Panasonic HDC-TM700K Hi-Def Camcorder with Pro Control System & 32GB Flash (Black)

by Panasonic

Product Details

• Product Dimensions: 6 x 8 x 5 inches ; 3 pounds
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Shipping: Currently, item can be shipped only within the U.S.
• ASIN: B0035LD0EY
• Item model number: HDC-TM700K
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (58 customer reviews)
• Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #68 in Camera & Photo (See Top 100 in Camera & Photo)

  #12 in

  Camera & Photo > Camcorders > High Definition

• Date first available at Amazon.com: February 24, 2010

Product Description

From the Manufacturer

The 3MOS System and Full-HD 1920 x 1080, 60 Progressive Recording Produce
All-New Color-Bright Image Quality.
Capture Crisp, Clear Images Even in Dim Lighting.
Built-in Memory/SD Card Twin Memory Full-HD Camcorder


High-density, ultra-smooth images
1080/60p Recording (Full-HD 1920 x 1080, 60 Progressive Recording)

The HDC-TM700 uses the progressive method to record twice as much image data as the interlace method. Whereas interlacing requires two images to produce a complete picture, the progressive method records a single image as a complete picture. Plus, the 60 Progressive Recording of the HDC-TM700 produces 60 images per second. This extremely dense image information creates intricate detail and silky smooth motion. Even when subjects move quickly, afterimages are minimized to create more natural images. The progressive method is most effective when shooting detailed designs where moir patterns tend to occur, or when capturing scenes during sports events where the subjects are intensely moving around. Also, the recorded images are displayed clearly even when they are made into still images, so it is possible to preserve stunning photos when clipping them from videos.

A bright, high-performance lens.
Leica Dicomar Lens

Panasonic HD camcorders use Leica Dicomar lenses, which are renowned for their ability to render sharp images and excellent shading. They also suppress ghosting, flare, and distortion at the image edges. Even in strong sunlight, these superb lenses maintain high contrast and resolution. A bright new F1.5-F2.8 lens with a 46mm filter diameter has been created for the HDC-TM700. Efficient light collection allows the new lens to capture bright, clear images even in dim lighting or at high shutter speeds. This high-end lens brings out all the beauty of Full-HD images. *Leica is a registered trademark of Leica Microsystem IR GmbH, and Dicomar is a registered trademark of Leica Camera AG.

Captures large groups, even when shooting from up close.
35mm Wide-Angle Lens*

The 35mm wide-angle lens on the HDC-TM700 fits more people and more of the background into the frame than a conventional 44.9mm lens. This is especially handy when you want to take a group photo in a small room.

*35mm-lens equivalent

Beautiful zoom shots of distant subjects.
18x Intelligent Zoom

The HDC-TM700 features a 12x optical zoom and an Intelligent Zoom function that goes all the way up to 18x. When using Intelligent Zoom, Intelligent Resolution Technology lets you shoot at high zoom rates while preserving image sharpness. You get crisp images of highly detailed objects - without the blurry edges.

Product Description

HI-DEF CAMCORDER/32G FLASH/GUNMETAL GREY

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

140 of 158 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Camcorder with one really MAJOR flaw, April 1, 2010

By	Hassan B. Bn Hadhram - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Panasonic HDC-TM700K Hi-Def Camcorder with Pro Control System & 32GB Flash (Black) (Electronics)

Panasonic finally released a 1920x1080p60 camcorder to the market (Sony still refuse to add Progressive and canon max out at 1920x1080p30 or p24)

With the TM700 Panasonic did combine the smooth motion of 1080i60 with the crisp image of a progressive motion
I can not praise the footage quality from this camcorder, it's basically the best camcorder i have ever used, it beats my HF100 and HF S100 when it comes to sharpness and motion by far (I still prefer Canon colors though however Panasonic colors looks exactly as we see them in real life, Canon colors are unrealistic but looks more fun to me)

The wide angle 35mm~ is much better than my previous canons (Canon 43mm~, a little bit zoomed in) but still not as wide as Sony latest camcorders 29mm~, The stabilization From TM700 is really groundbreaking, All low hand shake are completely gone! as if you are using a tripod, almost as good as Sony stabilization (Sony stabilization is the best in the market, Canon got the worst stabilization from the major companies)

