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  • Introduction

  • Design

  • Front

  • Back

  • Left

  • Right

  • Top

  • Bottom

  • Size & Weight Comparison

  • In the Box

  • Performance

  • Color

  • Low Light Color

  • Noise

  • Low Light Sensitivity

  • Low Light Noise

  • Low Light Color

  • Motion

  • Video Sharpness

  • Testing Samples

  • Usability

  • Ease of Use

  • Auto Mode

  • Other Auto Features

  • Handling

  • Portability

  • Battery Life

  • LCD

  • Stabilization

  • Manual Focus

  • Manual Exposure

  • Miscellaneous Controls

  • Audio Controls

  • Editing

  • Features

  • Compression

  • Media

  • Slow Motion Modes

  • Still Features

  • Lens & Imaging System

  • LCD

  • Connectivity

  • Battery

  • Media

  • Still Features

  • Other Features

  • Panasonic HDC-TM300 Comparison

  • JVC GZ-HD300 Comparison

  • COMP 3

  • Conclusion

  • Photo Gallery

  • Introduction
  • Design
  • Front
  • Back
  • Left
  • Right
  • Top
  • Bottom
  • Size & Weight Comparison
  • In the Box
  • Performance
  • Color
  • Low Light Color
  • Noise
  • Low Light Sensitivity
  • Low Light Noise
  • Low Light Color
  • Motion
  • Video Sharpness
  • Testing Samples
  • Usability
  • Ease of Use
  • Auto Mode
  • Other Auto Features
  • Handling
  • Portability
  • Battery Life
  • LCD
  • Stabilization
  • Manual Focus
  • Manual Exposure
  • Miscellaneous Controls
  • Audio Controls
  • Editing
  • Features
  • Compression
  • Media
  • Slow Motion Modes
  • Still Features
  • Lens & Imaging System
  • LCD
  • Connectivity
  • Battery
  • Media
  • Still Features
  • Other Features
  • Panasonic HDC-TM300 Comparison
  • JVC GZ-HD300 Comparison
  • COMP 3
  • Conclusion
  • Photo Gallery

Introduction

With its unusual appearance and compelling features, the JVC GZ-X900 is clearly an intriguing camcorder. Unfortunately, its performance didn't live up to its hype in our testing labs, and the camcorder seemed to show off far more weaknesses than strengths.

Design

Front

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Back

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Left

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Top

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Bottom

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Size & Weight Comparison

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In the Box

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Performance

Color

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JVC has done a very good job with bright light color accuracy this year, but the GZ-X900 isn't among its best performers. The X900 registered a color error of 3.58 with a saturation level of 75.33%. While this is a good score, it pales in comparison to the excellent numbers achieved by the JVC GZ-HD300 (2.13 color error, 98.14% saturation). The X900's scores more closely match the results from the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 and Panasonic HDC-TM300. More on how we test color.

The color error map above shows that the GZ-X900 had trouble with purples, greens, yellows and most of the color spectrum. It did very well with skin tones and some reds and blues, however. The main problem with the X900 is its dark image, which likely contributed to its poor color error. Still, the colors on the X900 look quite good. They are strong, vivid, deep, and clear. The only problem is its aforementioned darker-than-average image.

The above image is a frame pulled from our bright light video testing. The GZ-X900 has no color modes or image settings, so there isn't really any way to adjust the color on the camcorder (you can manually adjust exposure, shutter speed, and aperture, however). The comparison images below will give you a better idea of how the X900 looks against the competition.

In the images above, you should be able to see how the X900 has a slightly darker image than the rest of the camcorders. It isn't much, but the white portions of the chart have less pop and don't jump out as much as the VPC-HD2000 or Panasonic HDC-TM300. The X900 also doesn't have the saturation level that the HD300 has. The color patch samples below do an even better job of showing off the difference in saturation and brightness.

The GZ-X900 is clearly a notch darker than every other camcorder in this set. Now, keep in mind that this isn't necessarily a bad thing. It gives images more contrast and can make colors look more pleasing to some people. You can also boost the exposure manually if the camcorder's auto mode produces too dark an image for your liking.

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Low Light Color

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Since the GZ-X900 produced such a dark image in our low light testing, it should be no surprise that its colors weren't all that accurate. The camcorder managed a color error of 7.54, which is roughly twice what the camcorder measured in our bright light color testing. The saturation level also dropped down to 48.68%. Take a look at the sample images below to see just how much darker the X900 is compared to the competition. More on how we test low light color.

The GZ-X900's image in our low light testing was dark, noisy, and murky. The image also had a slight green tint to it. The color error map above shows how the camcorder wasn't able to produce any colors accurately. Each color in the spectrum was off by a significant margin. The comparison images below give you a better idea how the GZ-X900 stacks up against the competition.

The GZ-X900 is definitely darker than the rest of the camcorders shown above. It is harder to make out details in its image and the colors are quite faded. The GZ-HD300 also shows some fade in its colors, although the image is definitely not as dark as the X900. The Sanyo HD2000 has the deepest, most vivid colors in low light, while the Panasonic HDC-TM300 also has a solid all-around image.

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Noise

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The GZ-X900 kept the noise levels quite low in our bright light testing, but its numbers weren't any better than the competition. The X900 averaged 0.595% noise, which is slightly better than the GZ-HD300, and roughly on par with the VPC-HD2000 and HDC-TM300. The GZ-X900 ran into far worse problems with noise in our low light performance testing. More on how we test noise.

The crops above show off each camcorder's sharpness capability. Notice how crisp and fine the X900's image is, even though it is a bit dark. Its sharpness actually rivals the HDC-TM300, which has an exceptionally sharp picture as well. Also, take a look at how much clearer the X900's image is compared to the GZ-HD300. We'll go over sharpness more in the Motion and Sharpness section on the next page of this review.

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Low Light Sensitivity

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While the JVC GZ-X900 was a solid performer in bright light, the camcorder ran into extreme difficulties with our low light testing. For starters, the camcorder had one of the worst low light sensitivities we've ever recorded. The X900 needed a whopping 56 lux of light to reach 50 IRE on our waveform monitor. When you consider that an average HD camcorder needs roughly 15-16 lux to reach the same levels, the 56 lux performance by the X900 is downright abysmal. This is also far worse than the JVC GZ-HD300 did in our sensitivity test, as it only needed 29 lux of light to peak at 50 IRE—which is still a very bad score. More on how we test low light sensitivity.

We can't say enough about how bad the GZ-X900's sensitivity results are. The camcorder needed more than 6 times the amount of light required for the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 and Panasonic HDC-TM3000 to reach the same levels on our waveform monitor. It is also the worst low light sensitivity we've seen amongst the camcorders we've tested this year. We tested the X900's low light sensitivity with its auto slow shutter feature disengaged, which is the way we do all our regular camcorder testing. Setting the gain control to auto allows the camcorder to engage its slow shutter, which enables a 1/30 of a seconds shutter speed. Using the slow shutter will definitely result in improved low light performance, but it also gives your footage a choppy, blurred look—due to the slow shutter speed.

