Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10 Camcorder Product Review

The Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10 camcorder is the new addition to Sanyo's Xacti line up with improved features. From capturing videos to stills and back it's like having two devices in one compact, flip style, pistol-grip camcorder.

The Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10 is a light weight pocketable camcorder that has 5x optical zoom, a high quality 3 inch 230,000-pixel rotating LCD which acts as the view finder and can be positioned at your preferred angle so that your subject stays clearly in view and has the ability to shoot 10 megapixel stills at a resolution of 3,648-by-2,736 just like any other digital cameras, plus a variety of manual controls.

The unique pistol grip design of the Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10 makes it more comfortable to hold and the controls can easily be navigated using the thumb. However for users with smaller hands they might find a tough time using the Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10 comfortably.

The microphone of the Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10 is positioned at the back of the LCD panel which is very good in picking up audio but not so great with wind noise but still better than other comparable camcorder. You still won't find any filter threads or built in lens cover however it comes with a hard rubber cap that you can attach to the camcorder and snap it over the lens. Below the lens is a flash that functions only when taking stills.

The Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10 runs on Lithium-Ion battery which can be charged only by removing it and inserting it in the included battery charger. It stores images and videos on an SD card.

On the other hand, the SD card slot as well as the power button of the Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10 is located inside handgrip. The tripod mount and a USB/AV port are found at the bottom. However, the camcorder comes with only a composite-out cable and costs an extra $25.

The controls of the Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10 are located at the back and are positioned well enough to give ease in operation using your thumbs. The upper right portion of the Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10 is a video-record button while the shutter release is located on the left. Between the two is the zoom control.

The other controls are located below the shutter and video record button. These are the tiny five-way joystick used to navigate your way on the display screen and the menu buttons. The good thing is that the joystick is also programmable to change the settings like the ISO, exposure compensation, flash to name a few.

With Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10, everything is not all about high-end stuffs since you still get the things that you would normally expect to see in simple still cameras. The features include face-detection AF, filters, scene modes, and exposure, focus, and ISO controls. On the other hand, you also get controls for video like manual and semi manual controls which are really hard to find in other pocket camcorders.

When recording videos, video sharpness is at the average, motion is smooth but riddled with artifacting also its video is often over saturated outdoors and a little murky indoors. As to taking still images on the Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10, the color accuracy and clarity are practically unrivaled.

On the other hand, the sharpness produced by Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10 is quite good but with plenty of oversharpening, it leaves your photos looking slightly pixilated. The Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10 also featured shutter speed range from 4 seconds to 1/1500 but it seems to take forever to capture a shot and get ready to take another thus you might miss the perfect moment scene.

Over all performance of the Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10 camcorder comes close to being a good option for both video and photo capture not to mention it is inexpensive for a 10 megapixel resolution with 5x optical zoom considering its sub $200 price, definitely worth it.

Kaitlyn Chantry, "Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10 Camcorder Review" CamcorderInfo
Christopher Breen, "Sanyo Xacti VPC-CG10 Review" Macworld