This was posted 10 years 4 months 5 days ago, and might be an out-dated deal.

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Panasonic HC-V520 Camcorder ~ $330 Delivered! (Reduced Yet Again at B&H Photo Video)

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Panasonic HC-V520 Camcorder ~ $330 Delivered! (Reduced Yet Again at B&H Photo Video)Affiliate
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cheepwun on 20/12/2013 - 04:59 bhphotovideo.com (335 clicks)
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Lowest price I've ever seen anywhere on this baby. For a good laugh, go compare it to Australian prices to see what a bargain this is. I'll wait here while you do that.

(cue waiting music)

Despite the apparent lack of interest in super-bargain camcorders that can interface with your phone and make your jaw drop with their 50x optical zoom and 5-axis image stabilisation (see my post on this very model the other day http://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/127444 )…despite all this, B&H have gone on and reduced the price even more on this beauty and I feel it's only my duty to inform the greater public of the bargains to be had.

If I can only save one OzBargainer, then my time here is worth it (cue soppy music).

  • lowest price ever seen on this thing (repeat this mantra until it sinks in)
  • 5-axis image stabilisation
  • 50x optical zoom
  • ability to use the thing with your smartphone over wi-fi

USD $249 + USD 38.86 courier delivery = USD 287.86
This comes to around $330 Australian. Has your jaw dropped yet? Did you find yourself belly-laughing at the Australian pricing on this model earlier? Of course you did. Now you know the significance of this announcement and you know what to do.

Just the other day I was reporting on the $370 delivered low price on this thing. No matter which way you slice it, you are getting some mucho savings for your hard-earned.

Enjoy :-)

Panasonic HC-V520 product page
http://panasonic.net/avc/camcorder/hd/v520/

Panasonic camcorder line-up comparison
http://panasonic.net/avc/camcorder/line-up/

Panasonic camcorder index page
http://panasonic.net/avc/camcorder/index.html

Electrical & Electronics Panasonic Video Camera

Related Stores

B&H Photo Video
B&H Photo Video

closed Comments

  • bbyboy on 20/12/2013 - 05:08

    HAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

  • muncan on 20/12/2013 - 07:38

    What a http://i.imgur.com/3zvlpj8.jpg

  • wolffram on 20/12/2013 - 08:32

    Thanks. I've bought from B&H before with good results. And I almost bought the Panasonic 110 for $200 until I saw this. Now I'll order this and get the model I wanted for not much more than the local 110. Thanks again!

  • Dealayed on 20/12/2013 - 08:36
    +1

    No matter how good the bargain is, there isn't much of a market for dedicated camcorders.

    • cheepwun on 20/12/2013 - 09:04

      No matter how good the bargain is, there isn't much of a market for dedicated camcorders.

      It's a shame isn't it.

      Camcorders like this can zoom silently and smoothly (and focus silently and quickly) and offer massive optical zoom. Some superzoom cameras can zoom to this level but they often cost more or are heavier and bulkier in the hand (or lack 60p video or something else on offer here).

      The wi-fi features excite me.
      http://panasonic.net/avc/camcorder/hd/v520/feature1.html
      Home monitoring. Remote shooting. This is being integrated with some cameras these days but many still don't have it, or they simply cost more to get the features.

      The average user doesn't care much about dedicated camcorders, but this means bigger bargains for those that do :-)

      • jakentta on 20/12/2013 - 09:09
        +2

        The biggest shame is seeing parents filming their kids in school events with mobile phones, iPads and other tablets etc. There's only one thing that can result in from such videos: disappointment. But I understand that for a lot of people its the convenience factor, they can't be bothered to drag along multiple devices, keep their batteries charged and so on.

        • altomic on 20/12/2013 - 10:05

          I don't understand the filming with Ipads/tablets thing.

          "I'm so proud of little jimmy's athletic ability that I'm not going to watch his race and instead record it on my tablet (with no zoom) and miss the actual physical event because I want to capture it perfecgt in low res, oh and the other parents will be sooo jealous and think I'm sooo cool with a T A B L E T!!"

        • muncan on 20/12/2013 - 19:17
          +1

          Sadly they've already edited the video with a soundtrack, added retro camera effects and uploaded to Vimeo before poor Jimmy finished his terrible performance.

  • jakentta on 20/12/2013 - 08:53

    Looks good, I especially like the 28mm wide angle lens, which doesn't seem to be that common in video cameras. I just wish it had a viewfinder, a hot shoe and a mic input, but I guess that's asking way too much at this price point.

