Panasonic HDC-TM10

Review: Panasonic HDC-TM10 AVCHD

Panasonic’s tiny but well-featured HD camcorder offers all the benefits of solid-state high definition video recording whilst being small enough to keep in your pocket.

Panasonic's palm-sized HDC-TM10 twin-memory camcorder

Panasonic has been quick to respond to the new market for small, compact and palm-sized camcorders with a new range of full-HD models that not only meet current needs but also facilitate solid-state recording and playback of high definition movies and digital still pictures.

To this end, the company’s new HDC-TM10 goes one step further by providing not only pocket-sized HD but the choice of recording to either SD card or built-in flash memory and is joined by the HDC-SD10, whose operating specs are identical except that it offers SD-card operation only.

First Impressions

Measuring 115mm (length) x 63mm (height) and 48mm (width) and weighing in at a mere 280 grammes (with battery) it’s fair to say that the TM10 is small and light. It’s designed to slip into a small bag or medium-sized pocket after use and, thanks to its completely solid-state operation, it’s ready to roll the second you switch it on.

Complete camcorder newbies will have no problem using this camcorder the second it’s switched on. It defaults into Auto mode and allows for instantaneous operation. One cautionary note is that the lens shutter/cap, which on many comparable models is often automatically operated, is manual on both this and the HDC-SD10 model. You’ll need to throw a little black switch – found to the right of the lens barrel – to open it. Remember to shut it in order to protect the lens when not in use.

The only real choice that needs to be made is whether to save your new movies and stills to an SD card (SDHC Class 4 or 6 recommended for AVCHD video recording and playback) or to the TM10′s built-in 8GB flash memory. With no card inserted vertically into the slot, which can be found on the upper rear right of the body (see picture below in which the door is seen opened) the camcorder will default to memory card shooting and playback.

The battery has been designed to slot in flush with the body and is not visible when the 2.7″ wide LCD screen is shut. It’s inside this recess where several connectors are to be found – Component, Mini HDMI, AV composite video/audio terminal output and USB 2.0 socket.

The TM10 offers a choice of internal memory or SDHC card recording and playback

The main Power on/off button is here along with the main Manual button as well as the Pre-Rec utility.

On the upper deck can be found the “iA” and OIS buttons together with mini zoom toggle (which doubles as sound level control on playback and also the Photo shoot button with which to take still pictures.

Look closely you’ll see an additional Play (green) or Record (red) option slider switch position at the lower rear of the main body together with the master Record button. This complements a secondary Record button positioned on the lower LCD frame (also pictured) together with additional Zoom controls, the main Menu, Light and Trash buttons.

Both a Flash Light and Video Light are provided up front, with the upward-facing Stereo zoom mic up front on a main body that’s attractively styled in both chrome and brushed aluminium, with the right side of the body finished in a nicely-moulded black plastic.

Like its HDC-SD10 sibling, it’s small, lightweight and very comfortable to hold in a way that appeal to many casual users.

Features

Like other Panasonic HD camcorders, the TM10 offers Pre-REC, an extremely useful utility involving a standby mode which caches three seconds’ worth of video and which can be instantly saved once something unmissable happens. When this mode is activated, all you need to do is to hit the Record button and you’ll capture the goal that occurred up to three seconds before. It’s a great way to be recording without actually recording, if you get the drift!

Another aid to newbies is Shooting Guide, which results in the user being presented with various on-screen prompts and suggestions based upon the way the camera is being used and also Panasonic’s excellent Advanced-OIS (Optical Image Stabilisation). Added to that are a couple of other really useful features in the form of AF Tracking – such as the ability to set the focus and exposure of an moving object (such as a person’s face) and track it as it moves around. Face Detection is linked to this mode, in which the faces of up to 15 people can be identified and tracked in frame.

Panasonic’s use of 1/6’’ image sensors (the chip that converts light into electrical impulses and which, in turn, are converted into digital images) in its HD camcorders is a near-standard feature at this price point. The TM10′s so-called “1MOS” sensor provides a total resolution of 1,470,000 pixels, which translates to an effective 1,117,000 pixels in both motion and still picture modes. Like its sister product (the SD10), the HDC-TM10 uses the MPEG-4/AVC H.264 high definition video compression system to save 1920×1080 / 50i movies to the selected memory using the following settings:

• HA: 17 Mbps (1920 x 1080 VBR)
• HG: 13 Mbps (1920 x 1080 VBR)
• HX: 9 Mbps (1920 x 1080 VBR)
• HE: 6 Mbps (1440 x 1080 VBR)

The maximum data rate of 17 Mbps is the same as that employed by the recently-reviewed HDC-SD20, and on the optical side the impressive Leica Dicomar F1.8 to F2.8 lens provides 16x optical zoom, with a further 40x and 1000x available when the digital zoom mode is selected.

Audio compression is achieved by the use of Dolby Digital 2-channel stereo sound.

Using a 16GB SDHC Class 4 memory card, it’s possible to record approximately 2 hours of full-specification AVCHD at the HA setting. This increases to 2 hrs 40 mins (HG), 4 hrs (HX and 6 hrs (HE) respectively. Use of a 32GB SDHC card (the maximum possible under the current AVCHD specification), it would be possible to record 4 hours at the highest quality setting and 12 hours at the lowest. A 4GB card will give 30 mins at the highest setting and 1 hour 30 mins at the lowest. At the time of writing, no card is included with the camcorder although individual resellers might opt to offer their own incentives.

