The PV-DV601 - a Consumer Cam Workhorse.

Is there such a beast? Sure there is. It was last year's Panasonic, PV-DV601. The cam is large, puffy, but solid and easy to grip. It has a host of features, even a large LCD screen, a built in light---everything the semi-pro can ask for to shoot nice video in all sorts of conditions. It's CCD size is average, 1/4", but overall, the pixel count is low so the pixels are large---"good low lux" for acceptable video. The 360K effective video pixels boosts a rich image; and I'm sure that the wide F1.6 lens also has plenty to do with creating nice footage in lower light. Did I mention the PV-DV601 also has a 20X optical zoom? That's twice as much zoom as the average cam. In my opinion, this cam certainly is the best bang for the buck. Actually, it's more, it's a consumer cam workhorse. And some people were lucky enough to have bought one, before it disappeared to make room for its down-sized replacement. They only thing that bothers me is that I never did buy one (for me or my wife). It was certainly affordable.

Oh, the PAL version is called the NV-DS25. It was selling even cheaper, here in Vancouver.

I sure miss not having this cam. Good lux---it even has a built-in light---perfect for wedding videography on the cheap.

Frank

Are you sure that's the right PAL equivalent? I have an old (2001) UK What Camcorder mag that lists the DS25 in the buyers guide and there's no mention of a video light, and only 2.5 LCD. (DV601 is 3.0 I believe) or are these just variations of basically the same model. I found a picture of DV601 on the net and it looks different, but the picture in my mag is very small. Just wondering.

Richard

It's a variation, I think. I can't recall now. By the way, I've looked at the DS25. There's an electronics shop not too far from where I live that carry PAL Sonys, JVCs and Panasonics, along with TVs, VCRs etc.

I wonder, DS27 maybe? I'll have to check. Thanks for pointing this out.

Here's a pic and info:

http://www.profeel.com/pvdv601.htm

It's quite a large cam, actually, for a 1 chip.

Here's a little about the NV-DS25A:

http://www.zdnet.com.au/reviews/coolgear/cameras/story/0,2000023533,20106440,00.htm

The other day I saw a PV-DV601 display model all puffed up and sitting pretty at the Broadway London Drugs here in Vancouver. It's just waiting, with the price all marked down. Anyone here in Vancouver wanting a good 1 chip on the cheap---it's waiting for you.

PS: good LUX, with DIS turned off. :)

this was my first video camera. i had it for about a year before i sold it - i shot a 30 minute skateboard video that i took to vhs with it. picture quality was great, low light with the nightshot type feature was great as well. manual focus was a life saver, especially when using fisheye lenses that caused the auto focus to sometimes hunt unecessarily.

the playback with this camera is snappy and easy to use - i actually wished my gl2 was like this for playback.

the built in still camera isn't the greatest - it only takes pictures at 720x480 but like most dvcams this is kind of like a bonus feature added on.

it comes with a remote and the battery life is decent.

i payed around 1600 canadian for this two years ago and put hundreds of hours on it and it worked flawlessly.

cheers,
harry

I saw these 601's around at late as the late spring of '03, going for about $1399 Canadian. Nice solid cam with a big F1.6 lens and 20X zoom. Lots of features; good manual controls. I should have bought one. It would have been good for indoor, lower light type shooting.