Customer Reviews:
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 OSX friendly, easy to use July 2, 2008
7 out of 8 found this review helpful
Pros
-the .mp4 files are OSX friendly and viewable instantly in QuickTime !
- we had no problem getting these files into Final Cut Xpress 4 or iMovie '08
- I was editing these files within minutes of popping the card out of the cam
- Photos can be plucked out of the video streams at 8mp (4mp interpolated?)
- the menu interface is clean ,intuitive, and performs well
- the photos look great, even the ones you capture while viewing video playback
- the TouchPoint focus can create cool effects
- colors and automatic levels seem pretty accurate
- quickly change recording to INTERNAL or SDHC or MMC
- manual controls are simple sliders (WB, Exposure, Shutter)
- 90 minute battery life from a small form battery
- shoots in 4 resolutions : 1080p/30p , 1080i/60i, 480p/60p an 300fps SlowMotion
- you can be in and out of these resolutions in seconds via QuickMenus
- shooting this puppy is a breeze, we haven't even looked at the manual yet
- nice Slideshow with music functions
- TouchFocus allows you to focus on different objects in the foreground or background
- it's a very small package and feels quite solid for it's size
- QuickInfo button displays battery life / memory / resolution even powered off
-clips can be split, deleted and combined IN CAMERA
-the phot slideshow can be accompanied by music
Cons
- you MUST have the cradle (included) for charging / HDMI out
- manual controls are very simple ...... will be too limiting for hardcore tweakers
........ that being said, the automatic levels are about as good as you'll want
- no hot shoe
- no built in light ... only pop-up flash
- photos cannot be cropped or rotated in camera - no red-eye removal tool either
- the focus drifted on me a few times
- btw, the focus is a little SLOW
- the TouchFocus was hit or miss in practice
-the battery and SD/MMC slot are behind a trap door, probably not going to be an extended run battery
there's alot to like about this camera
the easy to use touchscreen does almost everything I need it to do under normal circumstances
playback in QUICKTIME is smooth and free of some processing artifacts I noticed when using VLC (nightly) to view .mts files from Panasonics and Canon's ... and that comes in handy if you shot alot of clips and want to get to previewing them quickly and not waiting an hour for it to load into your editor
I think I've narrowed it down to this camera and the Canon hf100. I went to the store and shot some clips with my memory card. I found the .mts file buried in a STREAM subfolder several layers deep.
The Samsung has a folder called 100video, click on that and there's your files
The Canon's menu is more advanced and offers more options, but it's also more complex
but if you can live without advanced manual controls and a mini-hotshoe and want to work with a more friendly file, this Samsung SC_HMX20C is the camcorder to have
this camcorder works well with a 2.2ghz Macbook with 4gb RAM running OSX Leopard
 Compare to the Canon HF100 July 1, 2008
3 out of 6 found this review helpful
I had a chance to own both this Samsung SC-HMX20C and Canon HF100. Comparing to Canon HF100, this Samsung unit has:
Pros:
1. 8G internal memory.
2. 8M pixels still picture recording
Cons:
1. No optical stabilization which is my biggest complain. It has a electronic stabilization which is totally useless.
2. Hard/slow to focus compared to HF100
3. Slow when switching between Camcorder/Camera/Watching mode.
5. Slow when zoom in/out.
6. Bucky.
7. Pricy. $80 more than HF100.
In my opinion, this camcorder needs big improvement.
Interesting MPEG-4 Camcorder June 14, 2008
8 out of 10 found this review helpful
I have been watching Mpeg-4 cameras to see if they could become usuable. So far, the stock AVCHD cameras have provided images that were so compressed all they were good for were shoot and display; editing the video was an utter pain. The artifacting made the contrast too hard, and the standard AVCHD file was decidedly unstandard with the streams unmuxed and the framerates inconsistent. Lotsa luck trying to get QuickTime compliant apps like Final Cut to deal with the video.
The Samsung SC-HMX20 delivers something new: an H264 mpeg-4 file that is not so highly compressed (the 1080p files have a 14.85 mbit/sec bandwidth) and the mpeg wrapper file is fully QuickTime compliant so editing is not a problem. The images aren't perfect (there's still artifacting and banding where colors and contrasts converge), but its head and shoulders above any other AVCHD camera. The 1080p image is quite handsome, but sometimes doesn't handle fast motion so well. The camera claims to shoot in 1080i, but it doesn't work on the Mac so I haven't been able to check that. It would be terrific if the camera could shoot both 1080p (for resolution) AND 720p (for fast motion). I guess that's asking for too much at this price.
I actually own one and I own a sony XDCAM EX1 June 8, 2008
7 out of 11 found this review helpful
I don't have much time for this initial report, but let's set a few things straight:
1/ I uses H.264 format with an MP4 wrapper.
2/ When I look at it on my HD monitor I am astounded by the picture as compared with my XDCAM. It's not the same but I can intercut with it for a number of applications. AVHCD is too compressed. It seems everyone but Samsung has gone to AVHCD for the $1000 market.
2/ The swivel grip works really well for running low to the ground.
3/ It has an external mic jack.
4/ It doesn't have a Lanc jack, like all the other non-HDV tape based options.
5/ It works beautifully with my FCP 6.0 app, it's quicktime.
Gotta go.
Bill
A good try, but still needs work June 4, 2008
18 out of 24 found this review helpful
I should preface this review by saying that I don't own an HMX20, but I've spent a lot of time with one to decide if I should and I wanted to share my experiences. What it comes down to, in my opinion, is that this camcorder is attempting to do a lot of things that just aren't possible yet in its form-factor. It has some really neat features, but when all is said and done if they aren't practically useful and its functionality as a video recorder doesn't do quite the job of its competitors it just isn't worth buying. Unless you're thinking about buying the Panasonic HDC-SD9 for some reason, I would go with several other cameras before this one.
