The Panasonic HDC-HS9 is a very compact High Definition camcorder.  The HDC-HS9 qualifies as a Hybrid camcorder because it can record on both an internal hard disk and removable flash memory cards.  While this hybrid model does overcome some of the drawbacks of hard drive camcorders, the hard disk still adds to the size and cost of the device.  The HDC-HS9 is roughly $300 more than the equivalent HDC-SD9 which could easily buy two 32GB SDHC cards. One of the better features of this camcorder is its high quality picture and sound. It allows you to set the camcorder at a Digital Cinema mode and shoot in the progressive 1080/25p format (25 frames per second). The Progressive scanning captures pictures that have film-like quality. The colors are vivid and the pictures are clear and crisp.

The Digital Cinema Color with VIERA mode automatically switches the camcorder to the optimum setting for the Digital Cinema Color of the VIERA plasma TV series. The pictures captured in this mode are more life-like and richer than the ones recorded using a conventional Panasonic standard.

The HCD-HS9 has a 3CCD Camera System. This system draws the full potential of full-HD image quality. The advanced 3CCD system uses three different CCDs for processing, as against a 1CCD system; therefore there is no loss of light. This 3CCD system is used in most of the professional broadcasting cameras, with its superior color reproduction.

It’s advanced Optical Image Stabilization makes the use of gyro-sensors to detect hand-shake, then shifts a lens and adjusts its optical axis to compensate. This advanced optical image stabilization checks and compensates for hand-shake around 4,000 times per second, ensuring finer and more effective hand-shake compensation. Due to the optical system, there is no compromise of image quality. Thanks to this technology the images are clearer, sharper, and look amazing on a big TV screen.

The HDC-HS9 has a Leica Dicomar Lens that is specially designed for full-HD camcorders. These lenses are made using a multi-coating process that prevents light reflection and glare. This reflection and glare makes colors bleed and the images appear to be washed out, and it also has a ghosting effect.

The other feature of the HDC-HS9 is the use of an HD Crystal Engine. This enables a high-speed processing unit that can handle huge volumes of data that is captured in high-definition video recordings. It also has a new system that improves resolution and reduces noise. It achieves a more compact size and lowers the power consumption.

The HS9 has five built-in microphones. These microphones individually record sounds from the front, sides, and back. When you want to view the recordings on a system with a Dolby Digital 5.1-channel sound the look and feel of the images is very good, especially for recordings of festivals, parades, etc. When you want to record the sound of a subject you can use the Zoom In mode, where the microphones get linked to the lens action. The microphones then focus on the sound in the same direction as of the subject. This decreases the chances of capturing of incidental sounds. In the Focus mode the microphones pick up the sound of the subject in front of the camera, whether the lens is zooming or not. This minimizes the surrounding sounds. The HS9 has a 10x optical zoom that enlarges the subject so that they appear closer. This results in effective shots of subjects that are still or in motion.

It has a Tele Macro feature for getting macro close-ups. Maintaining a distance of 50 cm from your subject, you can use zoom at full magnification to get the close-ups. This feature makes it easier to take shoots of subjects without casting a shadow on them, and at the same time keeping the background in soft focus.

The HS9 promises a high picture quality. It has a 2.7-inch LCD screen. The pictures shot are dynamic but their viewing on a wide screen television is still better. The images are processed on a 16:9 area of the CCD. There is, virtually, no picture quality degradation because the decoded image has the same proportions as a wide-screen TV. The images can be viewed either on a wide 16:9 screen TV or a conventional 4:3 TV. The model has a high-density, 300,000-dot, wide 2.7-inch LCD, making it easier to frame shots when you’re shooting in 16:9 mode.

The focus assist feature comes in handy, when focusing manually. It magnifies the center of the image making it easier for you to get sharp and crisp photos. The HS9 displays horizontal and vertical Composition Guide Lines that make it easier to keep the subject in level and straight.

