Panasonic PV-GS120 3CCD Ultra-Compact Palmcorder Multi-Cam

Big Little Camcorder

This pocket-sized, SD-compatible Digital Palmcorder MultiCam sure doesn't seem small when you look at its capabilities. It's designed to capture the same high-quality digital video as conventional sized camcorders, only in a camera that can fit comfortably in the palm of your hand. It features digital camcorder, digital still camera and teleconferencing Web camera capabilities, all in one easy-to-use camcorder. Cinema mode records video in the same 16:9 aspect ratio as a movie screen, giving your videos a dramatic, cinematic effect during playback. The PhotoShot still camera function is a perfect way to consolidate your photo and video needs into one portable camcorder. The Megapixel still picture recording capability of the PV-GS120 let you capture images up to 1280 x 960 pixels. And the still pictures can be stored on an SD memory card for easy transfer to a PC for storing, editing and emailing. You can also create a slide show by recording them to video in the camcorder. A unique picture-in-picture function lets you take a previously recorded still image, miniaturize it, and then include it in your videos for a special effect.

Capturing With Quality

World renowned lens-maker LEICA has developed an exquisite, 7-element, multi-coated lens that helps add a high level of detail and subtlety to your creations, resulting in truly moving images that last. With refinements like a 2-stage neutral density filter for aperture independent adjustment, you'll appreciate the remarkable crisp, true-to-life color that is the hallmark of Leica Dicomar optics. The 3CCD camera system reproduces color in great fidelity, with a separate CCD for reds, greens and blues. It's the same technology used in Panasonic professional broadcast equipment, resulting in 540 lines of breathtaking resolution. Finally, the highly advanced Quad-Density Pixel Distribution, originally developed for broadcast-quality cameras to help maximize picture quality, uses of both vertical and horizontal pixel shifting to yield improved clarity and performance.

3-Way PC Link

The PV-GS120 offers three easy ways to transfer your images to your PC. Using the IEEE 1394 interface, you're able to connect to your personal computer for advanced editing and viewing purposes. Or, use this exceptional digital technology to connect your camcorder to similarly equipped camcorders, allowing you to produce duplicate copies of your personal recordings without any loss in picture quality. Thanks to the SD memory card slot, you can use an SD memory card to save and transfer still images, video clips and audio files to your computer. Plus, you can create your own images on the computer to use while you shoot videos with your camcorder. With the USB connection, you can easily transfer still images captured on the Mini-DV tape to your computer for use in email or printed documents.

Get In There

Getting in close helps bring out the subject in your images. The PV-GS120 is equipped with a lens capable of a 10:1 optical zoom. The powerful optics act like a telescope to produce close-up shots with extraordinary clarity, so you won't miss a single detail. The versatile lens system also offers variable zoom speeds, so you can adjust your zoom speed from wide angle to full telephoto. What's more, with the zoom mic feature with wind noise reduction, as you zoom in on the picture, the audio will also "zoom in" so that you can pinpoint distant sound emanating from your subject. And wind noise reduction helps to cut down on unwanted background noise. If the optical zoom doesn't keep you happy, you also get the benefit of digital zoom. Through the use of digital technology, the zoom ratio on this camcorder can be increased to 700:1, producing an incredibly close crop even on distant subjects.

Digital Effects

Now you can add exciting digital effects in both the Recording and Playback modes to make your videos really come to life. Here's a rundown of your options: Digital Zoom (Playback) enlarges the center of the playback image by 2x; Digital Mirror creates a mirror-like symmetrical image; Strobe digitally "freezes" a series of images; Mosaic turns your image into a mosaic pattern; Slim vertically expands an image; Stretch expands the image horizontally; Trail forms multiple impressions of all images in motion, which gradually fade out as the motion comes to a halt, creating a trail effect; Monotone (Playback) plays the image back in black and white; Sepia (Playback) creates the impression of antiquity by applying a sepia tone.

SD Memory Cards

SD memory cards are incredibly versatile, hold vast amounts of information and are about the size of a postage stamp. That's why they're revolutionizing the way people enjoy audio, video and information content. In fact, SD memory cards are used in a wide range of products including A/V equipment, PCs, cellular phones, PDAs and other communication devices. You'll be able to enjoy this amazing technology in the PV-G120, opening up a wealth of possibilities. Thanks to the SD card slot you can actually use your camcorder as an external storage drive. Using the included USB cable, transfer photos, data files, or even motion images back and forth between the camcorder and your PC.