The Panasonic HDC-TM700 is the highly anticipated successor to last year’s well-lauded HDC-TM300. Many new features and innovations were included and some of these include a new wider angle lens, larger LCD, 1080/60p record mode, and improved Optical Image Stabilizer (OIS). With these improvements and a sub $1000 price tag, the HDC-TM700 is perfectly poised to raise the bar for consumer camcorders.
Design & Features
Weighing in at just 380g with battery, the HDC-TM700 is small and easy to work with. It fits comfortably in the hand and the hand-strap is tough and well padded. Overall built quality is excellent.
The TM700 comes with the high performance Leica Dicomar lens and three 1/4.1” CMOS sensors. This combination has been used successfully by Panasonic for some time on their flagship models. The new lens has a 35mm wide angle which is impressive for a camcorder. This makes a huge difference when shooting indoors and landscapes. Optical zoom remains the same at 12X and digital zoom maxes out at 30X.
New on the HDC-TM700 is the inclusion of a 1080/60p recording option, a rare feature even for top of the line models. Panasonic also upped the numbers game with a whopping 14.2 megapixels for stills. Size of the LCD screen is now 3 inches, which is 0.3” larger than last year’s TM300. A viewfinder is also included. There’s a diopter adjustment dial on its left side, and its screen is 0.27-inches in size with a 123,000-pixel resolution.
The TM700 records on 32GB internal flash memory. Not large by any means and there is no option for a second memory card slot like Canon HF S21. This is perhaps one of the few shortcomings. The other is fan noise. There’s a small cooling fan that generates an audible noise when it is used in a quiet room. Although the fan is not on all the time it can be an annoyance.
One huge improvement is the multi-function lens ring which can be used to set focus, aperture, shutter speed, white balance, or gain.
The top-mounted microphone records audio in 5.1-channel Dolby Digital with full manual control of audio levels from -30dB to +6dB. You can also switch to 2 channel stereo recording if you prefer. The built-in mic also has a new Wind Noise Canceler feature that uses noise canceling technology similar to those on noise canceling headphones.
The improved Power O.I.S. (Optical Image Stabilizer) feature reduces the effects of hand-shake. It is very effective even at high zoom settings. The system uses gyro sensors to detect tiny amounts of hand-shake, then shifts the lens and adjusts the optical axis to compensate.
Connectivity wise, the TM700 has a HDMI output, USB port, dual AV/Component-out port, microphone and headphone jacks, and a cold accessory shoe (with a slide-in adapter). The DC-input is located inside the battery compartment. We find this rather inconvenient as you would have to remove the battery to access it.
Performance
Even though the TM700 is loaded with advanced features, it is surprisingly easy to use even for a beginner. The Intelligent Auto (iA) control makes it very intuitive to use if you just want to point and shoot. For the more adventurous, the clever multi-function lens ring gives you full control and versatility. It is a joy to use.
The forte of this camcorder lies in its video quality. At 1080/60p progressive mode, the Leica lens captured details that were stunning even at 12X zoom. Colors were rich, bright and accurate. With video that is recorded progressively rather than interlaced, fast moving subjects were sharp and smooth. Motion artifacts like jaggies were virtually non-existent. The 3MOS sensors kept grain to a minimum even in dim conditions. This makes the TM700 a good choice if you regularly shoot indoors.
The improved O.I.S. is very effective in minimizing blurry images from unsteady hands.
Audio recorded on Dolby Digital 5.1 mode was crisp and distinct with an abundance of ambiance.
The playback mode on the camcorder is simple to use and there are some useful built-in editing features. However the playback buttons are touchscreen icons on the LCD which makes it harder to use compared to physical buttons like those on the Canons and Sonys.
The included battery can easily last for an hour and a half of start stop usage.
Be aware that the file size for a 1080/60p recording is huge and not widely supported by third party editing programs at the moment. The size of a one hour video is around 12GB, and editing it will demand huge resources from your PC. The included software does allow you to view the 60p footage on a PC, but unfortunately, Macs are not supported. It is a good idea to invest in a large external Hard Disk drive to store your recorded footage.
Conclusion
Like its predecessors, the feature packed Panasonic HDC-TM700 is a simple camcorder to use. Serious hobbyists will appreciate the advanced features and controls while beginners will find it easy and intuitive to use. The 1080/60p record mode captures video with stunning details and impeccable quality. It is one of the best videos we’ve ever seen from a consumer camcorder. It certainly raised the bar by a few notches.
Tags: Canon HF, high zoom settings, top of the line models{ 3 comments }
