Panasonic PV-GS90

Pros: Optical image stabilization, 40x optical zoom, clear stereo microphone, bright LCD view panel (even in sunlight), quick cold boot to record time, well placed controls.

Cons: Included battery doesn't last long, power dial is a bit too easy to turn when unwanted, those with big hands (me) might accidentally press unwanted buttons, retractable tunnel viewfinder is small, manual focus slow in low light.

Summary: Optical image stabilization works very well in longer focal lengths.

Easy to access manual controls cover the important aspects of recording: focus, white balance, aperture, and shutter speed. There is a completely automatic mode and two manual modes. The first manual mode allows you to control the white balance while the camera takes care of the other settings. I used this mode throughout a vacation where we were constantly going from inside and outside and the auto white balance switched slowly in a continuous shot. Manual focus is hard to adjust using the LCD view screen and auto focus worked slowly in low light situations.

Recorded image quality is fantastic. This is my first minidv camcorder, and while the 60 minute tapes usually offload onto the computer at about 12GB per tape, the resulting quality is worth it. So just grab a huge internal SATA or external eSATA hard drive (for speed when video editing the files) and start recording the world.

Cold boot to record time is reasonable. There is an option that puts the camera into a standby mode when the viewfinder is closed. This speeds up the record time if you intend to record again shortly.

I throughly enjoy this camera and am pleased with its performance. Recommended.