Panasonic HDC-SX5

Unsurpassed high-def visuals, two recording formats in one, plenty of modes and features

Bulky and unattractive design, poorly designed directional stick

However, in this mode (called HG) you can only fit 14 minutes of video onto a 2.8GB single-layer 8cm DVD. This rises to 26 minutes on a dual-layer version, but it’s still not a lot when you’re used to tapes holding a whole hour. There are two 1,440 x...

Comfy ergonomics. Good video quality

Expensive and bulky. Not meant for novice shooters

Stunning image quality ; Good range of features ; Good value for beginners and upgraders alike

Controls take time to get used to ; Can suffer from wind noise

Some users are going to find this model a bit too big and bulky for their liking. However, the superb HD picture quality and the availability of two excellent recording media make up for this. A very good product for the price

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Versitility is key here - records to SDHC and DVD; 3-second preroll recording

Some contrast issues in very bright or medium light

We like the three-second preroll function that records the previous three seconds before you push the record button when you’re using an SDHC flash memory card. In bright light, this sucker cranked out images with astonishing clarity, splashing...

The Panasonic HDC-SX5's primary selling point is its hybrid recording - the ability to record high definition AVCHD video to both DVD and SD/SDHC memory cards. In most instances, however, we found the DVD medium to be more of a hassle than a...

Stunning image quality, Good range of features, Good value for beginners and upgraders alike

Controls take time to get used to, Can suffer from wind noise

Some users are going to find this model a bit too big and bulky for their liking. However, the superb HD picture quality and the availability of two excellent recording media make up for this. A very good product for the price