Underwater camcorders

Niche camcorders for water lovers have pros and cons

If you need a camcorder that can survive a sandstorm, a fall onto the pavement or a dunk in the deep end of the swimming pool, standard definition used to be your only option. But in the summer of 2009, the first high-definition waterproof camcorders hit the market. Unfortunately, reviews say they tend to leak and shoot crummy video.

Waterproof SD models often suffer the same problems. The Sanyo Xacti VPC-E2 (*Est. $170) is the best of the waterproof crop, according to users at Amazon.com. Most report no problems with the footage, still photos or waterproofness, although some do complain of leaks and bad image quality. It's waterproof to 5 feet for 30 minutes and includes a 5x optical zoom.

Experts were optimistic when the Panasonic SDR-SW21 (*Est. $330) hit the market, making some improvements over its predecessor, the Panasonic SDR-SW20. CamcorderInfo.com called the SDR-SW20 "a tough little camcorder... We dropped it, sunk it, and gave it a rough going over. It took the abuse."

The SDR-SW21 has a firmer watertight seal around its ports than its predecessor did, making it waterproof to 2 meters (the previous model could survive only to 1.5 meters). "This is particularly welcome when you consider a lot of swimming pools are 2m at the deep end, so the SW21 will be perfectly safe in these environments," writes James Morris at TrustedReviews.com.

Unfortunately, the Panasonic's low-light shooting -- such as at the bottom of a swimming pool -- is its main flaw, reviews say. Its price also comes "close to HD camcorder territory," Morris notes. "So even if it is the roughest, toughest camcorder out there, now you have to weigh that against whether you want to move up to HD instead."

Gizmodo.com's Brian Lam absolutely hates the Panasonic SDR-SW21. "This camera doesn't deserve a review; it deserves a warning," he says. "It is one of the most expensive rugged cams, but takes only 640x480 SD video and 0.3MP stills as bad as the worst camphones. Miserable!" He adds that "the camera liked to focus on the water droplets on its lens like a cross-eyed idiot."

If you don't want to buy a dedicated underwater camcorder, you can buy separate waterproof housings for some regular camcorders. Those can be bulky and expensive, says David Pogue of The New York Times. And you may want to check user reviews before you risk your camcorder. The Pure Digital Flip Ultra's waterproof case (*Est. $25) has accumulated more than 100 reviews at Amazon.com, and about a third of those users report that the cases leaked and ruined their camcorders.