Rating: 
Summary: So good, it's very hard to find.
Review: After a good deal of research, I decided on buying this camcorder. Because of an immediate need, I ended up driving to another town and paying full price at Circuit City. In my opinion, it was worth it.
Picture quality is excellent - even better than what appears on the LCD or in the viewfinder. Being able to take still pictures while recording video is extremely conventient. True, it is a very complicated camcorder, but there are resources to assist users with this compexity. The owner's manual is huge, and difficult to navigate, but it is available online in PDF format, to make searches easy.
I recommend this site (http://www.camcorderinfo.com) for a comprehensive review, as well as a forum set up with a very helpful moderator to answer all questions.
Rating:
Summary: Great camcorder, excellent video
Review: After a great deal of research, I decided to buy this camcorder. This is really an awesome piece producing vivid and life-like colors. I personally compared videos shot from popular models like Sony DCRHC40, JVC GRD90, Canon ZR90 and Panasonic PV-GS200. The built-in 3 CCDs in GS200 rocks and the difference is easily visible and of almost broadcast quality.
I have no complaints about the image stabilizer. It performs as good as the other make/models I have tested, if not better.
Pros:
1. Video quality & color reproduction.
2. Top mounting cassette deck, easy to use on tripods.
3. No motor noice, very feeble on rewinding.
4. Compact size.
5. 3 CCD technology at affordable prize.
6. White balance and wealth of other manual controls.
7. Focus ring.
8. Battery life.
Cons:
1. Low light performance could have been better. Though Sony performs a little better, Panasonic is just above average under low light. I can live with it though - I wouldn't be shooting my home videos in the dark.
2. Zoom is only 10x. It is sufficient for most of my requirement, but other make/models give longer zoom range for the same price. (I found that at full 16x zoom in JVC, the camcorder shakes badly and becomes almost unusable without a tripod)
I would highly recommend this for anybody looking for a feature-rich, great quality camcorder for around $700.
Rating:
Summary: Finally I bought the GS200
Review: After months of looking around, We had to opt out of 3 Camcorders, the SONY DHRC40, Canon Optura 40 and the Panasonic GS200. And we went for the later one.
November 12th 2004:
As the Camcorder is only 2 days old, I will post the Initial Review and Add to it later.
Factors in Making us buy this camcorder:
1) 3 CCD, its not a hype.
2) Compact Size, and in fact the camcorder is really small and nice.
3) One can edit the voice later on when doing the Playback, I loved this option.
PROS:
1) It comes with a Remote like external mike and stuff, which has zoom controls and all needed buttons to operate the Camcorder, Excellent.
2) The Remote is wonderful
3) Night Shots are wonderful.
4) the Mic is big and is on the Front of the Camcorder, Voice Recording is wonderful.
CONS:
1) The Manual is very lousy.
2) EIS not effective when Camcorder on Full Zoom.
December 6th:
PROS:
1) The Camcorder records really well during the Night.
2) The day light recording easily surpasses any camcorder in this range.
3) Very Decent Battery life.
4) Decent features like the Cinema Mode, Timed Recording.
5) During Zero lux(no Light) it lets the LCD to become a sorce of light.
CONS:
1) Again, the manual is very lousy. Do not expect any help from it.
2) As my laptop does not have a IEEE1394 port, transferring Video to my PC aint possible. I have ordered a $40 PCMCIA card and a cable on Bizrate and will finally be able to transfer video.
3) PANASONIC doe not provide a Firewire Cable for connection to PC.
And again, because the manual does not have any word of how to connect it the computer, It took me some time to figure all this out.
Rating:
Summary: Panasonic sets the bar for compact, pro quality vid...
