The Basics:

The majority of the camcorder is black, with some silver and chrome accents. The side which features the view screen has printed details such as the model number, and some specifications (such as that it is 5.0 megapixels, 1080P, and features a stereo microphone). The top of the camcorder also shows that it has a 20x zoom.



The front of the camcorder houses the lens behind an integrated cover. To the left of the lens is a small LED light which can be toggled on/off at the users discretion. Directly under the lens is the flash for the camera.



The left side of the camcorder (from the front view) has a rubberized coating and features an adjustable hand strap. Under the hand strap is the battery compartment, which opens with a little slide lock found on the top of the camera.



The back area of the camera has almost all of the controls. In the upper left corner there are two LEDs which indicate whether the camera has power and whether it is in use. In the upper right section is a 3-way selector which sets the device to either Setup, Camera, or Camcorder. The controls below the selector include a d-pad with a middle select button and a record button. At the very bottom of the back is a cover over the video output and USB ports.



Opening up the first side we checked out (below left image) we find a 3" view screen which has a 960x240 resolution. For a small screen it shows a large amount of detail. When opened the view screen reveals some additional controls (below right image). The controls covered by the view screen include the LED light switch and a playback button. In the middle of the panel is the power button, and to the lower left of the power button are two more buttons. One button controls the display on the view screen, while the other controls the settings of the video recorder. The very bottom of the side panel features a slide lock for the SD card cover.



The bottom of the camcorder features a tripod connector and the SD card slot.