That said, there are some cool things. The slow motion feature is very good and works very well. The problem is that if you're buying a 1080p camcorder, chances are you actually care about having your video in high definition. The slow motion video's resolution is less than that of standard definition video, so you can't really use it for anything practical. If you're just uploading to YouTube or something like that then it's sufficient, but that's about it. You can also record at standard definition at a frame rate of 60fps. This is a little more acceptable, however you can easily get this frame rate with the less expensive Sanyo HD1000 and you can get it at 720p.
Speaking of the HD1000, there is one other similarity I'd like to point out. The HD1000 has a very poor image stabilizer and so does the HMX20. They both are really worst of class in that regard. Auto focus on both units is also sluggish and often inaccurate. Both handle low light about the same, which is okay, and take wonderful video in well-lit places (but how many camcorders don't?).
The HMX20 does have a nice feature for focusing, however. It would be more usable if the camcorder could keep the image still, but nonetheless I liked it a lot. You can use the touch screen to just touch the object you want to focus on and it will. It takes 3-4 seconds to finally get around to doing it, but it's extremely accurate. I'd love to see this implemented in more cameras and camcorders, but with a much faster operation. Canon's VIXIA line has super-quick auto focus units (Instant AF, as they call it) and an excellent optical image stabilizers (OIS). Paired with this feature, Canon would have a very nice line (not that they don't already--I think the VIXIA line is pretty much top of class in most features, and definitely top of class overall). Nonetheless, I think this is something we'll see from Sony first. While their stabilization and autofocus isn't quite as good as Canon's, in my opinion, it's still rather good and at least smoothes out any shaky motion so nobody feels like vomiting after watching your kid waterski for the first time.
While the HMX20 does record in 1080p, I wouldn't say the quality of the video is really any better than Canon's VIXIA line. While I've messed around with an HF10, an HV20, an HV30 and an HG10, I'm comparing this specifically to the HF100 that I own and love. The video quality is great for a consumer camcorder, even though it's faux-30p/24p. I think it's going to be a couple of years before we start to see proper 1080p. That said, the HMX20 is definitely a world better than Panasonic's HDC-SD9. That's probably because that camera uses three standard definition CCD sensors and pretends they're 1080p, but we're not talking about the HDC-SD9.
The body of the HMX20 is a bit bigger than I'd expected. Most cameras in its class are a bit smaller, and if you want something that can handle 1080i or 1080p at pocket size, you're really only looking at Sony's HDR-TG1 (although the Sanyo HD1000 is still pretty small and could fit into your pocket uncomfortably). That said, it fits nicely into your hand. It's easy to move. I don't really see how the swivel grip is particularly helpful but I do appreciate that you can adjust the camera to fit you comfortably. It's also pretty good looking on the outside.
On the inside--which in this case I mean the menu system--it's also pretty attractive. Not only that, it's easy to use. Samsung's organization of features, for the most part, is very straightforward and clear. It's not hard to find 80-90% of what's there and you can change settings really quickly. With that in mind, I can't even begin to understand why they designed the mode switcher the way they did. If you want to switch from video to photo or photo to playback (or playback to video again) you have to press a button. It takes a few seconds and you have to go in linear order, rather than just jumping to the one you want. If the switch were instant it wouldn't be a big deal, but if you're on playback and suddenly need to get a photo you're going to miss it. Six seconds is a long time when something just happens. While I understood that maybe they were a bit rushed with the HMX10, it doesn't really make sense that they didn't change this with the HMX20. They had time and, if they read, must have known that nobody liked the way modes switch. So far I have to favorites for switching. Sanyo doesn't really require it so that's a plus--you can just take photos any time without issue. Sony's HDR-TG1 lets you switch by flicking a button. While I don't prefer this, it's so fast and the button is so comfortable that it's actually kind of fun. If I have to switch modes to take a photo, I'd want to do it the way the HDR-TG1 does it. Unfortunately that camcorder takes relatively poor photos, though I did take a couple today and print them out and it wasn't that bad.
Photos on the HMX20 are not bad. Once again another company has pushed megapixels over quality and given the HMX20 an 8MP sensor. As a result, pictures are a bit noisier than they ought to be. Nonetheless, it does a decent job for a camcorder. So far I have yet to see a camcorder that can take a picture good enough to warrant using it for that purpose, but if you have a (D)SLR already and don't want a hybrid device for your everyday pictures (so you don't have to also buy a point-and-shoot camera) then this should get the job done all right.
The HMX20 is an AVCHD camera so it comes with all the drawbacks and benefits of being one. This isn't a review of AVCHD so I won't get into that, but if you're unfamiliar with the pros and cons of the format I'd suggest doing a little research before you decide it's for you--especially if you have a PowerPC Mac (in which case it's almost definitely not for you).
There isn't a whole lot more to say about it. It's not a bad camcorder and it has some very cool features, but the quality of the video isn't good enough to warrant buying it regardless of how neat they might be. And they're more neat in theory than in practice. The touch focus is a very cool idea but not implemented well enough to use in most situations. The slow motion is wonderful and fun but at too low of a resolution to use alongside the HD video you probably bought the thing for. If you're just planning on using it for its 1080p recording capabilities and its easy-to-use interface and controls, you'll probably be fairly happy with what you get. That said, if you intend to zoom in on anything you better be able to keep yourself stable, at least.
Overall, my recommendation would be to get something else. I say that not because this camcorder is bad--it isn't--but because there are several other options that are better. I expect Samsung to step it up in a year or two. Hopefully for them, the other companies won't get too far ahead in the same time.
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