Amazon.com: Customer reviews: Panasonic 4K Cinema-Like Video Camera Camcorder HC-WXF991K, 20X Leica DICOMAR Lens, 1/2.3" BSI Sensor, 5-Axis Hybrid O.I.S, HDR Mode, EVF, WiFi, Multi Scene Video Recording (Black)

Top positive review

Good Camera. Good Video Quality.

Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2024

This is an all around great camera. Easy to use with great picture quality especially when shooting mp4 50mbps. 4K is good as well, but I mostly shoot in 1080p then upscale to 4K in post production. Battery life is pretty good. You can charge the battery as you use the camera. Open the flip out screen and it's ready to record. So convenient. The touch screen is not s responsive as I would like, but it is still good enough. Overall, great little camera. I read reviews and weighted my options over a month before I bought it. Best camera out of about 5 that I compared it to at about the same price.

2 people found this helpful

Top critical review

Critical reviews›

KCASEY

Great camera but look for vendor who can offer tech support.

Reviewed in the United States on October 19, 2017

Camera itself works great. Has far more capabilities than I will ever tap. Two areas that affect the rating of which one was has to to do with the camera itself. First the buying experience is a bit exasperating when the product is listed for $200 less today than 2 weeks ago when purchased. Word to the wise is shop around as Amazon likely does not have the best price on this if it is showing anything above $800. My fault for being loyal (blind) to PRIME. Issue about camera is, to date, I cannot locate any compatible remote zoom control that will mount on the tripod that was also purchased. After sifting thru the 300 page manual and some less than helpful interactions with Panasonic tech support chat reps it appears this does not have a compatible device. This conclusion was confirmed by working with a rep from Adorama who does sell thru Amazon but actually offers their own tech support directly. I contacted them after purchasing and retuning two control units from Amazon that had a generic description that they fit "Panasonic" camcorders. In the end I have a beautiful setup but I am reduced to zooming by using a second hand on top of the camera while I move the boom on the tripod. Not efficient of effective. Given the price issue I experienced I would not recommend making similar purchases via Amazon as other retailers appear to be more competitively priced and are far more knowledgeable on this unit right now.

12 people found this helpful

504 total ratings, 156 with reviews

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From the United States

Chris Holcombe

Good Camera. Good Video Quality.

Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2024

Style: 4KVerified Purchase

2 people found this helpful

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George Hooper

A Case for an Awesome Camcorder

Reviewed in the United States on February 12, 2024

Style: 4KVerified Purchase

This is a great camcorder many pros as well as for family home videos love as with the auto functions it turns on opening the monitor then with decent light will takes great videos. Going pro it has additional options per manual control and some many interesting pre-post editing effects before transferring the files to whatever video editing software on your computer. With cinematic effects Panasonic added the dolly zoom effect. Think the movie 'Jaws' with Brody on the beach seeing a kid on a raft getting eaten by a shark and the camera sees his face never changing in distance while the background is zooming in. This dolly shot is built into the camcorder.

This is a sturdy hard case I'm using for the Panasonic HV-VX981K camcorder which is a little larger than many small camcorders so not easy to find a case that fits especially with the wider lens hood for 16:9 recording. It holds the camera and supplied accessories, a second fast wall charger with two of the larger 390 batteries, additional 128Gb SD cards, a case with three 49mm UV, CPL, ND filters and a lens cap to protect them. There is still room for the excellent Sony ICD-UX570 recorder for secondary audio when video recording. In place of filters one could store a Ulanzi RGB Video light for special effects. Overall a compact case offering options for your gear.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BY36RJNH?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details&th=1

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Quality product

Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2024

Style: 4KVerified Purchase

Works well, easily used, easily stored

Quality friendly manufacturer

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D-Dub

This camcorder is great

Reviewed in the United States on February 17, 2024

Style: 4KVerified Purchase

Just love this camcorder so many cool features great videos great pictures a bit pricey but worth it definitely a great buy. Very happy with this camcorder. Plan to use this for vacation and personal home use... delivered early and it looks awesome

Helpful

Ken

Side camera is over hyped, just my opinion

Reviewed in the United States on September 17, 2019

Style: 4K + ViewfinderVerified Purchase

Bought it, spent a week evaluating it, and returned it.

For about 3 years I've used a pair of Canon HD cameras, the SX 710 HS (pocket camera with 30X optical zoom) and the SX 60 HS Powershot Bridge camera (65X Optical zoom, resembles a small DSLR). I bought the SX 710 to be a complete replacement for a much earlier Canon slightly smaller in size to the SX 60. I learned quickly that the LCD screen on the 710 gets washed out in sunlight and can't be tilted. It's very useful for much of my needs and the pocket size is convenient. But it can't be counted on during daylight, so I bought the SX 60. I never thought I'd need two cameras but I'm very happy toting both when needed using each camera where it works best.

