Panasonic PV-GS65 First Impressions Review

Robin Liss contributed to this article.

In March, Panasonic is set to release one new budget-priced 3CCD camcorder, the PV-GS65 (Review, Specs, $899), along with two updated versions, the PV-GS150 (Specs, $449.95) and PV-GS250 (Review, Specs, $1299.99). The PV-GS65 will list for $599US which is the first time a 3CCD camcorder has broken the $600US price barrier. Panasonic is really trying to make 3CCD technology affordable for the high end budget buyer. The real question is whether the budget consumer will be attracted to this stripped down mini-camcorder on the strength of 3CCD technology alone.

Video Performance
Video performance could not be tested on the PV-GS65. However, much of the video circuitry in the PV-GS65 is similar to the previous PV-GS120 (Review, Specs, $479) and PV-GS200 (Review, Specs, Recent News, $1299) models. It is reasonable to assume that the performance of the PV-GS65 will be similar. The PV-GS65 retains the electronic image stabilization that was used on the 2004 models. However, the camcorder’s lens no longer carries the Leica name. A Panasonic representative told us the low light sensitivity was unchanged from 2004.

The Front
The most dominant feature on the front of the PV-GS65 is the F/1.8, 10x optical zoom lens. The lens has a focal length of 2.45mm to 24.5mm (44.7-447mm 35mm equivalent in video and 41.1-411mm 35mm equivalent for stills). The PV-GS65's lens also has 37mm threads for lens accessories such as filters and conversion lenses.

On the lower front of the PV-GS65 is the stereo microphone cover. Note that there is no photoflash provided on the PV-GS65 and there is no connector for triggering an external flash. The lack of a photoflash is consistent with the features on last year’s PV-GS120.

The Right Side
On the right side, the PV-GS65 has a top loading tape mechanism. Top loading of tapes makes changing tapes more convenient when the camcorder is mounted on a mono- or tripod. There have been problems reported of tape transport noise with a few units on all three of the 2004 3CCD consumer models. Also, Panasonic has moved the reset button and the Auto/Manual/Focus switch from the back of the tape mechanism clamshell to inside the LCD well.

At the back end of the upper right side on the PV-GS65 is a port cover, which covers The USB 2.0 full speed, Remote/Mic, and AV/Headphones jacks. The cover is made of hard rubber. Although the PV-GS65 comes with a jack for a wired remote, the remote is optional. In general, the right side of the PV-GS65 is clutter free which makes it easy to operate.

The Left Side
The left side of the PV-GS65 is dominated by the LCD screen, which measures 2.5 inches diagonally. Panasonic changed last year’s menu navigation, removing the navigation rocker switch from inside the LCD well. As a result, the screen on the PV-GS65 no longer opens outward 120 degrees. Instead, the LCD screen opens outward 90 degrees and will rotate around its axis 180 degrees so the screen faces forward. In this position, the screen may be used as a monitor for self-portraits or to provide a light source in low light conditions when in MagicPix mode. Last year’s models exhibited solarization when the screen was tilted away from a direct line of sight. We were unable to test if the PV-GS65 has the same issue; however, there is no reason to believe that Panasonic has changed the screen from the 2004 models.

The look inside of the LCD well is much cleaner than last year’s models. Gone is the tilt out SD card slot/navigation rocker switch, leaving only the Auto/Manual/Focus, reset, and Power LCD switches and the IEEE1394 (Firewire) jack which has been moved from the back of the camcorder. The SD card slot access is at the bottom of the LCD well. It’s a great move that Panasonic decided to move control out of the LCD screen which makes it much more accessible.

The Top
At the back, on top of the PV-GS65 is the color view finder which can extend out a little more than an inch but no longer rotates vertically. It’s really too bad that Panasonic decided to take the rotation off the viewfinder — it was a nice feature. Next to this, on the right, is the wide angle/telephoto zoom toggle which doubles as a volume button. It's a silver right-left sliding plastic button with raised ridges. Behind the zoom toggle is the still photo button. Lastly, behind the still photo button is the left-to-right sliding power switch. The power switch has a latching mechanism to ensure the camcorder is not inadvertently turned on.

Moving forward on the PV-GS65, in front of the view finder is a cold accessory shoe. At the front above the hand grip, is the tape eject button which is used by sliding the button forward and then pulling, or pushing, the right side of the camcorder outward to open the tape transport clamshell.

The Back
Like the LCD area, the back of the PV-GS65 reflects most of the design changes from last year’s models. The color viewfinder sits atop the back above the battery. Next to it, on the right is the quick start button. By pressing the quick start button with power on, the camcorder is placed into quick start mode which allows the camcorder to startup from power off in 1.7 seconds. Panasonic is really pushing the quick startup time of the camcorder. Below the quick start button is the menu button which permits access to the menus on the electronic viewfinder and LCD. Below and to the right of the menu button is the mode dial with its multi-colored options of record, tape playback, card, card playback, and PC access. In the center of the mode dial is the navigation joystick. The joystick is the biggest change to the camcorder from the 2004 models. By placing the joystick on the back of the camcorder, the need to open the LCD screen to navigate menus is eliminated. This considerably improves the ease of use of the PV-GS65 and makes it possible to adjust manual focus with the camcorder up to your eye while your thumb is close to the record/pause button. Also, by not having to open the LCD screen to navigate, battery power is conserved. Below and to the left of the mode dial is a separate oval record/pause button. Below the mode dial and record/dial button is a soft plastic cover that provides access to the S-video connector. The largest portion of the back of the PV-GS65 is taken up by the battery compartment. The batteries available for the PV-GS65 are the same as last year’s models and are now consistent across the entire Panasonic camcorder line.

