Panasonic VDR-D100 Camcorder Reviewby James MurrayPublished on Mar 7, 2006 5:00 PM
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Audio (4.0)
The Panasonic VDR-D100 (Review, Specs, $299.95) is a pretty limited and limiting camcorder when it comes to audio features and control. The camcorder comes with an in-camcorder stereo microphone positioned directly beneath the lens. There is no Mic-in jack, so users do not have the option of using an external microphone. Audio is compressed using a Dolby Digital AC3 compression format at 16 bit sample rate.
The wind cut setting is one of two audio controls provided with this camcorder. This feature allows the user to place a high pass filter on the audio track. This filter will block the low frequencies created by wind striking the surface of the microphone while allowing the rest of the frequency range to be recorded by the camcorder. The second control feature for audio is the zoom mic, which increases the gain on the audio track and results in heightened sensitivity towards distant audio. The only problem with this feature is its inability to function in noisy situations since all audio levels will be raised and not just the subject you wish to capture.
VCR Mode (8.0)
To enter the VCR mode the mode dial must be turned from shooting to playback mode. The user will then see a screen displaying thumbnail images of prior captured footage. It is possible to scan these images by moving the joystick. The selected thumbnail will be displayed with a red frame, and information regarding clip length as well as date/time recorded will be shown beneath it. To select a clip for replay, the user must merely press the joystick inward and the clip will appear full screen. Once in this screen, the user will see that the joystick controls have the following functions: up arrow will control play/pause, down arrow will control stop, right arrow will control skip forward, and left arrow will control skip back. This is displayed with a joystick diagram menu located in the lower left corner of the screen, the same placement involved with shooting mode.
The administrative menu for playback mode is entered by pressing the menu button on the back of the camcorder. Once open, it offers delete, play setup, edit scene, setup and language submenus. The play setup menu allows users to select between view all, by date or playlist screen structure.
The editing which can be done in-camera allows users to select between divide and combine. When combining scenes, the user is placed in the thumbnail screen and when a thumbnail is highlighted and then selected, the camcorder will ask if the user wishes to combine this scene with the one directly following it. The divide control is a bit trickier and takes some getting used to. The user must select a clip and begin playing the clip back as in regular playback mode, but in this mode, the stop (or down arrow) control is replaced with the divide control. When the proper frame is visible the user must either press pause or divide, at which point the camcorder will ask if the user wishes to divide the clip. If you choose no, you’ll be returned to the thumbnail menu and the process must be started over again.
Playback mode is relatively simple and basic and allows quick viewing of footage prior to exportation. By comparison, most DVD camcorders by other manufacturers are similar. The thumbnail pages are a common asset among all of them. Most, too, are just as slow as the D100. Canon offers better animations in their playback menu. Aesthetics aside, they are all pretty similar.
Ports (3.0)
The Panasonic VDR-D100 has two covered ports, the A/V out and the USB 2.0 Hi-speed compliant, located on the front of the camcorder. As mentioned elsewhere, the port cover has two slight problems due to its placement along the bottom edge of the front face.
Firstly, the port cover opens via a tab located on the bottom of the camcorder. This is fine unless the camcorder is connected to a tripod. If connected to a tripod, you must remove the camcorder from the tripod to access the port. Secondly, the cover is close to other features like the white balance sensor, which gets obscured when the cover is open. These drawbacks aside, the ports themselves are laid out with plenty of room between them to minimize the chances of accidental unplugging.
The second port for the Panasonic VDR-D100 isn’t immediately visible; the user must remove the battery before it becomes apparent. Masked by the battery on the back of the VDR-D100, the DC-in port is placed into the cavity. This means it will be necessary to turn the camcorder off when switching between battery and wall power, which can result in broken or lost footage and be a nightmare during extended takes. The upside to this poor design is the massively limited recording time of DVD camcorders, which gives users plenty of opportunities to switch to wall power when inserting new DVDs every eighteen to twenty minutes.