Panasonic introduces waterproof camcorder

updated 6:31 p.m. ET Jan. 6, 2008

LAS VEGAS - Panasonic on Sunday announced it will launch a waterproof digital camcorder in February.

The SDR-SW20, announced ahead of this week's International Consumer Electronics Show, can be used in water to a depth of five feet. The camcorder can withstand drops from up to four feet, and has a dust-proofing design that keeps dust particles from damaging the electronics.

The camcorder features 10x optical zoom and a 2.7-inch LCD screen. It records to SD or SDHC memory cards.

The suggested retail price is $399.95.

Panasonic also announced another camcorder model, the SDR-S7, with the same optical zoom and recording features. It will become available in May with a suggested retail price of $299.95, Panasonic said.

Panasonic is a unit of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co.

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