise is the major fault.

At 40 lux, the increase in noise at 50 lux gains ground and starts to distort the picture, creating a hazy effect that shrouds colors, especially the violets, in gray noise. Surprisingly, however, colors remain clearly delineated here.

At 30 lux, further increase in grain helps dull the colors, while some blurring starts to take place. The image obviously looks substantially darker than 60 lux, and colors are certainly duller. But, overall, it's not a bad showing.

At 20 lux, the GS400's results look similar to the 30 lux results with an obvious increase in darkness and a slight increase in noise.

At 15 lux, colors look very dull and are covered with noise. There is substantial blurring between color shades, as colors lack the crispness they did at 60 lux, or even 40 lux. And, while this sounds like a bad review of the GS400's performance, when these charts are compared with the GS200 at 15 lux, the GS400 stands out. The GS400's colors are strikingly brighter and more defined than the GS200's. This is apparent if one looks closely at the greens and reds in each spectrum. Also, the noise level of the GS200 at 15 lux is higher than the GS400; one needs only to look at the grayscale on the GS200's chart to see the horrific evidence.

It should be noted that, when compared to Panasonic's AG-DVC30 at all light levels, the PV-GS400 falls short. The AG-DVC30 shows substantially superior color and noise levels. Of course, for over $500 more, it should.

Audio (7.0)
The PV-GS400's built-in microphone is located on the top of the camcorder. It's not the best place for a microphone, but we don't usually examine the built-in microphone's capabilities because they are all generally pretty bad on consumer camcorders. Instead, we look at the audio options. The PV-GS400 does pretty well, but it certainly could improve.

Located at the back of the PV-GS400, on the right side, are both the Microphone in and Headphone out jacks, covered by a piece of hard rubber. The headphone jack is shared with the A/V in/out jack, as it was on the PV-DV953. I complained about this in my PV-DV953 review and Panasonic hasn't upgraded it. It's one of the weaker points on this camcorder; however, users won't find it a problem if they don't need the video and audio outs while also using headphones. The camcorder has a microphone jack, but this is also shared with the wand zoom controller. I really wish Panasonic had given each of these functions dedicated jacks. The PV-GS400 also includes a hot accessory shoe.

The upside of the audio situation on the PV-GS400 is that the camcorder allows for manual setting of audio levels as well as on-screen audio level monitoring. Using the menu, you can turn auto gain control on or off. When gain is on, you can set the gain level and the overall recording level of the microphone. In addition, Panasonic has added a bass enhancer option that increases the intensity of the lowest frequency audio. I don't know how useful the bass enhancer feature is, but the manual control of audio levels is really outstanding.

LCD/Viewfinder (8.0)
The Panasonic PV-GS400 is equipped with a 3.5 inch LCD, which is an upgrade from the GS200's 2.5 inch screen. The LCD screen can be rotated 180 degrees. The GS400's viewfinder can also be extended and angled about 45 degrees towards the user's eye. A dioptric adjustment slider is located on the underside of the viewfinder.

Jacks, Ports, Plugs (7.0)
The PV-GS400 has an S-Video jack, a FireWire port, and a USB jack. The camcorder shares the microphone jack with the magic wand and shares the headphone jack with the A/V in/out jack. The reason that the PV-GS400 loses points in this area is because of this sharing, and they do not have a dedicated control protocol like LANC, which would make it a much more professional camcorder.

Handling (9.5)
My feeling on the handling of the PV-GS400 is that the camcorder is a little too small, and doesn’t handle as well as the PV-DV953. I really liked the PV-DV953’s handling. It was the right size and weight, and was shaped well so that you could hold it steady. When I try to hold the PV-GS400 in two hands, it just feels a little too small and a little too round. I feel like this could be improved if the camcorder was a little thinner and taller – it would feel more natural in your hands.

The small complaint I have with its overall size, though, is made up for by the control button positioning. The placement of the iris, shutter speed, focus, and zoom on the four-way hybrid ring is great. The most natural way to handle a camcorder is to hold it in your right hand and put your left hand around the lens barrel. With the hybrid ring right there, it makes controlling all the necessary functions easy. The placement of this ring trumps any jog dial, menu control, or especially any touch screen of any competing camcorder. You can hold the PV-GS400 and easily control all the important functions of the camcorder without having to move your hands or inconvenience yourself while shooting.

Panasonic has also added a very nice rubber grip to the top of the camcorder on the right side, similar to that included on the PV-GS200, and combined with a nicely textured right side and a handle strap which makes it easy to hold the PV-GS400 stable and shoot good video. It’s just a great camcorder for handling and I’m really happy with the video I was able to shoot with it.

