Great features, works great.

Excellent color quality (3 CCD), excellent video quality, good zoom range with controllable zoom speed, both EVF and large LCD, and optical image stabilization all make this compact videocam a joy to use. Other plusses include the quiet tape transport, manual control features, and still image capability. It can take stills during video recording without glitches, and uses separate media for stills and video. Battery life is pretty good - the supplied DU-12 battery can just manage a full 60 minute DV tape (most videocams fall short), and the optional DU-21 battery which I bought can easily fill two DV tapes on a charge.

Some small minuses: the still pictures don't warrant the number of pixels assigned to them; they are pleasing enough if down-sampled to about 2 megapixels, and make good 4x6 or 5x7 prints. Low light performance is not as good as might be wished; in dim twilight or nightclubs a videolamp might be needed.