JVC GZ-HM400

Lens & Imaging System

At 1/2.33-inches, the GZ-HM400 has one of the largest CMOS sensors in the consumer camcorder market. This large sensor is why the camcorder is capable of capturing native 9-megapixel still images, and it also gave the camcorder a big boost in our video sharpness testing. The lens is quite large on the HM400 (much larger than the GZ-X900), and it features a 10x optical zoom, an automatic lens cover, and a built-in flash that flanks its right side.

Lens
Filter Diameter	46.0mm
Focal Range	6.7–67.0mm
Focal Range (35mm equivalent)	0.0–0.0mm
Maximum Aperture	f/5.6–2.8
Optical Zoom	10x
Advanced Zoom	15x
Lab-Tested Wide Angle	42.0°	How we test wide angle

Sensor
Type	CMOS x 1
Size	1/2.33 inches
Pixel Count (Gross)	10.3 megapixels

Zoom Ratio Examples
Wide Angle	Mid Zoom	10x Zoom

LCD & Viewfinder (8.07)

The GZ-HM400 has a 2.8-inch LCD screen with a 207,000 pixel resolution. As with most LCD panels, the screen can rotate up to 270 degrees so you can do some self-shooting if you want to. The 2.8-inches is a decent size, although there are a couple of consumer camcorders out there with screens as large as 3.2 inches. The resolution of the HM400’s screen isn’t as high as we’d like, but overall the LCD does a decent job. The LCD has 11 brightness settings and the backlight can be set to Brighter, Standard, or Auto.

As with all new JVC models, the LCD panel features a Laser Touch strip on its left side. The strip has a bit of a different design than the GZ-X900, however. The HM400’s strip is embedded slightly (like a shallow trench), while the X900 featured a perfectly flat strip that was even with the surface of the panel. The same thing goes with the small buttons on the bottom of the LCD panel. We didn’t notice much of a difference between the response and functionality of the Laser Touch on the two camcorders, but we like the embedded buttons on the HM400 more. It makes the buttons easier to find with your fingertips—especially since they are touch-sensitive.

Feature	JVC GZ-HM400	JVC Everio GZ-X900	Panasonic HDC-TM300	Canon Vixia HF S11
Display Size	2.8 in.	2.8 in.	2.7 in.	2.7 in.
Display Resolution	207000 pixels	207000 pixels	230400 pixels	211000 pixels
Touch Screen	✗	✗	✓	✗
Viewfinder	✗	✗	✓	✗
Viewfinder Resolution	n/a	n/a	183000 pixels	n/a

Many traditional videographers will lament the fact that the HM400 does not include an electronic viewfinder. The camcorder is definitely large enough to accommodate one, but it seems JVC (along with Canon) doesn’t think a viewfinder is a necessity for high-end consumer camcorders. Sony and Panasonic both include electronic viewfinders on their high-end models.

Connectivity (6.38)

Connection	JVC GZ-HM400	JVC Everio GZ-X900	Panasonic HDC-TM300	Canon Vixia HF S11
A/V output	✓	✓	✓	✓
Component output	✓	✓	✓	✓
HDMI	✓	✓	✓	✓
USB	✓	✓	✓	✓
FireWire	✗	✗	✗	✗
Headphone jack	✓	✗	✓	✓
External microphone	✓	✗	✓	✓
Accessory Shoe	✓		✓	✓✓
Wireless Remote	✓	✓	✓	✓
DC Power	✓	✓	✓	✓
WiFi	✗	✗	✗	✗
GPS	✗	✗	✗	✗

The ports on the GZ-HM400 are located in a variety of different places, but the bulk of them are on the back side of the camcorder. There, you will find a long column of ports to the left of the battery compartment—headphone, Component-out, mini-HDMI, and DC-input. Above the battery pack are two more ports: AV-out and a mini microphone input. Both of these port clusters are protected by hard plastic, flip-open doors. These doors proved adequate protection, but they don’t open all that wide. Things may get a little cramped if you have a lot of cables plugged in at once.

From top to bottom: headphones, Component-out, HDMI, and DC-input	The AV-out and external mic port

The USB port and SD/SDHC memory card slot are both located inside the LCD cavity. The USB port isn’t protected by a cover, although when the LCD panel is closed it does provide shelter for the exposed port. The SD/SDHC card slot springs open with the flick of a small trigger switch located to its right. Both the USB port and the memory card slot require the LCD screen to be open in order to access them.

The USB port is inside the LCD cavity...	... as is the SD/SDHC card slot.

The GZ-HM400 does not have a built-in accessory shoe, but it comes with a small, plastic shoe attachment that screws into the top of the camcorder. The problem with this setup is that the screw-in adapter is easy to lose, feels cheap, and looks easily breakable. If you lose the adapter then you have no way of attaching shoe-mounted accessories to the camcorder (unless you buy another adapter from JVC, that is).

All Full HD video on the HM400 is recorded as 1080/60i, but the camcorder has 1080/60p output capability. When connecting the camcorder to a 1080p television, the HM400 will upconvert the video signal to 1080p for playback. This feature can also be found on new models from Sony (the HDR-CX500V and HDR-CX520V).

The HM400 ships with a screw-in shoe adapter...	... that fits onto the camcorder like so.

Battery (8.15)

If a 163-minute battery life isn’t enough for you, JVC does sell larger batteries that will give you a longer performance. The camcorder has an open battery compartment, so you can easily fit larger packs back there while you shoot. You could also just get an extra battery from JVC, which will allow you to shoot for roughly 5 hours with two fully-charged packs. Find out how the GZ-HM400 performed in our battery life test.

Media (8.52)

In addition to having an SD/SDHC card slot for recording to a memory card, the JVC GZ-HM400 includes 32GB of internal flash memory. This internal memory is good to have because it allows you to record close to three hours of video at the highest quality setting. So, if you’re on vacation and you use up all the space on your memory cards, you’ll have something to fall back on.

The SD/SDHC card slot is located inside the camcorder’s LCD cavity, behind a flip-down door. This placement isn’t bad, although it means you must have the LCD panel open to insert and eject memory cards. It does provide excellent protection to your memory card slot, however.

The camcorder appears to have a clip length limit around 23 minutes. When you record for about 23 minutes continuously, the camcorder automatically generates a new clip where the old one left off—with no gaps or loss of data. This table below lists the approximate record times you can get with the GZ-HM400: Read more about the advantages and disadvantages of various media types.