F/1.8-2.4 Digital Camcorders

The Bottom Line: The Panasonic SDR-SW20's only saving grace is its water-, shock-, and dust-proof body (and even those have limitations). Otherwise, there's no reason to buy this pocket camcorder.

Specs: Camcorder, CCD, 10 x, Flash card, 1.2 lbs

The Bottom Line: The Panasonic SDR-SW20's only saving grace is its water-, shock-, and dust-proof body (and even those have limitations). Otherwise, there's no reason to buy this pocket camcorder.

Specs: Camcorder, CCD, 10 x, Flash card, 7.9 oz

The Bottom Line: A well-designed hard-disk-based camcorder, the JVC Everio GZ-MG505 produces video and stills that look great on TV. But its price might make you hit Pause.

Specs: Camcorder, 3CCD, 10 x, Hard disk drive, 5.0 megapixels, 14.3 oz

The Bottom Line: The Samsung SC-D453 is a compact bargain if you're shooting primarily outdoors, but its indoor performance is extremely poor.

Specs: Camcorder, CCD, 10 x, Mini DV, 0.9 lbs

The Bottom Line: The GR-X5 is a capable jack-of-all-imaging-trades and, as the saying goes, a master of none.

Specs: Camcorder, 3CCD, 10 x, Mini DV, 1.1 lbs

The Bottom Line: This extremely compact, nicely designed camera should please technophiles who want both photo and video capabilities and can afford to splurge.

Specs: Camcorder, 3CCD, 10 x, Microdrive, 0.7 lbs

The Bottom Line: Attractive and compact, the Sony Handycam DCR-PC1000 MiniDV camera offers excellent image quality for its class and brings CMOS technology to the world of camcorders. But its overly clever user interface doesn't do its feature set justice.

Specs: Camcorder, 3CMOS, 10 x, Mini DV, 0.9 lbs

The Bottom Line: The Samsung SC-X105L has a fetching design and some novel features, but it suffers from subpar video quality.

Specs: Camcorder, CCD, 10 x, Flash card, 5.3 oz

The Bottom Line: A very good pocket camcorder that, in a pinch, can double as a decent snapshot camera. With a higher-resolution LCD and a video light, the Optura 500 is a better bet, though.

Specs: Camcorder, CCD, 10 x, Mini DV, 2.0 megapixels, 1.1 lbs

The Bottom Line: A very good pocket camcorder that, in a pinch, can double as a decent snapshot camera.

Specs: Camcorder, CCD, 10 x, Mini DV, 2.0 megapixels, 1.1 lbs