We expected the GZ-X900 to have much better low light performance because of its large CMOS sensor. It appears, however, that the camcorder is stuffed with so many pixels that there is actually less area for sensor to absorb light. The gross pixel count is roughly 10.29-megapixels, which means even the larger 1/2.33-inch sensor is densely populated with pixels. So, in effect, by boosting the pixel count sky high, JVC has made the X900 an exceptionally poor low light camcorder. In return, the GZ-X900 offers an incredibly sharp image in bright light. The camcorder's lens, which opens at a maximum aperture of f/3.4, is likely another contributor to the GZ-X900's poor low light performance.

The camcorder barely picks up an image at 15 lux, while the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 produces a rather vibrant picture at the same light level.Of course, having a bad low light sensitivity wasn't the GZ-X900's only problem in low light. Its failure to produce a solid image when the lights are dim carried over into our low light color and noise testing. Check out the next two sections of this review for the detailed results.

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Low Light Noise

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The JVC GZ-X900 averaged 2.985% noise in our low light testing, which is another terrible performance. The camcorder had more than twice the amount of noise than the GZ-HD300 and the rest of the camcorders we used as comparisons throughout this review. This is a very high amount of noise and you can definitely notice it in the X900's footage. In low light, the image is still quite sharp, but the whole frame is covered with a heavy layer of noise. More on how we test low light noise.

The thing that is really worrisome about the GZ-X900 is the fact that the noise is prominent even when shooting under 60 lux of light. 60 lux isn't bright, but it is roughly equivalent to a poorly-lit indoor setting or outdoors during dusk. All camcorders show increased noise levels in low light, but most don't start showing intense amounts of noise until the lights are very dim (under 20 lux or so). No camcorder, especially a high-end model like the GZ-X900, should have noise levels of close to 3% when shooting under 60 lux of light.

This terrible noise performance, combined with an abysmal sensitivity score and poor color accuracy make the GZ-X900 one of the worst low light performers we've tested in a while. The camcorder does capture a great image in bright light (with excellent sharpness to boot), but its low light capability is not worthy of any praise. We simply cannot recommend this camcorder for anyone who plans on shooting in low light situations of any kind.

{{comparison_bars title="Low Light Noise Score Comparison", attribute="Low Light Noise Score", xLabel="Low Light Noise Score"}}

Low Light Color

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Since the GZ-X900 produced such a dark image in our low light testing, it should be no surprise that its colors weren't all that accurate. The camcorder managed a color error of 7.54, which is roughly twice what the camcorder measured in our bright light color testing. The saturation level also dropped down to 48.68%. Take a look at the sample images below to see just how much darker the X900 is compared to the competition. More on how we test low light color.

The GZ-X900's image in our low light testing was dark, noisy, and murky. The image also had a slight green tint to it. The color error map above shows how the camcorder wasn't able to produce any colors accurately. Each color in the spectrum was off by a significant margin. The comparison images below give you a better idea how the GZ-X900 stacks up against the competition.

The GZ-X900 is definitely darker than the rest of the camcorders shown above. It is harder to make out details in its image and the colors are quite faded. The GZ-HD300 also shows some fade in its colors, although the image is definitely not as dark as the X900. The Sanyo HD2000 has the deepest, most vivid colors in low light, while the Panasonic HDC-TM300 also has a solid all-around image.

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Motion

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The JVC GZ-X900 records full 1920 x 1080 HD video using a 60i frame rate. The camcorder does have some a few slow motion modes that use high-speed frame rates, but all of them capture extremely low quality video and clips can only be a few seconds long. The high speed record options are 600fps, 300fps, and 120fps. The faster the recorded frame rate, the slower the final video will be. So, for example, recording 4 seconds (the maximum clip length) at 300fps will result in a 20-second slow-motion video. The slow motion modes are something that can be fun to play around with, but since the image quality is so poor, they aren't really useful for much else. More on how we test motion.

Video Sharpness

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The JVC GZ-X900 captures video with excellent sharpness and clarity. We measured its horizontal sharpness at 1000 line widths per picture height (lw/ph) and its vertical sharpness at 650 lw/ph. While the large disparity between horizontal and vertical is a bit disconcerting, the truth is this is an exceptional video sharpness score overall. No other consumer camcorder we've tested this year has been able to crack 1000 lw/ph for either horizontal or vertical sharpness.

The X900's outstanding sharpness represents a major improvement over the JVC GZ-HD300, which only managed 550 lw/ph horizontal and 600 lw/ph vertical. It is also significantly better than both the Sanyo HD2000 and the Panasonic TM300. More on how we test video sharpness.

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Testing Samples

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Usability

Ease of Use

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While we found the JVC GZ-HD300 to be quite simple to use, the GZ-X900 was a bit more difficult. The GZ-X900 has more buttons, more options, and more settings than any of the new JVC models this year, so it shouldn't be much of a surprise that it is more difficult to use. Its multiple shooting modes (high-speed settings), as well as the hybrid video/photo setup got a bit confusing—not to mention the provided instruction manual was horrible.

There's also the process of learning how to use JVC's laser touch operation system, which actually has a pretty steep learning curve. The laser touch can be cumbersome, quirky, and difficult to control. However, once mastered, it can also make scrolling through menus and making large-scale adjustments easier. We also noticed the laser-touch on the GZ-X900 to be better designed than JVC's previous attempts. It has a flat, even construction that is smoother and more responsive.

We do like the simple layout of the GZ-X900. There aren't too many buttons on the camcorder, there's only one menu screen, and the rectangular construction makes it easy to hold in a variety of ways. There's also the helpful information box that scrolls by when you go into the camcorder's menu, which is an excellent tool for beginners.

JVC's 'one-touch' Export and Upload buttons can offer simple transitions from the camcorder to the web, but they aren't as easy to use as you'd expect. You need to press the buttons before you start recording if you want the clips to be available for quick uploading or exporting using a computer. We're not quite sure why JVC implemented the 'one-touch' buttons in this manner, as it makes them far less effective. The thing is, you can upload and export any video you shoot with the GZ-X900 using the camcorder's provided software. All the 'one-touch' buttons do is make this process a bit faster.

