I picked up one of these locally, intending to replace my MinoHD with it. This camera ended up being a disappointment to me. I really want to like it, but the reality is that the picture quality disappoints compared to the MinoHD.PROs: LOTS of really nice features
Compact pistol-grip design that's comfortable to hold
Large, easy to view 3" LCD screen with rigid plastic screen to protect it
Uses SD/SDHC memory cards up to 32GB
Stereo audio
Standard h.264/AAC codecs compatible with Apple's iMovie '09
5X optical zoom, able to change zoom range while recording
Focus auto-adjusts while recording (not all cameras do this)
Ability to take decent 10MP still shots without having to switch modes
Has a flash for still pictures
Easy to navigate menu system with customizable shortcuts accessed by the joystick
Easy to operate joystick with positive click feedback that doesn't intrude while recording
Manual adjustments (full manual, shutter priority, aperture priority, noise reduction, auto-focus mode, exposure measure mode, etc.)
Comes with a lens cap to protect the lens
Tally light is on the top of the camera to the rear where the person holding the camera can see it and not where it's distracting to the person being recorded (VERY important when recording small children)
Easily accessible battery compartment / Battery cover is tethered by a plastic tab so it can't be easily lost
Standard tripod mount on the bottom
CONs: Picture quality requires a lot of tweaking in the manual settings to make it decent.
Low light performance is poor even for this class of camcorder
Electronic stabilization tends to soften the picture, sometimes to the point of making it appear to be out of focus
Color saturation results in a visual pleasing picture but inaccurate color reproduction
Focus and Exposure reaction seems to be fairly slow as well
Proprietary USB/AV port (I hate it when manufacturers eschew standard ports in favor or proprietary solutions. I'd rather have the camera be a little bigger to accommodate a mini-USB port as well as a mini-HDMI)
Proprietary HD Component cable NOT included
SD slot cover seems a bit flimsy
Camera cannot be used as a live camera with Macs, only with Windows PCs
Camera draws power from battery when used in card reader mode instead of drawing power from USB
Before I bought this camera, I did a lot of research on it, including viewing uploaded footage from this camera on Vimeo.com. Even though I've only had the camera two days, I've done a lot of testing with it.
Keep in mind that I'm not saying the MinoHD is the best camera out there, but it is certainly better in my experience overall. I simply compared the CG10 to the MinoHD, because the MinoHD is the incumbent.
I gave the CG10 3 stars because I love all the features that Sanyo put into it, but the picture quality is such a disappointment. One of the major features is the electronic stabilization, and I found it to reduce the picture quality more than it improved it.
I think that a camera's auto/program settings should produce a good basic picture that serves as the camera's baseline, and then any manual controls should serve to tailor that picture to your artistic needs or to make a good picture great. The Sanyo's auto/program settings produce a sub-standard picture that's soft to the extent that it looks out of focus, it suffers from serious motion blur, and in the end simply looks like widescreen standard definition. The manual settings only serve to make a bad picture look good if you can find the right settings for the shooting conditions. Having said that, I don't find this camera to be good for capturing those precious surprise moments that young children present us because you can't expect a good picture by simply pulling it out, turning it on, and starting shooting.
I think Sanyo should spend some more time with improving their stabilization, 9-pt auto-focus, and exposure measuring algorithms. Out of the box, it just doesn't perform, and the plethora of features simply cannot make up for that.
UPDATE: I still stand by my initial assessment of the VPC-CG10's picture quality, but after spending quite a bit of time playing with various settings, I believe I have found a good setup which probably should have been Sanyo's starting point in its auto/program modes.
1) Turn off the stabilization: While this helps a little bit in extreme tele situations, it actually seems to hurt picture quality otherwise, resulting in a blurry picture that appears out-of-focus. Turning off the stabilization does result in more shake and/or jitter, but the picture is quite a bit clearer. I personally do not believe that there is any decent alternative to optical image stabilization. They could drop this feature from the camera altogether, drop the price a little more, and then I would probably bump this camera up a star even.
