Panasonic NVGS250B review

Performance
As the Panasonic NVGS250B is optimised for automatic control, the performance of its automatic systems is particularly critical. In general, its automation tended to be accurate but slow. For example, the autofocus often took a couple of seconds to lock onto the object in the middle of the frame, but once it did, there was no wandering. Similarly, autoexposure and automatic white balance were spot-on but lagged in comparison to the best of the competition.

The included battery turns in a merely average performance of between one and two hours' recording time, probably because of the three-chip system's power requirements.

When set to manual, the camera responded quickly and precisely to the controls. In this area, the difficulty was the joystick-based control system itself, as discussed in Design. The excellent manual focus ring is an exception to the limitations of the mechanical controls -- it's large and smooth, and it's located in the traditional spot around the lens. The zoom switch, however, is the worst control on the camera and is difficult to manipulate with any finesse. The final lens-related feature is the optical image stabilizer, which does an excellent job of smoothing out handheld camera work without degrading the image and is a great improvement over the NVGS250B's electronic stabilizer.

While the viewfinder provides a bright and clear picture, the flip-out LCD is mediocre in both size and brightness. I found the LCD difficult to use outdoors in daylight, an annoying limitation for casual users who rely on the LCD to compose their shots.

The NVGS250B's built-in microphone performed well within the limits of small built-in mics.

Image quality
There is a discernable advantage to the Panasonic NVGS250B's three chips, at least in well-lit situations. For example, daylight exteriors are recorded with a vibrancy and subtlety throughout the spectrum and are noticeably superior to the typical single-chip image. The lens on this camera is sharp and the contrast is good as well.

Unfortunately, in low light, this camera loses its advantage over the single-chip competition. Low-light images are murky and noisy, which is presumably due to the small size of the NVGS250B's CCDs. Like most consumer camcorders, the NVGS250B offers special low-light modes, but its MagicPix option relies on a slow shutter that will make any motion unacceptably blurry.

In the photo department, Panasonic claims this camera is the equivalent of a 3.1-megapixel still camera. But that's not the native resolution of the sensors, and while the NVGS250B's still images are decent by camcorder standards, you can do better with a dedicated still camera.

Edited by: Aimee Baldridge
Addtional editing by: Tom Espiner