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Model
|
| JVC GZ-HM960 | Canon HF S21 |
| Picture ? | | |
| Manufacturer | JVC 
| Canon 
|
| Name | GZ-HM960 | HF S21 |
| European name ? | GZ-HM960 | Legria HF S21 |
| US name ? | GZ-HM960 | VIXIA HF S21 |
| lowest US price | (999) $ | 1189 $ |
| On the market since | April 2011 | April 2010 |
| Manufacturers URL | link to JVC | link to Canon |
|
|
Test preview
|
| [ top ] | JVC GZ-HM960 | Canon HF S21 |
| slashCAM rating ? | Good
 | Good
 |
| test picture 1200 Lux | | |
| Test image 12 lux auto-mode | | |
Video
|
| [ top ] | JVC GZ-HM960 | Canon HF S21 |
| Video formats ? | AVCHD
| AVCHD
|
| Recording Medium | SDHC card built-in flash memory SDXC card
| SDHC card built-in flash memory
|
| video resolutions EU ? | AVCHD 1920 x 1080/50i
| AVCHD 1440 x 1080/50i AVCHD 1920 x 1080/50i AVCHD 1920 x 1080/25p AVCHD 1440 x 1080/25p
|
| video resolutions US ? | AVCHD 1920 x 1080/60i
| AVCHD 1920 x 1080/60i AVCHD 1920 x 1080/24p AVCHD 1440 x 1080/60i AVCHD 1440 x 1080/24p AVCHD 1920 x 1080/30p
|
| Max Bitrate ? | 24 Mbit/s | 24 Mbit/s |
| Compression format ? | MPEG4
| MPEG4
|
| on-board memory ? | 16 GB | 64 GB |
| Optics |
| Optics Manufacturer ? | JVC HD
| Canon
|
| Optical Zoom ? | 10 x | 10 x |
| Wide Angle 16:9 ? | 29,5 mm | 43,6 mm |
| Filter diameter ? | - mm | 58 mm |
| Image Stabilization ? | optically and electronically
| optically and electronically
|
| ND Filter ? | No
| No
|
| Exchangable optics ? | No
| No
|
| Image Sensor |
| Number of sensors ? | 1 | 1 |
| Size of image sensor ? | 1/2,33 inch | 1/2,6 inch |
| image sensor effective pixel count 16:9 ? | | 6010000 Pixel |
| Image Sensor Type ? | CMOS
| CMOS
|
| Controls |
| White Balance ? | auto manual presets
| auto manual presets
|
| Focus ? | auto manual
| auto manual
|
| Minimum shutter time ? | 1/4000 | 1/2.000 |
| Maximum shutter time ? | 1/2 | 1/6 |
| Apperture control ? | auto manual
| auto manual
|
| Infrared recording ? | No
| No
|
| Expanded Focus ? | No
| Yes
|
| Peaking ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Signal Processing |
| Zebra ? | No
| 70% 100% |
| Histogram ? | No
| No
|
| adjustable sharpness ? | No
| Yes
|
| Adjustable color ? | No
| Yes
|
| Cinegamma ? | No
| Yes
|
| Black Strech ? | No
| No
|
| Knee ? | No
| No
|
| Colorbars ? | No
| Yes
|
| Misc. |
| Shot Transition ? | No
| No
|
| Custom Presets ? | No
| Yes
|
| Set Time Code ? | No
| No
|
Configuration
|
| Connections |
| [ top ] | JVC GZ-HM960 | Canon HF S21 |
FBAS ? synonymous: RCA, composite | | Out
|
YC ? synonymous: S-Video | No
| No
|
YUV ? synonymous: Component Signal | Out
| Out
|
| HDMI ? | Out
| Out
|
DV / HDV (FireWire) ? synonymous: ILink / IEEE-1394 | - | - |
| USB ? | USB 2.0
| USB 2.0
|
| Microphone / Audio input ? | No
| Mini-jack
|
| Headphones ? | No
| also AV-output
|
| Lanc ? | No
| Yes
|
| Time-code interface ? | No
| No
|
| Genlock ? | No
| No
|
| Accessory shoe ? | No
| Advanced Mini
|
| HD-SDI ? | No
| No
|
| Misc. |
| Weight (without battery) | 330 g | 470 g |
| Weight (with battery) | 370 g | 520 g |
| Battery type | JVC BN-VG114E
| Canon BP-807
|
| Battery capacity | 1400 mAh | 890 mAh |
| Charger ? | internal
| internal
|
| Remote control | Yes
| Yes
|
| Size |
| Height | 54 mm | 75 mm |
| Width | 62 mm | 74 mm |
| Depth | 121 mm | 140 mm |
| Relative Size ? | 4 | 7 |
| Viewfinder |
| Viewfinder available ? | No
| Yes
|
| Color Viewfinder ? | - | Color
|
| Viewfinder format ? | - | 16:9 |
| Viewfinder pixels ? | | 123000 Pixel |
| Display |
| Display available ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Color display ? | Color
| Color
|
| Display size | 3,5 Inch | 3,5 Inch |
| Display format ? | 16:9 | 16:9 |
| Display pixels ? | 920000 Pixel | 922000 Pixel |
| Touch Screen ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| External controls |