Auto Mode is confusingly called Dual Shot mode

For the most part, the menu system on the JVC GZ-X900 is quite good. It has the same one-list menu setup as the rest of JVC's 2009 lineup. The only difference, however, is that the GZ-X900 has more options and more settings than JVC's mid-range and low-end models. Everything is organized under one menu screen, which is accessed by pressing the menu button on the bottom of the LCD panel. Depending on what mode the camcorder is in, different options appear on this menu screen. In manual mode (video or still), a Manual Setting option appears in the main menu. Here's where you find manual controls like focus, brightness, shutter speed, aperture, etc. At the bottom of the menu screen are three sub menus: Display Settings, Basic Settings, and Connection Settings.

Our only complaint with this is that it is sometimes confusing as to whether a control is located in the Manual Setting menu or elsewhere. For example, to change the camcorder's focus assist color, you have to go into Display Settings—while the focus assist activation option is in Manual Setting. Also strangely hidden away is the GZ-X900's Continuous Shooting Speed option, which is found in the Basic Setting submenu. Why isn't something like Continuous Shooting Speed in with the rest of the manual controls?

We're also not crazy about using the laser touch system to scroll through menus. Sure, it can make scrolling through long lists easier, but when you want to select an option that is just one step down, the laser touch isn't the best system. It is difficult to make precise, simple adjustments or selections with the laser touch—at least until you get the hang of it. We must say, the GZ-X900's laser touch does feel slightly better than the ones featured on the JVC GZ-HD300 and HM200.

Still, the menu setup on the GZ-X900 is fairly intuitive and easy to use. Everything can be found when you press the Menu button the LCD panel and there are no hidden menus anywhere else.As you highlight options throughout the menu, a little blurb of scrolling text appears that tells you what each setting does. The scrolling design isn't the best, as you must wait for the text to move before you can read everything, but it is a helpful tool for beginners and new users.

Auto Mode

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The GZ-X900 has a strange setup for a consumer camcorder. The mode dial on the back of the camcorder has quite a few options. It is here that you switch between photo and video modes, manual and automatic control, and choose high-speed shooting modes for video, or scene modes for photos. In auto video mode (represented on the mode dial with a camcorder icon), you cannot adjust manual controls like aperture, shutter speed, etc, but you do have access to some options when you press the menu button.

Auto focus worked quickly on the X900 and we only noticed the camcorder having trouble when we moved from tele macro to wider shots (often taking a few seconds for the camcorder to get the focus right). You can turn on face detection without going into the camcorder's menu screen. A small icon of a rather strange face (it has no mouth or nose, just eyes) is located on the left side of the LCD screen. Just tap the portion of the laser touch strip that is next to this icon and face detection is activated. When activated, another icon of a face appears on the screen above the original icon. This is an example of JVC's over-cluttered LCD, which is stuffed with info, buttons, and icons. You can press the display button inside the LCD cavity to clear things up, but some icons and text are impossible to get rid of.

We were impressed with the GZ-X900's auto exposure ability. The camcorder tended to adjust exposure levels quickly and accurately, without much overexposure in bright areas. There were some problems with underexposing in poorly-lit scenes, but this was likely due to the camcorder's weak low light performance. In manual mode, the camcorder's photometry area can be set between whole screen or spot (which measures the exposure levels from the center). The camcorder also has a backlight compensation option in manual mode that will help expose silhouetted figures correctly.

Auto white balance worked very well in bright light (even under mixed light indoors), but our low light testing had a slight greenish hue. We aren't sure if this green discoloration was a result of the camcorder's high noise levels in low light, but it was definitely noticeable at 60 lux, which is the brightness level we do our low light testing.

Low Light Modes - There are no low light modes on the GZ-X900. You can turn an auto slow shutter on by setting Gain Up to Auto. This allows the camcorder's shutter speed to drop down to 1/30 of a second when the lights go dim. This will, however, produce a blurry, slow shutter effect when engaged.

Scene Modes - While the camcorder has plenty of scene modes in photo mode, it doesn't offer any in video mode. This is rather strange, considering JVC already programmed the modes for the camcorder, but simply did not make them available in video mode.

The iAuto mode button is difficult to find, but when you do find it the option for turning on the mode looks like this.

Other Auto Features

Handling

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The JVC GZ-X900 handles differently than most camcorders. Notably, it doesn't have a hand strap, or at least, the traditional concept of a hand strap. It is meant to be held in whatever manner is most comfortable. This means you can hold it with your fingers wrapped around its top (like a traditional camcorder), or you can grip it with your fingers tucked underneath and your thumb resting on the top. Both of these methods are possible because the camcorder doesn't have that bulky strap taking up its right side. Of course, the lack of a hand strap also makes the X900 more prone to drops or falls. The camcorder does come with a wrist strap, however, that attaches to a metal loop on the back of the X900.

We're actually don't miss the hand strap on the GZ-X900. The strap featured on JVC's GZ-HD300 and HM200 are downright horrible—the material is thin, flimsy and doesn't provide much support. The GZ-X900's thin, rectangular design has no protrusions so it can comfortably fit in your palm without the aid of a hand strap. Essentially, the X900 looks like a small, rectangular box when the LCD panel is closed.

In our GZ-HD300 review, we wrote extensively about the laser touch operation. The GZ-X900 uses the same system, but its touch-sensitive strip is slightly longer (thanks to the larger LCD), and it has a flat, level design that we thought helped produce a more responsive performance. It is still a difficult system to get used to, however, and it definitely isn't good for making precise, accurate adjustments. The buttons on the bottom of the LCD panel are also touch-sensitive, although they don't use the laser-touch strip system. The buttons are a bit too close together, but they are quite responsive and work well.

The rest of the camcorder doesn't have too many buttons. There's the mode dial on the back that switches between shooting modes, as well as a Flash and Info button above it. The mode dial is a good system since the camcorder has so many different shooting modes, but it can be a bit confusing since the various modes aren't very well labeled. More buttons are located inside the LCD cavity. These are the worst buttons on the camcorder because they are built right into the X900's body. We call this design 'membrane buttons' because the buttons are located beneath a skin-like covering. Not only are these buttons much harder to press, but it is often difficult to tell whether you are pushing a button at all (since there's no physical protrusion or edges). We really don't like these buttons, although we must admit that 'membrane buttons' do offer better protection from the elements, as well as a compact, streamline design.

These dedicated buttons give you quick access to aperture and shutter speed controls.

Portability

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The GZ-X900 is a compact camcorder with a very streamlined design, but it really doesn't offer much more portability than the competition. The JVC GZ-HM200 is only a few grams heavier than the X900 and the JVC GZ-HD300, which has a 60GB internal hard drive, only weighs roughly 70 grams more. The GZ-X900 is definitely not light or small enough to be classified as an ultra-compact like the Flip UltraHD.

Its flat, rectangular design, however, does help make the X900 fit in a pocket easier—although you'll need a very loose pocket if you want to transport the camcorder comfortably. The GZ-X900 is better off in a small purse or camera bag, of which it will fit into with ease. The GZ-X900 doesn't have a hand strap like most traditional camcorders do. In fact, it really doesn't have any protrusions whatsoever (as long as the LCD screen is closed). For this reason, the X900 is thinner than most camcorders of its class, while its length and height are of average dimensions.