2) Enable Single-Point AutoFocus: The 9-point AF algorithm spends a good deal of time "hunting", i.e. trying to find a focus point even when the camera is not moving. The single-point AF does a much better job of providing a clear focus. While still providing a softer picture than the MinoHD, it is a vast improvement over the 9-point AF's performance.
3) Set Exposure to Aperture-priority with f=3.5: This is the camera's widest aperture setting and will let in the most light through the lens. It will then adjust the shutter speed as necessary to provide a decently exposed picture. Fine tuning can then be adjusted via the EV adjustment, which can be assigned to one of the joystick shortcut positions.
With the above settings, I have been able to record some footage that I think is close to the MinoHD's quality, both in bright light and indoor lighting. If they either ditch the electronic stabilization altogether or replace it with optical IS, address the 9-pt AF's poor focusing algorithm, and either lock the aperture at 3.5 or put in a faster lens, Sanyo would have a very impressive camera on their hands.
One distinct advantage that the Xacti has over the MinoHD is its optics. At full wide angle, the Xacti has a much wider field of view than the MinoHD, whose fov is significantly narrower when compared even to its SD sibling, the FlipVideo Ultra.
After using this camera for a couple weeks along with the MinoHD and Sony's DSC-T900, I have to say that the Xacti VPC-CG10 is probably the best bang for the buck. I'd maybe bump up the rating by another star, but I don't think any of these pocket HD camcorders really deserve 5. And yes, I kept the Xacti and sent the MinoHD and T900 back.
I have read many many reviews about this camera and have looked at countless videos on YouTube about it. Radio Shack has a lot of reviews about it too.
Hopefully I can say something that hasn't been covered yet about this camera. First of all, there is a video cable that connects the camera directly to a HDTV. The number of the cable is Sanyo VCP-CPNT01U Component Output Cable for Sanyo WH1, TH1, CA9, CG10 Camcorders, and Amazon sells it for $. The cable is shown on page 159 of the manual.
Turn OFF the NOISE REDUCTION. To do this go to MENU 2 under the WRENCH MENU. It is actually the 5th MENU down. Go to NOISE REDUCTION, push SET, Then select OFF for both VIDEO NR and PHOTO NR. Push the MENU button to get out of there. I have never found a Noise Reduction on any camera that makes the pictures better. It usually degrades the quality of the pictures.
As others have said, put the FOCUS MODE to SPOT.
A good software program is AVS4YOU. Search for it. It is free to try and does a good job of playing and converting MPEG4 files to AVI or whatever.
Here is what I like about the camera:
You can join clips or cut out video with the camera in the playback mode. Manual PG 104-112.
You can take up to 11 pictures in sequence in the 10mb Photo mode. Pg 85 in the manual talks about that. To be direct, go to MENU, PHOTO, hit SET, Scroll down to 10mb burst mode, which is down past the .9meg picture selection. Just keep going down till you see it. It works great. Be advised it does not work with flash.
You can also put SEQUENTIAL (I don't know why they don't call it BURST) in your SHORTCUTS MENU. Page 128 in the manual. To do this go to MENU, then scroll down on the left side to MENU 2 under the WRENCH MENU. That is actually MENU 5 down from the top. Select SHORTCUTS, then SEQUENTIAL and push the SET button. Now once in the camera mode all you have to do to get Sequential is push the SET switch up. Pushing it up again puts you back in normal photo. Be advised if you have the photo set to 10mH (High) once you come out of the Sequential Mode the camera will go back to 10mS (Standard). To fix that you must go back to MENU 1, PHOTO, then select 10mH again.
You can take a photo just by pushing the PHOTO button while shooting video. Pg. 67.
It may not be a big photo file, but it works.
You can delete 1 picture, selected pictures, or all pictures in the camera. You can print from the camera. You can use the camera with the cable as a card reader. pg 145 of manual
I have found that using all the optical zoom, you can use 1/3 of the digital zoom and still get a good looking picture. I took a picture of my wife at 125 yards and could read the lettering on her shirt using the optical zoom and digital zoom at max. I am not saying this is the best thing to do, but in some situations that is the only way to get the shot. Optical and digital zoom max is 60X. The quality wasn't all that bad.
