JVC Everio GZ-HM400

Colour (13.46)

The JVC GZ-HM400 captured deep, vibrant colours in our bright light testing. The camcorder measured a colour error of 2.6 and a saturation level of 91.09 %. These are very good scores, and the best in the bunch. However, there is not much difference from what we've come to expect from a high-end camcorder. Nearly all camcorders over $1000 will get you similar results in bright light. (More on how we test colour.)

Colour Accuracy Performance
Colour Test Chart (above), Colour Error Map (right)
The JVC GZ-HM400 produced a colour error of 2.6 and a saturation level of 91.09% in our bright light colour testing. (The map on the right is a diagram of the colour error. The length and direction of each line indicates how the camcorder processed each particular colour.)

Looking at the error map above, you can see the GZ-HM400 handled blues and reds with spot-on accuracy. The camcorder really only had trouble with certain yellow and green tones. This is similar to what we saw on the JVC GZ-X900. None of JVC's camcorders offer any alternate colour modes. New on the GZ-HM400, however, is an image sharpness control option. We have examples of this sharpness feature in our manual controls section.

JVC GZ-HM400 Colour Modes
Auto	100% Crop

In bright light, the JVC GZ-HM400's image is very good—there is no doubt about that. Its colours appear a bit more vibrant than those of the GZ-X900, which is accentuated by the HM400's higher saturation level. Its colour palette is also slightly different than that of the Panasonic HDC-HS300 and Canon HF S100, which you can see in the comparison images below. The Panasonic produced lighter greens and blues, while the Canon rendered a different tone to its brown and red colours.

JVC GZ-HM400 Colour Comparisons
JVC GZ-HM400	JVC GZ-X900
Panasonic HDC-HS300	Canon HF S100

	Close-Up Colour Comparisons
	Ideal	JVC GZ-HM400	JVC GZ-X900	Panasonic HDC-HS300	Canon HF S100
Red
	Ideal	JVC GZ-HM400	JVC GZ-X900	Panasonic HDC-HS300	Canon HF S100
Green
	Ideal	JVC GZ-HM400	JVC GZ-X900	Panasonic HDC-HS300	Canon HF S100
Blue
	Ideal	JVC GZ-HM400	JVC GZ-X900	Panasonic HDC-HS300	Canon HF S100
Skin Tone 1
	Ideal	JVC GZ-HM400	JVC GZ-X900	Panasonic HDC-HS300	Canon HF S100
Skin Tone 2

As we said before, most high-end camcorders produce very good colours in bright light. The JVC GZ-X900 was a bit worse than the rest of the camcorders in this set, followed by Canon HF S100. Canon, however, makes up for this by including a wide range of colour adjustment options. The fact that JVC doesn't include any colour controls may dishearten some, but the colours captured by the camcorder in auto mode are very strong.

Colour Performance Scores		Compare the JVC GZ-HM400 to the JVC GZ-X900
		Compare the JVC GZ-HM400 to the Panasonic HDC-HS300
		Compare the JVC GZ-HM400 to the Canon HF S100

Noise (10.62)

The GZ-HM400 averaged low noise levels in bright light with 0.5325% noise. This is a little more noise than we measured on the JVC GZ-X900 and the Panasonic HDC-HS300, and less than what was present on the Canon HF S100. Most high-end camcorders don't have a problem with noise in bright light, although the same definitely cannot be said about low light. (More on how we test noise.)

Noise Comparisons
JVC GZ-HM400 100% Crop	JVC GZ-X900 100% Crop	Panasonic HDC-HS300 100% Crop	Canon HF S100 100% Crop

The crops above do an excellent job showing off the sharpness each camcorder is capable of. Since all these models are top-of-the-line camcorders, they each capture incredibly sharp HD video. The two JVC models produced the sharpest video images we've ever seen—thanks in large part to their gigantic CMOS sensors. The Panasonic HDC-HS300 and Canon HF S100 aren't far behind, however. Notice that the JVC models show some finer detail at the bottom of the vertical trumpets when compared to the Panasonic and Canon camcorders, but the difference is barely noticeable.

Noise Score Comparisons		Compare the JVC GZ-HM400 to the JVC GZ-X900
		Compare the JVC GZ-HM400 to the Panasonic HDC-HS300
		Compare the JVC GZ-HM400 to the Canon HF S100