General Features
Video Camera Features
Battery Information
Inputs and Outputs Notes
Software And Computer Information
General Features
Recording Media: The Panasonic HC-V100M allows you to record
Full HD video and still images on the 16 GB built-in memory, or on optional SD/SDHC/SDXC
cards up to 64 GB. SD cards
with a Speed Class Rating of 4 or higher are recommended.
2.7" LCD Screen: The 2.7" (16:9) LCD screen
provides excellent viewing clarity. The 230,000-dot
LCD screen rotates up to 270 degrees for multiple viewing angles providing sharp
and detailed images for monitoring or playback. Mirror mode allows you to view a
mirror-image of the subject you are shooting in the LCD screen when the screen
is rotated 180 degrees, but the image will be normal when recorded.
Note: The V100M does not include a separate viewfinder.
Recording Formats: This camera captures video in the
following formats:
- MPEG-4 AVC/H.264: This recording format, commonly known as AVCHD,
can record high definition quality images. It is suitable for viewing on a
large format TV or for saving to a disc.
- iFrame: The iFrame format is suitable for playing back or edition
on a Mac (iMovie'11). Using iMovie'11, iFrame motion pictures can be imported
faster than AVCHD, and the imported file size is smaller than that of AVCHD.
Image Sensor: The V100M uses a 1/5.8" High Sensitivity MOS
sensor. The V100M has a total pixel count of 1,500,000, with
1,300,000-1,120,000 effective pixels for recording 16:9 high definition video
and still images.
Lens: This camera features a Panasonic F1.8 (W) - F4.0 (T) lens with a
34x optical zoom, Auto Iris, and a focal length of 2.38mm to 81mm. The 35mm equivalent
focal length is 32.5mm to 1208mm for motion pictures and still images.
Intelligent Zoom: The camcorder has an Intelligent Zoom
(i.Zoom) function that goes up to 42x while maintaining high definition picture quality.
Intelligent Resolution technology lets you shoot at high zoom rates while
preserving image sharpness.
Digital Zoom: In addition to the 34x optical zoom, the
camcorder has a selectable
90x or 2000x (total) digital zoom. Because the picture is processed digitally, the
picture quality deteriorates the more you zoom in. The power zoom lever can be
moved slightly for a slow zoom, or moved further for a faster zoom.
Intelligent Auto Mode: The Intelligent Auto (iA) mode
automatically sets the shooting mode that is appropriate for the condition when
you simply point the unit to what you want to record. Intelligent Auto Modes
include:
- Portrait: Faces are detected and focused automatically,
and brightness is adjusted to make people stand out against the background
- Scenery: the whole landscape will be recorded
vividly without whiting out the background sky, which may be very bright
- Spotlight: improved quality when subject is brightly illuminated
(motion picture recording only)
- Low Light: for dark scenes, such as at dusk (motion
picture recording only)
- Normal: contrast adjusted automatically for clear
images
Power O.I.S.: Panasonic's Power O.I.S. (Optical Image
Stabilization) with Active Mode helps suppress the effects of hand-shake as you
shoot movies and still images. Power O.I.S. allows you to record with minimal
blurring, even with handheld shooting while moving or in an unstable posture.
Face Framing: When Face Framing is activated, the camcorder
will recognize up to 15 human faces, and a "frame" appears around each face in
the LCD screen. The camcorder sets the focus and brightness on the faces in the
scene. Larger faces and faces nearer to the center of the screen take preference
over the others. You can register the faces of particular persons, giving them
priority focusing and displaying their names when they are recognized by the
camcorder.
Illumination Requirements: The camera records video and
photos in normal mode at a standard illumination of 1400 lx. You can record at
1.6 lx in the Low Light mode and approximately 1 lx in the Color Night
Record mode.
White Balance Adjustment: You can set the
color balance to the brightness of the recording environment using the following
methods:
- Auto: The white balance is adjusted automatically
- Sunny Mode: for recording outdoors under a clear sky
- Cloudy Mode: for recording outdoors under a cloudy sky
- Indoor Mode 1: for recording indoors under incandescent lights and halogen
lamps
- Indoor Mode 2: for recording indoors under color
fluorescent lamps or sodium lamps
- Manual: You
can manually set the white balance using a white card or paper.
Manual Exposure: When automatic exposure settings fail to
give you the images you desire, you can manually set the shutter speed and the
iris/gain values. The Shutter Speed can be set between
1/60 and 1/8000 (1/30-1/8000 in Auto Slow Shutter mode). The Iris/Gain value can be set
between F16 and F2.0 (0 dB to 18 dB).
Focus Modes: The V100M focuses automatically for most
situations. When auto focus doesn't work, you can switch to Manual Focus and use
the left/right arrows to manually focus on the subject.
Video Camera Features
HD Video Recording: The V100M records high definition motion images at a
1920 x
1080 resolution onto the built-in 16 GB memory or an inserted SD/SDHC/SDXC memory card. The camera
records audio in Dolby Digital 2-channel audio using the built-in microphone. If
the video is going to be uploaded to a Mac, it is recommended that it be
recorded in the iFrame format with 2-channel AAC audio (960 x 540 resolution).