Macro goes down to .39 inches. You do have to set it to SuperMacro focus in the menu though.
To do that go to MENU, FOCUS, then select SUPERMACRO. Then push MENU to get back to the camera mode.
The ISO goes from 50 to 1600. Your best picture will be in the 50 to 100 ISO range. The higher the ISO, the more the noise in the photo/video. I noticed leaving the ISO in Auto is sometimes a mistake. I was going to take a picture and I knew the flash would go off. It was somewhat dark, but not very dark. When I looked at the screen the picture didn't look all that great. It was grainy and I could tell the Auto ISO setting was pretty high. I manually set the ISO for 100 and it totally cleared up the screen. I took the picture. It came out great. It was a little darker than I wanted, but the picture looked clear. I brightened the picture up with Photo software and the results were outstanding. While looking at the screen, you can adjust the ISO and instantly see how it is going to affect your picture. In some situations it is better to take charge of he ISO and set it manually.
In taking a photo, pushing the button half way down causes the camera to focus. Pushing it the rest of the way causes an almost instant shot with very little delay.
You can use the camera as a PC camera (like a monitor camera for your computer). Pg 150
In watching a video in playback, if you pause the video an image can be taken by pushing the PHOTO button. Pg 73.
There are a couple of things I don't like about the camera. One is the battery, but you can buy them on EBay. Search for "DB-L80 Battery". I found them for just over ten dollars for two. They are cheap and in most cases it also includes shipping. The battery that comes with the Sanyo is a 700mAh (Mili Amp Hour) battery. The two that I bought on Ebay are 980mAh. That means they are stronger and will play longer. They work great. So the battery isn't really that much of a problem after all.
The camera has a flimsy latch that covers the SDHC card. It is really flimsy. As a result, I just use the supplied cable and plug the camera into the USB slot on my computer to download files instead of taking the SDHC card out. The camera asks you if you plan on using it as a reader when you plug it in. Just click SET on that and the computer sees the drive instantly.
The last thing I don't like about the camera is the lack of a strap. I don't like holding a camera without something keeping it from hitting the ground if dropped. I found a couple on Amazon just doing a search under CAMERA STRAP. Nikon AN-CP14 Replacement Strap or Canon Metal Neck Strap 1 for All Elph Cameras, 34" Length. The cost is real cheap for either the metal necklace or the wrist strap.
Well that is it. I hope you enjoyed my review. Take care and get the camera. It is awesome for the price. I wish I could afford the Sanyo Xacti VPC-HD2000 "Dual Camera" with 8MP & 10x Optical Zoom "Full HD" 1080p Pocket Video Camera.. Wow, what a camera, but for $[WOW!]?
Oh, one last thing, the case. I found a really good cheap case for the camera. It is a Tamrac Explorer 15 (Model 5415) Compact camera case for slim-line cameras. The price is small and the shipping is free. The case is small, but the Sanyo fits in it perfectly. The front pouch is big enough for extra batteries.
At night, set the ISO to 1600, and the Sensitivity to HIGH. That is the best this camera can get in low light conditions. With the lights on in the house the camera did ok. The video was bright and looks good.
At night another accessory might be the answer. It is a video light. I have one and it works really great. Sima SL-20LX Ultra Bright Video Light (Silver). It works for about an hour before giving up the ghost. In most cases that is plenty of time. It comes with a bracket that mounts to the Sanyo. I found that mounting it catty corner (about 45 degrees) on the left side of the camera works really well. It is not in the way of the screen but right out there to provide the quality of light you need. Mounting on the right side interferes with your hand in holding the camera. Mounting it on the left side will not let the screen open fully. You have to mount it at about 45 degrees on the left side and then all works great. The light is really bright. I found that setting the ISO on 100 gives a great picture but the light only lights up clearly about 7 feet. If you need more lighting than that, set the ISO higher. Setting it at 1600 made the light really bright, and it made the whole area bright for the video. Maybe 1600 is the best place for this light. You have to experiment with it.