I say all this only to explain my environment as I began looking into upgrading to 4k video and photo technology. I’m very much a point and shooter generally using everything set to automatic. The Canons I own now and whatever I purchase will provide much more technology and capability that I will ever use.

As I got familiar with what's available today my desirable features became

1.) 4K video/photo technology
2.) better image stabilization although my Canons are very good at that
3.) 1.0 image sensor to get more detail and better low light results
4.) and at least 15X Optical Zoom (for my purposes anything over about 12X optical generates nothing more than bragging rights!).

Now, on to the HC-WXF991K. I rated the camera overall higher than my comment would suggest. That probably is fair as some of what made me return it had to with personal preference as opposed to product deficiencies. Here we go:

1. The owner’s manual drones on about the dangers of leaving the battery installed when the camera is not in use indicating that there is always a minimal battery drain that could result in permanent damage to the battery. I don’t know if there is anything unique about this camera that warrants the ominous warnings, and I get not leaving a battery in a camera long term unattended. But the way it was worded made me wonder if I should remove the battery when walking away from the camera overnight. If that’s the case then Panasonic needs to resolve that.

2. The camera has two low light technologies: Very Low Light and Infrared. Very Low Light mode produces a noticeably brighter image on the LCD and might be useable to take photos without a flash where one would expect to use a flash. But when taking movies in Very Low Light mode it produces movies with most of the frames missing creating very jerky (unuseable) movies. The owner’s manual describes this as missing a few frames, but that’s a great understatement. Infrared turns the image green as you would expect. But part of the lens hood is directly in front of the infrared lamp preventing the lamp from reaching part of what the camera can see. The resultant shadow is very obvious in the infrared image on the LCD screen.

3. The video light comes on as the ambient light gets lower REGARDLESS OF WHETHER OR NOT YOU ARE ACTUALLY RECORDING A VIDEO. Being behind the camera you may not know that it’s on wasting battery charge and irritating people in front of it. The video light can be set to ON/AUTO/OFF but that setting is not user friendly. First if you use the camera in Auto mode, as I would most of the time, the video light is forced to AUTO and can’t be changed! Second, the Owner’s Manual leads you through the menu screens to where this setting is SUPPOSED TO BE, but it isn’t there. I did stumble onto it while rummaging around through the menu structure, but it was nowhere near where the Manual sent me. I suspect this is a case of the manual not keeping up with changes made to the logic inside the camera.

4. I frequently use my SX 60 HS while walking holding it in front of me about belly button height with the LCD screen angled to avoid direct sunlight. When I try this with the HC-WXF991K I find that the wrist strap can’t be used because of the wrist angle that would be required if you held the camera as I just described. So I cradle the camera in my right hand, hold the LCD in my left hand to offer some stability. With my hands in these positions the record start stop button is impossible to reach. To me this says that I’m just not suited for a camera in a camcorder configuration as the record button is correctly positioned with the wrist strap in use and the camcorder held up to the eye. So this is a personal preference issue and not a product deficiency issue. Nonetheless, it’s part of the reason I returned the item.

5. The rotatable side camera built into the LCD screen was supposed to be a big plus for this camera. I envisioned being able to take candid photos or movies of people next to me. The amount of screen space on the LCD (and thus the recorded PIP video) can be set to two sizes…very small and very, very small. You can’t make the side camera image the main image on the screen, and you have no zoom in/out capability with it. When the side camera is pointed at the camera operator the camera needs to be held well forward of the operator (uncomfortably so) in order to get his entire face into the side camera image (no zoom out). When the side camera is pointed at the person next to you the camera needs to be move so close to that person as to invade his/her personal space (no zoom in). I’d suggest that if this is an important feature to prospective buyers they should experience the usability before buying, or at least be prepared to be disappointed. For my purposes the side camera added no value.

Along the way in making the purchase/return decisions I stumbled onto a YouTube video that was making the point that you probably can’t tell the difference between 1080P and 4K videos by watching them. The viewer didn’t know until later that pieces of the introduction to that video were shot in intermingled segments recorded at 1080P. 4K, and even 720P resolution. Armed with that knowledge the intro was replayed and the speaker identified which pieces were recorded at which resolution. I still couldn’t tell the difference! I’ll tell you that I watch football game replays using NFL GAMEPASS on a 75” television that is 4K capable. GAMEPASS streams games at 720P resolution. Those games to my eye look as good as the original HD broadcasts.

You may THINK you can tell the difference by looking… and maybe you can. In my case the value of 4K recording is that I can crop down to maybe 20% of a 4K video, zoom in to blow that crop up to full screen. That crop will have enough pixels to approach HD resolution.

