[MD45]

I’m just starting to look around the net at rugged camcorders suitable for casual daily use, whilst on holiday. I was hoping for a little help & guidance.

Going to the tropics, it would appear essential to get a waterproof one, and with the possibility of some snorkelling an “underwater” one, better still! On a practical level I’m really impressed by the Panasonic SDR-SW20 and the Sanyo Xacti CA65.

I’m aware that for this level of practicality there will be a compromise to be made on outright technical ability and image quality. Not understanding the technical side of things well (barely at all) I’m having trouble gauging just how large the compromise is. Reviews vary and without knowing the benchmark that they judge it against it remains hard to make a judgement.

In simple terms would the images created by either of these camcorders, when shown on a 42in (16:9) LCD be comparable to better/worse than say BBC1 SD Terrestrial? Or are they only suitable for PC type viewing?

Additionally are there other similar models out there I should be considering. I notice that both the Panasonic and the Sanyo are relatively new. Are there likely to be others launched in the near future from other manufacturers?

Any assistance will be greatly appreciated.

[Biggest J]

Can't help a great deal I'm afraid. But I am in the same boat, so here is a free bump of this post back to the top! ;-)
Anyway, I would really love an HD (High Def) capable camcorder (720 lines should be more than adequate for my Pioneer PDP508 Plasma) although I suppose FULL HD (1080i resolution would be a bit more future proof). I'd also like the camcorder to replace my 4 year old Casio Exilm Z4 (compact 4MP, 3x Zoom Digital Camera) too if at all possible. That would save me lugging 2 bits of shiny kit around with me. Currently I have an 8year old Mini DV Camcorder (Panasonic NV33 or something similar?!)
I've always been satisfied with the quality of the DV videos recorded (even though only 480 lines I think, but it is only a 4:3 aspect ratio (and all of the TVs in my house are 16:9 widescreen now, so the recordings look a bit out of date and wasteful with the thick black bands at the left and right of the screen. DV tapes are also a real faff to rewind and fast forward etc and only 60mins per tape. also a hassle to transfer and convert to my PC for editing/burning to DVD.
I even find having to take the battery out and charge it a bit of a hassle these days. So my wife and I actually find we use the little rubbishy built-in video mode on the Casio ultra compact Digital camera far more often than our 'proper' camcorder. and that only produces 320x240 at 10 frames per second footage!!! Rubbish really but sooooo convenient.
The Panasonic SDR-SW20 has a decent 10x optical zoom, widescreen format, SDHC memory instead of tapes,DVD,Hard Disk etc for better reliability and battery life. BUT only has a 0.3MP Still photo ability 600x480!?!? :-(
The Sanyo Xacti VPC-CA65 only has a 5x optical zoom but also has widescreen format, SDHC memory BUT does have a proper 6MP Still photo ability :-)
I am definitely leaning towards ruggedness/practicallity over ultimate quality. Both of these should be able to produce DVDish quality (but only stereo not Dolby Digital 5.1 though!)
Therefore, I'm leaning towards the Sanyo myself at the moment.
But this is purely based on spec sheets / prices. I haven't seen either in the flesh yet, let alone used them.
Anyone else own either of these models or know of any other models with similar specs to consider please?
thanks,
J.