Addition:1/1/2010
Someone emailed me and said the video was shaking using Quicktime. It is jerky. If you have this problem there are several solutions. One is to download AVS4YOU. It is a free trail but the program costs money. Another is to download ACDSee Pro 3 but you have to pay for it too. The third solution is to download the latest version of Windows Media Player (version 11). The link is posted in the COMMENTS Section of this review. You must also have the CODEC that goes with Windows Media Player to play the MP4 extension. Do a search on Windows Media Player CODEC on Google. Select the link that says "Media Player Codec Pack, Free software downloads and software" The link is posted in the COMMENTS section of this review. That should solve your video shaking problem.
To force Windows to use Windows Media Player to play your video files, go to the directory where your video files are located. Put the curser on one of the video files and right click on it. Select PROPERTIES and click. On the screen near the top you see the OPENS WITH then the box CHANGE. Select CHANGE and scroll down till you find WINDOWS MEDIA PLAYER. Click on that then click OK. Now at the bottom of the page click APPLY then OK and you are set.
Buy Sanyo Xacti CG10 Dual Camera HD Flash Memory Camcorder with 5x Optical Zoom (Red) Now
UPDATE: Watch ABC TV's "America's Funniest Videos" Sunday evening, November 14, 2010. It's their special $100,000 grand prize episode. Look for my video clip called "Raccoon Hug". My first 15 seconds of fame shot with this camera. Don't ask how I got the raccoon to do what you'll see. The clip survived numerous cuts the past several months, made the final cut and into the finale episode. I just received the phone call from Vin Di Bona Productions. This paid for the Sanyo VPC-CG10 camera!--------------------------------
I'm going to try and answer some issues with this great camera because it makes me sick that so many issues listed here can be remedied by simply reading the manual for this GREAT CAMERA! I have had my VPC-CG10 since June and I love it. For a sub two hundred dollar camera, it is hands down the best. I tried around half dozen others and they all went back. This one is a keeper. The video quality, clarity, and color balance is on par with and better than some 1080P video cameras I've seen. I bought my red one at Radio Shack. Their website also has great reviews, tips, and advice about this camera.
sekander, did you burn it to a bluray dvd or HD dvd? Probably not, that's why you lost clarity. THE CAMERA SHOOTS IN HIGH DEFINITION VIDEO. If you're burning it to DVD, YOU ARE NOT BURNING IT IN HIGH DEFINITION. Your PC screen is HD. Your losing the HD when burning it to a DVD disc, cutting the resolution in half. Then you're making the video larger on a big screen... and you wonder why it's fuzzy?!?!?!? Just some things to think about.
The camera performs very well in low light, but not perfect, and if you can't make it do so, read the manual or study up on photography, lighting, and videos a bit before trashing the camera. I get GREAT results. Since Amazon doesn't allow web links, go to YouTube and search for my videos taken with this camera, search for user "MrJuanitoBandito". See my dim Thanksgiving 2009 restaurant video and my low light Delta 2 Rocket Launch, Sunrise.
I don't know how these people are getting fuzzy video other than operator error because this camera has the best video clarity I have ever seen in my life. Look at my other videos. The food in my Thanksgiving video is a bit fuzzy but that's because it was on the table about a foot away from the lens. I probably should have used the macro. Operator error.
