Panasonic HM-TA20 HD Mobile Camera - Blue 3-inch: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics

Manufacturer's Description

The HM-TA20 is a triple-tough design: waterproof, shock-proof and dustproof

Tough Design for Active Shooting: TA20 HD Mobile Camera

The HM-TA20 is a triple-tough design meaning this compact, easy-to-carry design is ideal for both everyday and highly active use. You can take the HM-TA20 underwater as deep as 3 metres and get some great shots in a pool or the ocean. Swim along with tropical fish, capture shots of a beautiful coral reef, or get action footage of a friend snorkeling. Waterproofing also means you can shoot in the rain or snow with no worries. The HM-TA20 is designed to resist damage even if dropped from a height of up to 1.5 metres. Panasonic fortified the outer body casing, making it thicker to improve rigidity and strength. This solid construction makes the HM-TA20 a tough mobile camera. A dustproof design keeps the HM-TA20 safe even if handled with dirty hands or used in a place with swirling dust. The HM-TA20 is protected against sand too, so you can take it to the beach or sports field with no worries. And it's waterproof, so if the body gets dirty you can simply wash it off with water.

Capture bright images even in dimly lit places with Night View Mode

Night View Mode

The HM-TA20 is equipped with Night View Mode, which lets you shoot with twice the brightness* of the previous model. When shooting, this function automatically detects dark scenes and the mode selector button lights up on the LCD screen. Simply press the button to start shooting with Night View Mode. And you can shoot clear images with minimal noise even in dark scenes, such as dimly lit indoor shots or party scenes.

3.0-inch Touch Screen

The HM-TA20 has an easy-to-see 3.0-inch touch panel with intuitive operation. The touch panel has a simple button layout and is easy to operate. The vertical configuration makes the camera easy to hold for shooting, while the horizontal 3.0-inch screen simplifies playback. To further increase operating ease, the Rec button is isolated and positioned below the touch panel. So you can simply pick up your mobile camera and start shooting or playback. A tripod stand comes bundled with the HM-TA20. It's handy for web camera use, or to hold the camera still to prevent blurring while shooting.

Compact Size

Even with its compact size and super mobility, the HM-TA20 lets you shoot Full-HD (1920 x 1080/30p) movies and photos. Just slip it into a pocket or hang it from your wrist. It goes wherever you go. Perfect for capturing everyday fun.

Voice Recording

The linear PCM (Pulse Code Modulation) system records sounds that are faithful to the original. You can also shoot a photo while recording sounds. Enjoy playing your recorded sounds and photos simultaneously. This is handy for a wide range of applications, including business meetings and lessons.

E.I.S. (Electrical Image Stabilizer)

The E.I.S. (Electrical Image Stabilizer) system helps to correct the kind of hand-shake blurring that often happens with compact cameras. Record all the images you want, whether you're shooting while walking, or taking self portraits, without having to worry about blurring.

Get creative with the TA20's effect function

Effect Function

Give the image some warmth with Sepia mode, make it extra cool with Monochrome mode, or capture beautiful skin tones with Soft Skin mode. Match your shooting to your mood and subject.

Still Picture Recording

The HM-TA20 lets you save a smile from someone special, or capture the beauty of flowers bathed in sunshine. You can save memories like these in high-quality images with 8-megapixel resolution. The built-in LED lets you capture bright, crisp images even in dark situations, like indoors or during nighttime events. You can also cut out and save still images by simply pressing the Photo Cutout button while playing back a video. This ensures that you'll never miss that perfect shot again.

Easy Web Uploading

Upload your movies onto YouTube and Facebook. As soon as you plug the TA20's built-in USB terminal into a PC, the embedded HD Writer PE 2.0 application launches automatically. With a single click, you can instantly share your movies with your family and friends. The TA20's built-in USB terminal means that there's no need to carry around an adaptor. And you can charge the battery by simply plugging the USB terminal into a PC. In addition, The TA20 features a mini HDMI terminal that lets you enjoy images with natural Full-HD quality by directly connecting the camera to an HDTV.

Product Description

The HM-TA20 is a triple-tough design with waterproofing down to 3 meters for use even in seawater, shock-proofing to withstand a 1.5-meter drop, and a dustproof structure. This tough, compact, easy-to-carry design is ideal for both everyday and highly active use. Waterproof: IEC60529 IPX8, Shockproof: MIL-STD-810F METHOD 516.5 SHOCK, Dustproof: IEC60529 IP5X (This does not guarantee no destruction, no malfunction, or waterproofing in all conditions.) The HM-TA20 is equipped with Night View Mode, which lets you shoot with twice the brightness of the previous model. (Compared with the HM-TA1.) When shooting, this function automatically detects dark scenes and the mode selector button lights up on the LCD screen. Simply press the button to start shooting with Night View Mode. And you can shoot clear images with minimal noise even in dark scenes, such as dimly lit indoor shots or party scenes.

