I, too, took the plunge! :)

Macfionn

Macfionn

Active member
Placed my order with spec-comm (Andrew made a compelling case for ordering through the 'little guy') and should have it this Friday. :)

Also ordered the AG-MYA30G XLR Adapter (used - ebay $160) and an Azden SGM-2X Mic (used - ebay $125).
I know its a risk buying used from ebay, but in both instances they were state-side, and I was assured pristine working conditions or money back, and that was just too much of a savings to ignore ($225 total saved opposed to buying new!).

Also ordered a pair of Transcend 16 gig Class 6 SDHC cards and a pelican 1500 case!

Now just a new battery and I'm in bu'ness!!

Anyways... blah blah blah... I'm Totally psyched for it!!! :D
 
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Congrats. You're gonna love the images you can get out of your HMC40. I hope the SGM-2X was well cared for. An SGM-2X may not be a real high end mic, but certainly offers a lot of bang-for-the-buck.

The battery that comes with the HMC40 lasts a few hours, supposedly about 3, but I can't personally verify that as I haven't actually exhausted it yet. The capacity of the battery supplied with the cam suits my purposes quite well really.

B&H sells some slick little 3rd party thingy, that the battery piggie-backs onto and it supposedly extends battery capacity considerably, for really cheap. I'm going to try that long before even considering getting an additional Panny proprietary battery at the prices they are going for. The idea behind the extender thingy is rather ingenious really. By having the Panny battery piggie-back it, they simply take advantage of the proprietary chip in the Panny battery to make it compatible, and save you a buttload of money (hopefully, if it isn't junk).
 
Congratulations. It's a fun camera!

I bit the bullet and bought the big Panasonic battery (as I recall it was about $160). But it lasts for a whopping 7 hours (needless to say I have yet to exhaust it, but if I do I always have the small 2-3 hour stock battery)
 
Robert M Wright said:
B&H sells some slick little 3rd party thingy, that the battery piggie-backs onto and it supposedly extends battery capacity considerably, for really cheap. I'm going to try that long before even considering getting an additional Panny proprietary battery at the prices they are going for. The idea behind the extender thingy is rather ingenious really. By having the Panny battery piggie-back it, they simply take advantage of the proprietary chip in the Panny battery to make it compatible, and save you a buttload of money (hopefully, if it isn't junk).
Click to expand...

Could you tell me the name of that item or maybe a link to it? Its no showing up under hmc40 suggested addons.

And thanks guys! Im sure i will love it. i researched the HELL out of it, and hearing all the praises sung here, that cemented it, really. :)
Now im gonna pull a "Professor" and start staring out the window for the Fed-Ex truck, even though it was just bought this morning. lol.
 
Does this support the small battery? I didnt see it included.
If it does, Ill order it today and be the Guinea pig. ;)
 
Macfionn said:
Does this support the small battery? I didnt see it included.
If it does, Ill order it today and be the Guinea pig. ;)
Click to expand...

The way that thing is designed, it really shouldn't matter which size Panny is on the back of it. It just needs the Panny on it's back, to make use of the proprietary chip in the Panny.

Btw, the battery that comes with the HMC40 isn't the smallest size Panny makes (of that type of battery). It's the medium size one. They put the smallest one in the box with the consumer cams (like the TM300). That one really is small, and would probably only last about an hour in the HMC40 (without the extender do-hickey).
 
ok. well i just bought it. So we will find out. Now that I done so.. im left wondering how it charges. lol.
Im going to assume, for now, that it can charge itself via the panny battery charger... shrugs.
 
Robert M Wright said:
This is the extender thingy:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...act_VW_VBG260EX_Extender_Battery.html#reviews

If anyone tries this thing before I do, I'd like to know how well it works out. The two reviews on it, at B&H there, are pretty useless, since obviously the folks that wrote them didn't realize how it is supposed to work.
Click to expand...


Hmm.. I don't see how it "extends" the life or the power on time of the camera... According to the specs:

"It is mounted onto the extender battery only for the use of the chip information (no power will be drained), allowing the extender battery to function with the camcorder."


So maybe it uses a small charge to "extend" use time long enough to finish recording with a dead battery?

"
ChemistryLithium-ion Capacity2000mAh"
 
Agreed, ATL.
I may have just spent $14 dollars on a trinket.
But if it turns out that way, then I'll try to make sure no one else does by my posting that info here in the forums. :)
 
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Okay, that thing's pretty comical. So it's a little 2000mah battery, but without the lithium-ion identification chip in it, so you attach your genuine battery to the back of it, and it "passes through" the electronic chip info...

For $10, how far wrong can you go?

I'll order one of the "trinkets" too and see how it does. I mean, presumably it should work with the HMC150 as well, right?
 
They musta ran out out after Barry & I bought their last 2. No wonder it was so cheap. :P

Well Robert... I don't believe you should be banking on retirement from future commission checks..
 
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