After research, it seems like Sony and Panasonic sell Japanese only variants in Japan. What about other brands such as Canon, Fujifilm, etc?
Basically I’m looking for a good camera that records 4k60. I’ll settle for 4k30 if it makes up for it in price and things like in built stabilization. I wanted a used GH5 from eBay, but the shipping time can be obnoxious. I’m hoping to visit used stores and hopefully find cameras that have English in the menu. Thank you 🙂
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That’s kind of strange— I’ve used Nikon and Canon cameras in Japan and the menu usually has the language option to switch to English (though no other languages available— I guess in Europe or America there are more options).
Mercari is not a bad shout for used cameras these days!
IIRC my old canon from 2012/2013 offers English menu. Though most of the times you don’t need to change things. The main options are icons easy to understand.
Hey you and I are literally the same person haha. I have done a TON of research on this in the past week, specifically regarding the A7IV. Tons of Reddit posts led me to asking my wife to call Map Camera in Shinjuku (my Japanese is atrocious and I thought hearing the request from nongaijin might help it along). They have tons of A7IVs but none are the international model. Like you eBay seemed the route but import and shipping is not fun. One thing I did discover, if you want one and cost isn’t an issue, I’m almost entirely certain the Sony retail stores (Ginza, Sapporo, maybe Osaka?) have international models available, although I haven’t seen how much. I would imagine to keep domestic product down they are going to be a bit more, haven’t pulled the trigger yet but I’ll be going after new years and I’ll update you.
You used to be able to use a software exploit to get into the language settings but Sony redid the software for the A7IV and a few other models too, although I’ve seen some rumors online that there’s some slow progress regarding that. It’s a pretty big gamble though and will definitely screw your warranty status.
Panasonic must be new? When I bought my last camera ~three years ago and tested a few brands, the Panasonics did English. I was looking for a micro four thirds mirrorless, though.