Hi luckycat – I would find a

Hi luckycat – I would find a friend who spoke Japanese and take him with me down to the Akihabara district 🙂

Failing that, look for a Panasonic FZ200 ($490 in the states at Amazon).

It has a mic input, a 24x zoom for wides and close-ups, and good performance indoors and outdoors. Sadly, it has no headphone out.

Here is what it can do:

http://vimeo.com/57346685

Plus slow motion and special effects (please watch at 720p):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lp_pmgCsmco

The mic input is 2.5mm, so you'll need a $5 Hosa GPM-467 3.5mm to 2.5mm adapter to use it with standard microphones.

Hope this is helpful and good luck!

Bill

Hybrid Camera Revolution