Question about SD card for Panasonic HMC150

[jeanpave]

Hi.

What class of SD card offers the best value for the dollar, if used on a prosumer camera, like the Panasonic HMC150?

Can I use class 6 cards without worrying, to save 1080i/60 files?

I've used one such card twice, and in both cases I noticed some original recorded files looking not so smooth when saved. (Please assume that the computer and hard-drive on which these files were saved are perfectly okay.) Could this be a card issue, or maybe is a class-6 SD card just not the best option to save 1920x1080 material?

Thanks.

[edDV]

Save us the work. What does the manual say?

This is a ~ $3,000 camcorder. And you want 1920x1080 what?

[poisondeathray]

I've used one such card twice, and in both cases I noticed some original recorded files looking not so smooth when saved.

Also, what does "not so smooth" mean? Is this a playback issue as in jerky playback? Or something else like pixellation ?

How are you viewing these and determining this ? How do they play in camera ?

Only some files affected, but not others ?

Please be more specific

[budwzr]

In general, the card's speed class depends on the camera's recording settings. The higher the quality, the higher the transfer speed needed to keep up.

[jeanpave]

Save us the work. What does the manual say?

This is a ~ $3,000 camcorder. And you want 1920x1080 what?

I'm not sure what you want from me here.

I think the manual says something like "class 6 and above recommended". Is this what you asked? Because it doesn't clarify the issue for me, and that's why I posed the question.

I've used one such card twice, and in both cases I noticed some original recorded files looking not so smooth when saved.

Also, what does "not so smooth" mean? Is this a playback issue as in jerky playback? Or something else like pixellation ?

How are you viewing these and determining this ? How do they play in camera ?

Only some files affected, but not others ?

Please be more specific

Jerky playback for some files in Windows Media Player, but sometimes on a second viewing they play okay.
Very rarely, but occasionally, yes, pixellation.

In the camera, on the small screen, they play fine. I don't notice any problems.

Yes, only some files affected. The majority not affected.

Hope this helps, and thanks.

In general, the card's speed class depends on the camera's recording settings. The higher the quality, the higher the transfer speed needed to keep up.

Hi again.

I understand that, yes, but do you happen to know if class 6 is good enough for the highest quality on the HMC150, which is, I believe, the above-mentioned 1080i/60? Or am I pushing it with class 6?

I was wondering if I should go for a class 10 card. And, as long as I'm asking, what manufacturer do you (all) recommend?

Thanks.

[edDV]

Class 6 or above would be required. SD flash ram can deteriorate with use so may need to be retired eventually.

But if you can play it smoothly to a TV, it isn't a card problem. Your problem is computer playback of h.264. What are your computer specs?

Try VLC or MPCHC players.

[jeanpave]

Hi.

Thanks for the reply.

Well, since you mentioned the deterioration of SD flash RAM, could you give me an idea about after how many uses these SD cards should begin to deteriorate, please?

I meant the files play fine on the screen of the camera, not on a regular TV. (I never tried that, but now perhaps I might...)
But, based on what I said, you think the card is just fine?
Maybe the playback problem on the PC is due to the fact that I bought the cheapest hard-drive the computer manufacturer offered? It has 5400 RPM only.
Otherwise, the computer should be capable of handling HD files easily.
But I'll try MPCHC, because apparently everybody thinks WMP is not too good, and that may really be the case.

Thank you.

[edDV]

Hi.
I meant the files play fine on the screen of the camera, not on a regular TV. (I never tried that, but now perhaps I might...)
But, based on what I said, you think the card is just fine?

The idea is to isolate issues to find the problem. Playback over HDMI to an HDTV should show if there is a problem with the camcorder itself. If you don't see a problem, then the RAM is not at fault.

Class 10 flash RAM is now becoming cheap. In the future consider that.

Maybe the playback problem on the PC is due to the fact that I bought the cheapest hard-drive the computer manufacturer offered? It has 5400 RPM only.
Otherwise, the computer should be capable of handling HD files easily.
But I'll try MPCHC, because apparently everybody thinks WMP is not too good, and that may really be the case.

Hard drives, even 5400 RPM are fast enough for h.264 but ideally you want to play back video from a drive other than the operating system drive. Are we talking a laptop here?

More important is display card decompression assist and the CPU. In other words general computer specs. If the computer is capable, then it may be a settings issue.

[jeanpave]

I see. Thank you very much for the advices. No, it's a desktop, but I just had space so I didn't bother with an external HDD this time. Could you also tell me how many uses are usually needed for a SD card to start having problems, please? Is it like in the case of a CD-RW/DVD-RW, which can be re-used for years?

[poisondeathray]

It really varies, some SD cards may last years with hundreds / thousands of read/write cycles.

Some may die in a day. They aren't supposed to die that quickly , but there are horror stories all over the place

[edDV]

They do "wear" with repeated read write cycles but should last a reasonable time. They can also suffer from fragmentation which can slow them down even to the point of dropping frames. This happens mostly when the cartridge is near full.

Defragmentation isn't such a good idea because this adds many read-write cycles (wear).

A good strategy is to empty the RAM cartridge before a shoot. When there are no files, there is no fragmentation.

[jeanpave]

I see, I see. Thank you very much, guys. I got a lot of very good information from you.