JVC GR-X5

43 reviews

Apr, 2024

Positive
usability (16)
size (8)
price (8)
reliability (5)
portability (5)

Negative
battery (10)
viewfinder (9)
zoom (1)

General overview
Price comparison

alaTest has collected and analyzed 43 reviews of JVC GR-X5. The average rating for this product is 3.7/5, compared to an average rating of 4.0/5 for other Camcorders for all reviews. People are impressed by the design and portability. The size and price are also appreciated, but many are critical about the zoom and viewfinder.

usability, price, size, portability, design

battery, viewfinder, zoom

We analyzed user and expert ratings, product age and more factors. Compared to other Camcorders the JVC GR-X5 is awarded an overall alaScore™ of 84/100 = Very good quality.

See all JVC Camcorders

Review analysis

(Based on 43 reviews)

Expert Reviews

User Reviews

Review Ratings

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Features

usability
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price
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battery
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size
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Showing 31 review(s)

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Showing 1 - 29 of 31 Show Reviews: in English | in other languages (12)

Consumer review (amazon.com)

Amazon.com review summary for JVC GR-X5

alaTest has collected and analyzed 19 user reviews of JVC GR-X5 from Amazon.com. The average user rating for this product is 4.1/5, compared to an average user rating of 3.9/5 for other Camcorders on Amazon.com.

89% of the reviews on Amazon.com give this product a positive rating.

Apr, 2024

Expert review by : Richard Baguley (pcworld.com)

GR-X5US Minidv Digital Camcorder

Most camcorders go for a curved look, but the JVC GR-X5US ($1300 as of 5/2/06) has a boxy case that breaks the rules of camcorder design. The swiveling LCD screen is on the back, which gives it a wider viewing angle than the side-mounted LCD on most...

The JVC GR-X5US has an interesting design, but its setup may not be to everyone's taste, and its poor battery life and lack of a viewfinder are serious problems. At $1300, it's also the most expensive camcorder we looked at in this roundup. While its...

Jun, 2006

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Expert review by : Richard Baguley (pcworld.com)

JVC GR-X5US MiniDV

Photograph: Chris Manners

Good image quality for both video and stills

Expensive ; Lacks a viewfinder ; Boxy design can be problematic ; Short battery life

Jun, 2006

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Expert review by : Ben Wolf (cnet.com)

Image quality

JVC GR-X5

Solid blend of video and still capabilities; generally sensible controls; full complement of standard connections.

Mediocre viewfinder, battery life, and low-light performance; automatic features a bit sluggish; no progressive video; limited manual controls.

The GR-X5 is a capable jack-of-all-imaging-trades and, as the saying goes, a master of none.

Aug, 2005

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Expert review by : Easy Camcorder (easycamcorders.com)

Expert Review

Picture this. You're at a barbecue. Several people have their cameras and camcorders out. You've seen them all before, and they don't impress you. Then a friend asks you if you could please take hold of their camcorder. “Sure,” you shrug. And he hands...

Still Performance, -Video Performance, -Manual Controls, -Ease Of Use, -Portability

Menu system, -Handling, -Audio

Sep, 2005

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Expert review by : David Kender (camcorderinfo.com)

JVC GR-X5 Camcorder Review

Old adages hold true for a reason. Take, for example, the axiom of "don't judge a book by its cover." We've come to expect that camcorders making a sharp turn away from convention tend to be all show and no substance. This could not have been less true...

Aug, 2005

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Expert review by : Richard Baguley (macworld.com)

JVC GR-X5US MiniDV camcorder

The JVC GR-X5US has an interesting design, but its setup may not be to everyone's taste, and its poor battery life and the omission of a viewfinder are serious problems.

Good image quality for both video and stills

Boxy design can be problematic; lacks a viewfinder; short battery life; expensive

Indeed, the alternative design of the GR-X5USis a double-edged sword. While putting the LCD screen on the back of the camcorder gives it a wider viewing angle than most camcorders (and also makes waist-level and over-the-head shooting easier), this...

Aug, 2006

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Expert review by (machome.com)

JVC GR-X5US Digital Video Camera

Double-duty camcorder/still camera is the real deal

Satisfying video and still image quality, compact size, easy operation, good image stabilization.

No optical viewfinder, low battery life with included battery, better results available for the same price or less from separate camcorders and still cams.

SD memory card of 256MB or more

Nov, 2005

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Expert review by : Ben Wolf (cnet.com.au)

JVC GR-X5

A distinctive, very compact three-chip MiniDV camcorder that also shoots high-res stills.

Solid blend of video and still capabilities ; Generally sensible controls ; Full complement of standard connections

Mediocre viewfinder, battery life, and low-light performance ; Automatic features a bit sluggish ; No progressive video ; Limited manual controls

Because of the high pixel count of its three CCDs, the GR-X5's video is equally good in 4:3 and 16:9 wide-screen aspect ratios. This will be an increasingly significant asset as 16:9 televisions continue to proliferate. Unfortunately, to fit so many...

Aug, 2005

Partner Source

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Expert review by : Colin Barrett (simplydv.co.uk)