Battery Life

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The battery life for the GZ-X900 was not good. In our testing the camcorder's provided battery lasted just 1 hour, 16 minutes, and 58 seconds. This is more than 20 minutes less than the battery life we measured on the JVC GZ-HD300, and it's even farther behind the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 and Panasonic HDC-TM300. More on how we test battery life.

Making things even more disappointing in the battery department is the GZ-X900's awkward battery compartment. The battery loads inside the LCD cavity, which means the LCD panel closes right on top of where the battery sits. The camcorder will work with larger batteries that offer longer record times, but it means the LCD panel won't close all the way when a fatter battery is loaded into the compartment. The back-side battery compartment that is traditional used on consumer camcorders (like the GZ-HD300) makes it much easier and more comfortable to insert larger battery packs.

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LCD

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The GZ-X900 has a 2.8-inch LCD with a 207,000-pixel resolution. The LCD swings out from the camcorder and rotates with the same manner as most consumer models. The screen is a decent size, although the panel itself is much larger because it has to accommodate a number of buttons and features. On the left side of the panel is the laser touch strip that's used to scroll through menus and make manual adjustments. Beneath the screen, on the bottom of the panel, are a row of touch-sensitive buttons that have different functions depending on what mode the camcorder is in.

If you're having trouble dealing with glare the brightness of the LCD screen can be adjusted manually. The X900 offers 11 increments of LCD brightness, as well as monitor backlight options of auto, brighter, or standard. Of course, using a brighter setting will reduce the camcorder's battery life. The outside of the LCD panel is host to the camcorder's built-in stereo microphone, which is an odd design. This means the position of the microphone is entirely dependent on the tilt and position of the LCD panel.

As with most compact camcorders, the GZ-X900 does not have a viewfinder. So, all your framing and shooting must be done using the LCD screen.

Stabilization

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The JVC GZ-X900 uses optical image stabilization (OIS), which usually represents an upgrade over digital stabilization (used on JVC's lower-end camcorders). Unfortunately, however, the X900 didn't do very well in our stabilization testing. With our low shake test, the camcorder reduced 11% of the shake. In our high shake test the X900 faired a bit better, reducing 25% of the shake. These results aren't nearly as good as what the high-end models from Panasonic and Sony are capable of, and they are also worse than the numbers put up by the JVC GZ-HD300. We expected the GZ-X900 to perform much better here, considering it is JVC's first camcorder of 2009 to include an optical image stabilization system. More on how we test stabilization.

Manual Focus

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The adjustment dial makes accurate focus adjustments easy.

Manual Exposure

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The manual exposure controls are only found on the Contour app, not on the camcorder itself.

Miscellaneous Controls

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x.v. Color

Allows the camcorder to capture video using the expanded xvYCC color gamut. Only xvYCC-compatible televisions will be able to display this larger color space, otherwise the colors won't look any different.

Tele Macro

Changes the focal length on the camcorder's lens to allow you to maintain focus when you're really close to your subject or with extreme close-ups.

Grid

Splits the screen into nine equal sections (two lines vertical, two lines horizontal) to assist with framing. The lines don't end up on the final video and are for display purposes only.

Audio Controls

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The GZ-X900 has a built-in stereo microphone, but it doesn't have any external mic inputs or headphone jacks. This puts it quite a bit behind the high end camcorders from other manufacturers, which often include a range of audio features. The only feature included on the GZ-X900 is a wind cut option for reducing the wind-noise rustle picked up by the microphone.

The built-in mic is awkwardly positioned on the GZ-X900, although we've seen this placement before on the Sanyo VPC-HD2000. The mic is located on the top-back of the LCD panel. This is a rather strange placement for the built-in mic because the position of the microphone becomes entirely dependent on the position of the LCD panel. If you have the panel tilted back, this means the mic is pointing slightly downward. When you rotate the LCD 180° to film yourself, the microphone points straight down to the ground. If you tuck the LCD inward for compact filming, the mic begins to press-up against the inside of the LCD cavity.

Editing

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The JVC GZ-X900 ships with the same editing software as the rest of JVC's consumer HD camcorders—Everio Media Browser HD. We found the software fairly easy to use, although we're disappointed to see that the program still isn't compatible with Macs. So, if you're using the GZ-X900 with a Mac, make sure you have iMovie or some other editing program available to import your clips.

The Media Browser HD's main function is to assist with importing footage from the camcorder to your computer. Since the X900's video files are compressed with AVCHD, they need to be converted before they can be recognized by a regular media player. Media Browser HD (along with most editing programs) easily assists with this import and conversion process. From there, the software can help you upload video to YouTube, burn a DVD, or export the files for iTunes compatibility. Media Browser HD also helps organize your footage (see images above) and offers a number of thumbnail display settings.

Using the Media Browser HD software to upload to YouTube was quite simple—you just need to enter a YouTube account info and the program does the rest. We did get a number of error messages during the process, however, and we found the program to be a bit buggy. The same goes with burning to DVD and using Media Browser HD's other features. As we discussed in our JVC HD300 review, the camcorder's 'one-touch' features aren't very useful. We found that using them didn't shave much time off the post-production process and they aren't very intuitive. For an overview of the software that ships with this and other camcorders, see our article: Video Editing Software For Your Camcorder{{product.brand.name}}-Included-Software.htm.

The GZ-X900 has quite a few internal editing features that can be used right on the camcorder itself. Clips can be trimmed and split, playlists can be created and dubbed with music, and photos can be rotated during playback on the X900.

Features

Compression

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The JVC GZ-X900 records HD video using the AVCHD codec. Currently, AVCHD is very popular, and the codec has been adopted by nearly all the major camcorder manufacturers (Sanyo and Samsung have yet to take part). The AVCHD codec has improved tremendously over the past few years, mainly with improved compatibility for editing software. Still, AVCHD is very difficult to work with and even the most robust computers can run into trouble with large AVCHD files. If you plan on doing lots of editing with your footage, make sure you have a computer that can handle AVCHD—otherwise, you might be better off going with a tape-based HDV camcorder, or a standard definition model.

The GZ-X900 records all HD video at 1920 x 1080 with a 60i frame rate. The camcorder tops out with a 24Mbps bitrate, which is the highest bitrate AVCHD is capable of. There are also three 'high-speed' shooting modes on the GZ-X900. These modes use very fast frame rates—120fps, 300fps, and 600fps—in an effort to capture video in extremely slow-motion. By increasing the frame rate, the video is captured at a high speed, but then played back at regular speed, which is how the slow-motion effect is created. The high-speed modes have plenty of setbacks, however. Most importantly, the slow motion video is captured at a very low resolution (see table below for details), which makes the video quality simply horrendous. The slow motion video is not anywhere near HD quality and it is even far worse than a standard definition camcorder. Because of this, the high-speed modes are more of a gimmicky feature rather than a truly useful option. Still, they can be fun to play around with, as long as you're not expecting to get high-quality video. Read more about the advantages and disadvantages of various high definition compression types.