| Manual Zoom ? | Rocker
| Rocker
|
| Manual Focus ? | Menu
| Menu bi-functional focus or aperture wheel
|
| Manual Aperture ? | Menu
| Menu bi-functional focus or aperture wheel
|
| Focus switcher ? | No
| Yes
|
| ND Filter ? | No
| No
|
| Exp Lock ? | No
| No
|
| Gain ? | No
| No
|
| White balance ? | No
| No
|
| Push AF ? | No
| No
|
| Audio Levels ? | No
| No
|
Custom Keys ? synonymous: User buttons | 1 | 1 |
Audio
|
| [ top ] | JVC GZ-HM960 | Canon HF S21 |
| Audio Formats ? | Dolby AC-3 Digital 2 channel 48 KHz
| Dolby AC-3 Digital 2 channel 48 KHz
|
| Microphone ? | Stereo internal
| Stereo internal Mini-jack external
|
| Audio Control ? | auto
| auto manual
|
| Audio levels ? | No
| Viewfinder Screen
|
Still
|
| [ top ] | JVC GZ-HM960 | Canon HF S21 |
| Recording Medium ? | built-in flash memory SDHC card SDXC card
| built-in flash memory SDHC card
|
| Medium included ? | No
| No
|
| Effective pixels ? | | 8020000 Pixel |
| Resolutions ? | 3968 x 2976 - Max
| 3264 x 2448 3264 x 2456 max
|
| Standard ? | JPEG Exif 2.2
| JPEG Exif 2.2
|
| Flash ? | Yes
| Yes
|
Misc.
|
| [ top ] | JVC GZ-HM960 | Canon HF S21 |
| Specials | 2D -> 3D converter, Bluetooth, 3D display | 2 SDHC slots |
Product Shots
|
| [ top ] | JVC GZ-HM960 | Canon HF S21 |
| View 1 | | |
| View 2 | | |
Test results
|
| Test pictures |
| [ top ] | JVC GZ-HM960 | Canon HF S21 |
| luminance resolution | | |
| chrominance resolution | | |
| lens distortion | | |
| test small ISO image | | |
| noise / internal microphone | | |
| test picture 1200 Lux | | |
| Test image 12 lux auto-mode ? | | |
| Test image 12 lux optimized ? | | |
| slashCAM rating |
| Lowlight ? | Very good | Good |
| Resolution ? | Very good | Satisfactory |
| Color performance ? | Good | Very good |
| subj.Picture impression ? | Good | Very good |
| Optical Zoom ? | Sufficient | Sufficient |
| Wide Angle ? | Excellent | Poor |
| Configuration / image ? | Satisfactory | Good |
| Configuration / sound ? | Poor | Satisfactory |
| Handling ? | Satisfactory | Good |
| Portability ? | Very good | Very good |
| Photo function ? | Satisfactory | Satisfactory |
| Optics ? | Good | Good |
| Dynamics ? | Good | Good |
| Conclusion slashCAM |
| slashCAM rating ? | Good
 | Good
 |
Total score ? (maximal 570) | 378 | 348 |
| Pros | + Lowlight + wide angle
| + Many manual controls
|
| Cons | - few manual control options - Complicated operation
| - small wide angle
|
| Conclusion | The JVC GZ-HM960 is a very sharp camera with a solid technical foundation, but unfortunately it doesn´t recommend itself for ambitious videographers.Too little manual control is offered along with the otherwise very up-to-date technical specs.Rather, the GZ-HM960 will appeal to users who are interested in technical gadgets.The 3D mode, however, is no comparison to real 3D camcorders and should be seen more as a gimmick.The similarly constructed but cheaper GZ-HM845 on the other hand, would be a pretty interesting device in its price class, if only JVC would have enabled more manual features.In its 1000 Euro price class the competition by now allows more manual control. | The sharpness is only slightly below what is possible in this price range and the options for manual control are also quite ok.The touchscreen is a real improvement, so the problems with focus setting we used to citizise are gone.Since Sony offers more manual in this price range than they did before and both Sony and Panasonic have more wide angle, the HF S models of 2010 appear a little overpriced. |
More information
|
| Reviews and Forums |
| [ top ] | JVC GZ-HM960 | Canon HF S21 |
| slashCAM Review | | |
| external reviews/tests | | |
| Forum posts | | Canon HF S21 - Brave New World video?
|
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