Other Features (9.0)
Optical Image Stabilization The PV-GS400 includes optical image stabilization, which is an improvement over the electronic image stabilization mode that most consumer camcorders use. You can turn the stabilization on or off using the camcorder's menu. One thing that confuses me about the stabilization is that, on the menu, the option for turning the stabilization on or off is labeled "EIS." Typically that stands for "Electronic Image Stabilization," but all of the PV-GS400 literature says that the camcorder includes optical image stabilization. The stabilization on the PV-GS400 is quite good, and it seemed to function just as well as any other system I've worked with.

Manual Color, Exposure and Contrast Control Through the PV-GS400's menu, which is accessible using the menu button inside the LCD screen, you can adjust the picture color, exposure, and contrast. Picture color makes the picture either more green or red, and is great for color correcting an image. The exposure is basically the image brightness, making the image darker or lighter. The contrast is just that. Combined with these are three awesome controls that very few camcorders have. They add onto the already great level of manual control with the PV-GS400 and can come in very handy when you are trying to fine-tune your image.

Magic Wand Zoom Controller As an added bonus, a nice "magic wand" zoom controller comes with the PV-GS400, as it came with the PV-DV953, but this one is upgraded. The wand that comes with the PV-GS400 includes a narration microphone for use while recording. While I don't see any practical use for it, I guess it can't hurt. The wand also includes a great zoom slider, which gives you three ways of controlling the zoom on the PV-GS400. The wand includes a record button, a photo button, and a button for turning on or off the wand's microphone. This is a great addition because it can be used as a zoom controller, which can often run for $100-$200.

MPEG Recording When you move the mode jog dial to the card recording mode you can record MPEG4 video to SD cards. The video looks quite good, but I wouldn't recommend using it unless you want to e-mail low quality videos to family.

MagicPix Low Light Shooting Panasonic's low light shooting system is called MagicPix. The PV-GS400 includes two MagicPix modes, Advanced MagicPix and 0lux MagicPix. You can toggle between the two using a button hidden inside the LCD screen. The system throws the shutter speed down to an incredibly slow and unusable rate. Sony's system is much better, but frankly I wouldn't recommend using either because they make your videos look terrible.

Soft Skin Function This is a new function for the PV-GS400. The Soft Skin feature apparently takes skin tones and softens them up to appear better when recorded to tape. You can turn the soft skin feature on or off using a button inside the LCD screen. It's very subtle, but the camcorder effectively blurs skin tones a small amount. It's a cute idea, but I'd recommend just sticking with the camcorder's normal settings.

Widescreen / Pro Cinema The PV-GS400 is catering to the home indie filmmaker crowd with three cinema-like options. The first is their widescreen mode, which records video using more available pixels, so it appears stretched on the LCD screen. You can turn the widescreen mode on using a small button inside the LCD screen. When played back on a 16:9 aspect ratio TV, the video will appear normal. This is the same type of widescreen mode which most Sonys use and which the DCR-HC1000 uses. The weakness of Panasonic's widescreen mode is that the video appears stretched on the LCD screen. Sony has figured out how to record the video stretched onto tape while making it appear letterboxed on the LCD, and it makes it much easier to compose your images.

Pressing the widescreen / pro-cinema mode button a second time will turn on the Pro Cinema Mode. There was much excitement over the Pro Cinema function when the camcorder was first introduced because Panasonic made it appear as though it was a 30 frames progressive scan mode. While the casual user will notice that the Pro Cinema mode looks like film, it is not true 30P and appears to be the same frame mode as on the PV-DV953. The mode also changes the color cast and contrast of the image slightly, to give it more of a film look. It's a neat feature, but it doesn't replicate true progressive scan recording.

Web Camera Using the supplied USB cable and messaging software, you can use the V-GS400 as a webcam through your computer. It's a nifty feature, and I guess it will spare you having to buy a dedicated webcam, but it's not something I take a very critical look at on any camcorder.

Color Bars Accessed through the menu, you can turn on color bars – those things TV stations used to broadcast at 3 in the morning – and record them to tape. It's a nice feature for the more professional videographer.