Media

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The JVC GZ-X900 records video and saves photos to SD/SDHC memory cards. The camcorder has no internal memory whatsoever, nor does it ship with a memory card. So, when you pick up the X900, make sure you get an SDHC card or two, otherwise you won't be able to start shooting out of the box. The memory card slot is a bit unusual, but it offers good protection and it is mostly out of the way. The slot is located on the back of the camcorder, behind a large door that slides out and to the right. The door's sliding mechanism is a bit complicated and feels like it could break too easily, but it does protect the memory card slot very well.

There are a number of advantages to memory card recording. The GZ-X900's compact, streamline design is a direct result of the camcorder not having a larger internal hard drive bulking up its right side. Memory cards offer easy portability, as you can just pop them out of the camcorder and pass them onto a friend or into a card reader. SDHC cards are also becoming fairly cheap, especially if you buy them online, so it won't cost too much money to build up a stockpile of extra cards. Of course, memory cards won't get you the long recording times that a large internal hard drive can give you, but a decently-sized SDHC card can still give you roughly 160 minutes of video at the highest quality setting. The table below shows the record times for various card sizes and video quality settings on the GZ-X900: Read more about the advantages and disadvantages of various media types.

Slow Motion Modes

Still Features

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Since the JVC GZ-X900 is marketed as a true video/photo hybrid device, the camcorder is packed with a hefty amount of still features. First of all, the camcorder supports a native, 9-megapixel still image capability. This means, photos can be taken at a maximum resolution of 3456 x 2592—without any interpolation. This is an excellent resolution for a camcorder and it approaches the pixel count that the average point-and-shoot camera is capable of (usually 10 - 12 megapixels). There are a number of camcorders currently being touted as the next great photo/video hybrid. The Samsung HMX-R10 and the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 are probably the two most similar to the GZ-X900. The Sanyo VPC-CG10 also performed amazingly in our photo testing.

Along with its high still image resolution, the GZ-X900 also offers ISO control for photos, a built-in flash, numerous image size options, scene modes, a self-timer, face detection, and a couple of motor-drive continuous shooting modes. The continuous shooting modes are one of the most intriguing still features on the X900, but they are also the most confusing to understand and use. First of all, the continuous shooting button isn't labeled at all (it's the button on the bottom of the LCD panel, underneath the icon showing numerous tiny rectangles). Press this button once and you turn on exposure bracketing. Bracketing takes 5 photos in a row, each with slightly different exposure settings. This is ideal if you're not quite sure how you want to expose your photo or if you're shooting in a oddly-lit environment. Pressing the continuous shooting button a second time brings up the high-speed motor drive shooting mode.

In photo mode, the high-speed motor drive shots can be up to 9-megapixels and a maximum of 15 frames per second. To change the speed of the shots, you have to go into the camcorder's menu, select Basic Settings, and change the Continuous Shooting Speed option. Here, you can switch between high speed (15fps), medium (7fps), and low (2fps). The high and medium speeds both have a 6 image limit for continuous shots, while the low speed has no limit.

In video mode, turning on the same high-speed motor drive function produces entirely different results. You have the same high, medium, and low speed options, but images top out at 5.3-megapixels and 60fps. High speed does the 60fps (11 images max), medium goes at 11fps (also 11 images max) and low speed runs at 4fps (no image limit). We found these two high-speed photography modes to be very confusing to use, with JVC offering little help inside its instruction manual (which tells the user to adjust a setting that doesn't even exist).

While the GZ-X900 doesn't offer scene modes for shooting video, it does have a wide variety for photos. Switch the mode dial over to Scene Mode and you get to select from Portrait, Landscape, Landscape & Portrait, Twilight, Night & Portrait, Sleeping Face, Snow, Beach, Sports, Food, Fireworks, Document, Close-up, Forest, and Sunset. This is a large selection of scene mode options, but it is rather strange that JVC doesn't include at least some of them in video mode.

If you're looking for flash controls in the GZ-X900's menu, you won't find them. The flash is controlled by a small gray button on the back of the camcorder. When you press it, the various flash settings appear on the screen: on, off, auto, red-eye reduction, and slow shutter. The flash is located ion the front of the camcorder, just above the lens, and we found it to work quite well.

All the manual controls that are available in video mode can also be adjusted in photo mode—focus, focus assist, exposure, shutter, etc. JVC also throws in manual ISO control in photo mode, which is a feature rarely found on camcorders (but often seen on digital point-and-shoots). The self-timer can be set to 2 seconds, 10 seconds, or face detection. When set to face detection, the camcorder will automatically start the counter when a new face is detected within the frame. This is ideal for setting up large group shots and the system worked fairly well when we tried it out.

Since JVC bills the GZ-X900 as a true video/photo hybrid, we had high expectations for the camcorder in the still images department. While it is clear that the X900 can take very good photos, it didn't have the best still performance we've ever seen from a consumer camcorder. The colors in its still images were very accurate—basically mirroring the camcorder's results from our bright light video testing. The GZ-X900 measured a color error of 3.52 in our still color testing with a saturation level of 106.2%. The saturation level is a good deal higher than the camcorder managed in our video testing, which means its still photos should have deeper, more vivid colors than its video footage.

The GZ-X900 only had trouble with one green and a middle-light blue patch. For the most part, the colors reproduced by the X900 were spot-on. The thing is, the rest of the camcorders in this comparative set also had very good color accuracy in their still images. The Panasonic HDC-TM300 even bested the GZ-X900 by a significant margin, as it put up a color error of just 2.65.

In fact, all these camcorders take good still images. The Sanyo VPC-HD2000 had an average color error (4.14), but its image had a cool, blue tone, which may be offsetting for people who want true color reproduction. The JVC GZ-HD300 also had a decent color error (4.11), but it doesn't offer many size or quality options for still images—something that the GZ-X900 offers plenty of.

The only big issue with the GZ-X900's still images is noise. The camcorder averaged 1.2% noise, which is higher than all three other camcorders we used as comparisons. This is also a higher noise percentage than the camcorder recorded in our bright light video testing, which is not a good sign. Considering the camcorder's impressive pixel count, we expected a much better still noise performance coming from the GZ-X900. Surprisingly, it was the GZ-HD300 that had the lowest noise levels amongst the 4 camcorders we used as comparisons. It averaged only 0.7% noise (although the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 and Panasonic HDC-TM300 weren't far behind).

