Samsung's $280 SC-MX20 camcorder is YouTube-friendly

We won't fault you for forgetting all about Samsung's SC-MX20 -- after all, it was crammed deep beneath a host of other Sammy camcorders when announced at CES earlier this year. Nevertheless, we've received a few more vital details about said shooter today, and aside from boasting a 680K pixel CCD sensor (720 x 480 resolution), this one also features a 34x optical zoom, Advanced Image Stabilization, face detection, an SD / SDHC card slot, a battery good for three hours, a 2.7-inch LCD monitor (on a swivel, no less) and ten automatic scene modes for extra good times. Additionally, the unit packs a special shooting mode that captures in a resolution and format perfect for YouTube, so those terrified of converting will surely be breathing a sigh of relief. Expect this one to land next month in red, white, black and blue for a very manageable $279.99.

Gallery: Samsung's $280 SC-MX20 camcorder is YouTube-friendly

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[Grakle @ Jul 9th 2008 11:15AM]

Does this camcorder record video?

[E71 @ Jul 9th 2008 3:52PM]

...Later that day the item was pulled from shelves because it went obsolete.

[OneLove @ Jul 9th 2008 11:18AM]

good morning

[OneLove @ Jul 9th 2008 11:23AM]

what happened to my avatar?

[OneLove @ Jul 9th 2008 11:24AM]

now its back, damn you comment system!!! damn you too hell!

[RuntCake @ Jul 9th 2008 12:32PM]

Is this flash only or does it record to an HDD?

[Anthony @ Jul 9th 2008 12:47PM]

Flash.

Truly I can't see why people use camcorders other than for zoom. My Nokias work just fine & look far better than any home movie I've seen of my own family (16mm) & that looks good enough to me.

These are big (relative), clunky & don't generally take photos well so you end up w/ two things.

Convergence is great- sometimes a subject requires a video, a photo or both.

[Mike @ Jul 9th 2008 2:24PM]

is it just me, or is a 34x optical zoom pretty amazing?

[Arron @ Jul 9th 2008 3:51PM]

No, your spot on that is pretty cool.

[Ahhk @ Jul 9th 2008 3:52PM]

Yes, 34x optical is CRAZY high. That's got to be an error.

[Murphy Mac @ Jul 9th 2008 3:57PM]

Pretty big error, it's written on the camera...

[Wolfticket @ Jul 9th 2008 4:08PM]

What, you say it can record video at half it's native resolution. Impressive...

Also, 34x zoom isn't that impressive in a camcorder. Loads of sony's budget models have 40x optical, and over 25x isn't exactly rare. They only help people ruin their home movies with excessive shaky zoomed in footage. Over about 10x with no tripod or image stabilising is just asking for a headache.

[Shaun @ Jul 9th 2008 4:54PM]

As the owner of an SC-MX10, the main thing that I like about this is the file format options. The 10 records everything to an .AVI file format, which is problematic on my mac (3ivx or similar is needed for playback). Other than that it's a solid non-HD cam. The SC-MX20 should follow suit.

[Sean @ Jul 9th 2008 8:43PM]

I bought the SC-MX20 a few weeks back (exchanged for a Canon HF100), but I really liked the MX-20. the best thing about it was the format like another posted said about the mx-10.
The mx-20 recorded 1080p/30 and 480p/60 in a .mp4 'wrapper'
and it couldn't have gotten any easier on a 2.2 MacBook with 4gb of RAM
the files played natively in OSX (Finder / Preview / Quick Look / QuickTime) and to best of my knowledge, iMovie did not do any "transcoding" or conversion of the file - it just takes some time for it to generate thumbnails
we shot a good bit of footage using the 480 resolution for general shooting and switched to 1080p for the good stuff ..... and on a PC or some smaller (42") the 480p stuff works just fine
hell, it even looked pretty good while viewing the files directly of the card via PS3 on a 60" projection

the choice is this :
do you want a camera that produces jaw-dropping images that you may never see because they're such a pain to work with the files
or
be able to shoot DVD quality stuff to increasingly cheaper SDHC cards, that you don't have to do anything with prior to broadcasting them on YouTube / Vimeo ?

if this thing is anywhere near as easy as the hmx-20, then this thing should be a blast
compatible OSX file formats FTW !

[PuckDaddy @ Jul 9th 2008 11:28PM]

oops, sorry
I meant sc-Hmx20

[RMS @ Jul 11th 2008 8:36AM]

SC-MX20 should be another great digital camcorder although it is much cheaper than the SC-HMX20C, a full HD camcorder model of Samsung.

[whiskyjack @ Jul 12th 2008 11:01AM]

Now MX20 is easy interface for users like hmx20.
MX20 is affordable price and supporting H.264 format.
I saw it's 34x optical zoom test in youtube and it looks very well.
I think it's suitable for shooting home video.

[N9UDT @ Aug 31st 2008 9:12PM]

Have you seen this video and features Demo from Samsung.com? It really shows off the SC-MX20/25. Check out what you can do with the time laps feature. Very cool!

http://www.samsung.com/us/microsite/mx20/main_full.html

[Darcie @ Sep 10th 2008 2:19PM]

Just purchased the Samsung SC-MX20, well my son did for his birthday. We are looking now for a fisheye lens that is compatible? Any ideas?