Picture & Manual Control
Automatic Control
The PV-GS65 retains the automatic shooting modes from last year’s models. However response tests could not be conducted as the model being reviewed was a preproduction model.

Overall Manual Control Manual control features on the PV-GS65 appear to be consistent with those of the PV-GS120 and include focus, aperture, shutter speed and gain. Although there is no manual focus ring on the PV-GS65, the navigation joystick can be used to manually focus without having to open the LCD screen or remove the camcorder EVF from your eye. Overall, the level of manual control which the PV-GS65 gives you for under $600 is quite amazing.

Zoom
The PV-GS65 offers 10x optical zoom, 100X digital zoom and tele-macro zoom enabling users to record at distances as near as 40cm. The zoom controller provides a good amount of feedback and allows you to achieve variable speed zooms quite easily.

Focus
Focus is controlled automatically in auto mode or manually with the navigation joystick. We really wish that Panasonic had put a manual focus ring on the PV-GS65, it’s such a great feature and I doubt it costs that much to add on.

Exposure (Aperture)
There are five programmed automatic exposure settings available on the PV-GS65, namely sports, portrait, low light, spot light, and surf and snow. You can also set the exposure manually through the menus on the LCD screen and EVF. Panasonic shows you aperture ratings on the LCD/EVF — which is great when compared to what other manufacturers give you.

Shutter Speed
Shutter speeds of 1/60-1/8000 second in tape mode and 1/30-1/500 second in card mode are available with the PV-GS65. You can adjust the shutter speed manually using the same method that the camcorder uses for Focus and Exposure. It’s a pretty good method of manual control and the camcorder gives you real shutter speed ratings.

White Balance
The PV-GS65 has manual white balance control which is set via the menu options. It works fine and is easy to use.

Gain
The PV-GS65 offers manual control over gain after the aperture has reached its largest opening of F/1.8. Its really amazing that the PV-GS65 gives you manual gain control, to our knowledge no camcorder in this price range gives you true manual gain control like the PV-GS65.

Still Performance
Still performance could not be analyzed at this time. The PV-GS65 captures still photos with approximately 1.2 megapixels (640x480 and 1280x960) and by utilizing Quad-Density Pixel Distribution Technology. This technology was introduced in the broadcast world to maximize picture quality and Panasonic claims it achieves higher quality by vertically and horizontally shifting pixels for enhanced clarity.

The PV-GS65 also allows capture of stills to the SD card during tape playback by pressing the photoshot button at a desired point in the playback.

VCR Mode
VCR mode on the PV-GS65 is selected by placing the camcorder into tape playback mode with the mode dial and then navigating though the DV tape using the VCR control panel display on the LCD screen with the navigation joystick.

Low Light Performance
We were unable to ascertain low light performance at this time regarding the PV-GS65. However, last year's 3CCD PV-GS120 had pretty good low light performance and the PV-GS65 should be similar.

LCD/ Viewfinder
The LCD on the PV-GS65 has a standard measurement of 2.5 inches diagonally, and can be opened outward from the camcorder body by 90 degrees. The LCD can be rotated 180 degrees around its axis and then docked into the LCD well with the screen facing outward to allow for easy viewing during recording or playback.

The color viewfinder on the GS65 pulls out about an inch from the camcorder body but cannot be moved vertically. It’s really too bad that they removed this feature, because it makes shooting through the viewfinder much more difficult.

Audio
The PV-GS65 is equipped to record both 12 and 16 bit stereo audio. Panasonic typically implements wind noise reduction technology which we were unable to test at this time. The PV-GS65 features a zoom mic that increases mic sensitivity and acts similar to a shotgun mic as the zoom enlarges the image. The camcorder also has a microphone input and a headphone out jack, though the headphone out jack is shared with the RCA out jack.

Handling
The PV-GS65 is more compact than last year’s PV-GS120 which was a very comfortably handling camcorder, especially for people with small hands. The PV-GS65 weighs under a pound. The buttons are intelligently placed and are easily reachable. The new navigation joystick enhances menu selection and manual focus over the rocker switch used with last year’s models. The adjustable LCD and color viewfinder make the recording process comfortable. However, potential solarization issues with the color LCD could not be verified.

Ports
The PV-GS65 has ports for just about everything: External Mic, S-Video, Headphone, USB, DV, AV, and Remote. The ports are covered by rubber covers.

Other Features

Quick Start
This function allows PV-GS65 users to get the camcorder powered up and going in 1.7 seconds.

16:9 widescreen mode
There is no widescreen mode on the PV-GS65.

Webcam
The PV-GS65 is equipped to function as a web cam.

MPEG
There is no provision for recording MPEG4 to SD card. MPEG4 recording has been discontinued across the Panasonic 3CCD camcorder line.

Analog to Digital Pass Through
The PV-GS65 is not equipped to serve as a pass through device.

Low Light Modes
The PV-GS65 claims to shoot video in 0 Lux via its MagicPix mode using the LCD screen as a light. MagicPix lowers the frame rate to approximately 8 frames per second causing any motion in the scene to exhibit severe blurring.

Conclusion
Panasonic's PV-GS65 is a nice, compact, inexpensive 3CCD camcorder that improves on the ease of use of last year’s highly touted PV-GS120. It is transportable and almost small enough to slip into a coat pocket…well, at least a purse or briefcase. We would like to point out that this is a very stripped down first impressions review. There has been no testing of any kind in the areas of video and still performance. Stay with us because a more extensive review is forthcoming in the next week or two. In general, we’re really excited about the possibility to have the excellent 3 CCD video technology which Panasonic has delivered in it’s higher end, more expensive 3 CCD camcorders brought down to a more affordable level. This camcorder could dip below $500 by November, add that to quality handling, all the inputs and outputs you’ll need plus great manual control and the PV-GS65 is a great buy.