The GZ-X900's still sharpness scores were good, but they weren't anything to write home about. The camcorder registered a horizontal sharpness of 1819 line widths per picture height (lw/ph) with 4.5% oversharpening. For vertical sharpness, the camcorder managed 1521 lw/ph with 4% oversharpening. The most impressive thing about these numbers is the low oversharpening percentages. Many camcorders add a tremendous amount of oversharpening to still images in an effort to boost sharpening and produce a more detailed image. The GZ-X900's photos look clear and natural because the camcorder applies little to no oversharpening.

Now, the X900's actual sharpness results in lw/ph aren't that great. In fact, the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 did far better (2320 lw/ph horizontal, 2017 lw/ph vertical). The GZ-X900's numbers are roughly on par with the Panasonic HDC-TM300, although the TM300 had way more oversharpening. Recently, we've also seen some impressive still image results from the ultra-compact Sanyo VPC-CG10. Overall, we're a bit disappointed with the GZ-X900's still image performance. It isn't bad by any means, but the high noise levels and less-than-impressive still sharpness scores don't really live up to the GZ-X900's billing as a true video/photo hybrid.

Lens & Imaging System

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The lens on the JVC GZ-X900 isn't anything special. It's a 5x optical zoom lens that has an automatic lens cover. Its aperture also doesn't open very wide, with its maximum f-stop at f/3.4. The camcorder's image sensor, however, is quite unique. At 1/2.33-inches in size, the GZ-X900's CMOS sensors is one of the largest featured in a consumer camcorder. This huge sensor gives the camcorder a gross pixel count of 10.29 megapixels and it is the reason the X900 can capture native 9-megapixel still images.

LCD

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The GZ-X900 has a 2.8-inch LCD with a 207,000-pixel resolution. The LCD swings out from the camcorder and rotates with the same manner as most consumer models. The screen is a decent size, although the panel itself is much larger because it has to accommodate a number of buttons and features. On the left side of the panel is the laser touch strip that's used to scroll through menus and make manual adjustments. Beneath the screen, on the bottom of the panel, are a row of touch-sensitive buttons that have different functions depending on what mode the camcorder is in.

If you're having trouble dealing with glare the brightness of the LCD screen can be adjusted manually. The X900 offers 11 increments of LCD brightness, as well as monitor backlight options of auto, brighter, or standard. Of course, using a brighter setting will reduce the camcorder's battery life. The outside of the LCD panel is host to the camcorder's built-in stereo microphone, which is an odd design. This means the position of the microphone is entirely dependent on the tilt and position of the LCD panel.

As with most compact camcorders, the GZ-X900 does not have a viewfinder. So, all your framing and shooting must be done using the LCD screen.

Connectivity

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For a top-of-the-line camcorder, the GZ-X900 is rather limited when it comes to connectivity. Yes, it has all your basic ports, but it lacks some very important options that some users may seek. First of all, the camcorder has no headphone or external mic jack, which is likely to upset any videographers who want to capture high-quality audio with the X900. Secondly, the camcorder only includes its A/V-out and Component-out port on its provided docking station. This means you have to bring the dock along with you whenever you want to connect that camcorder to a television using one of these outputs. Luckily, the GZ-X900 does have an HDMI output and USB port on the camcorder itself, so at least you don't need to have the dock for every connectivity situation.

The camcorder's HDMI output is located inside the LCD cavity. The port doesn't have a cover or door, although when the LCD is closed it provides adequate protection. The rest of the X900's ports are located on the back of the camcorder. Here you'll find the DC-input, which is protected by a cheap piece of silver plastic that's tethered to the camcorder. To the right of this is the USB port and SD/SDHC card slot. Both are covered by larger, black pieces of plastic that do a pretty good job protecting the ports. The card slot door has an unusual sliding mechanism that does feel breakable, but the door itself feels quite sturdy.

Along with including the A/V and Component-out ports, the provided docking station also has an extra USB port and DC-input. The docking station is fairly small, so it isn't much of a pain to pack it along with the X900. Still, for a camcorder that is built on sleek design and portability, the docking station is a bit cumbersome.

Battery

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Making things even more disappointing in the battery department is the GZ-X900's awkward battery compartment. The battery loads inside the LCD cavity, which means the LCD panel closes right on top of where the battery sits. The camcorder will work with larger batteries that offer longer record times, but it means the LCD panel won't close all the way when a fatter battery is loaded into the compartment. The back-side battery compartment that is traditional used on consumer camcorders (like the GZ-HD300) makes it much easier and more comfortable to insert larger battery packs. Find out how the product:model/product:model performed in our battery life test.

Media

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The JVC GZ-X900 records video and saves photos to SD/SDHC memory cards. The camcorder has no internal memory whatsoever, nor does it ship with a memory card. So, when you pick up the X900, make sure you get an SDHC card or two, otherwise you won't be able to start shooting out of the box. The memory card slot is a bit unusual, but it offers good protection and it is mostly out of the way. The slot is located on the back of the camcorder, behind a large door that slides out and to the right. The door's sliding mechanism is a bit complicated and feels like it could break too easily, but it does protect the memory card slot very well.

There are a number of advantages to memory card recording. The GZ-X900's compact, streamline design is a direct result of the camcorder not having a larger internal hard drive bulking up its right side. Memory cards offer easy portability, as you can just pop them out of the camcorder and pass them onto a friend or into a card reader. SDHC cards are also becoming fairly cheap, especially if you buy them online, so it won't cost too much money to build up a stockpile of extra cards. Of course, memory cards won't get you the long recording times that a large internal hard drive can give you, but a decently-sized SDHC card can still give you roughly 160 minutes of video at the highest quality setting. The table below shows the record times for various card sizes and video quality settings on the GZ-X900: Read more about the advantages and disadvantages of various media types.

Still Features

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Since the JVC GZ-X900 is marketed as a true video/photo hybrid device, the camcorder is packed with a hefty amount of still features. First of all, the camcorder supports a native, 9-megapixel still image capability. This means, photos can be taken at a maximum resolution of 3456 x 2592—without any interpolation. This is an excellent resolution for a camcorder and it approaches the pixel count that the average point-and-shoot camera is capable of (usually 10 - 12 megapixels). There are a number of camcorders currently being touted as the next great photo/video hybrid. The Samsung HMX-R10 and the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 are probably the two most similar to the GZ-X900. The Sanyo VPC-CG10 also performed amazingly in our photo testing.