The HS9 has very helpful shooting functions. The Face Detection feature helps record pictures of moving subjects. This feature automatically adjusts the exposure depending up on the surrounding light conditions, making the faces bright and viewable. Once the camcorder detects a face in the scene, a square frame appears around it on the LCD monitor and it automatically adjusts the brightness level, smoothing the skin tone. This feature can detect up to five faces at once, making it easy to capture clear faces in dim light conditions, too.

One of the most interesting features of the HS9 is the Intelligent Shooting Guide. The feature identifies poor shooting conditions, such as bad light, the camcorder not being leveled, etc. and displays operating advice on the LCD screen. This helps rectify the problem before capturing the pictures to get good results.

The Intelligent Shooting Selection Playback makes viewing the recordings fun. It automatically skips erroneous shots, such as hand swing, out-of-focus images or shots taken when you forget to turn off the recording, so that you view only error-free video.

The Pre-Rec Function is another smart feature of the HS9. It records three seconds of images before you actually begin shooting. These images are held temporarily in the camcorder’s internal memory, before recording them onto the SDHC/SD Memory Card.

The Intelligent Contrast Control detects the intensity of the surrounding light and adjusts the exposure accordingly, preventing blown highlights and blocked shadows. This helps capture natural-looking images with proper contrast. When you are trying to shoot against the source of light, this feature captures clear images with enhanced depth.

The Power LCD Extra lets you adjust the brightness of the LCD in two steps by simply pressing the Power LCD button. The Plus 1 mode increases brightness by 80% for easy outdoor viewing, and the Plus 2 mode emphasizes contrast when shooting in strong sunlight conditions.

The LCD has a detailed 300,000-dot display. It has a viewing angle of 170-degrees, both vertical and horizontal, so that the images are clear and bright even when viewed from an angle. This feature proves to be helpful when taking high or low angle shots.

It has a Quick Start feature that lets you start recording 0.6 seconds from the time the power is turned on. The Easy On/Off feature minimizes the time required to operate the camcorder.

The HS9 features the 25 FPS High Speed Burst Shooting. The camcorder can shoot up to 25 consecutive 2.1-MB-resolution still images in 1 second or up to 72 consecutive shots in 3 seconds. This feature comes in handy when analyzing a particular motion. You can also use it to get good shots of subjects in fast motion.

It has one touch navigation and simple joystick controls that make using the controls simple and straight. The LCD screen displays a list of recorded scenes for quick search. It has a color night view and a High 5 Lux Sensitivity for sharp and crisp images even in low light conditions.

It has a world timer that lets you set time on the camcorder by simply selecting your destination. It also has an Auto Lens Cover that automatically opens the lens cover when the power is turned on and shuts it close when the power is turned off.

Editing and networking is easy with the HS9. You can connect your camcorder to an HDTV through an HDMI cable to view high definition video. You can also view the contents of the SDHC/SD memory card by simply putting it in the card slot on your TV. You can connect your camcorder directly to a DVD burner through the USB Host function. Then the content of your SDHC/SD memory card can be directly copied to a DVD disc, maintaining the original Full-HD format, by the simple press of a button.  This is a nice option for users who don’t want to edit video on their computer, but is not very useful for advanced users.

The HDC-HS9 is an easy to use camcorder that has good features. Although, a little expensive , it is a good camcorder for beginners, that is capable of shooting and playing back high definition videos, that look and sound good on large flat screen TVs.  It is a good purchase for buyers who want to hedge their bets in the flash vs hard disk vs minidv format war.

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Technical Specifications:

• Model: HDC-HS9
• Media Type: Flash card, Hard disk drive
• Lens Type: Zoom lens
• Optical zoom: 10 x
• maximum_aperture_range: F/1.8-2.8
• Shooting Modes: Digital photo mode
• Video Input: Camcorder
• Display Size: 2.7 inches
• Optical Sensor Resolution: 560000 Pixels
• Optical Sensor Technology: 3CCD
• optical_sensor_size: 1/6″
• Viewfinder Type: None
• Audio Input: Microphone
• microphone_operation_mode: Surround
• Height: 2.62 inches
• Weight: 0.94 pounds
• Depth: 5 inches
• Width: 5.39 inches