Recording Modes: The HC-V100M gives you the choice of four
recording modes, three AVCHD modes plus iFrame:
| Recording Mode |
Resolution |
Bit Rate |
Recording Capacity
16 GB Built-in Memory |
| HA |
1920 x 1080 |
17 Mbps |
2 hours |
| HG |
1920 x 1080 |
13 Mbps |
2 hrs 40 min |
| HX |
1920 x 1080 |
9 Mbps |
4 hrs 10 min |
| iFrame |
960 x 540 |
28 Mbps |
1 hr 20 min |
Quick Start: The camera will go into standby mode if you
close the LCD monitor or push in the viewfinder while the unit is powered on. When the LCD monitor is
reopened or the viewfinder is extended, the unit resumes recording mode/pause in approximately 0.6 seconds,
allowing you to start recording almost immediately.
Pre-Rec: The Pre-Rec mode allows recording of
pictures and sound to start approximately 3 seconds before the start/stop button
is pressed. This helps prevent you from missing a shot.
Fader: When you start recording, the image and audio will
gradually appear, and when you pause or stop recording, the image/audio
gradually disappear. You can select a black or white fader, or turn off the fade
mode altogether.
Playback Modes: During playback, you can choose the following
operations: Play/pause, rewind, fast forward, stop, skip forward, skip backward,
slow-motion, and frame-by-frame. Audio will only be heard during normal
playback.
Still Image Recording: The V100M can record still
images at 1920 x 1080 resolution (16:9). You can choose an image quality of Fine
or Normal. The camcorder can record approximately 14,000 Fine images on the
built-in 16 GB flash memory. When the quality is set to normal, the number of
recordable images is larger. In addition, you can create a still image from a
recorded movie. The still picture size depends upon the video recording mode:
HA, HG, HX: 1920 x 1080, iFrame: 960 x 540.
Battery Information
Battery: This unit comes with the VW-VBK180 Lithium-Ion
rechargeable battery (3.6V/1790 mAh/6.5 Wh). An optional high-capacity battery for this camcorder
is the VW-VBK360 (3.6V/3580mAh). The battery can be charged in the camcorder
using the supplied VSK0780 AC adapter, or via USB when connected to your
computer. The
playback and charging times is as follows:
| Battery Model |
Charging Time |
Recording Mode |
Maximum Continuous Recording Time |
Actual Recording Time |
| Supplied VW-VBK180 |
2 hrs 45 min
(5 hrs 45 min via USB) |
HA, HG, HX |
2 hrs 35 min |
1 hr 20 min |
| iFrame |
3 hrs 10 min |
1 hr 35 min |
| Optional VW-VBK360 |
4 hrs 20 min
(10 hrs 40 min via USB) |
HA |
5 hrs 5 min |
2 hrs 40 min |
| HG, HX |
5 hrs 10 min |
| iFrame |
6 hrs 15 min |
3 hrs 10 min |
Inputs and Outputs Notes
A/V Multi Output: This camcorder features a proprietary AV
multi connector output for use with the supplied A/V
multi cable (component video/composite video/stereo audio) for displaying the camera's contents on your television.
You can use either the component video plugs (red, green, blue RCAs) or
composite video plug (yellow) along with the stereo audio plugs (red, white RCAs)
to connect the camcorder to your TV. High definition images up to 1080i are
output using the component video plugs, and 480i standard images are output
using the component or composite plugs.
HDMI: You can output high definition video up to 1080i and 2-channel audio through the camcorder's HDMI output. A mini-HDMI to
HDMI cable is required to connect the camcorder to your HDTV. When connecting to
a Panasonic VIERA Link (HDAVI control) compatible TV via HDMI, you can control
the camcorder's playback using the TV's remote control. The camcorder is
compatible with VIERA Link Ver.5 or earlier.
USB Port: The camera has a mini-USB version 2.0 jack for
connecting to a PC via the supplied USB cable. Connecting the camcorder
to a PC via USB allows the computer to access the information on the built-in
memory or an
inserted SD/SDHC/SDXC card. You will be able to download still images and video
files to your computer. You can edit and save your video files onto your computer, then make DVDs of
them using the software that is supplied with the
camera. The camera can also be used as an external storage device,
convenient for archiving, storing and transporting your videos and still images.
Software And Computer Information
Included Software: The camera includes HD Writer AE 1.1, which is compatible with Windows operating system only.
With HD Writer AE 1.1, you can:
- copy data to a PC
- copy in BD/AVCHD format (except iFrame scenes) or DVD-Video format
- edit movies
- share movies online
- play back movies on a PC
- format discs
Computer Requirements: HD Writer AE 1.1 works with the
following Operating Systems:
- Windows 7 (32-bit/64-bit): Starter, Home Basic,
Home Premium, Professional, Ultimate (Service Pack 1)
- Windows Vista (32-bit): Home Basic, Home Premium,
Ultimate, Business (SP2)
- Windows XP (32-bit): Home Edition, Professional (SP3)
iMovie: The V100M lets you record videos in iFrame format
for downloading and editing on a Mac. With iFrame, the video in the camera is in
the same format as used by Apple's iMovie application. Once you have transferred
and edited the movie, you can upload the movie to the Internet, as well as share
it on YouTube and Facebook in its original high quality.