This is a great product for what it is designed to do and it seems that many of the negative reviews are by people that didn’t research their purchase properly. I understand that frustration, but if you know what it can and can’t do before purchasing then you will not be disappointed! Let me give some of the pros and cons to explain what I mean. At the end I have a small explanation of what you can expect for picture quality.
Pros
- Zoom: The zoom is amazing! I shoot most of my videos on a 1.6x crop frame Canon DSLR and there is no lens in the world that will get you 59x optical zoom. That is something like 1650mm equivalent which gives you a tight headshot at 200ft. There are several “Intelligent” or digital zoom options, just disable that from the first day and forget about it.
- Battery/Charging: The battery lasts forever. I’ve done long recordings and I really haven’t hit 50% battery. It is also easy to power off USB (in two different ways: the included barrel plug or micro USB) which means that a cheap battery bank will keep it at 100% power for days.
- Price: At just under $200 this is $50 cheaper that most of the competition (for example the Vixia HF R800). Even for the same price I prefer the Panasonic to the Canon, and I’m an avid Canon DSLR fan!
- Microphone: No, this doesn’t have a broadcast quality microphone. However, it is noticeably better than the mic on my Canon DSLR, especially in the wind. I do wish that it accepted an external mic input, and I’ve listed that as a con. So the quality isn’t great, but since it’s better than a DSLR I have to put it as a pro.
Cons
- Microphone Input: I really wish this accepted an external mic input as most of it’s competitors do. I get that most people buying a cheap camcorder aren’t going to use an external mic, but I would!
- No Carrying Case: Even a simple cloth bag would have been better than nothing, I bought a $10 case that’s a bit too big for it. I wish I had something better.
- Menu Interface: This isn’t a strong point for most camcorders, but this one is particularly finicky with the menus. The low quality touch screen and small icons mean it often takes two tries to hit the right button and the menus are designed someone who has never actually used a camera.
- Live-Video Output: I haven’t even tried this, it uses a mini-HDMI, which is a stupid standard, but at least they include a mini-HDMI to HDMI cord with the camera. There are a lot of other reviews that talk about this… I haven’t tried and I don’t care, but others have issues, so consider that if you care.
A note about video quality:
I’ll start by saying that this is about on par with a good smartphone for video quality and maybe underperforms a flagship phone in low light. In a daylight scene it can be hard to tell the difference between this camcorder footage and a $1,000 DSLR with a good lens! However, as soon as you go indoors the quality of the camcorder footage deteriorates to a barely usable level. It says it is F2.08 @ 108mm and while I don’t think they are lying, the quality of the footage would not lead a person to believe that number…
So why would you buy this!? Why have I given it 5 stars!?
Because a good new DSLR+lens cost 3 or 5 times as much, and this camcorder keeps pace with good lighting conditions.
Because a smartphone is lucky if it can get to 2x zoom without the quality collapsing and this camcorder does 59x and looks great.
Because it is $200 and can get great footage that would be hard to get other ways!
If you want to record indoors/low-light, or need the absolute best in video quality then spend the extra money to get something with a much larger sensor (not really available on any "camcorder"). Otherwise, you’ll love this!
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This Item  Panasonic Full HD Video Camera Camcorder HC-V180K, 50X Optical Zoom, 1/5.8-Inch BSI Sensor, Touch Enabled 2.7-Inch LCD Display (Black) |  |  |  |  |  | |
| Price | $220.97 | $229.00 | -9% $999.00 Typical: $1,099.00 | $129.97 | $169.99 | $399.49 |
| Delivery | Get it as soon as Friday, May 17 | Get it May 16 - 22 | Get it May 16 - 17 | Get it as soon as Friday, May 17 | Get it as soon as Friday, May 17 | Get it as soon as Friday, May 17 |
| Customer Ratings | ||||||
| Zoom | ||||||
| Picture quality | ||||||
| Touch Screen | ||||||
| Sold By | Amazon Warehouse | PIXIBYTES | Electronic Express | Foreign ornaments | VidCapture Zone | Western Central |
| model name | HC-V180K | — | CNHFG70 | — | DV087 | R600 |
| display size | 2.7 inches | 2.7 inches | 3.5 inches | 3 inches | — | 3 inches |
| digital zoom | — | 350 multiplier x | 800 multiplier x | 18 multiplier x | 18 multiplier x | 57 multiplier x |
| optical zoom | — | 30 multiplier x | 20 multiplier x | 0 multiplier x | 1 multiplier x | 32 multiplier x |
| video resolution | 1080p, 720p | 1080p | 4K | 4K | 8K | — |
| connectivity tech | USB | USB | USB | USB | Wi-Fi, HDMI | Wi-Fi |
| shooting modes | Easy, Movie | Automatic | Slow Motion, Fast Motion, Face Detection | Continuous Shooting | Slow Motion | — |
| lens type | Zoom | Zoom | Zoom | Zoom | Zoom | — |
From the manufacturer
Panasonic V180 Full-HD Camcorder
While you discover the sites and enjoy time with your family, your footage is steady and clear thanks to 5-axis hand-shake detection.
