Panasonic HDC-TM20

Making its appearance at the budget end of the market, the Panasonic HDC-TM20K is a sub $600 camera that really seems to be an excellent deal. Again, this is another camera in the new Panasonic high definition range and we are road-testing 5 for you this week. This one is at the cheaper end but that doesn’t always mean that you lose out in terms of performance, so we were keen to get on with the test and see what we found. Sit back with a coffee and have a read; maybe we can help you decide whether this is the camcorder for you.

Panasonic HDC-TM20K Camcorder

Design

Another eye pleaser from Panasonic, the Panasonic HDC-TM20K is a sleek black unit that thankfully has refrained from the red stripe around the lens, and is not too heavy on the branding and writing which is a definite improvement on others we have seen from them. The unit is small and neat and follows the standard format of most camcorders, with the hand strap on the right side, assuming we all film with our right hands, but that is the industry standard, and the LCD screen opening on the left hand side, and again features the controversial Panasonic touch screen technology. There is sadly one design fault and that is the power input for charging the camera, which is hidden beneath the battery pack. This means you cannot use the camera whilst charging the unit, so you do need to make sure you have it fully charged before you go out.

Functionality

This is a entry level camcorder but as far as we can see it certainly doesn’t skimp on technology, although the memory is slightly small at only 16GB. However, this has twin memory function so you can add a SD card via the SD slot to expand on that functionality. SD cards are not included in the price so you would have to go and purchase one separately, but well worth it if you want to organize your home movies by category or event.

The Panasonic HDC-TM20K has 16x optical zoom function, and the quality of images captured on zoom is excellent and clarity is not lost. Their standard OIS technology is present, which means that any shake of the hand is compensated for and the picture adjusted to make sure this is not noticed on playback. Again they have added their intelligent automatic technology, and this is responsible for keeping the conditions and settings optimal as it will automatically adjust internal settings as you film to account for lighting conditions etc. This is excellent for the amateur camera person as the camcorder is intelligent enough to help you out.

Therefore, this is a camcorder that will appeal most to the home user, and to be honest, the serious camera person is unlikely to be looking in this price range as it almost goes without saying that this will not be enough kick for them. It is designed to be user friendly and help you get the best possible images recorded. The high definition is good and the pictures we took were more than acceptable for the family wedding video, and are a huge improvement on camcorder technology as we can remember it being way back when. This unit has the 16x Leica Dicomar optical zoom lens, which seems to perform well in this camcorder, and we are not expecting sensational for the money to be honest.

The lens cap is built in and opens when the unit is switched on, which again is a nice touch and means there is nothing separate to lose, and the lens certainly seems to give rise to clear images.

Conclusion

This is a brilliant entry level piece of kit, and if you have never owned a camcorder before then you could do a lot worse than the Panasonic HDC-TM20K. It is excellent value for money, a tough and practical design, and the only real issue here is the touch screen which Panasonic really haven’t got to grips with. It does work but it does seem to be temperamental, and sometimes we couldn’t get it to respond to any of our increasingly frantic screen taps, but other times it did as it was asked first time. However again for the money maybe this is acceptable, as the overall performance is good, and you will not be disappointed with the quality and sharpness of images on playback. For the new user or the basic home user we are happy to recommend the Panasonic HDC-TM20K as real value for money.

Average User Rating:

• “I bought this camcorder to use it during travel. This is my first SD-Card/Flash memory based camcorder. Physically it is very handy, perfectly fits inside my palm, its really light weight with decently sturdy construction. Battery life is ok with the supplied one, for day long tours an extended battery is definitely recommended. I get a very good quality, saturated and sharp video while shooting in daylight or indoors at daytime. In very low light the video is full of grains, although useable. Overall, I am satisfied with the camcorder for the price I paid.” – A.Joheb (TX,USA)
• “This is my first HD camcorder. It performs well in day time shooting; however, the video is a little grainy at night time. At this price, it is still a bargain.” – D.Eng (CA,USA)

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