Reviewed by
Craigster , Intermediate

Price Paid
$599.00 at Henry's

Summary
This is my 4th Camcorder over the past 17 years. I started with a Sony 8mm in 1986, then a Canon 8mm, then 4 years ago I got a Sony Digital 8 (love it - still works well) and was looking for a smaller, more flexible MiniDV unit. I had seriously considered the Sony TRV22 and 33 - they seem pretty capable - but ended up going with the Panasonic because:
- It's smaller - noticibly - than the Sony, which is no slouch either. The Pana GS50 is even a little smaller but I got a great deal on the 252 because it is the previous model!
- Although the Sony has Zeiss lenses, Panasonic uses Leica - also good.
- This unit uses SD chips for digital stills - Sony is proprietary (when will they stop doing that!)
- Some features I REALLY like are the ability to switch to 16:9 widescreen in the camera, zoom sound, color viewfinder, size, 700x zoom (they all seem to have 10x optical)

I do all my video editing in a computer (Sony Vaio Desktop) so I don't care about the in camera editing but the Pana has lots if you want. I am keeping my Digital 8 as a second camera and for legacy work - still editing 1 1/2 decades of video - phew!

Did I mention it is a great size?

If you can get one of these at a discount like I did ($799 CDN) it is a GREAT deal.

Strengths
Size!!!
16:9 option
zoom sound
has a progressive scan still feature that makes a reasonable still shot - apparently emulates a megapixel, even though it has only 680,000 CCD - works well!
uses SD Ram
700x zoom, 10x optical
Controls are on a separate "wheel and button" set-up - vs Sony's touch screen. This means I can administrate settings through the viewfinder rather than the flip-out LCD screen. This is REALLY important on bright, sunny days!!!
Separate battery charger vs Sony requires you to charge on the camera

Weaknesses
My video editing system (Sony) needed a little work to get it to recognize the Panasonic.
Some of the controls are a little obscure i.e., non-intuitive - like the volume on playback!
Lens cap - but no worse than others, I guess
Low light - although there is a button to enhance this function. All digital cameras are weak in this area.

Similar Products Used
Sony 8mm standard format
Canon 8mm standard format
Sony Digital8

Customer Service
Not used yet, although I bought at Henry's in Mississauga. These guys really know their stuff! I bought my Digital8 from them too and have been very happy. They do deals and are really helpful.