Panasonic Pro AG-DVX100B 3-CCD MiniDV Proline Camcorder w/10x Optical Zoom

It really doesn't need much review.. everyone would tell you is a great camera.
I use for tv channel material as well as training videos, etc.
Is the best you can get without spending $4000+

This is my 4th DVX100 (all still in operation BTW) and I like the updated features and the new tape loading mechanism. The quality is superb and the handling balance is what I've become accustom to with this camera. This camera is still viable for any work performed today and should be a very usable camera even when HD penetrates more i the market, If you are making a decision on a dependable pro video camera with durable features, this is the one to choose hands down!

Did I mention this is a great camera. With HD being available to prosumers makeing dvds... wait, that won't happen for a few years yet. So, without HD available to prosumers makeing dvds this is the camera to go with today. It is very sweet. It will give you the look of film especially with the Magic Bullet software you can send off to get for free upon purchase of the camera from Amazon. Also a free DVX user book to send off for. The progressive scan on this camera put interlaced video to shame. Clear picture. Compact compared to the Canon XL cameras.
Look pro, both its picture and its structure, feels pro, and is pro. From the Panasonic web site you can see that out of all of the cameras they sell this one is #3 on the list. The next one up is basically this camera with an HD option and costs twice as much. The next one up from this costs about 10 times as much. Everything else falls by the way side. Did I mention this is a great camera? Get it if your serious about videography.

I am a complete newbie to video and I love this camera. I had a tough choice to make when it came to spending this kind of $$ for a camera purchase. This one was reviewed very well on all the websites I checked (and I checked quite alot). The positives were echoed so often that I went with it over the others. I am quite pleased even though my learning curve still goes on. The picture qualitiy is excellent and I am learning to shoot better. The downside is I still have not received the DVD that came along with my purchase. The said it would take up to 8 weeks and I guess they intend on making it 8. Overall I am very happy with my purchase and can only say good things about the camera and the support and information about the camera and how to use it available on the net.

I was torn between Sony and Panasonic (the Canons seemed to have many recurring complaints especially with the decks), and after reading several reviews became gradually partial to the Panasonic, before ever having used one, based on customer loyalty and consistently glowing testimonials.

Well I've never used the comparable Sony's, JVC's, or the Canon XL2 (some limited experience with the GL2), but as best I can tell without personal comparison this camera does in fact deserve all the great reviews.

The image quality is excellent and in many cases looks about as good as broadcast TV video (nonHD), and the camera allows a tremendous amount of image control--manual focus ring, aperture (iris), gain adjustment, shutter speed, zebra control for overexposure, white AND black balance adjusting, daylight filters, etc. The electronic viewfinder can even be focused via simple diopter. There are six preprogrammed, but customizable, settings for image control so the user can simply dial in whatever setting they need based on the shooting/lighting conditions. So, for example, you shoot occasionally under weak flourescents lights--you adjust the white balance and the gain and the detail level accordingly, save it as a particular "scene file"; whenever you return to that same location or a similar shooting environment, you can click over to the saved settings in an instant and start recording. The first four are factory set for video 60 frames; the last two are 24 fps for a more film-like quality, which this camera handles beautifully.

What actually sold me on the camera, in terms of hardware, were the two XLR jacks--comparably priced models didn't seem to offer this. The XLR jacks allow the user to attach professional shotgun mics and bypass the mediocre factory one, taking fuller advantage of 16bit 48khz stereo recording. I use a fairly inexpensive AZDEN mic and the improvement in sound quality is tremendous. If you were willing to invest in finer mics the audio quality would be better still. Having two XLR inputs means that in addition to recording live audio (like a mic) you can also mix in input from another pre-recorded source--all in the camera!

The lens by Leica is also impressive--it is a bit wide and is not interchangeable (although I believe there is an adaptive telephoto for $$$). I prefer shooting wide but if you have need a wide selection of lenses or don't enjoy the look of wide angle look to Canon.

The drawbacks are minor--the camera is rather cumbersome--and would certainly be tiresome for handheld use as it isn't designed for shoulder-mounted use. I shoot almost exclusively indoors with a tripod and so neither of these issues are relevant for me. Also irrelevant for me are reviews I've read which have indicated lackluster battery performance--again shooting indoors I always have it plugged in and thus haven't noticed any battery problems. The little menu joystick control button used to toggle the menu screens, as well as the VCR playback options, can be frustrating when you're tired, but that is an extremely trivial concern really.

This camera is expensive, even in the $1500+ prosumer class it tends more to professional range, but I feel it is a great value considering what a fine piece of equipment it is and the wealth of features it offers. It is much much more than enough camera for the consumer and probably a little more than I need actually--I've used mine for a few months and I'm still learning how to wring better and better shooting from it. Once you've used it for a while it becomes clear why this particular model maintains a devoted following. If I have to replace this camera--provided I can afford to--the next camera would definitely be a Panasonic and probably be its big HD brother the HVX.