Now about the Major flaw with TM700... something i didn't see coming and would have properly canceled my order if i knew about it before i bought it, the Audio is really noisy ! TM700 got a built in Fan on the side (Sony/Canon does not have a fan like tm700) the fan is noisy and the microphone will pick up the noise, now if you think closing the LCD and using the viewfinder will eliminate the fan noise you couldn't be any wrong! close the LCD and the fan noise will be even higher !, problem is I'm afraid that it will collect dust over the months and it will properly be even louder by then or might even break.

Other than the Fan noise (It sound like older tape camcorders noise through the entire video if you are familiar with tape noise) it's an excellent camcorder, you can capture low light indoors without any problem (Much better than my canon camcorders when it comes to low light) you can't hear the fan noise if you capture outdoors or in a noisy environment but for indoors or a quite environment you will hear it.

Finally about the 1920x1080p60, you really need a quad core to even playback the footage! my Dual Core 2 Duo 2.5GHZ laptop can not play the footage at all (Trust me i tried everything it's not a codec problem but you need power to play the footage) even PS3 can not play the footage smoothly, the PS3 will struggle to playback the video (Will freeze about half a second for every 4 seconds of playback)

There is no 1920x1080p30 option in this camcorder, it's either 1920x1080p60 28Mbps or 1920x1080i 17Mbps
The camcorder playback the footage just fine though

Some people are having trouble to edit the videos, well i use Sony Vegas Pro 9 and had no problems editing the 1080p60 footage.

If you use an external microphone that only pick sound from the front you properly wont care about this flaw but for my use (Traveling etc) i need my camcorder to be as portable as possible so using an external microphone is not an option

This camcorder would have gotten 5 Stars from me if it were not for the Fan issue.

Update : Fan issue Test done by someone else [...] "Just search in VIMEO" "Panasonic TM700 indoor audio test"

Update 2 : Returned the camcorder.... the noise issue is really ruining my videos, the noise is not stable it does change when you pan or change the position of the camcorder, read my 6th comment in comments below for video sample, since amazon wont let me post links

118 of 133 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Powerhouse Camcorder for Power Users, April 7, 2010

By	Christopher Michael "Sean" (Alabama) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Panasonic HDC-TM700K Hi-Def Camcorder with Pro Control System & 32GB Flash (Black) (Electronics)

Length:: 5:06 Mins

The Panasonic HDC-TM700 is a rare camcorder in that it breaks new ground. The key upside of this camcorder is its 28 Mbps 60P mode -- the camera is capable of recording at 1920x1080 resolution in 60 PROGRESSIVE frames per second. This captures TWICE the image information of the interlaced method, resulting in smoother motion. The TM700 also capture more vertical resolution than other consumer camcorders when used in 60P mode.

There are many features of this camera that blur the line between "consumer" and "prosumer."

Whether you dub the 35mm lens "wide" or not, it's a hell of a lot more wide than any other consumer cam lens I've tried. My $6500 Sony EX1 has a 31.4mm equivalent lens, so the TM700 is in the same ballpark. For me this make a big difference in the practical use of the camera. No longer do I need to carry and constantly attach/detach a wide angle adapter. This also makes me more likely to use the 18X zoom (since there's no wide angle adapter on the cam).

One nice TM700 feature I haven't seen discussed elsewhere is peaking. Quite simply, "peaking" means that the camera outlines objects in focus with a color, so as to help the camera operator achieve correct focus. The camera does include a peaking function when switched to manual focus. Panasonic calls it "manual focus assist." This really helps achieve critical focus with the 260k pixel LCD screen. The peaking color is blue; I prefer yellow, but will gladly settle for blue.

Another upside to the TM700 vis-a-vis other consumer cams is the manual control ring. Panasonic has done a nice job implementing this feature and it's easy to quickly adjust zoom, focus, shutter speed, & iris using the ring. This is a slam dunk win for the TM700 because the competition doesn't even offer a control ring (the control wheel is a far less satisfying alternative).

