Sorry for the long post and pseudo-rant.
I have been researching, researching, researching, nonstop for the last two weeks to the extent that my girlfriend told me I'm staring at my phone way too much (and I am definitely guilty of this).
This whole search was prompted because I have an RX100 M7 that I completely adore for photography. However, I tried to take a video of a family member while they skied so they could review their technique and even with the stabilization on, 4k30p was just far too shaky and quite blurry even when it was held relatively stable.
This threw me into an "I wish" hunt, which turned into active hunting. I want a camcorder that I can use to document family events (often in bad lighting), pets, high speed sports (really just skiing), and other various excursions. I do not care about making anything broadcast production quality, and I really don't care
The main criteria I want to fill are:
- Viewfinder mandatory
- Must be compact(ish). The Sony Z200/NX800 are unacceptably bulky
- Excellent image stabilization. I can begrudgingly compensate some for imperfect image stabilization while I'm skiing by using a gimbal, but it's far from ideal to have the extra bulk and one more thing to charge
- Manual controls
- 4k60p
- HLG
- External microphone capability
- Hours of nonstop recording so I can set it and forget it at events
- Sony picture profiles and 1" sensor would be nice to have, but I wouldn't call them strict requirements
The closest I've gotten to these are the Canon XF400 (4k60, manual, very good stabilization, decent enough EVF, but fairly limited picture profiles and no HLG), the Sony AX700/Z90V meets all above criteria except for 4k60 shooting and seems to have just decent stabilization, the Sony AX53 has excellent stabilization, can be had for "cheap", but is missing 4k60 and full manual, and the new Panasonic X1600 looks nice but I'm hesitant because there is such limited test footage showcasing the stabilization when you're "running and gunning", I am unclear on the picture profiles and manual control you actually get, and I have heard the use of an external mic on this series gives a really bad hiss.
As far as I can tell, the AX700 would be pretty much the perfect camera for me if it had 4k60p, but it doesn't. The Canon XF400 scares me a bit because I haven't been able to find a deep dive into its menus and I don't like the idea of primarily controlling via the touch screen. Not to mention, these two cameras are old! The X1600 solves the "old" problem, but comes with the opposite side of that coin being that it's too new for me to really understand what I'm spending all that money on.
I think I'm coming close to buying the XF400 as it seems to be the closest to my real needs, but there is fear associated with buying an old camera (9 years old at this point!). Does anyone have any leads, or is this just the exact same problem everyone else has with camcorders these days?