Chiming In - HM-700 vs. HD-200

[Lee Roberts]

Hi,

Since I posted several times about my disappointment with the HD-200 (poor low light performance, "nosier" picture than my HD-100, etc.), I thought I would make a couple of comments about the 700 I received Friday (with the 17x lens):

Low Light: No compaison between the two - the 700 is far superior in low-light conditions compared to the 200.

"Noise": Well, compared to the 200, there isn't any. It always peeved me that my 100 produced a better image in HDV than my 200. The 700's image in HDV (IMHO) is better than the 100 and WAY better than the 200.

Man, the LCD is sweet! I'm also impressed with the overall improvement in the controls for playback and menu navigation, not to mention being able to work with SDHC cards instead of a hard disk unit. I haven't had much time to play with the camera, but those are a couple of the things that jump out at me.

Major Complaint: I ordered the SxS device and the IDX adapter. Seems there are (4) screws that are missing for attaching the IDX adapter to the SxS gizmo. The screws that come off the AB plate won't work (they should have made it so they would, though). Either JVC forgot to include the screws in my package or it's just a screw up (sorry.....)

Best Buy Rip Off: This was my fault for not researching and being prepared before my camera arrived, but: Since the camera dosn't come with SDHC cards, I swung by BB on the way home. I paid almost $40 each for (2) 4gb Class 6 cards - I see that I could've purchased 16 giger's for about the same price online.

I know that these comments are not as thorough and as well written as Tim's and others, but those are my first impressions. Now to get my hands on the new Vegas so I don't have to do any conversion before editing and I'll be a happy videographack!

Best ~ Lee

[Justin Ferar]

Thanks for reporting Lee- you're the first one to make direct comparisons between the 200 and the 700 which is what I've been waiting for.

Less noise and higher sensitivity for the 700.

Would anyone else like to confirm or deny these observations? (calling Sean Aider!)

[Amos Kim]

lee, is the hm700 a lot noisier than the hd100?

[Lee Roberts]

Originally Posted by Amos Kim

lee, is the hm700 a lot noisier than the hd100?

I assume you are asking about "noise" in the image - My first impression is that the 700 is superior to the 100.

As many know, the addition of a fan in the 200/250 made the actual audio noise emitted by the camera a little irritating. The 700 quieter than my old 200, if that helps. It still emits a little noise, though, and my 100 is silent. It's quite tolerable, however.

Hope that helps ~ Lee

[Sean Adair]

Hey Justin!
It was just a short announcement when I first got the cameram but I share very similar views.
Significantly better in low light - close to a full stop
Less noise. Insignificant in decent lighting IMHO. There can be some graininess in dark but not black areas, but not an issue to me.

I compared HQ 720 to HDV 720 at 24 and 60.
60p is now a reality :^)
1080p 24 is the new ground. Definitely adds resolution, haven't compared it firectly to other 1080p

Ergonomics/features significantly improved
The LCD is much sharper - a field monitor will be needed less often.
The menus and operation are much faster to operate (4 way button), clearer to read
The card operation is very easy and intuitive - MUCH more comfortable and idiot proof than the hard-drive recording on HD series.

Haven't heard the fan :)

Mind you, I like the HD200! This is better.

[Peter Lataster]

I had a chance to take a closer look at the hm700 and compare it with my 110.
Looking at image quality I agree with the others that the 700 gives you better light sensitivity (at least 1 stop) and a richer picture: bigger richness of detail, maybe improved lattitude even. Also I'm really happy with all improvements regarding handling of the camera, better lcd, viewfinder etc.
There is one thing though I was hoping that other members would like to look in more closely: I think that this camera produces more noise in 10890p than in 720p. Maybe the reason is that the 700 has a 720 set of ccd's and 1080 is upscaled?
Because I'm considering the buy this camera I'm eager to hear others on this topic.
Peter Lataster
www.latasterfilms.nl