Digital Trends

Sanyo Xacti VPC-HD2

June 14th, 2007 | by David Elrich

Features and Design

The Sanyo Xacti VPC-HD2 doesn’t look anything like a traditional camcorder—no matter if they’re SD or high-def--a pocket flashlight is more like it. It’s very small thanks to the fact it uses flash memory cards as recording media like the Panasonic HDC-SD1 and the soon-to-be-released Sony HDR-CX7. Those camcorders weigh close to a pound while the HD2 is 8.3-ounces including battery and card. Compact indeed, measuring just 1.4 x 4.7 x 3.1 (WHD, in inches). In reality, the Sanyo is shaped more like Panasonic’s $999 SDR-S150 SD-based camcorder except S150 is standard definition quality, not HD.

Featuring a dark gun-metal gray body, the Xacti has an upright form factor I’m not too fond of. Still it’s not as thick as the Canon HV10 and easier to grip. Looking at the front, the camcorder is dominated by a 10x optical zoom (100x digital). Below it is an infrared sensor for the supplied remote and a nice silver accent. There’s no AF Assist lamp, unfortunately. On the top is a manually operated pop-up flash.

The left side features a swing out LCD monitor that’s 2.2-inches and rated a so-so 210K pixels. The reason I say that is the screen doesn’t handle bright sunshine very well. Fortunately there’s a shortcut to adjust screen brightness, but it still has difficulty with direct sunlight. Since this is a high-def camcorder one would think it would have a 16:9 format screen. But no, this one is 4:3 and letterboxed when you’re shooting widescreen. Hopefully the next generation will have a wider, better screen. Three buttons are found under the monitor on the main body: power on/off, HD/norm for shooting high-def or SD and High Sensitivity that bumps up the ISO when you’re shooting stills or video. When you close down the LCD, you see a few decals touting the 10x zoom power and 7.1MP stills. There’s also a stereo mic.

The key controls are located on the top rear and are primarily thumb operated. Here you’ll find a wide/tele zoom toggle as well as individual keys for taking stills (left) and recording video (right). There’s a menu button and a small joystick that you toggle to move through the various options. This little stick was a big pain as sometimes it made adjustments and others it didn’t. Just be careful if you buy it to make sure the change you want is in place before you proceed on your merry way. You also find the SD or SDHC card slot (8GB maximum). The final switch is a simple mode key to change from record to playback. Everything else is done by the menu system which O.K.—nothing more or less. Many adjustments have brief text descriptions but an iPod it isn’t. Keeping the Owner’s Manual nearby is a smart move, especially when first using the camcorder.

The right side features a mic-in jack for optional microphones, a small speaker, the flash pop-up button and access to the battery compartment. On the bottom are the tripod mount and a connection for the supplied dock.

One of the key reasons this camcorder is so small is the fact all of the connections are made from the supplied docking station. It’s here you place the Xacti so the battery charges up and you can view your recordings on TV or download them to a PC via USB. To its credit, Sanyo supplies component and S-video cables. The company sells an optional HDMI cable for this package. 

Opening the Xacti’s carton to prepare it for recording made me laugh since I felt like I was putting a jigsaw puzzle together. The box is packed with the camera, a case, strap, battery, A/V and USB cables, AC adaptor and power cord, a docking station, remote, a battery for the remote, a microphone connection cable, cable adaptor and three metal cores to reduce interference. That’s not counting the two software CD ROMs, safety manual, quick guide and 250-page Owner’s Manual. Last but not least was my favorite—a lens cap with strap. How companies can make high-definition camcorders and still need a lens covering tied by a piece of string is truly beyond me!

Note: although this is an SD card-based camcorder, no card is supplied so definitely budget $35 or so for a 2GB high-speed card. Sanyo states the HD2 uses a gig for every 21 minutes of best-quality video so that size card will give you 40 minutes or so.

Putting it all together didn’t take that long and after charging the camcorder in the dock, it was time to start shooting some high-def video and capturing some 7.1-megapixel stills.

Image Courtesy of Sanyo