Some have expressed concern over the cooling fan. The fan does generate some noise when it activates, although it's not always on. The fan has really not been an issue for me so far. I usually use an external mic when I'm serious about capturing quality audio.

I'm a picky camera buyer who usually finds flaws with consumer equipment. But I haven't found many with the TM700. It has a number of nice features like facial recognition (automatically exposing for certain faces), outstanding low-light performance with minimal noise and strong color reproduction, an almost "instant on" technology (you can power on the camera simply by opening the LCD screen or extending the viewfinder), stellar image stabilization, plenty of menu customization options, all the benefits of tapeless workflow...and I could go on.

If you are shopping for a "flagship" consumer camcorder, when considering the TM700 you must ask yourself whether you really care about 60P. After all, it's the 60P mode (and resulting high image quality) that sets this camera apart from its Sony & Canon competitors. I believe that the TM700 in 60P mode produces arguably the best image quality you can find in a consumer camcorder. But you need a fast PC with the right software to edit this material. If you intend to edit your footage, do some homework on this point before making a purchase decision.

If you want 60P...and you can handle 60P... then you will love this camcorder.

34 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Leasing a Good Camcorder!, April 20, 2010

By	Gabriel (Miami, FL) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Panasonic HDC-TM700K Hi-Def Camcorder with Pro Control System & 32GB Flash (Black) (Electronics)

Length:: 4:33 Mins

There has been a lot of talking since the release of the HDC-TM700, a lot of good and bad things has been said. The reality of this will vary from the intention of the user and his abilities to get the most out of it. Some of the important facts to take into consideration before buying this camcorder is the specs of your existing computer or the economic ability to buy a new one with BD (Blu-ray) burner, at least 6GB RAM & lot of Hard Drive since the files produced by this HDC are really big. The wide lens is obviously a good thing but if you have one of the previous HDC models you can add a wide angle conversion lens to it and the result will be even wider.

Now let's talk about the "Ridiculous Price" that Panasonic came out with, this camcorder is $400 to $700 less expensive than others from the competitors including Panasonic's predecessor HDC-TM300 for US & HDC-TM350 for UK, why? It's because Panasonic has launched this dangerous experiment of putting a full time FAN inside the camcorder due to the heating of the Video Processor, when I said "full time" I mean it, the FAN is always on, so it's logically simple that at some point it will break and then the Video Processor will die, of course this will happen 90% of the time after the warranty has expired so in real life you are leasing a good Camcorder for a limited period of time, how long it will last, I do not know, maybe 2-3 years, maybe less, or you may get lucky enough to have this problem before the 12 months warranty period.

The Pros:

* Better and more realistic Video Quality in this class
* Wider aspect ratio which help for indoors and panoramic scenes
* Ton of manual features

The Cons:

* Poor Battery Life
* Mediocre Still Photo Quality
* Insufficient internal Memory
* Low LCD resolution
* Deprive Sound Quality, especially in quiet environment due to the internal FAN

The bottom line is, this camcorder produces good quality picture, good colors and have a lot of manual features but you have to have the right computer and the right editing software because otherwise you will end up using the camcorder as a reproducing machine (so the life expectancy of it will be less) and after the 32GB ends (only 2:50 Hours in the highest resolution) you'll have to erase some material to have free space or buy some very expensive SDHC class 10.

In my personal case this camcorder is helpful because I use it only a few times per month, when I'm going to some sporting events or a fast moving situation, on any other circumstance I carry the HDC-TM300 for day time and the HDC-TM350 for night or low light environment.

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HDC-TM700 vs. HDC-TM350 vs. HDC-TM300

In this comparison you will have the opportunity to see 3 of the best Panasonic Camcorders working at the same time, HDC-TM700, HDC-TM350 & HDC-TM00 were recording simultaneously while the HDC-HS300 was used for still photography, and the HDC-HS350 was recording for 1:35 hours in "Time-Lapse REC" mode at 10 seconds interval.


If you would like to see this "Video Review" in HD, which makes a huge of difference, you can go to Youtube and search for "Leasing a Good Camcorder". The full address will be post on the comment because it's not allowed here.

Thanks for stopping by!