Panasonic HDC-HS250 120GB Full HD Camcorder or Sony HDR-XR200V 120GB
 

Can someone advise me on which HD harddisk camcorder to buy -

Panasonic HDC-HS250 120GB Full HD Camcorder
or
Sony HDR-XR200V 120GB

or another alternative entirely in the $500-$800 range?

Personally I prefer tape.

I suppose between the 2 that you have mentioned I would go for the Panasonic as they have an excellant lens.

thanks. I have a mini dv one but harddisk is much more convenient these days.

I prefer panasonic

One in this series is best, they are all very similar i am not sure which is best features and specs real close i think the h10 or 11 is best maybe:

http://www.google.com/products/catal...d=0CEAQ8wIwAw#

Sony is my preference. Especially last years model with the Carl Ziess lens. Superb quality

i always check out sites like cnet before i leap-
http://reviews.cnet.com/digital-camc...-33485103.html
mediocre rating on this sony

http://reviews.cnet.com/digital-camc...-33529396.html
very good rating on the panasonic

This is KEY-The TM300 and HS300 share the same higher-end features as the HS100--manual focus ring, EVF, accessory shoe, and microphone input, so you might consider the HS300.

its 900 bucks, but getting a good mic input (so you have option for a beachtek type XLR device for superior sound) is worth another few hundred.



also, dont know where you buy from, but B&H photo new york rocks.

you also might want to consider the Vixia line from Canon, some great cameras-
http://reviews.cnet.com/digital-camc....html?tag=also

Crap, that is a sweet one right there.

I have great success with the sony AND sincce I use vegas video the files are native to the system...

Thanks for the advise. HS300 is a little out of price range. I was planning on ordering from bhphotovideo.com indeed.

I did consider that as well, but decided on sony/panasonic for the 120gb hdd. Is there something canon vixia does much better than the sony/panasonic models I listed?

+1 Panasonic

they all have their pros and cons but ratings wise in this price range both the panasonic and canon out gun the sony.
it seems like both have more manual features than the sony and IMO the mic input is where its at cuz most onboard mics suck.

otherwise if you had 3 to 5k to spend i would say sony all the way.

I have a Canon Vixia HFM30 and it's a very good camera. Here's a sample video I did with it. Hope the link works

http://www.jazminekiley.com/aubryfacesit.wmv

from your two choices, sony hands down

Thanks, looks great. Im more interested in outdoor shoots though.