Long before Flip Video took the pocket camcorder market by storm, Sanyo had already come out with several pocketable video recording devices in its Xacti line of hybrid digital cameras/camcorders (the original Sanyo Xacti C1, released in 2004 could shoot 640×480, 30fps MPEG-4 movies as well as 3.2-megapixel stills). Well Sanyo just announced the latest in the long line of Xacti devices, the Sanyo VPC-PD2BK, which eschews the usual pistol-grip form factor for a decidedly Flip-like design.
While it does offer the requisite easy uploading to Facebook, YouTube, Picasa, etc. as well as a built-in, flip-out USB connector, the VPC-PD2BK is no Flip. Firstly, like the rest of Sanyo’s current “Dual Camera” line of camcorders, it also shoots high-resolution still images (10 megapixels in this case). Secondly, it actually sports a 3x optical zoom lens. And it has a built-in flash. But perhaps the best feature of all is its $170 price tag for full 1080p video recording. Its most direct competitor would seem to be the recently announced Panasonic HM-TA1 which also shoots 1080p video at 30fps and is priced at $170. Though the Panasonic sports a sleeker design and is a bit slimmer and lighter than the Sanyo model, it can only record 8 megapixel stills and doesn’t offer an optical zoom. Look for the VPC-PD2BK to hit stores in September.