The "ripply" or "tearing" effect in videos means you have a weak computer... it's NOT the camera guys and gals. It has to do with a few things, mainly the Flash Video format with web videos and/or your weak computer with videos and/or Quicktime AND the vertical refresh or synch setting in your video card's control panel... not the camera. I can suggest trying the FREE VLC Media Player program and you will see it less. If it still does it, adjust the vertical refresh or synch setting in your video card's control panel, buy a new computer and/or upgrade your video card to one with a MINIMUM of 256 megabytes of dedicated video RAM (VRAM) on board, the more the better. If your video card has that, try adding more system memory (RAM). Your PC is too weak for high definition video in MP4 format if none of these options works for you. Here's a test, watch one of my videos or any other on YouTube that's in HD. Click the HD button at the bottom right of the video, then the full screen button. If your PC locks up or the video is jittery and jumpy... if after trying the above options and they don't work, get a new PC or upgrade... yours is currently too weak. Every HD video on YouTube you should be able to watch in HD full screen, and it should be fluid like watching television, if you can't... you probably will have issues watching videos from this camera as well and maybe it's time for a new PC, processor, video card and/or upgrade. I recently had a friend that upgraded his processor from a Celeron to a Pentium 4 with HT and videos that he couldn't play before now play smooth, fluidly, and beautifully... full screen.
UPDATE ON THIS TEARING EFFECT ABOVE. Since upgrading my PC to Windows 7 Professional, which now supports MP4 video in Windows Media Player, I get the smoothest video ever with NONE of this effect above. It's gone!
Fuzzy video when you zoom? Again, take the time to read the manual and learn about the camera, read up on photography and lighting and video. The camera has both optical and digital zoom. Optical is real, mechanical zoom... the lens adjusts and moves. It is the best and usually satisfactory for my needs. I have digital zoom turned off because it's just cropping a portion of the last optical zoom... it's not REAL zoom like optical is. I read somewhere someone got good results after going about one tenth into the digital zoom then stopping, because after that it does get fuzzy... but ALL cameras with digital zoom do that... it's the nature of the zoom! Just remember, digital zoom is fuzzy... not the camera! Also, this is THE ONLY CAMERA in this price range that allows you to zoom in, to use the zoom, WHILE YOU ARE FILMING! A professional photographer once told me the best zoom was his feet.
"comparatively weak zoom"?!?! Compared to WHAT?!?!? 99.9% of cameras out there in this price range only have 3X optical zoom... IF they even have optical zoom... most cameras in this price range only offer digital zoom. This camera has 5X optical zoom as well! Complaints are being a bit petty. I think you work for a Sanyo competitor.
A "cheap" "flimsy" lens cover?!?! Again, Compared to WHAT?!?!? This is the only camera under two hundred dollars that comes with a lens cap! It's plastic. So? Aren't all lens caps? It snaps on. Don't all lens caps? Stop complaining, this camera blows away the competition in this price range. What were you expecting? A magnesium alloy lens cap with a 200 PSI vacuum seal? Come on, the camera sells for under two hundred dollars, not a thousand dollars. At least Sanyo had good sense to include a lens cap that works!
Audio? Take the towel off the camera because I can pick up people 25 feet away and on playback hear them crystal clear. Again, operator error. Watch my Ares 1-X rocket launch video on YouTube. When you hear the guy in the background "A four hundred and fifty million dollar bottle rocket...", remember this... he's behind me about two to three hundred feet away!
The camera doesn't lay flat? You knew this wasn't a conventional rectangular camera before you bought it just by looking at it! That's like buying a green car and complaining about the color AFTER you bought the car. BUY A 6" or 8" TABLETOP TRIPOD for $8-$10!
You DO NOT have to remove the tripod mount to replace the battery or download anything to the PC (I have no idea what camera he was reviewing here because it's not the VPC-CG10 I have). May I suggest you read the manual? If it is connected to a tripod... YES, you would have to remove it from the tripod to plug in the USB cable or change the battery. It takes about ten seconds to remove the camera from a tripod... no big deal. Next, just set the camera on the desk next to the computer! Are we getting a little petty about our complaints here? Or do you work for a Sanyo competitor or a life long fan of another manufacturer?
Battery life? About 45 minutes to an hour or so of continuous video shooting. I bought two more batteries on e-bay for $12 and that included shipping! Wow! It works for me!
Editing the MP4 videos made with this camera on the PC? I have used about a half dozen programs and they all gave me some sort of issue but that's the programs, not the camera. I have been using Microsoft Windows LIVE Movie Maker and it works just great for me without any issues (SEE comments of this review for more info). If I was a pro, I'd look into another program though with more options.