The HM-TA20 has an easy-to-see 3.0-inch touch panel with intuitive operation. The touch panel has a simple button layout and is easy to operate. The vertical configuration makes the camera easy to hold for shooting, while the horizontal 3.0-inch screen simplifies playback. To further increase operating ease, the Rec button is isolated and positioned below the touch panel. So you can simply pick up your mobile camera and start shooting or playback. The LCD in the model for Europe is described as being 7.0 cm (which equals 3.0 inches). A tripod stand comes included with the HM-TA20. It's handy for web camera use, or to hold the camera still to prevent blurring while shooting. The linear PCM (Pulse Code Modulation) system records sounds that are faithful to the original. You can also shoot a photo while recording sounds. Enjoy playing your recorded sounds and photos simultaneously. Th

Customer Reviews

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful

A godsend for parents of young kids 18 Jun 2011

By b00kmark1t

Colour Name:Blue|Amazon Verified Purchase

A waterproof camera that is also drop-proof and dust proof. Young kids love nothing better than the pool and beach - this is the ideal low-cost camera to take into the water. Not only that but when they grab it off you, smear it with ice cream and promptly drop it, this is likely to survive! Just wash off the sticky paw prints and the sand!

The quality of the HD video is very good, 1080, 720, and 480 MP4 resolutions are available as well as some wierd Apple Mac iFrame res. So your computer should be able to handle at least some of these modes no matter how old. You can also plug it in directly to your TV if it has HDMI (mini HDMI cable required), or use it as a webcam with Skype. It also works well in low light and has a special mode for when its very dark and has an LED light much like many phone cameras.

Unlike some other reviewers I found the digital zoom very smooth - just hold down the W or T buttons, don't try to move the slider on the touch screen unless you need to zoom out fast. Don't expect the touch screen to be like an iPhone on a underwater camera for this price - it is resistive like the old Palms not capacitive like the iPhone (which would not work when wet anyway), so a slightly firmer push is required, but it works fine.

The picture is quite small while filming as you have to hold the phone upright and it is widescreen, so you only get the top half of the screen with the bottom half used for the touch controls. However during playback you can turn the screen on its side to use the full width.

Still photos are very good too for this sort of camera however there can be quite a shutter lag in low light so it won't be replacing my normal still camera.

Comes with a little tripod, wrist strap and USB cable. You'll need a class 4 or higher SD/SDHC/SDXC card as the built in memory is only good for a few seconds of HD. 16GB cards are currently the best value and will give you 2 and 3/4 hours of full HD 1080 video for less than �20.

Remember that this type of camera is more like a smartphone camera so don't expect the quality and control of a �800+ DV camera, however as a low-cost, tough, waterproof mini video camera, this is unrivalled and I'm very impressed.

*Update*: Just got back from a week's holiday with this camera, in the pool or on the beach every day - just kept it in my swimming shorts pocket - was in and out of the water/sea constantly - no leaks, still working perfectly - very pleased with the results! Super tough except for the touch-screen which now has some minor scratches due to keys, etc. Maybe some sort of case is required.

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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

Great camcorder 27 Jun 2011

By Peter Reilly

Colour Name:Orange

This is a great camcorder,i could'nt wait to buy it,so i sent for it on thursday and i got it to day,i'm very happy with it,but there's 2 things that i'm dissapointed with is that the battery is built in,you can't buy additional batteries,like if the battery runs down,you can't just take it out and pop in another one,which is a pity realy.The other thing i don't like about this camera is the USB terminal that pops out,it wobbles a little when you touch it,i'd be afraid of it breaking when plugging in or out the cable,but maybe it's meant to be like that,much handier to have a USB slot rather than a flip out USB terminal,though a lot of pocket camcorders are like that,but all in all a great camera,it even has a video light if you're using it in poorly lit places!,when all is said and done,i'd recoment this camera to anyone.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

OK for fun use 16 Aug 2011

By Ash - Luton

Bought this and a Kodak Zx5 before we went on holiday, tried both and found both to be lacking in Definition when played back on a 42" plasma. Although both are 1080P the playback is grainy and was disappointed. Low lighting levels were slightly better on this one but were very grainy and would not recommend using either camera at night. Build Quality is very good and liked the double door locking feature, so you couldn't accidentally expose the compartments. Screen is a good size and the menu easy to navigate and use. Liked the zoom feature as well although it isn't a smooth in and out. Overall this is a great bit of kit for having a bit of fun with, but the thing I was most disappointed in is no HDMI cable even though is one of the more expensive ones and the playback isn't what I expected.

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