My review of the Sanyo VPC-CS1 pocket 1080p Camcorder
Saturday, February 5, 2011 at 5:23PM Many thanks to Sanyo for sending me their VPC-CS1 camera for review. I really enjoyed my time with the camera and as you can see from the review it is capable of taking some stunningly clear video. I think it offers the best value for money in pocket camcorders today - especially if you manage to pick one up at Amazon for £110.
I just want to say one thing about pink coloured electronics - does anyone buy these? Every year I see the January sales full of unwanted pink versions of electronics whilst the black/silver devices remain at full price. Surely that is an indicator of the lack of demand that exists. For every teenage girl who wants a pink camera - there must be hundreds of adults who would rather have something a bit more subtle. I bet I'm not alone in feeling that it also cheapens the whole range of products concerned, making them associated with toys and fads. It might be crazy - but I think I'd be be less likely to buy a product where a pink coloured version also exists in the range. Anyway, rant over - but I want the manufacturers to realise that for every pink device they sell, they may well be losing out tens of sales in more normal colours.
Back to the VPC-CS1, I won't be trading in my trusty Sony TG3 camera yet, but it wouldn't take too much for Sanyo, Sony or even someone else to get me to upgrade - they would just have to bring out a new camera that meets all these requirements.
Vertical Orientation
Pocket Size
Wide Angle Lens (I'd happily sacrifice my 10x zoom for an 8x if I could get a wider angle lens)
Auto Lens Cap - Absolutely essential for a one handed camera
720p - I'm not too bothered about 1080p in a pocket camera - it's also easier to edit (forget 1080i)
60fps - This would enable me to do better slow-motion.
Decent & quick Still Photos - good enough so I won't need my Panasonic Lumix TZ10
GPS for Photos - I want all my photos GPS tagged from now on
Touch Screen -
Decent Battery Life -with swappable batteries
Good Stabilisation -
Microphone-In socket - Many people ask for this, but it's rarely included
Multi Speed Zoom - This should be standard
One Thumb Operation - For stop, start, zoom etc.
Comfortable ergonomic design
In the video I also indulge myself by stating the case for the vertical oriented camcorder - this is a very important feature for me and I felt I needed to defend this format. I have no idea why everyone seems to buy horizontal cameras, for me the design makes no sense at all. However people do, and as a result this is what the manufacturers make. The vertical camera design as used in the Sanyo CS1 makes so much more sense to me - and hopefully after watching the video you'll understand why I'm so enthusiastic about this orientation of camera over the traditional style. If you don't want to listen to me going on and would rather see the review itself, just skip 5 minutes into the video.
Unfortunately I have a bad feeling that the Sony TG5 / TG7 might be the end of the line for the vertical style of camera from Sony. The last time this range was revised was in 2009 - and Sony now appear to be concentrating on 3D and the Bloggie range instead. So that leaves Sanyo as the last man standing in the quality vertical camcorder game and I await their future models with great interest.
Most companies currently appear to be involved in a race to the bottom and are attempting to make the cheapest Flip competitor - but the way that the cameras in mobile phones are improving year on year, this appears to be a very short sighted strategy. The alternative is people shooting videos using a SLR or Micro 4/3 camera, this is fine for the high-end of the market - but there is plenty of room in the middle for someone to bring out a convenient and powerful pocket camcorder to suit my needs.
Reader Comments (9)
Hi - Thanks for all the reviews ! I was looking at the small ( cheap ) spy type camcorders but have just purchased the Sanyo on the strength of your review - £99.99 on eBay for a ' returned to manufacturer ' / 'new - other' - so I hope it's OK ! I did find a company selling it at £109 + postage of £8, but went for the eBay one. Just wondered if you could recommend what class of SD card to use and a rough idea of how much space an hour of HD video takes up ? Thanks again, Malcolm.
@Malcolm. Unfortunately I can't confirm the recording time per GB as I no longer have the camera, it was only a loaner and went back to Sanyo. I suggest you use a Class 6 or higher card, I'd probably get a 16GB one, then you know you have more than enough recording space, you might want a spare battery too.
Hi, Thanks very much for your prompt reply - I'll order a card now !
Malcolm.
Amazing review as always. and I gotta say I love the pink color when I saw it in person and after this review, I went ahead and bought them at my local store.
Hi - Love your fantastic website and the excellent impartial reviews. After watching loads of your reviews I decided I would go for the Sanyo VPC CS1. After much searching, I found it on Ebay for an astounding £54.99 with free shipping. I have ordered the camera and hope it really is as advertised, I will let you know if it’s a con.
The Ebay web address is:- http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&clk_rvr_id=304552681520&item=120821844415
and for that price I can live with the pink case.
Thanks again for your super website and the witty dry humour.
Regards
Alan
Just a quick update on my purchase of a Sanyo VPC CS1 Camcorder.
The Ebay website price is a bargain. My camera arrived this morning and was as stated brand new and in a sealed Sanyo box. The camera tested out perfectly, so go grab a bargain for £54.99
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&clk_rvr_id=304552681520&item=120821844415
@Alan. Thats great news - as long as you can live with the pink then you can get a bargain. The ease of editing the footage from the Sanyo is a big selling point too, you won't lose quality the same way I do when converting my 1080i AVCHD footage from my Sony camcorder.
WaHaaY! I'm skint and am desperate to replace my old Sony camcorder that broke... I had been squeaking by withe the video from my compact but now there's sand in the lens drive so its always out of focus... If only I could find somewhere selling a really cheap decent camcorder I'd be over the moon! Oh, did I mention my fav colour is... pink! No seriously... I've a pink wallet, a pink phone and a pink camera case...even my editing pc is pink :o) Thank you allan... theres 5 left!
Hello from sunny Australia! I have the slightly bigger version of this one, the VPC-GH1, and I have used it as a helmet cam when I am out riding my mountain bike. I was so impressed that I bought 2 others and have one on the helmet, one on the seatpost, and the other as spare. They are very light, easy to use, and produce high quality video (I always use full 1929 x 1980 HD at 60fps). My only complaint is the short battery life. They are fitted with an 800mAh battery, which in reality is probably closer to 600mAh, and lasts only 35 minutes. However, the solution is to buy 4 batteries and change them regularly, also turn off the Autofocus mode and use Manual focus set to infinity. This stops the electronic drive motor in the focus mechanism from working flat out trying to keeps everything focussed! It also stays focussed down to a few metres, it's just out of focus for the few brief milliseconds as I go over the handlebars and hit the dirt with my face/helmet/camera! I would thoroughly recommend these as a good alternative to the GoPro.
Here is a recent video for you to check out http://youtu.be/yxOeRWmH9rc
Finally, I have just received one of the mini 720HD cam (Y3000?) that you reviewed a few months ago. I am surprised at the quality!