Assuming that an SDHC memory card is inserted during recording, the user then has a choice of saving movies and images onto either the built-in memory or the card. Moreover, should one or the other fill up during recording, the TM10 will automatically re-direct the recording process to take advantage of any available space on the other medium. When you play back the clip across the join, the camcorder will automatically make the switch seamlessly, and if you subsequently use the provided HD Writer AE1.5 to compile your clips in a PC, the software will stitch the two clips together and save them as one.

What’s particularly useful about twin media camcorders (such as this) is that it also facilitates the copying of clips and images from the built-in memory to a card (assuming it is of sufficient capacity to hold the contents to be copied, of course). The camcorder’s highly user-friendly touch-screen menu system makes it easy to select clips individually, in groups or all together and effect a transfer to the card. Existing users find this to be a great means of backing-up material whilst away from base; providing you don’t them keep the card with the camera your material will always be safe should you lose one or the other. It’s also very easy to a complete beginner to do.

Finally, a word about the general controllability of functions within the TM10. Many beginners will find that its Auto functions will keep them happy for all of their video shooting requirements. However, the camcorder also provides excellent opportunities to take manual control over exposure, white balance and focus thanks to the touch-screen controls; you want to fix the exposure, focus or white balance to a particular point in the frame? Tell the camcorder by touching the LCD screen at that position and it will remember it. You wish to then revert to Auto control? Touch the appropriate tab on the screen and you’re back in Auto mode. It’s very easy – and very effective.

The purists won’t like it, of course, but the neither the TM10 nor the SD10 are aimed at the purists. For those in the real world, it’s ideal – and great when you’re on holiday, at a barbeque or other event where you have neither the time nor the inclination to fiddle with buttons or menus. In short, the TM10 provides much more functionality than the majority of users will ever require.

Performance

Because the TM10 is a small, pocket-sized, camcorder that is clearly aimed at the casual home-user, it would be easy to dismiss it as something of a toy even though it offers full-HD 1920 x 1080 / 50i (60i in NTSC territories like the USA and Japan) and other great features.

What’s particularly impressive about the TM10 is the way it very quickly adapts its images to its surroundings; in bright light or even moderate light and the pictures are surprisingly good for a camcorder that sports a 1/6″ inch MOS chip. If you then plonk it in front of an object which is almost touching the front element of the lens, you’ll find it adjusts the focus automatically and maintains pin-sharp images almost immediately. In fact, what impressed us most was the speed with which it adapted to all of these varying circumstances.

Shooting close-up detail in full high definition

In these two pictures (above) you can see the TM10 having been placed among tiny flowers in a garden. The camera is switched to fully Auto mode, with not only Focus but also Exposure (Iris) and White Balance (WB) being adjusted internally. The flower closest to the lens is less than 1cm away from the front element yet the camcorder quickly generates a sharp image. If the camcorder were to be moved away, the internal focusing system would make constant adjustments to the point where viewers would hardly notice the change.

Take the camcorder indoors and we’re surprised at the 1MOS image sensor’s ability to render images that are perfectly acceptable to all but the most finicky of eyes; it’s unreasonable to expect low-cost camcorders to produce perfect images in low light (any more than it is to expect professional models to perform any better) but in all but the darkest of conditions the TM10 (and SD10) will turn in a very good, perfectly acceptable image.

Finally, to sound. The only means available to the TM10 to capture audio is via the upward-facing stereo microphone that sits on the upper front of the main body. As with all camcorders of this type, the mic is prone to even light wind noise and this can prove to be intrusive in playback – especially where pictures might be so good. With no external mic connection option (you have to move up the product ladder for such luxury) it might be possible to cover the mic with foam, but all in all it’s a problem you’ll have to live with. Other than that, the sound quality and stereo separation are very good indeed and will satisfy the majority of users most of the time.

Archiving, editing and copying

Thanks to USB 2.0 connectivity (cable supplied) and also the ability to remove the SDHC card from the slot which is revealed by opening the LCD screen, it’s relatively easy to import all or selected clips (and digital stills photos) from the card to a Windows or Apple Mac computer, either for simple tidy-up editing and onward sharing or for more complex editing work.

In order that newcomers to HD video can work on their clip and share their movie projects by DVD disc, web video or even YouTube, Panasonic has included the latest update of its simple editing software called HD Writer AE 1.5 or HDC software, which comes with the product. This makes it possible for users to copy their movie clips and image data on a “as is” basis across to a Windows or Vista PC and preview the high definition clips with relative ease on reasonably-specced PCs. It’s also possible to make simple changes to the clips on a simplified timeline and then save sequences in AVCHD format to a regular DVD disc, as well as being able to convert the HD clips into standard definition MPEG-2 clips or sequences for playback on regular DVD players or computer screens. Clips can be spilt, merged together or deleted at will and the results are reasonably good. At its simplest, the software is a very useful means to backing up the contents of a SDHC card to either the computer’s hard disc drive or to a DVD.

Conclusion

Without seeking to labour the point, but it’s important to consider the HDC-TM10, and its sister product the HDC-SD10, in the context of the user for whom it’s intended. With that in mind, it’s surprisingly small and lightweight yet it hides a huge degree of functionality that could only have been dreamed of 10 years ago.

The fact that it offers a choice of recording media, together with the facility to copy media clips from one medium to the other with incredible ease, and its ability to reproduce such high quality images and sound when connected via HDMI to a suitable HDTV display means that it would be very wrong of us to award this any less than the full 5 thumbs. If you’re looking for a camcorder that can shoot good stills and HD movies whilst being afforded the convenience of flash memory recording and playback and complete ease of use, then this is the one for you.

Reviewed by: Colin Barrett. Images copyright Panasonic UK. Used by permission.