Great little camer, but Caution on Editing Software!
I have several digital camcorders I use for my kids youth sports games. Latley I started shooting 3 different camera angles for football (with a little help from my friends)...so the Samsung NV24HD is the latest addition to my bag, and it is a great one.

Allow me to keep my review simple and focused on this use since there are som many other comprehensive reviews already. The wide angle lens seems to be the coolest thing when shooting the games. Whether at field level action, halftime locker room talks or up high in the crow's nest for "game film" footage this little camera delivers!

Other than the audio going to mute during zooming, the only potential downside I see is the editing and burning the footage using software. I have a Sanyo Xacti 720p camcorder that also uses the MP4 AVC/H.264 format
and have not had many problems. It is my understanding that the implementation of this format can vary from manufacturer to manufacturer. Not sure what the deal is but my programs are NOT handling this camera's footage the same.

I always maintain several applications in this area as well including Sony Vegas, Adobe Premier Elements and Pinnacle. I have grown tired of the Sony Vegas user interface (too busy and complicated) so let me say a couple of things about Adobe and Pinnacle specific to the footage/files this camera produces:

1) Adobe Premier Elements: Versions 3 gives a message that it is an "Unsupported Format"...strange since this version has always worked with the MP4's off of my Sanyo Xacti. AE 4 handle the files fine. Adobe Premier Elements 7 HATES the format! It's like they were so focused on getting the AVCHD right (and they did by the way) they completely screwed up the capabilities to work with the MP4 AVC/H.264 format!

2) Pinnacle Studio Plus 12: Not a big fan of the user interface (look and feel) of Pinnacle Studio but it WORKS, and it works well for not only the MP4 AVC/H.264 format that this Samsung camera uses but all my others. A big bonus that it also handles my AVCHD .mts files very very well!

Hope this helps some people either before of after the sale!

I really wanted to like this camera
I though this camera was the answer to all my needs. With this thing, I wouldn't have to carry the usual DSLR (20D) with 2 lenses, accessory flash, extra batteries, and a camcorder. Yes, HD video, good brand, good looks, and good value. What's more? I can zoom while recording, H264 compression, 30fps, stellar video quality and stereo sound, so I thought perfecto!

I read many reviews before purchasing and came to expect that this camera would not provide stellar IQ. Okay. Fine. I can live with average IQ, but the HD is what I really wanted, or so I thought.

I had this camera for 5 days and shot in a variety of setting like low light, sunny, cloudy, sunset, indoors, outdoors,etc. Noise control was actually acceptable but what I found very unacceptable was the smearing and smudging from this camera even at ISO 80 in daylight. Believe me, I tried everything like turning the in camera sharpening all the way down, using faster shutter speeds to prevent blur, and taking pictures in a variety of settings.

My In-Law's 2 year old Canon P&S is way sharper. I really wanted to convince myself to keep this camera but it would defeat the purpose of getting it in the first place. That means I would have to carry the Samsung for video and my 20D for pictures. I wanted one device that would take decent pictures along with HD video.

My final decision is to return this item and eat the restocking fee and shipping both ways. Maybe next time Samsung.

Didn't last too long
Not every camera will have this problem, I'm sure, but my lens jammed in the "out" position about the 4th time I turned it on.

Batteries are charged, I pulled them out to let the camera reset, and I even tried with the AC adapter. It grinds the lens motor a bit and beeps what must be an error beeps when I turn it on, and then it shuts down.

So back to the vendor it goes.

Seemed like an OK camera for the few minutes I was able to use it. The zillions of soft buttons around the display seems like a way to avoid the expense/challenge of a touch screen.

NOVICE
I like the NV24HD my only compliant is the it features and abilities are difficult to learn and to remember. There's a lot to learn and a lot to read, I wish that it were more simple and easier to use in taking full advantage of its abilities.

Not so thrilled!
When I saw this camera while a visiting friend from Germany was using it here, I was mightily impressed. He had taken pictures from the plane, showing the glaciers on Iceland, and these were stunning in sharpness and detail. So I ordered the camera for myself that same day. I found that getting used to the cross-reference button system on the back is very awkward, because the documentation coming with the camera is more than poor. The dials on the top left and right will display their functions on the rear view screen, but it is so fast and short, one has no time to actually read what it is. So that makes it a guessing game of frustration. The camera is best used with a tripod for pictures, since 10.2 meg pixels are nice, but!! if you shake it even the slightest bit, say goodbye to sharpness.
It gets worse when taking video clips: One of the reasons why I bought this camera is that it claims you can zoom while taping, well, you can, but!!! no sound during zooming! And the zoom is so fast, it makes for a race car type take-off, no subtle zooming back and forth. Before you know it, you're all the way in or out. Not good at all. When I played back the first set of clips, I noticed that the sound track was finished playing back way before the images were, about 20 % faster. I called Samsung and they said my camera was defective. So, they suggested I have it repaired. When I told them I had not envisioned to buy a "new and already repaired" camera, they said that is the way it is, we do not replace flawed cameras, basically that I was unlucky to have gotten a bad apple. I could probably have waited and bought a refurbished one for less. Also, they expected me to pay for shipping in order to get it repaired. Not much of a customer friendly attitude, by my book.
Now, I am returning the little cam to Beach Camera, and they haggled with me over the situation: at first, they did not want to take it back, because I only called them after 5 weeks of the purchase. They let you return it up to 4 weeks only. When I told them that the product was flawed and malfunctioning according to Samsung, they finally agreed to take it back, but I had to haggle over the reduced reimbursement amount. They wanted to deduct 15%, I finally, after 3 conversations, got them to deduct 5 % of my purchasing price. I guess I'll return it for that and cut my losses. My conclusion is to stick with camera brands like Nikon, Canon, even Kodak, but no more Samsungs!