JVC GZ-HM400

The GZ-HM400 and GZ-X900 are very similar camcorders in two entirely different bodies. Both have 1/2.33-inch CMOS sensors and many of their internal specs and features are identical. As far as handling goes, however, the two camcorders couldn’t be more different. The GZ-HM400 is much larger, fatter, and has a sweet adjustment dial underneath the lens that is used for changing manual controls. The HM400 is also more traditionally designed, as it features a right-side hand strap, and a wide, barrel-shaped construction. The GZ-X900, on the other hand, is almost perfectly rectangular. It has smooth, flat edges, no right-side hand strap, and is significantly lighter than the HM400.

Both camcorders have the same $1000 price tag, but the GZ-HM400 gets you far more bang for your buck. It includes 32GB of internal flash memory, whereas the GZ-X900 has none (it records to memory card only). The HM400 also has a lovely zoom rocker, and is capable of giving you precise control over a variety of manual options thanks to the adjustment dial. The GZ-X900 must rely on its finicky Laser Touch strip for all manual adjustments, and it only has a 5x optical zoom compared the the 10x on the HM400.

The two camcorders had nearly identical bright light performances, but in low light the GZ-HM400 came out ahead. It had a far better sensitivity and much less noise than the GZ-X900 in our low light testing. Now, this doesn’t mean the HM400 is a top-notch low light camcorder (it isn’t), all it means is that it did much better than the GZ-X900 (which is one of the worst low light models we’ve tested). Still, every way you look at it the GZ-HM400 is the better product than the GZ-X900. It offers a better value, better performance, and better features all around. The only thing the X900 has going for it is its more compact body—but we cannot justify that as enough of a reason to side with it over the GZ-HM400.