Samsung HMX-R10

Auto Mode (10.02)

The Easy Q button puts the camcorder into a simple auto mode.

The Samsung HMX-R10 features a dedicated auto mode called Easy Q. We're not sure what the 'Q' stands for (maybe it means 'quick?'), but the mode is definitely easy to use. What it does is it puts all the camcorder's controls on auto—except for zoom—and enables you to simply worry about framing your shot. With Easy Q engaged you can't even access the camcorder's menu to adjust settings. Because of this, Easy Q has a few quirks. For example, if you have the camcorder set to 720/50p recording and you turn on Easy Q mode, the camcorder will continue to record at 720/50p. You have to turn off Easy Q, change the record setting, and turn Easy Q back on if you want to go back to the default record option. Easy Q mode also automatically engages the R10's Digital Image Stabilisation system.

If you're a more experienced user, or you just don't like the idea of using an 'easy' mode, you can still run the camcorder with automatic controls outside of Easy Q mode. Each manual control—like focus, aperture, and shutter speed—can be set to manual or automatic separately in the camcorders menu. This means you can turn on manual focus, while leaving everything else automated (or you could do the same with aperture or shutter speed).

Auto exposure and autofocus worked quite well on the HMX-R10. Autofocus was fast and exposure adjustments were smooth when we moved the camcorder from light to dark shooting environments. There was some problems with overexposing bright scenes, but this is common in mid-range camcorders. The auto white balance setting was okay, but we recommend setting a manual white balance whenever possible (especially indoors under mixed light).

There are also two options to supplement the camcorder's automatic image adjustments: Backlight Compensation and Face Detection.

Low Light Modes
The R10 has a special low light mode called Super C.Nite. This mode has two different settings: normal and super. 'Normal' Super C.Nite is a regular auto slow shutter mode, which will activate a slower shutter speed (down to 1/25) if the camcorder detects a dark enough environment. 'Super' Super C.Nite fixes the shutter speed at 1/13 of a second. There are also scene modes called Night and Candlelight, which seem to activate an auto slow shutter, as well as alter white balance, and other image settings.

Scene Modes
The Samsung HMX-R10 has a handful of scene modes, called iSCENE. They're pretty much the same standard fare you'll find on most camcorders. Options include: Auto, Night, Sports, Portrait, Spotlight, Beach/Snow, Food, and Candlelight.

Zoom (6.0)

The Samsung R10 has the same disappointing zoom controls as previous iterations of Samsung camcorders. The toggle itself is more than adequate. It gives the impression that variable finger pressure will produce variable zoom speeds with perfect responsiveness. Unfortunately, this is all an illusion. The toggle may seem to respond to different finger pressures, but there is only a single, fast zoom speed. If you want something a little slower, you can use the zoom buttons on the LCD panel; these also only offer a single zoom speed, but it's slower than the speed produced by the toggle.

The rear-mounted zoom toggle		An additional zoom toggle is located on the LCD panel.

While zooming, a small scale will appear on the screen, giving you your general position in the overall zoom range. It will not tell you the precise zoom ratio measurement.

Zoom Ratio (2.55)

The R10 is equipped with a 5x optical zoom and an 8x Intelli-Zoom. The Intelli-Zoom is the equivalent of Advanced Zoom from other manufacturers: the optical zoom range is increased, without a negative impact on image quality. There is no option to turn off Intelli-Zoom. The camcorder also has a 100x digital zoom feature—which severely degrades image quality when used.

Zoom Comparisons
Wide Angle	Mid Zoom	8x Zoom

Focus (3.75)

The R10 offers three varieties of focus: full auto focus, full manual focus, and touch point focus. The manual focus works like many of the other image controls on the R10: a scale on the touch screen allows you to make adjustments by tapping on either end of the scale. While at first glance there appear to be distance markers for each focal increment, these disappear as soon as you start adjusting the focus. If you want to see the distance measurement for the manual focus level you've selected, you'll have to back out and reselect manual focus. It's too bad there isn't a distance measurement for each individual increment.

Using the touch screen to manually focus is awful...		... but the Touch Point focus system works very well.

Using manual focus at all can be an unwieldy experience. First of all, you have to use the touch screen, which forces you to obscure the frame with your own finger. Secondly, there are so many increments that any significant focus adjustment is very tedious. Finally, there are no focus assist tools to guide you into making the correct focus selection.