Considering the downers noted above, and what little the HC-WXF991K added to my movie/photo tool bag, I felt that the $800 price tag was just too high to justify keeping it. Having returned it I bought the Panasonic Lumix DC-ZS200 which I am currently evaluating. It is more or less pocket size but slightly larger than the Canon SX 710 HS I’ve been using. What it offers over the SX 710 HS is: 4K resolution, TOUCH LCD screen, Electronic View Finder, much larger image sensor, better stabilization. At $700 it’s pricey and lacks some of the features of the HC-WXF991K that I probably would find useful. But if it survives my evaluation I don’t mind paying for what I get. And with the EVF included I may be back to one camera. We’ll see.

46 people found this helpful

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Allan P.

quality product

Reviewed in the United States on February 27, 2024

Style: 4KVerified Purchase

I liked everything about this camera, great video, easy to navigate menue

One person found this helpful

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Nate Schlabach

Best 4k camera for this price

Reviewed in the United States on April 6, 2024

Style: 4KVerified Purchase

I love the simplicity of the zoom function and stability, works so well for the relatively low price

Helpful

Cameron H.

I'm quite pleased with these cameras.

Reviewed in the United States on May 21, 2017

Style: 4KVerified Purchase

I'm pretty happy with this camcorder. We bought two of them and they, like most consumer cameras, are a little clunky out of the box. Features like auto light on/off, auto horizon level, and demo mode, can make it finicky to get your shot the way you want it, but a quick few minutes in the menu, got this camera in good working order. It has a great zoom lens with optics that allow the image to be sharp even at the tele end of the lens. I have noticed that the edges of the picture aren't super sharp when the camera is zoomed all the way out wide. For our application this isn't an issue as we'll be using this as a close up camera 99% of the time. This camera cannot record in 4K and output video via HDMI at the same time (HDMI will go out when you start recording), it can output and record to 1080P at the same time, however. The 4K is a little soft, as you would expect with a consumer camcorder, however the footage looks fantastic when scaled down to 1080p. The built in microphone is hands down the best quality I've ever heard from a built in camcorder mic. It sounds as if I'm using an external recorder. I'm also glad it has a built in video light and nightvision, however as I mentioned earlier, the built in light turns on and off constantly in auto mode, so I recommend disabling auto and switching it on/off manually when needed.

36 people found this helpful

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AnthonyNSS

Best Camcorder I've Ever Used for Streaming/Recording

Reviewed in the United States on March 20, 2024

Style: 4KVerified Purchase

I've been using this instead of a traditional webcam for streaming, video chatting, and otherwise recording and it has been a major upgrade. It has out-performed webcams from top brands meant for streaming

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glennmatthew

Great Camcorder but doesn't have a Physical Remote

Reviewed in the United States on September 20, 2021

Style: 4KVerified Purchase

Overall, I think this is a great camcorder, great size, easy to use and the video quality has been awesome (thus the 5-stars in the separate categories). I am definitely not a pro and really just use it for recreation, so please make sure you read other reviews which will give you a better assessment on the video quality.

The main reason I am writing this review is to "give someone a heads up" on a couple of things which is the reason why I only gave it 4-stars.

I mainly use this camcorder to record my daughter's soccer games. Again, the video quality looks great. The issue that I am dealing with has to do with my current setup which may or may not apply to you. I decided to purchase a Hague Camera Support Aerial Mast System that has a "manual pan & tilt head" and extends about 20' in height. This will help get a better angle & coverage of the soccer field but requires you to use either wireless camcorder which this is or a field monitor with physical remote or LANC jack.

Unfortunately, this camcorder doesn't come or have the ability of using a physical remote. Nor does it have a LANC Jack. Thus, you have to use the wireless link to your cell phone for you to use it remotely, which is extremely lagging and the delay from the camera to the phone makes this camcorder useless to record sports.

I thought I could use field monitors like the Atomos Ninja and Atomos Shinobi, some of which can cost just as much as the camcorder itself but it still doesn't solve the issue. That brings up another issue but it sounds like this maybe an issue with most camcorders that shoot 4k. If you plan on using an external field monitor, this camcorder will not record/output 4k and will only allow you to record/output HD or 1080p.

Last issue....Panasonic hasn't updated the firmware since it's release and that's truly unfortunate.

As I stated, this camcorder is only an issue when I record soccer games using the aerial mast. It's great for all other things and truly think it's a great value. However, if I knew about this before; I would have gone with another camcorder that comes with either a physical remote or LANC jack. I would also make sure this is a product that gets it firmware updated as well.

Hope that helps,

Glenn

19 people found this helpful

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Panasonic 4K Cinema-Like Video Camera Camcorder HC-WXF991K, 20X Leica DICOMAR Lens, 1/2.3" BSI Sensor, 5-Axis Hybrid O.I.S, HDR Mode, EVF, WiFi, Multi Scene Video Recording (Black)

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Panasonic 4K Cinema-Like Video Camera Camcorder HC-WXF991K, 20X Leica DICOMAR Lens, 1/2.3" BSI Sensor, 5-Axis Hybrid O.I.S, HDR Mode, EVF, WiFi, Multi Scene Video Recording (Black)

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