HD camcorder tests and comparison of JVC GY-HM100 and Sony HVR-Z7 (HVR-Z7E/ HVR-Z7U) Best values highlighted sorted by score

Picture ?

Manufacturer

JVC

Sony

Name

GY-HM100

HVR-Z7

European name ?

GY-HM100

HVR-Z7E

US name ?

GY-HM100

HVR-Z7U

lowest US price

3099 $

4849 $

On the market since

April 2009

February 2008

Manufacturers URL

Test preview

slashCAM rating ?

Good

not yet tested

test picture 1200 Lux

test picture 12 Lux

Video

Video formats ?

HDV
XDCAM EX

MiniDV
HDV
DVCAM

Recording Medium

SDHC card

MiniDV/HDV-Cassette
external flash memory

video resolutions EU ?

HDV 1440 x 1080/50i
HDV 1440 x 1080/60i
XDCAM EX 1920 x1080/24p, 25p, 30p, 50i, 60i
XDCAM EX 1280 x 720/24p, 25p, 30p, 50p, 60p

HDV 1440 x 1080/50i
MiniDV 720 x 576/50i
DVCAM 720 x 576/50i
HDV 1440 x 1080/60i
HDV 1440 x 1080/25p
HDV 1440 x 1080/24p
HDV 1440 x 1080/30p

video resolutions US ?

XDCAM EX 1920 x1080/24p, 25p, 30p, 50i, 60i
XDCAM EX 1280 x 720/24p, 25p, 30p, 50p, 60p

HDV 1440 x 1080/50i
DVCAM 720 x 576/50i
HDV 1440 x 1080/60i
DVCAM 720 x 480/60i
HDV 1440 x 1080/25p
HDV 1440 x 1080/24p
HDV 1440 x 1080/30p
MiniDV 720 x 480/60i
MiniDV 720 x480/24p
MiniDV 720 x 480/30p

Max Bitrate ?

35 Mbit/s

25 Mbit/s

Compression format ?

MPEG2

DV
MPEG2

on-board memory ?

Optics

Optics Manufacturer ?

Fujinon

Carl Zeiss

Optical Zoom ?

10 x

12 x

Wide Angle 16:9 ?

39 mm

32 mm

Filter diameter ?

46 mm

72 mm

Image Stabilization ?

optical

ND Filter ?

Yes

Exchangable optics ?

Yes

Image Sensor

Number of sensors ?

Size of image sensor ?

1/4 inch

1/3 inch

image sensor effective pixel count 16:9 ?

1037000 Pixel

Image Sensor Type ?

CCD

CMOS

Controls

White Balance ?

auto
manual
presets
WB-Shift

Focus ?

auto

auto
manual

Minimum shutter time ?

10.000

Maximum shutter time ?

1/4

1/3

Apperture control ?

auto
manual
AE-Shift

Infrared recording ?

Expanded Focus ?

Yes

Peaking ?

Yes

Signal Processing

Zebra ?

50-105%

70-100+%

Histogram ?

Yes

adjustable sharpness ?

Yes

Adjustable color ?

Yes

Cinegamma ?

Yes

Black Strech ?

Yes

Knee ?

Yes

Colorbars ?

Yes

Misc.

Shot Transition ?

Yes

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

In
Out

USB ?

USB 2.0

Microphone / Audio input ?

XLR
Mini-jack

XLR

Headphones ?

Mini-jack

Lanc ?

Yes

Time-code interface ?

Genlock ?

Accessory shoe ?

Standard

HD-SDI ?

Misc.

Weight (without battery)

Weight (with battery)

1400 g

2800 g

Battery type

JVC BN-VF823

Battery capacity

2190 mAh

Charger ?

internal
external

external

Remote control

Yes

Size

Height

178 mm

176 mm

Width

138 mm

199 mm

Depth

365 mm

439 mm

Relative Size ?

153

Viewfinder

Viewfinder available ?

Yes

Color Viewfinder ?

Color

Viewfinder format ?

16:9

Viewfinder pixels ?

235000 Pixel

1226880 Pixel

Display

Display available ?

Yes

Color display ?

Color

Display size

2,8 Inch

3,2 Inch

Display format ?

16:9

Display pixels ?

921600 Pixel

Touch Screen ?

External controls

Manual Zoom ?

Rocker
Zoom ring multi-assigned

Rocker
Ring

Manual Focus ?

bi-functional focus or aperture wheel

Ring

Manual Aperture ?

button

Ring
button

Focus switcher ?

Yes

ND Filter ?

Yes

Exp Lock ?

Yes

Gain ?

Yes

White balance ?

Yes

Push AF ?

Audio Levels ?

Yes

Custom Keys ?
synonymous: User buttons

Audio

Audio Formats ?

2 channel PCM

MiniDV: 2x48kHz 16bit PCM
MiniDV: 4x32kHz 12bit PCM
HDV: 2x48kHz 16bit MPEG 1

Microphone ?

Stereo internal
Mini-jack external
external XLR

external XLR

Audio Control ?

auto
manual

Audio levels ?

Viewfinder
Screen

Still

Recording Medium ?

SDHC card

Memory Stick Duo

Medium included ?

Effective pixels ?

1037000 Pixel

Resolutions ?

1920 x 1080 - max

1440x1080

Standard ?

JPEG Exif 2.2

Flash ?

Misc.

Specials

Records in HDV as well as XDCAMEX in a QuickTime container on a SDHC card

A memory card recorder for Compact Flash (CF) memory cards is included in delivery

Product Shots

View 1

View 2

Test results

Test pictures

digitalcontentproducer.com

luminance resolution

chrominance resolution

lens distortion

test small ISO image

noise / internal microphone

test picture 1200 Lux

test picture 12 Lux

slashCAM rating

Lowlight ?

Sufficient

Resolution ?

Good

Color performance ?

Good

subj.Picture impression ?

Good

Optical Zoom ?

Sufficient

Wide Angle ?

Satisfactory

Configuration / image ?

Very good

Configuration / sound ?

Very good

Handling ?

Very good

Portability ?

Good

Photo function ?

Sufficient

Optics ?

Satisfactory

Dynamics ?

Good

Conclusion slashCAM

slashCAM rating ?

Good

not yet tested

Total score ?
(maximal 570)

348

Pros

+ professional handling
+ cheap workflow by using XDCAM EX on SDCH cards
+ flexible assignable

Cons

- wide angle with slight distortions
- poor low-light

Conclusion

The possibility to record professional formats as Quicktime or MP4 files on cheap SDHC cards is a great feature.The accessories and configuration is ample for this price.The low sharpness and gaudy colour are no big minus, but the bad low-light capabilities and small wide angle with distortions are a serious drawback.

More information

Reviews and Forums

slashCAM Review

external reviews/tests

provideocoalition.com

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