dv953 or gs200
 

I have a hard time to make up my mind. The price difference between the two cameras is only about $100. I'm a little concerned about the poor low light in dv953. My budget is about $1100. Should I get gs200 and some extra accessories? I'd appreciate suggestions including what accessories to get?

How much better would the GS200 be in low light? Which cam would have that high resolution? Which cam is the more solid with better features?[list=1][*]Not much[*]PV-DV953[*]PV-DV953[/list=1]Compare the 2 for yourself before deciding.

Also see this long thread about GS200 impressions:

http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthrea...threadid=22917

In general if you're concerned about low light then you'll probably be disappointed with any 1/6" 3CCD cam. While one might be slightly better than the other its not going to be enough to solely warrant the purchase of one over another.

Here are a few low light pics to give you an idea.

DV953/MX5000 (1/6" 800k 3CCD)

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2002-...ightmx5000.jpg

NV-GS70 similar to NV-GS120 (1/6" 460k 3CCD)

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2002-.../nightgs70.jpg

NV-GS100 similar to NV-GS200 (1/6" 800k 3CCD)

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2002-...nightgs100.jpg

Canon GL2 (1/4" 380k 3CCD)

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2002-...5/nightGL2.jpg

Sony VX2000 (1/3" 340k 3CCD)

http://img.villagephotos.com/p/2002-...ightvx2000.jpg

Liang,
There are photos and videos of the DV953 and the GS200 on my website. If you are into a wide range of shooting, including frame mode and 16:9, your only choice right now (short of a GS100) is the DV953. There won't be a full f/stop of difference between the low light ability of the two cameras (about the same as the difference between the TRV950/PDX10 and the DV953.

Thank you all for your input. I thought the low light performance of gs200 is better after reading the review on Camcorderinfocom. (http://www.camcorderinfo.com/content/panasonic-pv-gs200-camcorder-review.htm). Did I misunderstand the review? I must admit that I know little about video photography. That's why I appreciate the resources on this forum very much and try to learn as much as possible from your expertise. Could someone comment on the review (or on my misreading of it)? Now I'm leaning toward dv953.

Those are not the best reviews in the world but at least they have gotten better. A lot of times a review includes low light modes (ie choppy low shutter speeds and high gain) with native low light performance. It can be very confusing and then when you go to demo a cam at a store they have it brightly lit and again its difficult to gauge.

For decent cam reviews, including a review on the PV-DV953/MX5 and GS200 go here:

http://www.dvspot.com/

I like the new reviewer at camcorderinfo.com.

Liang,
You didn't misread the review. The low light performance of the GS200 and GS120 will be better than the DV953. However, this difference is slight.

Young, I didn't claim one review was better than another, I just gave you more reviews to read including one posted here by Allan; but dvspot always has decent cam reviews with the straight dope, and the straight dope is what really counts.

In terms of low-light, the GS200 is better than the 953 based on official specs, based on video engine (noise reduction), based on published reviews, based on sample frame grabs on those reviews, and based on my observations (SUBJECTIVE)...BUT...if I were to choose between the 953 and the 200, I would choose the 953 ANYTIME.

Among other reasons, the 200 is simply not sharp enough for my taste.

Just light it up or shoot towards or very near the few light sources (under lowlight).

Point of reference (this is just my observation based on a crude method of testing low-light and comparisons based on published reports in Japanese).

The GS100 uses the same engine as the GS200.

The GS100 at 18db is noticeably cleaner than the MX5000 (953) at 15db.

Comparison of frame grabs (of the same low-light scene) taken using the GS70 and GS100 show that GS70 has less flaring than the GS100.

Comparison of frame grabs (of the same low-light scene) taken using the GS70 and GS200 show that GS200 has less flaring than the GS70.

But, I would still choose the 953 anytime over the 200.

for me OIS is a must... I'll go for DV953 too

It is clear that dv953 is overwhelmingly preferred. I've decided to go with this camera. Thank you all very much for helping me to reach this decision.