90x Intelligent/50x Optical Zoom
Easily capture distant objects that are too far away to shoot with smartphones– thanks to 90x Intelligent Zoom. You can also use the 50x Optical Zoom to get closer while keeping image quality.
28mm Wide-Angle*
Fit more into the frame – the 28mm Wide Angle (35mm camera equivalent) makes it possible to take a group shot in a small room.
* 35mm camera equivalent
5-axis O.I.S. and Level Shot
HYBRID O.I.S + suppresses blur caused by unwanted shake, letting you capture clear images in every shooting situation. Level Shot function supports you by correcting the tilting of images.
BSI Sensor
The advanced BSI Sensor captures high-quality images in both bright and dim lighting conditions, allowing you to record beautiful footage from indoors to nightscapes with low noise distortion.
Comparison Chart
 HC-V180 |  HC-V380 |  HC-W580 |  HC-V785 |  HC-V800 |  HC-VX981 |  HC-WXF991 | |
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Customer Reviews
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1,141
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146
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146
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1,141
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44
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505
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505
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Price
| $220.97 | — | — | $562.99 | $497.99 | $747.99 | — |
|
Image Sensor
| 1/5.8-inch | 1/5.8-inch | 1/5.8-inch | 1/2.3-inch | 1/2.5-inch | 1/2.3-inch | 1/2.3-inch |
|
Video Quality
| Full-HD | Full-HD | Full-HD | Full-HD | Full-HD | 4K | 4K |
|
LEICA Dicomar Lens
| ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✔ | ✔ |
|
Optical/Intelligent Zoom
| 50x/90x | 50x/90x | 50x/90x | 20x/50x | 24x/48x | 20x/25x(4K), 40x (Full-HD) | 20x/25x(4K), 40x (Full-HD) |
|
Wide Angle
| 28mm | 28mm | 28mm | 28.5mm | 25mm | 30.8mm | 30.8mm |
|
O.I.S.
| HYBRID O.I.S+ | HYBRID O.I.S+ | HYBRID O.I.S+ | HYBRID O.I.S+ | HYBRID O.I.S+/Adaptive O.I.S. | HYBRID O.I.S+ | HYBRID O.I.S+ |
|
HDR Movie Mode
| ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
|
Electronic View Finder
| ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✔ |
|
Microphone
| 2ch | 2ch | 2ch | 5.1ch | 5.1ch | 5.1ch | 5.1ch |
|
Twin Camera
| ✘ | ✘ | ✔ | ✘ | ✘ | ✘ | ✔ |
|
Wi-Fi
| ✘ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
|
Touch Screen
| ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
Videos
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Review - Panasonic Full HD Video Camera Camcorder
katy Rose
Videos for this product
1:30
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V180K ACTUAL Sample Footage | No Talking | Not an Unboxing
Michael Noble
Videos for this product
0:28
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Customer Review: Must Buy!! Check it out!!
YouTube: NoX Regulator
Reviews with images
Low light footage is poor compared to the Canon VIXIA HF40. Photo attached
If the camcorders are often used In-room low-light events then, Panasonic HC-V785 is not as good as Canon VIXIA HF M40 which I am using right now ( as shown in the attached picture ), but recently I experienced some problems and looking to find a replacement.
Top reviews from the United States
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Top reviews from other countries
Octavio Esteban
Excelente Cámara de Video
Reviewed in Mexico on December 4, 2023Style: HC-V785KVerified Purchase
martin jolicoeur
Un excelent produit
Reviewed in Canada on January 15, 2023Style: HC-V785KVerified Purchase