    • cheepwun on 20/12/2013 - 09:20

      This Canon VIXIA HF R400 has a mic input and headphone jack for $199 USD (!), so it's a bit of an anomaly in the market, as far as I can tell :-)
      http://www.usa.canon.com/cusa/consumer/products/camcorders/c…
      http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/909788-REG/Canon_8155b…

      I would LOVE to have these features in the Panasonic.

      • firstsamurai on 20/12/2013 - 09:23
        +1

        The HF-R406 (basically the Australian version of the HF-R400) was $211.65 AUD at JB-HiFi in November. I regret not buying it. It's now back to $249, which is comparable to what you would pay if you bought it from B&H.

        You can try to price match it at Officeworks, who currently have it at for $349. A successful price match should take it down to $236.55, which is still $25 above JB-HiFi's November price :(

      • jakentta on 20/12/2013 - 09:46

        Thanks for the tip, but the lens in that one is only 38.5-1232mm, 35mm film equivalent, so not very wide at all. I've already got myself a Canon Vixia HF100, which ticks all the other boxes except the wide end of the lens.

        • cheepwun on 20/12/2013 - 09:59

          Yep, the optical zoom is less too on the Canon, and no wi-fi. It's all about trade-offs. I like what Panasonic have crammed in this model over-all.

  • firstsamurai on 20/12/2013 - 09:18

    Currency conversion fees will take the price slightly higher :)

    The last time I saw this camera at CostCo (early November) it was $450 AUD, so this is definitely a bargain.

    My questions:

    • Since this is a US retailer, what will I need to use this in Australia? Does it come with a standard cable that I can replace or will I need a transformer? Will I need to buy an entirely new power adapter?

    • How long does shipping to Australia normally take from B&H?

    • cheepwun on 20/12/2013 - 09:56

      • All power supplies that come with cameras tend to be world-voltage capable, so it's only a matter of matching physical plugs with one of those travel adaptors (you can get some simple ones on ebay for $1). The charger itself can do world voltages. Some chargers come with easily-removable "figure-8" cables that can have your existing Australian cable substituted into it in a jiffy, so that's another approach for some chargers. I'm not sure what the US charger of this camera will look like (in terms of whether it comes with a removable cable or not), but either way I have heaps of those adaptors around the house.

      • It normally takes about 5-6 days to be delivered. There is some order processing time to take into account which can vary sometimes. I'm not sure if this camera will arrive by Christmas. For me personally, that isn't a concern.

  • ostud on 20/12/2013 - 10:27
    +2

    just contacted B&H via live chat and got $40 refund as i bought it a few days ago. Now that's cumstomer service!

  • stargalaxy on 20/12/2013 - 12:06
    +1

    Just bought one, now have to think what I am going to do with it.

    • cornbeef on 20/12/2013 - 22:25

      film the universe for us

    • cheepwun on 20/12/2013 - 23:22

      You have to do the mandatory moon shot, for starters ;-)

      • muncan on 21/12/2013 - 08:23

        Please confirm the moon landing.

  • cornbeef on 20/12/2013 - 13:32

    nice post cheepwun. that's an impressive zoom.

  • Dr C on 26/12/2013 - 12:20

    Thanks for the post. Considering getting one of these. Forgive my ignorance, but is there any warranty that will cover purchasers in Australia? I'd be hesitant to get one if it meant shipping it back to the US if anything went wrong…

    • Dr C on 27/12/2013 - 11:53

      Got a response from B&H (good customer/prospect service I might add) for anyone else who is interested:

      "This camera has a warranty issued by Panasonic USA. Panasonic will repair only at their sole discretion. Typically Panasonic Oceania will not honor the USA warranty."

      • cheepwun on 28/12/2013 - 15:24

        I can't remember the last time I had to return a Panasonic product (for what it's worth). If you have to do it, the savings made here are multiples of the postage price anyway.

        Chances are well in your favour of never making use of the warranty.

  • cheepwun on 28/12/2013 - 06:23

    I got mine.

    Nice little cam (aside from its tacky gloss and silver-painted-plastic finish, in my opinion). The website doesn't really show the tackyness of the gloss (it looks matte on the website). http://panasonic.net/avc/camcorder/hd/v520/mainparts.html

    Wi-fi. I have confirmed wi-fi remote control and Home Monitor features work. Pretty nifty though Panasonic's Imaging App is just mediocre.

  • cheepwun on 30/12/2013 - 04:32

    Bargain time is over :-)

    I noticed B&H moved the price up from $249 USD (before delivery) to $329 now. $80 USD more.
    Marking as expired.

    Probably worth keeping an eye out for further discounts since something tells me they need to shift these units out for the 2014 range (yet to be announced).

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