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Notable for its low cost, the Panasonic VDR-D210 ($380 as of April 24, 2007) is an easy-to-operate DVD camcorder that doesn't have a huge number of features. The VDR-D210 (like the $380 Canon DC210) lacks a USB jack, so you can't connect to a PC to make a copy of the DVD in the camcorder (instead, you'll have to insert the disc in your PC's DVD drive). The VDR-D210 has a composite-out port for connecting to a TV or other device; but before you can move files onto your PC, you'll have to finalize the disc and then retrieve the files via your computer's DVD drive. The VDR-D210 lacks a headphone jack, too, which makes reviewing your audio difficult when you're in a noisy area.
The VDR-D210 offers optical image stabilization to minimize shakiness. It's especially effective when used in conjunction with a powerful zoom setting. With the VDR-D210's 32X optical zoom at full tilt, stabilization improved output noticeably, though the camera is fairly easy to hold steady in the first place. When digital zoom is switched on (there are settings for 50X and 1000X), extreme close-ups tend to look very jittery without image stabilization. That said, using a digital zoom past about 100X on any camcorder tends to yield grainy, pixilated images in most circumstances anyway.
The switch for selecting Auto or Manual mode lurks on the back of the LCD monitor. As a result, you're unlikely to trip it accidentally, but the location may strike you as inconvenient nevertheless. The bulbous design necessary to accommodate the 3-inch DVD recording medium requires a bit of finger stretching to control the zoom lever atop the unit. The delete button on the front gives you a convenient way to erase files without having to navigate through lots of menus.
Taking still pictures is easy enough: In video-recording mode you just pause, and then hit the Photoshoot button. The pictures are stored on the same DVD as the video files, and they're easy to navigate because they show up in a directory alongside the video clips. Because these are not JPEG files, however, you can't open the still photo files with image editing software; consequently, the VDR-D210 could not complete our image quality tests. By contrast, the Canon DC210 (which also lacks a memory card slot) burns still images to DVD disc in both DVD movie format (for playing slide shows) and in JPEG format (in a dedicated JPEG folder).
Since this camcorder has no media card slot, getting photos off of the DVD disc is a hassle. To retrieve still images, you must use third-party software such as WinDVD or PowerDVD, neither of which is included with the VDR-D210. And even with the requisite software, you have to capture the MPEG-2 images during playback of the disc and then paste them into another software program, such as Microsoft Windows Paint, so you can save them as JPEG files.
The VDR-D210's smallish battery lasted just 79 minutes in our battery life test, earning a score of Poor. By contrast, the Canon DC210's battery lasted 109 minutes. To charge the VDR-D210's battery, you have to remove it from the camcorder and place it in the charging bay--you can't just plug the camcorder into the wall.
The VDR-D210 earned a video image quality score of Very Good, thanks to a creditable job of reproducing colors. One handy feature is the MagicPix setting for night shooting; this mode produced good results, though the footage looked a bit herky-jerky due to the slower shutter speed used.
If you're looking for a no-frills home-video camcorder and have no desire to export still images from it, the VDR-D210 is a good choice.
John Poultney
