Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

Let me start out by saying that I've used dozens of cameras over the past few years as a bit of a gear head. I've had full frame DSLRs, full frame mirrorless, APS-C options, micro 4/3's, etc. Most recently I had the Fuji X100V. Having a growing family I realized that while I love taking pictures of my kids growing up, what really captures the interest of everyone is capturing videos. I could take 1,000 pictures from a family trip and the things that the family will want to see is the video, not the pictures. For this I realized that having a more compelling video option was needed. In addition having a 7 year old girl, she's starting to want to make her own videos, which I post to her private YT channel. Pros - Having a compact option with a decently fast lens. The lens could be wider, it could be longer. There's a lot of could haves. Why not ask for a 12-500 mm lens? For what it is, it's a good compromise, has a decent enough range and fast lens, which is needed for a 1" sensor. The 24-200 would've been too slow to shoot indoors without an external light. - The front flip screen. It makes talking head videos easier to shoot, putting it on a tripod and still having a hot/cold shoe for an external mic or a light source is fantastic. - Button layout. Having a record button, having a tally light are great. Cons - I would've loved to see a better use of a touch screen interface. Canon has it right for the most part, Sony could be much better. - I would've loved to have a mode dial and/or more front dials. But given a choice between what we have in the ZV-1 or a larger body/more expensive model, I'm ok with what we have. Things to note No, the stabilization is not the best. On standard it's not great. On active it's better but crops in. This is why I say for certain types of vlogging, like on a tripod or talking head video it's fine. If you're expecting to walk around and talk to yourself, you'll want to invest in a gimbal. No, the battery isn't the best. Luckily they're tiny and you can find plenty of generic options. No, you don't get a charger in the box. Most cameras these days are not shipping with one. No you won't get the ultra thin depth of field from this, it's a 1" sensor, there are limitations. For the price, the size, the features, it's the best option that I've found at the present time. It's not perfect, but any camera enthusiast will tell you that there isn't. It's about weighing the positives and the negatives and find the one with the most plusses and the least amount of negatives for your needs. Think about it, if the perfect camera existed, you'd have no compelling reason to upgrade to the next model, so in a way you have to think that manufacturers intentionally withhold a little here and a little there.