Comparisons
Panasonic PV-DV953
I’ve mentioned the upgrades to the PV-DV953 with the PV-GS400 throughout the review, but to summarize them quickly, they include larger CCDs (1/4.7 in vs. 1/6 in.), a 12x instead of 10x optical zoom, 4 megapixel vs. 3 megapixel stills, a slightly smaller body and, of course, the four-way hybrid control ring. I think that Panasonic has taken a great camcorder and made it even better with the PV-GS400. The addition of the ring is a great move, which makes accessing the great manual control features of this camcorder so much easier. The great video performance and the somewhat lackluster low light performance of the PV-DV953 have certainly been improved. If you're deciding between the PV-DV953 and the PV-GS400, I would definitely say it’s worth spending more money on the PV-GS400. If low light and control are incredibly important to you, and if you use your PV-DV953 a lot, it might be worth upgrading – however, they are similar enough such that I wouldn’t recommend upgrading across the board.

Panasonic PV-GS200
The PV-GS400 offers larger CCDs, a larger 12x zoom vs the PV-GS200’s 10x, and much better access to manual control. The PV-GS400 offers noticeably better video and low light performance over the PV-GS200 as well. The other major upgrade is the increased resolution of the stills. The main reason for upgrading to the PV-GS400 is manual control, it but it will cost you an additional $500. I don’t particularly think that the video and low light performance alone (if you didn’t care about control) would be worth the upgrade, but if manual control and performance are important to you, I would recommend spending the extra $500.

Sony DCR-HC1000
The DCR-HC1000 also includes three 1/4.7-inch CCDs and a 12x optical zoom. However, its stills are only 1 megapixel. Frankly, there’s no competition here. For $200 more, you get manual control through a awkward touch screen, no shutter control, no real F-stop ratings, and a very oddly designed camcorder. I can’t see any reason why someone would pick the Sony DCR-HC1000 over the PV-GS400. The PV-GS400 is just a hands-down better camcorder.

Canon GL2
The race here is a little more tight. The Canon GL2 includes three 1/4-inch CCDs, but a much larger 20x optical zoom. I like the manual control of the four-way hybrid ring on the PV-GS400 slightly more than the ring / jog dial combination of the Canon GL2. The GL2 wins in handling and overall look. You're going to look much more professional with a GL2 than with a PV-GS400, but that might not be important to some users. I’d give the slight edge to the PV-GS400 over the GL2. It’s a much newer camcorder and the overall performance is slightly better.

Who It's For
Point-and-Shooters (8.0)-- The Panasonic PV-GS400 is a great point-and-shoot camcorder, though it isn't necessarily manufactured for that market. It offers a good automatic control setting with a wealth of manual control.

Budget Consumers (9.0)-- Perhaps the best value for high-end consumer camcorders out there. Definitely pushing the envelope.

Still Photo / Video Camera Hybrid (6.5)-- A decent hybrid, although the GS400 is definitely not designed to fulfill the needs of this market.

Manual Control Freaks (8.0)-- A very good manual control freak machine, the GS400 gives all the manual control you'd expect with the added convenience of controlling many of them with a ring.

Pros / Serious Hobbyists-- (7.0) A good back-up camcorder for the serious hobbyist, especially if he or she doesn't want to blow a lot of money.

Conclusion
The Panasonic PV-GS400 is the best camcorder value I've ever reviewed. Whoever designed this camcorder, and any engineers who worked on it, deserve a raise. (That's to you, Matsushita). Of course, there are camcorders from pro divisions that beat the PV-GS400; however, they certainly don't offer anything close to the value that the PV-GS400 does. The only other consumer camcorder on the market today which offers better features and quality is Sony's DCR-VX2100 (Review, Specs, $1980), which costs $2,300!

The PV-GS400 unquestionably beats Sony's 3 CCD DCR-HC1000. When Sony replaced the DCR-TRV950 with the DCR-HC1000, they forced all manual control into the touch screen and stripped it of many of the features which made the DCR-TRV950 a solid camcorder. Although it's $200 - $300 less, the PV-GS400 offers better manual control and is unquestionably a better value in my mind. Although the Canon GL2 offers much stiffer competition, the PV-GS400 includes more features and is still a much better deal.

I certainly recommend the PV-GS400. It offers amazing video, amazing manual control, and a bunch of other useful features which would help any videographer to shoot great video. I loved the PV-DV953, and I love the PV-GS400 even more. Although there are a few camcorders which were recently released this summer, I can confidently say that the PV-GS400 is the best value on the market today.

The Panasonic PV-GS400 is a model of excellent camcorder design and engineering. Although we can't make an official announcement until we've looked at a few more camcorders, I would say that Panasonic PV-GS400 is far ahead in the competition to be the rated as the CamcorderInfo.com SuperCam of 2004 - representing excellence in camcorders.