 Good for bright locations Strengths: Small size, big hard drive, USB and Etherenet connectivity
Weaknesses: Poor low light performance, expensive replacement battery, confusing interface, no printed manual
Summary: 2007-01-12 16:27:31 I have used the Toshiba GSC-R60 for a week now. From opening the box to first video was about 15 minutes excluding the 2 hour charging time. Set up for use is very easy, and basic operation is similar to other camcorders. Performance is mixed and operation is complex. Overall it's a powerful package that will get a lot more use than my DV camcorder. But, it feels like it's a couple of updates away from getting it right.
Outdoor performance is excellent. Both photos and video are bright with good color. Bright indoor scenes are acceptable. Recording in low light - like standard evening indoor home lighting is difficult. Both photos (with flash) and video are grainy. Light performance is probably on a par with my four year old Sony DV camcorder.
The 2 megapixel still camera function could use a few more pixels. This resolution seems out of step with the cutting edge feel of the unit.
The storage capacity is phenomenal. Hundreds of photos and a half hour of video at highest quality leave over 13 hours of estimated storage on the hard drive.
The interface is difficult at best. Many layers of menus. Some controls for use during video recording require accessing a nested menu. This is one of the most complicated pieces of consumer electronics I have ever used. It will take many sessions to master creating folders and properly configuring for optimum use.
Having said that, I was able to take acceptable quality video and photos right away. Playback on a TV was a breeze.
The PDF manual is over 200 pages - no paper manual. Most hardware does not need a printed manual. The GSC-R60 definitely does. You will need to print it out if you want to be able to know how to accomplish most complex functions. The manual is relatively complete in explaining how to do things, but lacks explanations of what some functions are for. For example, what's the difference between the Trash folder icon and the arts icon? There probably is none, but the manual does not explain.
The SD card slot allows for storing photos and video on the chip rather than the hard drive. I don't think you can store photos on the chip and record on the hard drive at the same time. It is either the chip or the HD for both formats. Not a big problem, but at 2 megapixels, saving photos to chip while saving video to the HD makes sense.
Connection to the PC was very simple and quick. Camera in the cradle. Plug in power and USB cables. Press the USB button, and the PC recognizes and installs the drivers. The hard drive is recognized as an external drive.
Watching the videos with media player is easy, although I had to install a codec that Media player did not have and did not recognize. I installed a freeware codec pack, and playback was easy.
Overall I would recommend this unit for anyone who likes to have cutting edge type of gear. A casual user will not be able to fully utilize the GSC-R60 and will probably be frustrated with the complex controls.
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