The GZ-MG77 sports relatively few buttons. The camcorder's exterior has just three switches: a power/mode control, the record button, and the zoom rocker. Beneath the LCD are four more buttons and the still/video switch. Most adjustments are made using the small joystick mounted on the left edge of the flip-out LCD panel. Though the joystick is easy to use, it's tiny and nearly impossible to operate while holding the camcorder steady.
The control layout is more logical than on previous Everio camcorders. Functions are easier to find than in the previous generation, though the multiple menu categories require a lot of back-and-forth navigation. Of course, after initial setup, you can just press the Auto button and let the camcorder make all the choices for you.
Because there's no tape or CD to remove and the battery snaps onto the back, the GZ-MG77 lends itself well to tripod shooting. You'll need to remove it only to access the Secure Digital card slot on the bottom of the camcorder, which it uses for still-image capture.
The GZ-MG77, like all other current Everio models, supports JVC's Everio Share Station DVD burner. This external device allows you burn DVDs straight from the camcorder without even touching a desktop computer. Unfortunately, editing with the Everio Share Station is limited to simple playlist editing and file deletion.
The GZ-MG77's lens features a modest 10X optical zoom, surprising given that the lower-end camcorders in the line, such as the JVC GZ-MG37, have a 32X optical-zoom range. The GZ-MG77 uses a tiny 1/3.9-inch, 2-megapixel CCD, offering somewhat better low-light performance and higher-resolution stills than do the low-end models.
For shooting in low light, the GZ-MG77 offers automatic gain control and a shutter-slowing NightAlive mode. The camcorder includes an onboard flash for still-image capture, but it lacks the video light found on lower-end models such as the GZ-MG37.
Along with a fully automatic mode, the GZ-MG77 allows you to manually adjust exposure, shutter speed, focus, and white balance. The manual control is welcome, because the camcorder has just four program autoexposure modes.
You can label individual video files as certain types of events, such as Vacation or Wedding. These tags can be handy for finding related clips while building playlists on the camera.
The JVC Everio GZ-MG77 lacks a shoe for external accessories, limiting expansion to 30.5mm filters and wide- and telephoto-conversion lenses. The camera can output through the standard S-Video and composite ports.
The zoom rocker is very sensitive, but it was easy to perform both fast and fine zooms once we got used to it. Optical image stabilization functioned well enough but didn't completely get rid of camera shake. At low zoom levels, it eliminated typical hand movements. At higher levels, camera shake was present, but the image stabilization made the motions smoother.
The 2.7-inch, 16:9 wide-screen LCD monitor is reasonably sharp, and it displays fairly accurate color. It's a bit small and video shot in 4:3 aspect ratio is shrunk further by the screen. Unfortunately, the GZ-MG77 has no viewfinder so the LCD is the only option for framing and reviewing shots.
Because the GZ-MG77 lacks a microphone jack, users are stuck with the camcorder's middling stereo microphone. It does a decent job of picking up sound, but offers little in the way of separating the channels. There's a wind cut feature, but no audio zoom function.
The GZ-MG77's battery lasts about 1.5 hours, a great improvement over the 40- to 50-minute battery life of its predecessor, the GZ-MG70. Still, you'll want to pack a couple of extended batteries if you plan to fill the entire 37 hours of recording space between charges. Even the 7 hours of high-quality video requires the camera to take a few breaks to recharge.
Even with the camera set to best quality, our test footage suffered from very noticeable problems, such as compression artifacts, color fringing, and noise. The variety of artifacts included shimmering pixels near straight edges and stair-step jaggies on curves. The video also lacked detail compared to MiniDV footage.
The GZ-MG77's video quality is at least better than that of lower-end models such as the GZ-MG37, thanks to its larger CCD (1/3.9 inch vs. 1/6 inch). It's also a better performer in the dark, where graininess doesn't increase much until lighting gets very low. The color balance and intensity are significantly more accurate.
Aspect-ratio distortion is a big problem on the GZ-MG77. If you're using software other than the bundled applications, you'll need to use your video-editing software to adjust the aspect ratio so that wide-screen footage appears correctly; Adobe Premiere Elements, Windows Media Player, and Nero Showtime didn't recognize the wide-screen aspect ratio of footage that we shot in 16:9 mode. Video playback was squashed and inaccurate until we manually adjusted the aspect ratio.
The JVC Everio GZ-MG77's stills are decent, suitable for small snapshot prints if you don't need to crop or zoom. Color came out well, but our indoor shots were blurry, and the flash's red-eye reduction was completely ineffective.
Product Specifications:
Product Description:
JVC Everio GZ-MG77U - Camcorder - Hard disk drive
Product Type:
Camcorder - Yes
Dimensions (WxDxH):
2.7 in x 4.3 in x 2.7 in
Color:
Gray
Digital Storage Media:
Hard disk drive - Built-in - 30 GB
Sensor Resolution:
2.18 megapixels
Effective Sensor Resolution:
Video: 1.2 megapixels - Still: 2 megapixels Mpix
Shooting Modes:
Digital photo mode
Min Focus Range:
15.7 in
Focal Length:
3.8 mm - 38 mm
Microphone:
Microphone - Built-in - Electret condenser - Stereo
Viewfinder:
None
Display:
LCD display - TFT active matrix - 2.7 in - Color
Supported Battery:
1 x Li-ion rechargeable battery - 700 mAh ( Included )
Product Basic Spec:
Video input type:
Camcorder
Digital Zoom:
300 x
Optical Zoom:
10 x
Effective sensor resolution:
2.2 megapixels
Optical sensor size:
1/3.9 in
Optical sensor type:
CCD
Analog Video Format:
NTSC
Image Stabilizer:
Electronic
Camera Flash:
Built-in flash
Lens Aperture:
F/1.2-2.0
Focus Adjustment:
Manual
,
Automatic
Macro focus range:
5cm
Media Type:
Hard disk drive
Image storage:
JPEG 1632 x 1224
,
JPEG 1280 x 960
,
JPEG 1024 x 768
,
JPEG 640 x 480
Display type:
2.7 in LCD display
Display resolution:
112,000 pixels
Audio input type:
Microphone
Microphone operation mode:
Stereo
Connections:
1 x Composite video/audio output
,
1 x S-Video output
,
1 x DC power input
,
1 x USB
Expansion slots:
1 SD Memory Card
Weight:
13 oz
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