The touch point focus, on the other hand, is quite reliable and intuitive. You can either select Touch Point from the focus sub menu or press one part of the screen for about two seconds.

Exposure Controls

+2.0, +1.6, +1.3, +1.0, +0.6, +0.3, 0, -0.3, -0.6, -1.0, -1.3, -1.6, -2.0

Aperture Controls

f/3.5, f/4, f/4.5, f/5, f/5.6, f/6.3, f/7, f/8, f/9, f/10, f/11.2, f/12.6, f/14,  f/16

Shutter Speeds

In Auto mode (50i and 25p frame rates): 1/60, 1/100, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, 1/2000, 1/4000, 1/10000 In Super C.Nite mode ('Normal'): camcorder automatically selects from 1/25, 1/60, 1/100, 1/250, 1/500, 1/1000, 1/2000, 1/4000, 1/10000 In Super C.Nite mode ('Super'): 1/13

White Balance Controls

Auto, Daylight, Cloudy, Fluorescent, Tungsten, Custom

Gain Controls

None

Exposure (7.2)

Exposure is adjusted manually on the R10 using the EV (Exposure Value) tool. There are a total of thirteen increments available for adjusting image brightness.

Adjusting exposure on the R10

Aperture (7.5)

Aperture can be adjusted manually on the R10, independent of shutter speed or any other image controls. When the tool is selected, you use the touch screen to raise and lower the aperture on a small slider. The tool is intuitive, but we don't like making image adjustments with a touch screen, where you have to block your view of the shot in order to shift the aperture. The available aperture range is f/3.5-f/16.

Adjusting aperture on the camcorder

Shutter Speed (5.6)

The R10 also gives the user direct control over shutter speed, utilizing a similar sliding bar on the touch screen. When recording at 50i, the available range is 1/60 through 1/10000. The only way to get a slower shutter speed is by activating a special low light mode: the Night or Candlelight scene modes, or Super C.Nite. In the 'Normal' setting of Super C.Nite, an auto slow shutter will reduce the shutter speed to 1/25 if the scene requires it. (You can't select 1/25 manually). In the 'Super' setting of Super C.Nite, shutter speed is fixed at 1/13.

Shutter speed can be set manually on the R10.

White Balance (8.0)

The Samsung HMX-R10 has the same typical list of white balance pre-sets that are available on all Samsung camcorders—and most consumer camcorders, for that matter. There is an auto mode, two outdoor, and two indoor settings. The Fluorescent actually looked quite good to the naked eye, but the Tungsten setting was less successful in responding the the wide variety of colour temperatures that tungsten lights often produce. Similarly, auto white balance had varying degrees of effectiveness, depending on the lighting conditions.

Fortunately, there is a manual white balance option, which works very well in anything but the darkest scenarios. Just select Custom WB, hit okay, and the camcorder will take about one second to make its adjustment. The tool is very fast, simple to use, and effective.

Setting the white balance manually is a cinch.

Gain (0.0)

There's no manual gain control on the HMX-R10. You can, however, adjust ISO manually in photo mode (the feature isn't available in video mode). Most mid-range camcorders don't offer any kind of manual gain control, although a few manufacturers are beginning to include some gain options. JVC allows for auto gain to be turned on and off, Sanyo offers ISO control for video, and Canon's high-end models have an auto gain limiter function. Panasonic is the only manufacturer to offer direct gain adjustment, although the aperture must be all the way open before gain can be set.

Colour & Image Controls (1.0)

Colour/Image Control	Description
3D-NR (3-Dimension Noise Reduction)	Reduces noise levels, especially in low light recording (see Noise and Low Light Noise)

Other Manual Controls (2.0)

Control	Description
Super Macro	This option allows you better focus when recording items very close to the lens. The effective focal range in Super Macro mode is 1-10cm (.39-3.93 in.).
Guide Lines	Puts grid lines on the LCD screen to help you frame your shot (the lines won't appear on the recorded footage). The R10 has three options of guide lines—a basic four-quadrant cross, a centre marker, or a 9-section grid.

Samsung HMX-R10 Comparisons
JVC GZ-X900	Sanyo VPC-HD2000	Canon HF S100