If the VDR-D100 is the no-frills entry-level model in Panasonic's line of DVD camcorders, then the VDR-D200 is the few-frills entry. The VDR-D200's MSRP is $50 more than the entry-level model, and while it offers a few notable extras, the VDR-D200 has the same body styling, optical suite and video performance. Also like the lower-price VDR-D100, the VDR-D200 offers a greater degree of manual control than many comparable DVD camcorders.

The VDR-D200 is compatible with write-once DVD-R and rewriteable DVD-RW and DVD-RAM. The DVD format offers plenty of convenience and flexibility. For example, recording video to DVD-R enables you to play the disc back in most home DVD players, without the need to first transfer the video to a home computer. The overall video performance of the VDR-D200 is solid but not spectacular. In normal lighting situations, video images are clean and sharp with good color accuracy.

One of the VDR-D200's major improvements over the VDR-D100 is its ability to capture digital stills, which can be saved to SD memory card or DVD. While the inclusion of stills capability and a memory card slot is certainly handy, there is no way the VDR-D200 will ever replace a dedicated stills camera. This camcorder records stills at a maximum resolution of 640X480.

Like the VDR-D100, the VDR-D200 incorporates a 1/6-inch CCD imager with 680,000 effective pixels for video, along with a powerful 30X optical/1,000X digital zoom capability and an effective digital image stabilization system. The joystick control and menu system are easy to master, and the VDR-D200 combines automatic point-and-shoot simplicity with plenty of manual control. You can manually adjust gain, shutter speed, aperture, white balance and focus. The VDR-D200 also has an LED light, additional computer editing software and PictBridge compatibility.

This camcorder's principle advantage over the VDR-D100 is the addition of digital stills capability. If the ability to capture still images is important to you, the Panasonic VDR-D200 may be worth the additional $50.

Pros:  Easy to use, great manual controls, includes stills capability
Cons:  Limited stills capability may not warrant the extra $50, so the VDR-D100 is a better value

Warranty
90 days labor, 1 year parts