JVC Picsio GC-WP10

Review: JVC Picsio GC-WP10

We’d only just finished playing with the impressive JVC GC-FM2 when JVC invited us to look at its new cousin, the Picsio GC-WP10. It’s claimed to be waterproof, so we gave it a good soak-test!

After a good couple of weeks of playing with the GC-WP10′s cousin, the GC-FM2, over the summer, we couldn’t resist checking out this new addition to JVC’s Picsio sub-brand range – largely because it’s claimed to be waterproof. Not only that, but it can be submerged to a depth of 3 metres without problems.

Many of the core features and functions of this latest Pocket Camera are shared with the GC-FM2, so we’ll spare the duplication in this review and refer you to the separate review which can be found here. What we’re primarily interested in is its underwater capabilities.

First Impressions

It’s one of the new breed of so-called Pocket Cameras, and as you’d therefore expect it’s nice and compact and fits in a pocket or small bag. Unlike its FM2 sibling, the WP10 comes in only one colour – a sort of charcoal grey with blue trim. Main features are a recessed 4x Digital Zoom, 3.9mm F2.8 lens, 3″ LCD Touchscreen Display on the rear and a range connections that are to be found behind a locking door (that’s quite important!).

A Record/Stop button and a necessary “Lock” button are positioned on the right hand side, with the stereo microphone pair being positioned on the top of the camera. Needless to say, they’re waterproof as well.

The JVC Picsio GC-WP10's 3-inch LCD Touchscreen Display

Features

Like the GC-FM2, the GC-WP10 uses a 1/3.2″ CMOS image sensor to generate 5.13 megapixels video and stills images. Video is encoded as MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 and written to optional SD, SDHC or SDXC memory cards. Audio and still pictures are encoded as AAC and JPG respectively.

The camera’s 3″ touch-panel LCD screen on the rear makes it easy to select options and users of smartphones will be able to adapt to shooting video and stills with the FM2 with ease. It has a 4x digital zoom, fixed focus 39mm lens with an f-stop rating of F2.8. Full auto and manual control of White Balance and Face Priority (AE/Touch AE) is provided for.

The recording modes offered by the JVC Picsio GC-WP10 are as follows:

• HD 1080 (25fps): 12Mbps
• HD 720 (50fps): 12Mbps
• iFrame (25fps): 24Mbps
• QHD (25fps): 5Mbps

All modes use the MPEG-4/AVC H.264 video compression system. Stereo audio is compressed using the AAC codec. All video compression rates are VBR (Variable Bit Rate).

The camera can accomodate the highest-capacity SDXC memory cards, meaning that the user has access to up to 64GB of memory storage on a single card. This would provide 11 hours and 40 minutes of recording at the highest quality when using the HD 1080 setting (1920×1080, 12Mbps VBR, 25fps). If a 4GB card were to be used instead, the recording time drops to 40 minutes.

Alternatively, users can select the HD 720 (1280×720, 12Mbps VBR, 25fps) setting – which will provide 5 hours 50 minutes on a 64GB SDXC card – or QHD (960×540, 5Mbps VBR, 25fps) which provides for 1 hour 40 minutes of recording time.

Also included is Apple’s iFrame (960×540, 24Mbps VBR, 25fps) option which makes it much easier to import and edit video clips with Apple’s own range of computers. The WP10 is compatible with iTunes in order to facilitate easy import and sharing of clips, as well as making it easy to upload clip sequences to YouTube. Simple timelapse recording is possible, as is in-camera editing of clips within the camera itself when using the camera’s touch-screen menu system.

Connectivity comes in the form of a mini USB socket for use in transferring video and stills to a Windows PC or Apple Mac (assuming the memory card itself isn’t removed and inserted into a suitable card reader), a mini HDMI socket is provided for direct connection to a suitable HDTV display in addition to a Yellow, Red and White analogue cable is provided to enable playback as standard definition video and audio.

General Handling and Useability

We found the WP10 generally pleasing to use, certainly in terms of its physicality; it’s nice and compact yet provides easy access to the physical switches and sockets. However, as with the GC-FM2, we’re less than impressed with its 3-inch LCD Touchscreen display.

Users of Apple’s iPhone or Andriod phones will be familiar with a touch-screen that’s highly sensitive to touch and highly responsive whilst remaining reasonably clear in bright sunlight; unfortunately, the JVC screen on these Pocket Cameras is no match and needs a rethink.

That apart, we found the menu system and overall graphical user interface to be highly user-friendly – and we liked certain touches like the “Coverflow”-like navigation and clip search tool as is commonly found in iTunes and the like.

Recording Underwater

For anyone who has spent a lifetime shooting with state-of-the-art video cameras and camcorders, there’s something not quite quite right about dropping an apparently unprotected camera into a tropical fish tank. However, that’s what we did.

With the camera recording at 1280x720p, we took a number of shots with the camera as the fish went about their normal business of swimming around and totally unconcerned at their latest co-habitee. Due to the harsh lighting, and also to the fact that it’s not possible to modify any settings once the camera is recording, you’re trusting the camera to get the best shots as you stand by and watch.

Here’s a short compilation of clips that were taken in this context:

You’ll see right away that the auto-focus is often confused; the focus is fixed on the static objects and moving objects (ie: the fish in the foreground) are rendered soft and lacking definition. We’d like to be able to fix the focus on the widest zoom lens setting, and it would also be useful to do likewise with the aperture, too. Given that the camera can be used to a depth of 3m (10 feet) it would be interested to learn how useful this camera would be to snorkelists or even scuba divers. However, it’s clear that use of the 4x zoom when underwater is too much of a risk to image definition, with the preference to keep the lens wide whilst getting in close where detail is required.

Importing and Editing of Clips in Windows and Mac computers

The WP10 makes transfer of video clips and still pictures to PC and Mac very easy – simply connect it up using the supplied USB cable and follow the prompts. Alternatively, it’s just as easy to remove the memory card and slot it into a suitable card reader attached to the computer. That’s what we did.

Having a pre-release copy of Adobe Premiere Elements 9 to hand on a dual-core Windows 7 PC, we decided to give our WP10 clips a spin. Import and editing of the 720p clips was easy, and the result can be seen in the above video sequence.

Conclusion

We liked the FM2 and we like this latest addition to the Picsio family, too, which also lives up to many of its promises.

This camera also tends to lift the colours to a level which – in the case of reds, particularly – is a little bit high, and you’ll notice some blocky image compression artefacts when the camera is moved quickly during recording. However, resolution is generally good when light levels are high and shots are reasonably static. Of all the recording options, we actually preferred the HD 720p mode to the full HD 1080 option simply because the images were a bit more mellow and pleasing to the eye when viewed on a 42″ HDTV display.

Verdict: Very good and good value for money overall – but JVC really needs to take a second look at the LCD screen.

Summary: JVC Picsio GC-WP10

• 1920 x 1080P Full HD Video with HDMI Output
• 1/3.2″ CMOS image sensor
• iFrame Mode compatible with Apple Macs for editing and sharing
• 5 Megapixel Digital Stills
• Digital Image Stabiliser
• 4x Digital Zoom
• Time-Lapse Recording Mode
• SD/SDHC/SDXC Card Slot
• USB Battery Charging

Reviewed by Colin Barrett, SimplyDV. Text and video sequence copyright Colin Barrett/SimplyDV Ltd 2010. Main product images courtesy JVC UK Ltd.

See larger image JVC Full HD Waterproof Pocket Camcorder with 3 inch Touch Panel (Electronics) New From: £99.00 In Stock Used from: £58.00 In Stock Release date October 9, 2010.