/// HD Camcorder Comparison

Picture ?

Manufacturer

Canon

Panasonic

Name

XF300

HDC-Z10000 (3D-Modus)

European name ?

XF300E

HDC-Z10000 (3D-Modus)

US name ?

XF300

HDC-Z10000 (3D-Modus)

lowest US price

6499 $

(3499) $

On the market since

July 2010

November 2011

Manufacturers URL

Test preview

slashCAM rating ?

Very good

test picture 1200 Lux

Test image 12 lux auto-mode

Video

Video formats ?

MPEG2 - MXF

AVCHD
MVC 3D

Recording Medium

Compact Flash

SD Card
SDHC card
SDXC card

video resolutions EU ?

MPEG2 1920x1080 50i
MPEG2 720p12 -50
MPEG2-1080p12 25

AVCHD 1920 x 1080/50i
AVCHD 1920 x 1080/25p
AVCHD 1920 x 1080/24p

video resolutions US ?

MPEG2 1920 x 1080/60i
MPEG2-720p12 60
MPEG2 1080p12-30

AVCHD 1920 x 1080/60i
AVCHD 1920 x 1080/24p
AVCHD 1920 x 1080/30p

Max Bitrate ?

50 Mbit/s

28 Mbit/s

Compression format ?

MPEG2 MXF

MPEG4

on-board memory ?

Optics

Optics Manufacturer ?

Canon

Panasonic

Optical Zoom ?

18 x

10 x

Wide Angle 16:9 ?

29,3 mm

29,8 mm

Filter diameter ?

82 mm

- mm

Image Stabilization ?

optically and electronically

optical

ND Filter ?

Exchangable optics ?

Image Sensor

Number of sensors ?

Size of image sensor ?

1/3 inch

1/4,1 inch

image sensor effective pixel count 16:9 ?

2070000 Pixel

3050000 Pixel

Image Sensor Type ?

CMOS

Controls

White Balance ?

auto
manual
presets

auto
manual
presets
WB-Shift

Focus ?

auto
manual

Minimum shutter time ?

1/16.000

1/250

Maximum shutter time ?

1/18

1/24

Apperture control ?

auto
manual

auto
manual
AE-Shift

Infrared recording ?

Expanded Focus ?

Yes

Peaking ?

Yes

Signal Processing

Zebra ?

50-105%

Histogram ?

waveform

Yes

adjustable sharpness ?

Yes

Adjustable color ?

Yes

Cinegamma ?

Yes

Black Strech ?

Yes

Knee ?

Yes

Colorbars ?

Yes

Misc.

Shot Transition ?

Custom Presets ?

Yes

Set Time Code ?

Yes

Configuration

Connections

FBAS ?
synonymous: RCA, composite

Out

YC ?
synonymous: S-Video

YUV ?
synonymous: Component Signal

Out

HDMI ?

Out

DV / HDV (FireWire) ?
synonymous: ILink / IEEE-1394

USB ?

USB 2.0 OUT

USB 2.0

Microphone / Audio input ?

XLR

Headphones ?

Mini-jack

Lanc ?

Time-code interface ?

Genlock ?

Accessory shoe ?

Standard

HD-SDI ?

Misc.

Weight (without battery)

2700 g

1600 g

Weight (with battery)

2800 g

Battery type

Canon BP-955

Panasonic CGA-D54s

Battery capacity

5400 mAh

Charger ?

external

Remote control

Yes

Size

Height

180 mm

145 mm

Width

192 mm

195 mm

Depth

394 mm

350 mm

Relative Size ?

136

Viewfinder

Viewfinder available ?

Yes

Color Viewfinder ?

S/W

Color

Viewfinder format ?

16:9

Viewfinder pixels ?

1550000 Pixel

1226880 Pixel

Display

Display available ?

Yes

Color display ?

S/W

Color

Display size

4,0 Inch

3,5 Inch

Display format ?

16:9

Display pixels ?

1230000 Pixel

1152000 Pixel

Touch Screen ?

Yes

External controls

Manual Zoom ?

Rocker
Ring

Manual Focus ?

Ring

Manual Aperture ?

Ring

Focus switcher ?

Yes

ND Filter ?

Yes

Exp Lock ?

Yes

Gain ?

Yes

White balance ?

Yes

Push AF ?

Yes

Audio Levels ?

Yes

Custom Keys ?
synonymous: User buttons

Audio

Audio Formats ?

2 channel PCM

AC-3 Dolby Digital 5.1 640 kbit max.
Dolby AC-3 Digital 2 channel 48 KHz
2 channel PCM

Microphone ?

Stereo internal
external XLR

external XLR
5.1 Internal

Audio Control ?

auto
manual

Audio levels ?

Viewfinder
Screen
display

Viewfinder
Screen

Still

Recording Medium ?

Medium included ?

Effective pixels ?

Resolutions ?

Standard ?

Flash ?

Misc.

Specials

Variable frame rates:720p: 12, 15, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 30, 32, 34, 37, 42, 45, 48, 50fps1080p: 12, 15, 18, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25fps

Product Shots

View 1

View 2

Test results

Test pictures

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 ?

Good

Resolution ?

Excellent

Color performance ?

Very good

subj.Picture impression ?

Very good

Optical Zoom ?

Satisfactory

Sufficient

Wide Angle ?

Excellent

Very good

Configuration / image ?

Excellent

Very good

Configuration / sound ?

Excellent

Handling ?

Very good

Portability ?

Satisfactory

Photo function ?

Poor

Optics ?

Very good

Dynamics ?

Very good

Conclusion slashCAM

slashCAM rating ?

Very good

Total score ?
(maximal 570)

465

440

Pros

- 13 assignable buttons
- High sharpness
- 4:2:2 codec

+ Extreme manual control options
+ Very good image quality
+ Good 3D control

Cons

- no shot transition

- No ND filter
- Autostereoscopic display mode

Conclusion

In terms of display and viewfinder this camera raises the bar for competitors and its sharpness surpasses that of comparable modells from Sony und Panasonic.The lens is very good.Manual control options and assist functions like waveform monitor und vectorscope are aplenty.Only the low light performance is not completely satisfactory, it is visibly not on par with the Sony EX1(R), its closest competitor.

Even as a 2D camcorder the Z10000 is absolutely competitive thanks to the professional features and excellent image quality.The additional 3D capabilities are currently unique in this price range (and even much further) (as of 11/2011).

More information

Reviews and Forums