Panasonic's HDC-SD7 dons title of world's smallest HD camcorder

You can add one more "full HD" AVCHD camcorder to that mix of Panasonics announced earlier in the week. The new HDC-SD7 is said to be the "world's smallest and lightest" camcorder to record at 1,920 x 1,080 to SDHC cards. Otherwise, the SD7 is spec-for-spec the same 3CCD camcorder as the HDC-SD5 only in a vertically-held format. Just be careful what you ask for folks: that reduced chassis size comes at the expense of a cut in sensor sizes and drop in optical zoom from 12x to 10x when compared to Panny's earlier HDC-DX3 and HDC-SD3 models. Unfortunately, the HDC-SD7 looks to be Japan-only for now with a September 8 launch for ¥140,000 or about $1,188 with tax.

[CL @ Aug 1st 2007 3:36AM]

How long are you going to be able to record on a SD card with 1080p?!

[Dan @ Aug 1st 2007 6:58AM]

This doesn't record 1080p, only 1080i. Panasonic said the SD5 could store three hours of AVCHD on an 8GB SDHC card so this will presumably manage around the same.

[Karl @ Aug 1st 2007 3:46AM]

heh. First time I've seen 1080

[Karl @ Aug 1st 2007 3:47AM]

Well that was weird. Post got chopped.

What I said was that it was the first time I'd seen 1080

[Karl @ Aug 1st 2007 3:49AM]

ahh. Sorry to spam, but it seems you can't use characters like square brackets from Safari in Windows.

First time I've seen 1080i/1080p referred to as 1920. Just bound to confuse people more than they already are with HD resolutions, with all this "HD-Ready" "HD-Capable" and "TrueHD" rubbish.

[AlexP @ Aug 1st 2007 4:39AM]

See below (sorry, forgot to click on reply).

[AlexP @ Aug 1st 2007 4:39AM]

"[...] HDC-SD7 is said to be the "world's smallest and lightest" camcorder to record at 1,920 x 1,080 to SDHC cards."

Wikipedia:
is the shorthand name for a category of video modes. The number 1080 represents 1,080 lines of vertical display resolution,[1] while the letter p stands for progressive scan or non-interlaced. 1080p is considered an HDTV video mode. The term usually assumes a widescreen aspect ratio of 16:9, implying a horizontal (display) resolution of 1920 pixels across and a frame resolution of 1920×1080 or exactly 2,073,600 pixels. The frame rate in hertz can be either implied by the context or specified after the letter p (such as 1080p30, meaning 30 frames per second).

1,920 by 1,080 = 1080

[Jeebus @ Aug 1st 2007 12:13PM]

Except that a lot of the 1080 camcorders do 1440x1080, so...

[James @ Aug 1st 2007 5:41AM]

AlexP I think you missed the point. Karl, I agree with you, this is the first time i've seen 1920 used as the key resolution descriptor. I suppose Panasonic is touting this resolution as many videocameras by JVC, Canon, and Sony all tout "Full HD 1080", yet their horizontal lines are only 1440! Those ripoff merchants! I suppose this is Panasonic having a swipe at them, like they've been ripping on LCD TV's of late. Lol anyway just my thoughts.

[AlexP @ Aug 1st 2007 10:04AM]

I guess I have. :0

[raswirsky @ Aug 1st 2007 10:47AM]

The reason they tout the 1920 is that previous HD camcorders (including their HDC-SD1 and various pro models from a couple of years back) actually record 1440x1080 as the native resolution but scale it up to 1920x1080 on output.

So it's important for consumers with the older equipment to know that it's "full 1920" HD.

[Dan @ Aug 1st 2007 6:57AM]

Full HD on camcorders has generally become the term for 1080i at 1920x1080 rather than 1440x1080, which is confusing because most people assume Full HD means 1080p. It is odd to see 1920 Full HD but I guess it's a way of spelling it out - or adding to the confusion , depending on your point of view.

[sam @ Aug 1st 2007 7:38AM]

also remember that this thing has 3CCD and O.I.S (optical image stabilizer)
so kudos to Panasonic.

[Chris @ Aug 1st 2007 10:10AM]

how does this compare to the Xacti, which has been out for like a year

[Chris @ Aug 1st 2007 10:13AM]

n/m, the Xacti is "only" 720p, but like half the size http://us.sanyo.com/entertainment/cameracorder/index.cfm?productID=1456

[Owen Bird @ Aug 1st 2007 10:59AM]

What about the Apitek version? it is smaller.. but yeah i know it only does 720p at 16:9.. but that is still HD and it is still smaller then this Panasonic. And not only that you can buy it NOW in the USA, for only $300.. isnt that sweet? lol here is the link to it:
http://www.aiptek.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=R-HDV&Category_Code=WN1&Store_Code=AS

[John Riney @ Aug 1st 2007 11:21AM]

1920 to SDHC is awesome and all, but I wish they would have spent more than three cents on that painfully cheap looking plastic enclosure.

From these shots, it looks almost exactly like the 720p Xacti, which, itself, looked and felt no better than the $99 Aiptek sitting next to it in Circuit City. That is to say, really really cheap. Maybe I'm spoiled from shooting pro SLR cameras, but it really bugs me to pay tall, tall dollars for gizmos with Fischer-Price build quality.

[FrankF @ Sep 22nd 2007 12:37PM]

So you can tell the difference between plastic & metal from a picture?
Still haven't had my hands on one, but it looks like the same solid construction as my SDR-S150. Don't talk of Fisher Price if you have't actually seen one, let alone held it!

[happyguy290 @ Aug 1st 2007 12:00PM]

i have 2 video cameras at home, i use them, but never watch the videos later. what a waste...

[Anthony @ Aug 1st 2007 7:54PM]

This is one camera I highly recommend you "try before you buy". No need to get the HD version if the body is the same but I found the "upgraded" version completely unusable in my hand & decided to go for their older AV100, even w/ down-spec'd features because the zoom, menu & other bits just worked better for me. Plus it a real wide body, so it may be small, but I'd say it's big-boned at best.

[Chris Dow @ Aug 9th 2007 4:11PM]

Anyone know the still image megapixel count on this badboy? Thanks!

[bparker @ Oct 1st 2007 7:22PM]

I bought this camera last week. I got it in black and it does not look or feel like plastic. The still images are 2.1 megapixel

[chainstrainer @ Oct 27th 2007 2:10AM]

I'm in awe of the design and engineering of this jewel! I've only had it a few hours but out of the box (after switching over to the English menu) I shot incredibly sharp, vibrant video (haven't done still shots yet but the specs say 3.1 megapixel). Start-up is very quick and playback on HDTV is stunning - from a video camera a little larger in size than a bar of soap! It is so convenient in size I know I can reach for it in my pant pocket whenever I need it quickly.

[Louis @ Nov 21st 2007 7:32PM]

I just got this yesterday, It's very nice, but one question is did you get a english version of the "HD Writer CD"? If you do, how to get it? If you don't How do you download the video to your PC?

Thanks

[chainstrainer @ Nov 21st 2007 9:32PM]

I didn't bother using the included software. I just use my new iMac and it downloads the video files where I use iMovie editing features. If there is an issue with getting the English version of the camera's software, try asking your seller or posting your inquiry at the Panasonic 3CCD user forums: http://www.pana3ccduser.com/