The era of high-definition home video has definitely arrived. Consumers can now purchase a HD-quality camera for the price that a standard VHS camera cost a few years ago.
With inbuilt image stabilisation paired with a horizontal body design, the HV20 gives a professional feel to the finished product as well as resulting in more stable images. Its compact size is an added bonus as, although still solid feeling, the HV20 will not leave you with a tired arm and cramping fingers after prolonged use. The only negative issue we can think of is the poor placement of the zoom control, which is situated a little too far back on the camera for comfortable use.
With a 3-megapixel, 1/2.7in CMOS sensor that captures 1,920 horizontal and 1,080 vertical pixels for either 1080i high-definition or wide-screen standard-definition video, we were surprised at what great results can be achieved. We honestly didn’t expect to see such strong clear images from such a low-priced, compact unit.
With Instant Auto Focus, the subjects appeared crisp and sharp. It works well under bright conditions, but can get a little confused in low light and when zoomed out to its 10x maximum.
The HV20’s colour handling is another bonus. Rich, vibrant colours fill the screen with very little noise. The saturation in daylight conditions is absolutely amazing, though it does tend to suffer in poor light.
A new function that impressed was the ability to simulate a 24 frames per second frame rate used in film. With the cine mode activated, the look and feel of a big screen movie can be reproduced for the budding Spielberg. Although not up to professional standard, this still gives good results for the amateur.
With only a few performance issues in low light and at maximum zoom, the HV20 performs well. With fantastic images and amazing colours, the HV20 will suit most users.