Along with its high still image resolution, the GZ-X900 also offers ISO control for photos, a built-in flash, numerous image size options, scene modes, a self-timer, face detection, and a couple of motor-drive continuous shooting modes. The continuous shooting modes are one of the most intriguing still features on the X900, but they are also the most confusing to understand and use. First of all, the continuous shooting button isn't labeled at all (it's the button on the bottom of the LCD panel, underneath the icon showing numerous tiny rectangles). Press this button once and you turn on exposure bracketing. Bracketing takes 5 photos in a row, each with slightly different exposure settings. This is ideal if you're not quite sure how you want to expose your photo or if you're shooting in a oddly-lit environment. Pressing the continuous shooting button a second time brings up the high-speed motor drive shooting mode.

In photo mode, the high-speed motor drive shots can be up to 9-megapixels and a maximum of 15 frames per second. To change the speed of the shots, you have to go into the camcorder's menu, select Basic Settings, and change the Continuous Shooting Speed option. Here, you can switch between high speed (15fps), medium (7fps), and low (2fps). The high and medium speeds both have a 6 image limit for continuous shots, while the low speed has no limit.

In video mode, turning on the same high-speed motor drive function produces entirely different results. You have the same high, medium, and low speed options, but images top out at 5.3-megapixels and 60fps. High speed does the 60fps (11 images max), medium goes at 11fps (also 11 images max) and low speed runs at 4fps (no image limit). We found these two high-speed photography modes to be very confusing to use, with JVC offering little help inside its instruction manual (which tells the user to adjust a setting that doesn't even exist).

While the GZ-X900 doesn't offer scene modes for shooting video, it does have a wide variety for photos. Switch the mode dial over to Scene Mode and you get to select from Portrait, Landscape, Landscape & Portrait, Twilight, Night & Portrait, Sleeping Face, Snow, Beach, Sports, Food, Fireworks, Document, Close-up, Forest, and Sunset. This is a large selection of scene mode options, but it is rather strange that JVC doesn't include at least some of them in video mode.

If you're looking for flash controls in the GZ-X900's menu, you won't find them. The flash is controlled by a small gray button on the back of the camcorder. When you press it, the various flash settings appear on the screen: on, off, auto, red-eye reduction, and slow shutter. The flash is located ion the front of the camcorder, just above the lens, and we found it to work quite well.

All the manual controls that are available in video mode can also be adjusted in photo mode—focus, focus assist, exposure, shutter, etc. JVC also throws in manual ISO control in photo mode, which is a feature rarely found on camcorders (but often seen on digital point-and-shoots). The self-timer can be set to 2 seconds, 10 seconds, or face detection. When set to face detection, the camcorder will automatically start the counter when a new face is detected within the frame. This is ideal for setting up large group shots and the system worked fairly well when we tried it out.

Since JVC bills the GZ-X900 as a true video/photo hybrid, we had high expectations for the camcorder in the still images department. While it is clear that the X900 can take very good photos, it didn't have the best still performance we've ever seen from a consumer camcorder. The colors in its still images were very accurate—basically mirroring the camcorder's results from our bright light video testing. The GZ-X900 measured a color error of 3.52 in our still color testing with a saturation level of 106.2%. The saturation level is a good deal higher than the camcorder managed in our video testing, which means its still photos should have deeper, more vivid colors than its video footage.

The GZ-X900 only had trouble with one green and a middle-light blue patch. For the most part, the colors reproduced by the X900 were spot-on. The thing is, the rest of the camcorders in this comparative set also had very good color accuracy in their still images. The Panasonic HDC-TM300 even bested the GZ-X900 by a significant margin, as it put up a color error of just 2.65.

In fact, all these camcorders take good still images. The Sanyo VPC-HD2000 had an average color error (4.14), but its image had a cool, blue tone, which may be offsetting for people who want true color reproduction. The JVC GZ-HD300 also had a decent color error (4.11), but it doesn't offer many size or quality options for still images—something that the GZ-X900 offers plenty of.

The only big issue with the GZ-X900's still images is noise. The camcorder averaged 1.2% noise, which is higher than all three other camcorders we used as comparisons. This is also a higher noise percentage than the camcorder recorded in our bright light video testing, which is not a good sign. Considering the camcorder's impressive pixel count, we expected a much better still noise performance coming from the GZ-X900. Surprisingly, it was the GZ-HD300 that had the lowest noise levels amongst the 4 camcorders we used as comparisons. It averaged only 0.7% noise (although the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 and Panasonic HDC-TM300 weren't far behind).

The GZ-X900's still sharpness scores were good, but they weren't anything to write home about. The camcorder registered a horizontal sharpness of 1819 line widths per picture height (lw/ph) with 4.5% oversharpening. For vertical sharpness, the camcorder managed 1521 lw/ph with 4% oversharpening. The most impressive thing about these numbers is the low oversharpening percentages. Many camcorders add a tremendous amount of oversharpening to still images in an effort to boost sharpening and produce a more detailed image. The GZ-X900's photos look clear and natural because the camcorder applies little to no oversharpening.

Now, the X900's actual sharpness results in lw/ph aren't that great. In fact, the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 did far better (2320 lw/ph horizontal, 2017 lw/ph vertical). The GZ-X900's numbers are roughly on par with the Panasonic HDC-TM300, although the TM300 had way more oversharpening. Recently, we've also seen some impressive still image results from the ultra-compact Sanyo VPC-CG10. Overall, we're a bit disappointed with the GZ-X900's still image performance. It isn't bad by any means, but the high noise levels and less-than-impressive still sharpness scores don't really live up to the GZ-X900's billing as a true video/photo hybrid.

Other Features

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High-speed shooting (slow motion modes)

Of course, the GZ-X900 doesn't capture HD video when these slow motion modes are used and the video quality with these modes is abysmal. Additionally, each speed mode has a standardized clip duration that cannot be adjusted (the 120fps and 300fps go for 4 seconds, the 600fps only records for 2.4 seconds). This, along with the fact that most manual controls (other than focus, AGC, and grid lines) cannot be used in conjunction with the slow motion modes, make these recording modes quite limited.

| Speed Mode | Resolution | Record Time | Playback Time |
| H3 - 600fps | 640 x 72 | 2.4 seconds | 24 seconds |
| H2 - 300fps | 480 x 116 | 4 seconds | 20 seconds |
| H1 - 120fps | 480 x 270 | 4 seconds | 8 seconds |

Image Effects

The GZ-X900 has a few image effects that you can play around with to alter the appearance of your video: Sepia, Monotone (black and white), Classic Film, and Strobe. Classic film slows down the camcorder's shutter speed to 1/15 of a second or so to produce a jittery, choppy look (without overexposing the video). Strobe is even slower and choppier., and it mimics the effect of a strobe light by using an extremely slow shutter.

Register Event

Before recording, videos can be marked with various event tags on the camcorder. This helps organize the videos and group clips that belong to the same event. The camcorder has 10 different tags—Vacation, Holiday, Sports, Anniversary, Congratulations, Baby, Son, Daughter, Birthday, and Graduation—and each has 3 versions. This way, you can have three separate vacations registered as Vacation1, Vacation2, and Vacation3. Register Event is a decent feature for organizing your video, but we doubt most people will be fastidious enough to use them routinely.

