Sanyo plans to take on the traditional digital compact camera market by launching a series of camcorders that combine ?HD? video with high resolution still image capabilities.

Predicting a growing consumer demand for affordable cameras with video and still functions, Sanyo last night showcased six new models.

These include the 10-million-pixel VPC-CG10 (pictured), 9MP CA9, the 8MP HD2000 and 8MP FH1.

The move comes as the average price of a camcorder falls to under £300, according to research by Futuresource Consulting.

Sanyo predicts growing convergence of still and video capture in a single unit and intends to exploit the traditional compact market which it claims is ?in decline?.

The new camcorders feature CMOS imaging sensors and accept SD memory cards.

They are due to hit the high street in March.

Sanyo UK?s digital camera business manager Phil Williams said the firm wants to create a new market segment ?based on the concept of being able to take both high quality video and photos with one simple compact camera??

Sanyo VPC-CG10 camcorder