hm100 - first impressions
 

Had a chance to play with the hm100. Nice footprint and image quality. However, LCD screen is tiny, full with redundant info and low quality in terms of viewing angle (IMHO). In addition, when using the lens ring for zooming, there is a very noticeable lag between the rotation of the ring to the actual zoom function. No LANC, no SD output and no zoom rocker on the handle. I saw some footage and its beautiful but the camera is not user friendly. It seems that the camera is overpriced for what you get !! Reasonable market price should be around 2,500- 3000 USD

The HM100 does have its quircks, but once you get used to it, it is a doddle to use. You are right about the LCD, it is c**p. But as you say the images are excellent. I personally think that the quality you get from this little cam far outweigh the minor niggles. Hey, is there a camera out there at this price point that does not fall down in some departments ? I personally dont think there is anything that can match it, image wise, for the price.

The only camera that is remotely in the same range is a Canon at $3,500 and that is still just HDV 1080i and 24f on tape. But yes, no wired remote is a downer for me as well.

Just bought 2 hm100s
 

I took delivery of two units today. My first impression is that the camera has a great image but a crap LCD. That's not the end of the world for me. What is very troubling is the zoom. I find it difficult to pull a slow zoom with any consistency. The zoom ring is non-responsive at slow speeds and unpredictable in its function. Their is no menu I can find to preset the zoom speed for the rocker handle. This is a must have feature for any serious videographer and I hope that JVC will upgrade the firmware to give us this.

The missing LANC connector is a real downer, however on another thread I found a work around solution using the IR remote and a TOS link cable. But again, the control only offers a fast zoom that is unacceptable for operating this on a crane or tripod.

So come on JVC, you need to fix this item.

Dan

There seem to be four universal complaints about the HM100:

1. LCD
2. Zoom
3. No wired remote (though is this true on all JVC cameras of this type?)
4. Iris control on the back of the camera

I would add to it the following:

5. Cheap and noisy condenser mic.
6. Too much info on LCD
7. Small CCD
8. Price - too much for what you get.