Panasonic SDR-S50: Review & Test

IF THERE IS ANYTHING I CAN IMPROVE ON, PLEASE FOR THE LOVE OF GOD LET ME KNOW.

The Panasonic SDR-S50 is a small camcorder released in 2010 with a video resolution of about 704 X 480 (which is not normal, as you'll see in the video). It weighs 8.3 ounces and cost $249.99 new (depending on where you got it).
Overall I'd give it a 5/10 on the standard definition camcorder scale.

PROS:
Lightweight
Far optical zoom
Long recording time
Long battery life

CONS:
Low video quality
Low quality hand strap
Low picture quality
Bad low light performance

[bleakyfinder]

Thank you very much for this Explanation had this recorder for 5 years bought it from ebay. This has helped me so much, regards from the UK, all the very best to you and your family. Thanks again my friend.

[aleksandarmiodragjekic]

Hey ma. i know you probably won't reply but ill still ask how can i make sure that its fully charged because i found the camera in my parents attic and its 14 years old so im not aure if its just the camera or im doing something wrong

Edit: the camera hasn't been touched in nine years but there was no dust on it

[_underscore_]

Yeah I'd say this camera was worth the 5 bucks I spent on it

[patriciomiranda]

unusual music, but breaks paradigms of music in technology videos hahaha

[adb]

A discontinued model. If it stops working Panasonic won't replace the motherboard - I speak from experience. Worked great for a couple years.

[BubbubTopps]

Does anyone know how to get date and time stamp as you record?

[avasmith]

Can you attach an alternate lens to this camera? I'm looking for an older camcorder to give that vintage look that you can attach a fisheye lense to.

[cooperemmerton]

Does anybody know first of all which Port is the charging port and if so which cord I need my Grandpa gave me one of these but he didn't have any cords for it and I've torn my house apart looking for the correct chords I'm having difficulty finding an answer online

[johnnyweiner]

The 16:9 is squished to 4:3 because NTSC camcorders tend to record both aspect ratios at the exact same dimensions and probably stores the real aspect ratio in the metadata. From my experience, video editors such as iMovie, puts them back to their original aspect ratios in post.

[luciehobbs]

why are my video files not mp4 after I inset my sd card into my mac computer? wondered if you could help me?

[Jose.ink]

is it worth it in 2025 especially if it’s used?

[karizmaabi]

Hello. I was going to ask something, maybe you have information, I bought a small handheld camera, first it did not have a problem, then the zoom started to blur and even when the camera was turned on in the display, nothing started to appear, but it does not always happen, sometimes it returns to normal occasionally, occasionally it does this problem. I was going to ask if this problem could be due to akkü. Do you have any information about it?

[kohli]

i have this panasonic sdr s50 with 78x optical lunar zooommm which is fantastic.. but te problem is that now it wont charge, ... after pluging in adaptor there is no blink, , unless i opebn the side screen and there on that back side right over the battery there a red light blinks, , and it doens power on at all, , , , what could be the problem.??? please help.

[jonnyswalk_]

Very good video 👏 Would you know by any chance if you can use this camera for live streaming or as a webcam please? Many thanks 👍 Warmest wishes from South Wales 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 UK 🇬🇧 - Jonathan 😊 👍

[TitanBeats]

hows the battery life (my battery life lasts around 30 minutes of recording and I need to record for 2 hours)

[avasmith]

how to you transfer the video onto a computer for editing??

[sergeantcrow]

I guess P is for Pal as opposed to NTSC.

[madpom]

Wake me up when the pain is over music aswell

[Radomir]

Пламенный привет с Татарстана г. Агрыз
У меня SDR-S45

[pupet]

This camera sucks. I bought one brand new when they came out and used it 2 times and hated it so much its sat here in the box ever since. In brand new condition. Do yourself a favor folks. STAY AWAY from Panasonic camcorders and camera's. Stick to Kodak or Canon. You wont be disappointed in them and they R&D is light years away from anyone else.