JVC HDEverio GZ-HD40 Review

Thursday, November 20, 2008, 7:48
Gadgets
218 views
View Comments

JVC Everio GZ-HD40 is a high definition camcorder offers you lot of features. The camcorder is equipped with 120GB hard drive and records the video in tow formats- AVCHD and MPEG-2. The GZ-40HD has good manual and automatic image control. It records 1080i high-definition video with a 1/3-inch CMOS sensor.

The camcorder is compact as compared to similar Sony Handycam HDR-SR-12, but it is more expensive and its image quality lacks clarity of Sony Handycam.

The most attractive feature of GZ-HD40 is its multiple HD format handling ability. It can record AVCHD at 5, 12 and 17 mbps, and 30mbps MPEG-2 videos at a resolution of 1920×1080 pr 1440×1080 pixels. The MPEG-2 videos have good quality than the 17-mbps AVCHD due to increased sharpness and vibrant color. You can record 10 hours of MPEG-2 videos or 15 hours of 17-mbps AVCHD on its hard drive.

The GZ-HD40 records good looking videos but you may find that colors are a bit oversaturated. Some people consider it as a drawback but some may find it as plus point as the colors appear vibrant. The videos in low light conditions are little washed out and still images have same quality as a $250 camera will give you.

The GZ-HD40’s battery life is little more than 1 hour, 30 minutes which is much less than the battery life of Panasonic HDC-HS100 which runs for 2 hours on a single charge. But its battery life is same that of the Sony Handycam HDR-SR-12.

The GZ-HD40 doesn’t have viewfinder and its frame options are also limited. The videos are recorded at 60 frames per second and you can not change the settings to 24 or 30 frames per second. The camera’s digital image stabilization is below par the optical image stabilization of other competitors. Editing and importing the MPEG-2 videos from the camcorder is tedious and slow work. The MPEG-2 files can be edited only with Windows CyberLink Power Director and you need convert the format if you want to use some other application for editing.

The JVC GZ-HD40 camcorder is a pretty good option for those seeking the tapeless camcorder with multiple format support. The camcorder is too expensive as compared to other camcorders that offer better image quality and functionality at a lower price.