JVC GC-FM1 HD Pocket Camcorder

Update (10/28/09): An earlier version of this review noted that the JVC CG-FM1 doesn't have video-resolution adjustment options. In fact, you can toggle between the 1080p, 720p, VGA, and QVGA resolutions by tapping the left navigation button twice while the camcorder is in recording mode. The review text has been updated accordingly.

On paper, the JVC GC-FM1 ($200 as of 10/20/09) is loaded. Specs-wise, it has only one rival in the high-definition pocket camcorder realm: the excellent Kodak Zi8.

But pocket-camcorder championships aren't won on paper.

Like the Zi8, the GC-FM1 shoots 1080p video and offers digital image stabilization, two positive distinguishing factors in the now-crowded HD pocket camcorder market (the GC-FM1 also shoots 720p HD video, as well as standard-definition footage at 640-by-480 and 320-by-240 pixel resolutions). And just as the Zi8 does, this JVC pocket camcorder has a landscape/macro toggle, the ability to shoot still photos (8 megapixels, versus the Zi8's 5-megapixel sensor), an HDMI-out port for viewing footage on an HDTV (no HDMI cable is included, however), and an SDHC card slot for storing videos ...

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Tim Moynihan, PC World