The power of optical image stabilization

Panasonic's new POWER Optical Image Stabilization (O.I.S.) suppresses the effects of hand shake as it surpasses their old Mega O.I.S. technology with twice the effectiveness. The system uses gyrosensors to detect hand shake, then shifts a lens, and adjusts the optical axis to compensate. You get bright images without blurring even from handheld shooting at slow shutter speeds. And because the system is optical, no image quality is lost. Thanks to POWER O.I.S., the images you capture look incredibly clear, sharp, and beautiful.

Get a little closer

If your subjects are camera shy—and we're talking about that sheep on the side of the cliff, not your good-looking neighbor Cliff—the HDC-HS60 features a stealthy 25x optical zoom and an Intelligent Zoom function that goes all the way up to 35x. You When using Intelligent Zoom, Intelligent Resolution Technology lets you shoot at high zoom rates while preserving image sharpness. You get crisp images of highly detailed objects—without the blurry edges.

3MOS: overly sensitive (but in a good way)

Take advantage of the HDC-HS60 all you want. You can't really hurt its feelings because it's a machine. A machine with incredible 3MOS sensor technology that you'll want to take advantage of. (It's a vicious cycle my friend). See, Panasonic has taken 3 to a whole new level. Unlike the old single sensor CMOS, the 3MOS sensor has three independent sensors, one for red, one for blue, and one for green (just like its rival CCD sensor). The result is superior color reproduction. Add to that higher resolution and improved low-light sensitivity and you'll quickly understand why 3MOS is turning heads.

AVCHD: ahead of the rest

One of the woefully under sung wonders built into this Panasonic high definition camcorder slips so surreptitiously into the specs list that all but the wonkiest videophile might miss its existence altogether. Consider yourself witness to the quiet dawn of the AVCHD era. AVCHD? Under sung, you ask? Okay, most people have never heard of it but they will.

AVCHD (Advanced Video Codec High Definition) is a new high definition recording format pioneered by Panasonic, compatible with 3" DVD discs, hard disk drives, and SD and Memory Stick Pro memory cards. As you might surmise from the name, AVCHD employs MPEG-4 AVC (H.264) video compression format instead of the aging MPEG-2 compression used in most HDV camcorders, offering both reduced storage requirements and better video quality. While saying the difference between MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 AVC is the difference between stone tablet and microchip would be resorting to hyperbole, it wouldn't exactly be wrong. With AVCHD, you'll be able to store more video footage of higher quality while using up less of your media capacity. With those other formats? You can't. You'll also be able to utilize true random-access, since time-based seeking on AVCHD does not involve a fast-forward/rewind operation as it would on tape-based formats such as miniDV.

So, whether you have an eye on recording and editing your family adventures for future viewing or pushing the envelope in developing new avenues of video production in your business life, adopt AVCHD now and you'll be able to say you were there, in the beginning. You'll be able to say "Oh yeah, I knew about AVCHD all along."

Get the best shots of your favorite peeps

The Face Recognition function recognizes the faces of registered subjects and automatically optimizes the focus and exposure for those subjects. It continues to track the subject as he or she moves anywhere within the LCD frame, making it ideal for filming your rambunctious kids. Names can also be registered and displayed on the LCD while shooting. In all its brilliance, the HDC-HS60 will track that subject as they move around.

Comparison Specifications

• 25x optical zoom / 35x Intelligent Zoom / 60x - 1500x digital zoom
• Image sensor: 1/4.1" CMOS x 3 (3.05Mp x 3 total/2.53Mp x 3 effective)
• View screen: 2.7" LCD
• Digital interfaces: 1 HDMI (mini) output / 1 AV output / 1 USB 2.0
• Stabilization: POWER O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilization)
• Recording formats:1080/60p / MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 / HA / HG / HX / HE
• Low light performance: 1400 lx standard / 4 lx low light scene mode / 1 lx Color Night View
• Focus: auto, manual / Iris: auto, manual
• Still image abilities: Simultaneous recording / Creating still picture from motion picture: 2.1Mp (1920 x 1080) [16:9]
• Recording media: 120GB internal hard drive / SD, SDHC, SDXC memory cards (cards not included)

Additional Specifications

• Lens: Panasonic 35.7mm
• Aperture: F 1.5 (wide) / F 3.3 (telephoto)
• White balance: Auto / Indoor 1 / Indoor 2 / Sunny / Cloudy / White set
• Shutter speed: 1/2 - 1/2000 (still image) / 1/60 - 1/8000 (video) / 1/30 - 1/8000 (auto slow shutter on)
• Backlight compensation: Yes
• Flash: Yes
• Media remaining indicator: Yes
• Audio recording format: Dolby Digital (2-channel)
• Microphone: 2-ch stereo
• Max. 999 stills

Manufacturer Specifications

• On-screen display languages: English, French, Spanish
• Power consumption: Max. 4.7W (recording)
• Power supply (battery / AC adapter): DC3.6V / 7.7V
• Included accessories: AC cable / AC adaptor / AV cable / Battery / USB cable / Stylus pen / HD Writer AE 2.0 CD-ROM

Dimensional Specifications

• Dimensions: 2.51" W x 5.03" D x 2.71" H
• Weight: .79 lbs.

Panasonic HDC-HS60 Warranty Details

1-year parts, 90-days labor warranty

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