Buy a 6 speed/class SDHC card for this camera. If you use a 2 speed/class SDHC card, ANYTHING you do with this camera will really suck and you will be sorely disappointed thinking it's the camera's fault. These 2 speed/class SDHC cards are plentiful, common, and CHEAP! DO NOT USE THEM. A 4 speed/class SDHC card is MAYBE acceptable... barely. In reality though, anything less than a 6 speed/class SDHC card and your video playback will be slow and lag. I use both a 6 and 4 speed/class and am MUCH happier with the video and photographic results using the 6 speed/class SDHC card. I don't know what camera the reviewer below used saying it doesn't take 6 speed/class cards... my VPC-CG10 camera does.
I swear, either all these bad reviewers work for a Sanyo competitor, or they never read their manuals and/or don't know a thing about cameras (especially this one) or photography. I don't know what it is, but with almost all these bad reviews... I don't think they have the same camera as me!
That's all for now. I will update with more later when I have more time to read through these competitors bad reviews of this great camera. I hope I helped!
BUY THIS CAMERA! You won't be disappointed.I just bought this dual-cam recently and it's been great.
#1 it's made for portability I'm a guy and this fits in a pocket just fine.
#2 features unbelievable what Sanyo fit in this thing. 720p (vid quality is as expected for the price), photo during recording, Av/Tv priority, 7fps burst, built-in flash, in-camera editing, frame-by-frame in-camera playback, 5x OPTICAL zoom, (cheesy) image stabilization, focus/exposure lock, selectable iso, face recognition...etc etc
#3 build quality amazing it's a solid, well textured and designed little unit. It fits natural. The lcd is bright / clear / fast and its hinge is very strong. Feels very high quality, unlike my previous zi6. All parts are tight and smooth. The SDHC slot feels floppy though.
#4 for the $149 deal, it smokes anything else in its price range: zi6, flip mino hd, insignia, rca, vado as far as being a complete package.
It records just short of 4 hours on 16gb sdhc card at 720p. VGA / Youtube shooting is practically endless (12hrs?). eBay has some 900mah replacement batteries ~$5 each that get you ~50 mins video time per at 720p.
I got it mostly for golf swing videos the sports mode and 60fps 640x480 fits my needs perfectly. But I'm completely confident in bringing this camera to anything else and recording great videos no matter what they might be.
Want Sanyo Xacti CG10 Dual Camera HD Flash Memory Camcorder with 5x Optical Zoom (Red) Discount?
For the price, this is a great little dual camera. It is just the right size (easily fits in a pocket) takes good standard and HD video and acts as a servicable point and shoot digital camera.Here are some cons:
* Proprietary USB What's up with that? Sanyo stick with micro or mini USB like every other camera on the market!
* 5X Optical Zoom Ok, I know you'd need a bigger lens for more zoom but for me I'd like a little more (12x would be fine).
* No HDMI cable with it I would have thought it would come with one
* Battery needs to be taken out to be charged.
* Camera sucks the battery down when plugged into the computer and it does not charge while plugged into the computer.
Here are some pros:
* Form factor I've never had a pistol type camera and I really like it.
* Controls are very simple and easy to use
* Love that you can snap a picture while recording video
* The 720p HD video is very good
* It speaks well with my Mac thanks to mpeg-4. Plug the camera in and it opens up my camera right in iPhoto '09
* Good flash for such a small camera
* Price and features for price paid
So I bought this camera to take quick video and it has not disappointed. I have been looking at this for a while but could not find it available anywhere until May 1. I purchased my camera at Radio Shack for $149 but even at $199 it's a good value. I tried an Apitek and Insignia and hated them both (and they were a pain to get to work with a mac). They were priced comperable and I don't think they hold a candle to this. I've heard good things about Flip Mino but I just don't like them.
So far so good. I highly recommend this camera to anyone looking for a dual camera that can be carried around in a pocket or purse for quick use when needed.
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