Worldwide, there is a strong and growing trend toward large-screen, high-image-quality televisions and high-definition (HD) broadcasting. In line with this, manufacturers are transitioning to HD quality in all other types of video equipment too. Panasonic, consistent with its long-time position as a leader in the video field, is now introducing two advanced full-HD 3CCD camcorders, the HDC-SD9 and HDC-HS9.

The HDC-HS9 offers full-HD 1920 x 1080 progressive recording (25 frames per second) to capture images with a richness and beauty simply not possible with previous consumer camcorders. Users can record motion images with the kind of film-like quality enjoyed in movies at the cinema. The 17-Mbps bit rate of the HDC-HS9 gives superb image quality and motion response, while the high compression ratio enables one full hour of recording onto a 4-GB SD Memory Card (in HX mode) at full-HD resolution

It also has new features such as Face Detection and the Intelligent Shooting Guide, which make it easier to capture mistake-free shots. It also offers Panasonic's original 3CCD camera system, Advanced O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer), and a Leica Dicomar lens – three technologies that team up to deliver full-HD images of exquisite beauty. Viewed on today's high-quality large-screen TVs, video clips shot with the HDC-SD9 are simply breathtaking.

The HS9 is a hybrid model that records full-HD images onto either an SD (or SDHC) Memory Card or the built-in 60GB hard disk. A 16GB SDHC Memory Card can hold around six hours of recorded video clips, and the 60GB hard disk can hold around 23 hours (both in HE mode). This gives the HS9 a total capacity of around 29 hours of full-HD recording. The HS9 can copy recorded video images from the SD Memory Card to the hard disk, or vice versa, with easy operation.

The HS9 also features an outstanding 5.1-channel sound system with five microphones. When you listen to recordings made with the HS9 on a good surround sound audio system, you feel as if you're right in the scene. This adds to the awesome entertainment that comes with viewing HD images on a large-screen HDTV. Users can enjoy producing and viewing their own videos with a film-like richness and levels of picture and sound quality that have simply never been attainable until now. Full Model number - HDC-HS9EB-S