JVC GZ-X900

Still Features (13.36)

Since the JVC GZ-X900 is marketed as a true video/photo hybrid device, the camcorder is packed with a hefty amount of still features. First of all, the camcorder supports a native, 9-megapixel still image capability. This means, photos can be taken at a maximum resolution of 3456 x 2592—without any interpolation. This is an excellent resolution for a camcorder and it approaches the pixel count that the average point-and-shoot camera is capable of (usually 10 - 12 megapixels). There are a number of camcorders currently being touted as the next great photo/video hybrid. The Samsung HMX-R10 and the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 are probably the two most similar to the GZ-X900. The Sanyo VPC-CG10 also performed amazingly in our photo testing.

The camcorder's flash sits just above the lens.

Along with its high still image resolution, the GZ-X900 also offers ISO control for photos, a built-in flash, numerous image size options, scene modes, a self-timer, face detection, and a couple of motor-drive continuous shooting modes. The continuous shooting modes are one of the most intriguing still features on the X900, but they are also the most confusing to understand and use. First of all, the continuous shooting button isn't labelled at all (it's the button on the bottom of the LCD panel, underneath the icon showing numerous tiny rectangles). Press this button once and you turn on exposure bracketing. Bracketing takes 5 photos in a row, each with slightly different exposure settings. This is ideal if you're not quite sure how you want to expose your photo or if you're shooting in a oddly-lit environment. Pressing the continuous shooting button a second time brings up the high-speed motor drive shooting mode.

In photo mode, the high-speed motor drive shots can be up to 9-megapixels and a maximum of 15 frames per second. To change the speed of the shots, you have to go into the camcorder's menu, select Basic Settings, and change the Continuous Shooting Speed option. Here, you can switch between high speed (15fps), medium (7fps), and low (2fps). The high and medium speeds both have a 6 image limit for continuous shots, while the low speed has no limit.

In video mode, turning on the same high-speed motor drive function produces entirely different results. You have the same high, medium, and low speed options, but images top out at 5.3-megapixels and 50fps. High speed does the 50fps (11 images max), medium goes at 11fps (also 11 images max) and low speed runs at 4fps (no image limit). We found these two high-speed photography modes to be very confusing to use, with JVC offering little help inside its instruction manual (which tells the user to adjust a setting that doesn't even exist).

While the GZ-X900 doesn't offer scene modes for shooting video, it does have a wide variety for photos. Switch the mode dial over to Scene Mode and you get to select from Portrait, Landscape, Landscape & Portrait, Twilight, Night & Portrait, Sleeping Face, Snow, Beach, Sports, Food, Fireworks, Document, Close-up, Forest, and Sunset. This is a large selection of scene mode options, but it is rather strange that JVC doesn't include at least some of them in video mode.

The Scene Modes only work with still images.

If you're looking for flash controls in the GZ-X900's menu, you won't find them. The flash is controlled by a small gray button on the back of the camcorder. When you press it, the various flash settings appear on the screen: on, off, auto, red-eye reduction, and slow shutter. The flash is located ion the front of the camcorder, just above the lens, and we found it to work quite well.

The Main menu in still mode...		... and the Manual Setting menu in still mode

All the manual controls that are available in video mode can also be adjusted in photo mode—focus, focus assist, exposure, shutter, etc. JVC also throws in manual ISO control in photo mode, which is a feature rarely found on camcorders (but often seen on digital point-and-shoots). The self-timer can be set to 2 seconds, 10 seconds, or face detection. When set to face detection, the camcorder will automatically start the counter when a new face is detected within the frame. This is ideal for setting up large group shots and the system worked fairly well when we tried it out.

Still Colour (9.94)

Since JVC bills the GZ-X900 as a true video/photo hybrid, we had high expectations for the camcorder in the still images department. While it is clear that the X900 can take very good photos, it didn't have the best still performance we've ever seen from a consumer camcorder. The colours in its still images were very accurate—basically mirroring the camcorder's results from our bright light video testing. The GZ-X900 measured a colour error of 3.52 in our still colour testing with a saturation level of 106.2%. The saturation level is a good deal higher than the camcorder managed in our video testing, which means its still photos should have deeper, more vivid colours than its video footage. (More on how we test still colour.)

The still photography colour error map: the length and direction of each line indicates how the camcorder processed each particular colour.

The colour error map above shows how accurate the colours on the GZ-X900's still images were. The camcorder only had trouble with one green and a middle-light blue patch. For the most part, the colours reproduced by the X900 were spot-on. The thing is, the rest of the camcorders in this comparative set also had very good colour accuracy in their still images. The Panasonic HDC-HS300 even bested the GZ-X900 by a significant margin, as it put up a colour error of just 2.65.

JVC GZ-X900 Still Colour Comparisons
JVC GZ-X900	Sanyo VPC-HD2000
	JVC GZ-HD3200 captures 16:9 photos only
Panasonic HDC-HS300	JVC GZ-HD320

In the sample images above you can see that all these camcorders take good still images. The Sanyo VPC-HD2000 had an average colour error (4.14), but its image had a cool, blue tone, which may be offsetting for people who want true colour reproduction. The JVC GZ-HD320 also had a decent colour error (4.11), but it doesn't offer many size or quality options for still images—something that the GZ-X900 offers plenty of.

Still Noise (1.39)

The only big issue with the GZ-X900's still images is noise. The camcorder averaged 1.2% noise, which is higher than all three other camcorders we used as comparisons. This is also a higher noise percentage than the camcorder recorded in our bright light video testing, which is not a good sign. Considering the camcorder's impressive pixel count, we expected a much better still noise performance coming from the GZ-X900. Surprisingly, it was the GZ-HD320 that had the lowest noise levels amongst the 4 camcorders we used as comparisons. It averaged only 0.7% noise (although the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 and Panasonic HDC-HS300 weren't far behind). (More on how we test still noise.)

Still Sharpness (6.92)

The GZ-X900's still sharpness scores were good, but they weren't anything to write home about. The camcorder registered a horizontal sharpness of 1819 line widths per picture height (lw/ph) with 4.5% oversharpening. For vertical sharpness, the camcorder managed 1521 lw/ph with 4% oversharpening. The most impressive thing about these numbers is the low oversharpening percentages. Many camcorders add a tremendous amount of oversharpening to still images in an effort to boost sharpening and produce a more detailed image. The GZ-X900's photos look clear and natural because the camcorder applies little to no oversharpening. (More on how we test still sharpness.)

Now, the X900's actual sharpness results in lw/ph aren't that great. In fact, the Sanyo VPC-HD2000 did far better (2320 lw/ph horizontal, 2017 lw/ph vertical). The GZ-X900's numbers are roughly on par with the Panasonic HDC-HS300, although the TM300 had way more oversharpening. Recently, we've also seen some impressive still image results from the ultra-compact Sanyo VPC-CG10. Overall, we're a bit disappointed with the GZ-X900's still image performance. It isn't bad by any means, but the high noise levels and less-than-impressive still sharpness scores don't really live up to the GZ-X900's billing as a true video/photo hybrid.