Panasonic SDR-S26
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A pretty camera that comes in a personalized variety of colors, it suits your needs if you’re actually not looking for an HD camera, as we know it can be a trial and error pursuit. We know that SD cameras are not perfect, but you will definitely settle with the quality of this one, as it really does its job as a proper camcorder.
A small size, it’s not ambitious in the design, you can hold it well. The 70x zoom feature is the best thing about this model, aside from the anti-shake feature. Those alone win many points, as well as the light, subject and composition settings. There’s even an automatic mode that will set the right conditions for you so you don’t have to waste your time.
Panasonic SDR-S26 basic features
Some issues are that it doesn’t focus well in low light settings; the still photos it takes are mediocre at best, and often blurry. The record/pause button is misleading and tricky as you have to press it to turn it on and only once to begin recording. But if you press pause, you have to press record twice, or you’ll lose footage.
Panasonic SDR-S26 common troubleshooting
The editing software it comes with, VideoCam Suite 2.0 works decently for your run of the mill default program, but the interface needs to be improved. You can, of course, transfer directly all your archives from your memory card (which is up to 32GB) to your computer and edit them with Adobe Premiere Elements.
The battery is really small, not heavy, pretty much feels like a cell phone battery and it can provide over an hour of continuous recording time. You can always carry a backup battery if your recording is longer than that.
All in all, if you want a small camera to just carry it around and then simply film when you encounter an scene such as a family gathering, your son’s play at school, a political rally. In any case, it fits a pocket or jacket well. For the price of around $229 you just can’t get better for a fully functional, basic camcorder instead of trendy ones that are more prone to give you a headache.
