Is the Sony Z280 good value in 2020

[Tom Van den Berghe]

these days I see second hand Z280's. Owning a panasonic DVX200 with a 4/3 inch sensor I don't know if the Z280 would be upgrade for me.

The DVX200 is already from 2015. I want better low light, better viewfinder and better autofocus.
The 17x zoom from the Z280 is also better than the 13x from the dvx200.

any thoughts?

[Doug Jensen]

I'm a huge fan of the Z280 and love mine, but having never touched a DVX200 I cannot tell you how they compare. I have my suspicions, but they are not based on experience, so I will keep them to myself. But with said, there are no rivals in 2021 that can touch the Z280 so I'd be shocked if a DVX200 that was created in 2015 could hold a a candle.

[Tom Van den Berghe]

thx Doug! I tested again my DVX200 in 4K 50P against my old sony FS100 with the 18-200mm F3.5-6.3 lens. I can't see the difference in image qualty between both on 55inch 4K tv.

The DVX200 was 4K downscaled to 1080p. In low light they perform equal in my tests.

The FS100 with this slow lens was about equal to the older EX1 (could by PMW200 also) in low light I read somewhere in a old topic.

So based on that and my experience with testing I think the PXW-Z280 is about equal in low light as my DVX200.

[Doug Jensen]

Originally Posted by Tom Van den Berghe

So based on that and my experience with testing I think the PXW-Z280 is about equal in low light as my DVX200.

What???
Sorry Tom, your logic escapes me. How can you possibly compare the DVX200 to a Z280 if you don't have a Z280? How does the FS100 (very old camera) and a crappy18-200mm lens fit into the equation? What does the Z280 have to do with a FS100? Do you think because they both have a Sony badge on them that somehow they have something in common? They couldn't be more different. And the lens on the Z280 is f/1.9 through the whole zoom range.

I don't get what you are trying to say.

[Tom Van den Berghe]

sorry Doug, I based my conclusion on this I found in old topics here:

In low light I've found the PMW200 fairly close to the FS's 18-200, but not as good if you are using faster lenses.
I shot a wedding last weekend and used Alister Chapman's ASIA PP on the PMW200 and PP5 on the FS100 and they looked close enough for me.

my conclusion:

the Z280 has the same 3x 1/2inch sensors like the PMW200. I don't know off course how Z280 compares to the PMW200 in HD mode.

The crappy 18-200 lens for me is decent but off course I have never filmed with a PMW200 or Z280.

I apologize in advance for this

[Doug Jensen]

Tom, no problem. I just thought you needed a dose of reality! The PMW-200 is a nine year old HD-only camera. It was a slight upgrade from the original EX1 -- that is now a 14 year old camera. Not only does the PMW-200 not have the same 4K sensors as the Z280, it doesn't have any of the modern electronics and processing power of the Z280. And as I said, the Z280 has absolutely zero in common with the FS100 except for the brand name. If you want to know how the Z280 compares to another camera you're going to have to use a Z280 for the testing.

I've owned an EX1, PMW-200, FS100, and still own a Z280, and I can tell you that the Z280 unlike any of them. Send me your DVX200 with a return shipping label and I'll do a comparison for you. :-)