http://www.pcpro.co.uk/reviews/253371/samsung-hmxr10.html
Samsung HMX-R10 [PC Pro]
COMPANY: Samsung PRICE: £279 (£325 inc VAT)
RATING: ISSUE: 178 DATE: May 09
LATEST PRICES: £347.10 (3 Retailers)
Verdict: Sleek, sexy and capable of shooting decent quality video,
the R10 is a great value all-rounder.
Samsung isn't shy when it comes to product
design, and its latest camcorder, the Samsung
HMX-R10, has to be among the most unusual
looking we've ever come across. Flat on one side
with a sumptuous brushed-aluminium finish,
concave on the other, rounded at each end and
with the lens cut into the nose at a rakish, 45-degree angle: by all
rights it should be ugly, but in the flesh it's highly alluring.
Not only is this a good-looking design, it's also practical. Build
quality is second to none, beautifully made and very compact, and
with the lens pointing upwards you don't have to cock your wrist
back uncomfortably in order to shoot straight ahead. After the
initial weird feeling, you realise it's a concept that works
extremely well.
The HMX-R10 looks and feels like an expensive camcorder, so it's
surprising to find it available at the relatively low price of £279 exc
VAT. It's even more surprising to find that's it's so well specified: it
boasts an 8x zoom and electronic image stabilisation;
shoots in full HD at 1080/50i
for an effective 25fps (at 17Mbits/sec), or
720p at 50fps and a bitrate of 12Mbits/sec;
and it also takes nine-megapixel stills. Plus,

there are a couple of fun slow motion modes to play with as well
and an integrated stereo microphone.
What it clearly isn't, however, is an enthusiast's device. In the
interest of clean design there are few external controls - just the
requisite zoom, record and a dedicated stills shutter button -
which means adjustments to shutter speed, aperture and the like
must be made via the HMX-R10's 2.7in touchscreen. Neither is
there an accessory shoe, headphone or microphone.
There's no optical image stabilisation either. But
the electronic stabilisation does work very well,
locking on after a second or so to provide steady
handheld images, even at extended zoom. Quality
is pretty good too. In low light there our tests
showed noticeable grain but little RGB noise, while
colour accuracy was generally spot-on. Outside, the small lens
meant detail capture wasn't the sharpest, but, again, colours
were very good.
The Samsung HMX-R10 is a very likeable camcorder: it looks and
feels fantastic, it's highly pocketable, and it takes good quality
footage at high resolutions. It's not quite up there with our A List
choices, such as the Sanyo Xacti VPC-HD2000 for example, but
its comparatively low price means it's a fine alternative.
By Jonathan Bray
SPECIFICATIONS:
1,080/50i H.264 MP4 format (1,920 x 1,080 pixels), 9MP stills,
9MP CMOS, 8x optical zoom, electronic image stabiliser, 2.7in
touch-sensitive TFT, remote control, 1yr RTB warranty, 128 x 57 x
38mm (WHD), 231g.