Review: As a previous owner of the 3CCD PVGS70, I was already familier with this camera's basic layout. The 3CCD system makes a noticable difference in color vibrancy. The controls under the lcd seem more robust and easier to use. The increased resolution of the new CCDs, and the addition of a firewire connection makes this just what the doctor ordered....My only complaint.... The included 8mb SD card will only hold about 4 pictures in fine quality.... NOTE TO PANASONIC - Throw it away and bring the price down a bit!!!! The money saved could go towards a 128 or 256 SD....I was already disapointed with the 8mb card included with the 1.2mp PVGS70. I was really hoping the 2.3mp PVGS200 would come with at least a 32mb (even a 16mb would have shown an effort).......Oh well...I guess I will just have to settle for excellent color and resolution...... It's only money right???
Rating: 
Summary: Panasonic GS200
Review: First off......why are all concerned about low light capabilities....most cameras are lowsy without some sort of external bulb. I had a GL2 which i recently sold because i no longer need to documentaries, and that camera needed an external light. Also the image stabilization is a joke. Like recent reviews. If you want perfection on screen then use a tripod and remote. Usually using the zoom won't keep you steady anyway. The GL2 had a powerful zoom but was shaky when held by hand. Gl2 is an awesome Prosumer camera. But thats what its for, a semi professional who is using it for non home use. The Panasonic GS200 is a superb below 1000 bucks small compact camera that is comparable in 3CCD video clarity as the GL2. I give the GS200 3 thumbs up. Those extra little features are for movie makers people, not Joe Schmo who is videoing his daughters sweet 16 and making a momento for future reference.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't buy high-end MiniDV
Review: I bought this product and played with it. But I decided to return it. The reason is simple: it's too complicated.First of all, when I opened the package, there is tons and tons of parts that I need to assemble. Certainly, you can think of it in a good way, if you think these are frills. Secondly, the software that comes with it is really of poor quality. It doesn't work well on Win2K. But my main point is that given the rapid technological advancements, the end of MiniDV is already insight. The picture quality of MiniDV cannot compete with Hi8. Yet, on the other hand, other media types, especially MiniDVD, is much more convenient to use for average users. Using a MiniDV camcoder you have to shoot, hook to a computer or TV, and transfer from MiniDV to some other media, e.g. VHS, or DVD, and requires an additional VCR or DVD burner. This is the same hassle as a Hi8. The only benefit is its cute, smaller form factor. Now look at MiniDVD. Same small form factor. But you shoot, and play! On a computer or with DVD player. That's it! No more transfer from tape to tape, or tape to DVD. And for the same price as GS200 you can get a Sony 201 MiniDVD camcorder. Other "less-prestigious" brands offer MiniDVD camcorder at even lower prices than GS200. It is well-known in marketing that for viewers of TV ads, there is a great wall between the 1-800 numbers on the screen and the actual phone, and few people would bother to make a call even if he is interested in the stuff. I'd tell you from my experience the same is between shooting a video, and then viewing it. Later on you don't even bother shooting a video, since you know you won't be viewing it anyway. The best solution to overcome that wall right now is the MiniDVD camcorder. And if you can affort a high-end MiniDV like this GS200, you can affort a MiniDVD equivalent.
Rating:
Summary: Great color. Wonderful lens for macro shots!
Review: I have a Canon $2,500 Canon GL2 camera to compare this to so my video standards are high. Good controls and ergonomics make it realatively easy to use. The manual is not great, but you won't need it too much because the controls are pretty intuitive. The low light properties are not great. A camera like the Canon GL2 blows it away due to the larger lens and CCD sensors. But with enough light, the video quality is impressive for such a small camera. Good resolution, and fantastic color. In fact, I may like the color of this camera more than the Canon. Beautiful greens. It works with iMovie on the Mac, except that the scene cut detection does not always come through. This camera has very good still photo quality for a camcorder. Very good color (probably due to the 3 CCDs). Very little chromatic aberation (purple fringing). Typical for camcorder stills, there is a little bit of visible noise and some of that "video" look. The biggest suprise was it's macro capability! You can focus just a few millimeters from the lens and get sharp, bright pictures. Definitely one of the best performers for the price and size.
Rating:
Summary: Great color. Wonderful lens for macro shots!