Panasonic HDC-TM300 Comparison

The simple truth is the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 offers a much better value than the JVC GZ-X900. While the X900 is a very divisive camcorder—it is excellent in bright light, but terrible in low light—the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 is a solid performer all around. Both camcorders record to SD/SDHC memory cards and contain no internal memory. They also have similar weight and dimensions, although the construction of the two camcorders is entirely different. The Sanyo has an upright, pistol-grip design, which is quite unusual for a camcorder of its class (this design is very popular with ultra-compact budget camcorders, however).

Like the GZ-X900, the VPC-HD2000 offers a few slow-motion options. The camcorder can record low-quality video at 240fps or 600fps, which both produce similar results to JVC's high-speed shooting options. Something that may interest people who have concerns about video editing is the fact that the Sanyo HD2000 doesn't record using AVCHD compression. Its MPEG-4 codec is similar to AVCHD, except files can be dragged and dropped from the camcorder and the clips aren't as taxing for a computer to handle. The Sanyo VPC-HD2000 also records using a natively progressive 1080/60p frame rate, which offers smoother motion than the standard 60i.

The main weakness of the Sanyo HD2000 is its unfriendly user experience. The camcorder feels cheap, has poor button implementation, and its menu structure is unintuitive. If you're used to a traditional camcorder, the VPC-HD2000 can be frustrating to use and difficult to learn. Its performance, however, is surprisingly good. The camcorder also takes decent still images, but it doesn't have quite the pixel count of the JVC GZ-X900. Something else to think about when you consider the Sanyo HD2000 is the camcorder's lack of an optical image stabilization system—it offers a weak digital stabilization feature instead.

The best thing about the VPC-HD2000 is its under $700 price tag (that's $300 less than the X900). So, if you can deal with its handling issues and quirky design, the Sanyo HD2000 is a very good deal.

Update: The Sanyo Xacti VPC-HD2000 was ultimately selected as our 2009 Best Value of the Year. To see why we selected it and read about our other awards, check out the 2009 CamcorderInfo.com Select Awards.

JVC GZ-HD300 Comparison

As of the time of this review, the Panasonic HDC-TM300 is a great camcorder and its sister-model, the HDC-HS300, currently sits at #1 on our ratings page. Yes, the camcorder is a bit pricey ($1299 MSRP), but it performed extremely well in all of our performance tests. The camcorder also includes 32GB of built-in flash memory in addition to an SD/SDHC memory card slot. The camcorder has a traditional design and includes an electronic viewfinder as well as an LCD screen.

We found Panasonic's new touchscreen LCD system on the TM300 and HS300 to provide an easy shooting experience that is very intuitive to use. And, if you don't like touchscreens, Panasonic includes a lens ring on all its top-of-the-line HD camcorders that can be used to make manual adjustments. Panasonic uses three small CMOS sensors inside the TM300 rather than one large sensor like most manufacturers, including JVC, tend to do.

The Panasonic HDC-TM300 is a very different camcorder than the GZ-X900. It is definitely larger and heavier than the JVC, and it is also loaded with controls and connectivity options that are absent on the X900. The main performance difference is the TM300 superb low light capabilities that really blow the GZ-X900 out of the water. We think that if you're going to go with an expensive, top-of-the-line camcorder you should probably go with the best—and right now, the Panasonic HDC-TM300 and HDC-HS300 are the best all-around camcorders on the market.

Update: The Panasonic HDC-TM300 was ultimately selected as our 2009 Camcorder of the Year. To see why we selected it and read about our other awards, check out the 2009 CamcorderInfo.com Select Awards.

COMP 3

Before the GZ-X900 came along, the GZ-HD300 was JVC's top HD camcorder for 2009. The GZ-HD300 is significantly cheaper than the X900 (by $300) and it has a stouter, more traditional design. When we reviewed the HD300 we liked it for what it offered—decent video performance for a reasonable price. It also has quite a few manual controls, although not quite as many as the GZ-X900. The GZ-HD300 records to a 60GB internal hard drive and has a MicroSD card slot for storing additional footage.

What really shocked us, however, is that the GZ-HD300 actually outperformed the GZ-X900 in most of our tests. Sure, the X900 had a sharper image and better motion, but the HD300 had much better low light performance, more accurate colors, and less noise. The HD300 is limited when it comes to still images, however, which is an area where the GZ-X900 shines.

Our recommendation is to go with the GZ-HD300 over the GZ-X900 unless still image capability is very important to you. The rest of the GZ-X900's advantages aren't significant enough to justify spending the extra money.

Conclusion

The JVC GZ-X900 ($999 MSRP) seems like the tale of two camcorders. It was truly excellent in much of our bright light testing—specifically motion and sharpness—but once the lights went down the camcorder produced atrocious video. Its image was dark, noisy, and often unwatchable even in moderately low light conditions. For this reason, it is impossible to recommend the camcorder to anyone who is planning to use it in low light situations.

Even with its terrible low light performance, there were a lot of things we liked about the GZ-X900. Its unique design was quite comfortable and it allowed for the camcorder to be held in numerous ways, and the array of manual controls featured on the GZ-X900 were impressive. The still images shot with the camcorder were good, although they too were a bit disappointing. We expected sharper photos coming from a camcorder that boasts a 9-megapixel still image capability.

The GZ-X900's high-speed shooting modes are fun to use, but the image quality of the produced clips is terrible. It is hard to imagine using the high-speed shooting for anything but simple entertainment purposes. We also weren't crazy about the camcorder's button design, specifically the flat buttons located on the inside of the LCD cavity. Then there's the issue with the camcorder's laser touch strip, which, while easier to use and more responsive than on previous models, still takes some time to get used to.

We simply can't justify spending $1000 for the GZ-X900, especially in this economy. If only JVC could improve the GZ-X900's low light capability, the model could go from being a mediocre camcorder to a top-notch performer. For now, alas, we must recommend to stay away from the GZ-X900 if you're planning to do any shooting in darkly-lit environments. If you're just looking for something to take to the beach or record picnics, the GZ-X900 is a phenomenal camcorder. Its motion is superb and it produced some of the sharpest video we've ever seen. Just make sure you turn it off when the sun goes down.

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Meet the tester

Jeremy Stamas

Jeremy Stamas

Managing Editor, Video

@nematode9

Jeremy is the video expert of our imaging team and Reviewed.com's head of video production. Originally from Pennsylvania and upstate NY, he graduated from Bard college with a degree in film and electronic media. He has been living and working in New England since 2005.

See all of Jeremy Stamas's reviews

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