[agileborderterriers]

I have been using my Panasonic TM900 for 3 years and have really liked it until it stopped working (error message when I try and record). It performed quite nicely in low light, the LCD viewfinder was still decent in bright sunlight. Mostly I shoot sporting events both in indoor low-light situations or outdoor venues. I have a .75x wide conversion lens that I use quite a bit. If I had anything negative to say about my TM900 it would be that sometimes it took a while for the color balance to adjust itself, so the beginnings of videos would sometimes have a different color balance than a few seconds into the video. Also, after about one year of use, the automatic lens cap would sometimes not fully open when I first turned the camera on, but a little shake of the camera and it would finish opening up (annoying but the low-tech solution was ok). Other than that, I loved the camera.


I had bought an extended warranty from Best Buy and the camera is still covered under that warranty but since they haven't been able to fix it in a timely manner, they are offering me a store credit. Their camcorder selection is not great so I might use the money for something else and buy my camcorder elsewhere. Which brings me to my question: what camera should I replace my TM900 with? Here are the choices I have thought of...


• Find a used TM900 at a good price so I can continue to use all the peripherals I own

• Buy a new Panasonic HC-X920 -- my batteries would work but not my filters or wide conversion lens as the TM900 is 46mm whereas the X920 is 49mm. I suppose I could buy a step down ring but not sure if that is such a good idea.

• Look into other brands of similarly priced high end consumer camcorders such as the Canon G20.


Is the HC-X920 is far superior to the TM900 or not much of an improvement? It does not bother me that the X920 doesn't have built in memory.


Opinions? Comments? Advice?

 

[bsprague]

Welcome to the forum.


If it were me, I would stick with Panasonic because what you learned on the first one will apply to the new one.


Based on reading what has been posted here over the last year or so, I would also consider some of the newer options, particularly the Sony RX10.


Most recently there is a lot of excitement over the industry shift to 4K and you may want to consider that.


Frankly, there are way too many choices!


Good luck!

 

[hatchback]



Quote:
Originally Posted by agileborderterriers  /t/1523456/from-panasonic-tm900-to-hc-x920-or-canon-g20-or#post_24507370


Is the HC-X920 is far superior to the TM900 or not much of an improvement? It does not bother me that the X920 doesn't have built in memory.


Opinions? Comments? Advice?

The bright light image quality of the X920 and TM900 are comparable; both are noticeably better than the G20. The low light image quality of the X920 is better than the TM900, but the improvement wasn't enough to convince me to upgrade.

 

[Tugela]

A comparison between the X920, G20 (Legria G25) and XA20 (same as the G30) is provided in a side by side comparison here:

The Canons have lower light sensitivity at a particular gain setting, but their gain can be set higher than the Panasonic, which results in a better ability to see in low light than the 920. Also, from that side by side comparison, it would appear that the Canons have a better edge in dynamic range in low light.