Review: I have a Canon $2,500 Canon GL2 camera to compare this to so my video standards are high. Good controls and ergonomics make it realatively easy to use. The manual is not great, but you won't need it too much because the controls are pretty intuitive. The low light properties are not great. A camera like the Canon GL2 blows it away due to the larger lens and CCD sensors. But with enough light, the video quality is impressive for such a small camera. Good resolution, and fantastic color. In fact, I may like the color of this camera more than the Canon. Beautiful greens. It works with iMovie on the Mac, except that the scene cut detection does not always come through. This camera has very good still photo quality for a camcorder. Very good color (probably due to the 3 CCDs). Very little chromatic aberation (purple fringing). Typical for camcorder stills, there is a little bit of visible noise and some of that "video" look. The biggest suprise was it's macro capability! You can focus just a few millimeters from the lens and get sharp, bright pictures. Definitely one of the best performers for the price and size.
Rating:
Summary: Finally, an affordable pro-quality camcorder
Review: I just got this so I'll give some first impressions. I'll come back in a month or two to fill in more details. In short, this is the camcorder you've been waiting for: vivid, almost broadcast-quality home videos. OK, that's assuming you know how to shoot steady and well-framed videos. The camcorder with its three CCD chips gives you the technical superiority over your next-door neighbors, but ultimately if you shoot trash, you get trash. But for those of us who know how to shoot like a pro (e.g., no in-camera zooming, steady and slow pans, no in-camera special effects), the results are simply amazing. If you, for example, are a serious amateur home-movie maker or an aspiring filmmaker, you'll definitely love this camcorder. Because this is an affordable camcorder, Panasonic seems to have cut a few (minor) corners. Indoor/night shots are no better than the average consumer 1-chip camcorder. Of course if you have plenty of lighting, you'll once again reap the benefits of having 3 CCDs to capture light. But if you just use existing indoor lighting you won't find this working wonders. Also its optical zoom is lower than many newer camcorders. As always, digital zoom is next to useless. The camcorder is pretty easy to set up and use; no Ph.D. in VCR programming required. For this review I just wanted to focus on its main selling point, the 3-chip video capture system. Other amenities include manual focus, 2MP digital still camera, remote controls, etc. Battery life seems average, after you cycle the battery properly a couple times. If you want to take beautiful (outdoor) videos and don't have a fat wallet, you should definitely consider getting this camcorder. NOTE: From what I read, the cheaper PV-GS120 model foregoes the manual focus ring, the wired remote and the flash. I assume that model has the same video quality as the GS200.
Rating:
Summary: Finally, an affordable pro-quality camcorder
Review: I just got this so I'll give some first impressions. I'll come back in a month or two to fill in more details. In short, this is the camcorder you've been waiting for: vivid, almost broadcast-quality home videos. OK, that's assuming you know how to shoot steady and well-framed videos. The camcorder with its three CCD chips gives you the technical superiority over your next-door neighbors, but ultimately if you shoot trash, you get trash. But for those of us who know how to shoot like a pro (e.g., no in-camera zooming, steady and slow pans, no in-camera special effects), the results are simply amazing. If you, for example, are a serious amateur home-movie maker or an aspiring filmmaker, you'll definitely love this camcorder. Because this is an affordable camcorder, Panasonic seems to have cut a few (minor) corners. Indoor/night shots are no better than the average consumer 1-chip camcorder. Of course if you have plenty of lighting, you'll once again reap the benefits of having 3 CCDs to capture light. But if you just use existing indoor lighting you won't find this working wonders. Also its optical zoom is lower than many newer camcorders. As always, digital zoom is next to useless. The camcorder is pretty easy to set up and use; no Ph.D. in VCR programming required. For this review I just wanted to focus on its main selling point, the 3-chip video capture system. Other amenities include manual focus, 2MP digital still camera, remote controls, etc. Battery life seems average, after you cycle the battery properly a couple times. If you want to take beautiful (outdoor) videos and don't have a fat wallet, you should definitely consider getting this camcorder. NOTE: From what I read, the cheaper PV-GS120 model foregoes the manual focus ring, the wired remote and the flash. I assume that model has the same video quality as the GS200.
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