GR-HD1 HD Digital Camcorder

Almost all digital camcorders allow you to capture freeze-frames as still digital image files-basically giving your camcorder double-billing as a digital camera too. You can then transfer these image files to your computer for printing, e-mailing, or uploading to your favorite online photo album.

If this feature is important to you, you'll want to be sure that the camcorder has "progressive scan." In progressive scan mode, the image is entirely scanned in one pass so that you do not get the jagged-edge results of a two-scan pass over a moving image. This results in smoother, more detailed images.

If you have (or intend to have) other electronic devices that employ digital memory cards, you should try to get a digital camcorder that uses the same type of cards. The cards are NOT cheap, so you don't want to have one brand-specific memory card for your camcorder, another for your PDA, and yet another for your MP3 player. If possible, stay away from camcorders that require proprietary memory cards (eg, "Memory Stick") and stick with those that accept more universal cards (eg, "Smart Media").