Sony Avchd Camcorder...tomorrow

J

John Trent

Well-known member
Just noticed this on hdforindies' July 17th entry. Sony announced on the 14th, they will unveil their new AVCHD camcorder next Wednesday. That's tomorrow. Will it be some consumer deal or the FX1 replacement? There is a rumor of the FX1 being discontinued with a replacement due in August.

Probably just a consumer model, eh. But still exciting.:)
 
expected to be a consumer format, no need to replace FX1 right now is my read - they just launched it what, last year?
 
There's a picture of it on camcorderinfo.com. I'm trying to find out more about it but I can't find anything.
 
Interesting -- they circumvented the anti-AVCHD's complaints in two ways. First, the DVD model uses dual-layer, so it records twice as much as people were expecting. But they also introduced a hard-disk model, which can record 10x as much as the dual-layer (presumably a 30gb hard disk then?)
 
Does anyone know if it has 3 ccds, progressive capture, etc? Will sony do like they do everytime and put out a consumer model and a prosumer version of the same model (Z1/FX1, pd150/vx2000, etc)?
 
This is not the one you want. Apparently it's basically an AVC-HD version of their HC1/HC3 product, single CMOS sensor, 1080/60i only etc. One thing you can say about Sony, is that they're consistent. Consistently not giving us the product we want, but hey, consistency counts for something!

Stay tuned, there will be other models over the next several months and they'll have different/better features.
 
Puff, what a waste of time. I thought this would be like a HD pdx10 with 1080i, 720p,
cine-gamma and the whole nine yards.
 
HC1, HC3 and now this. They sure replace or offer alternatives to their one chip HD cams, often. I wish Sony would update or offer an AVCHD alternative to their FX1/Z1 line. Rumors persist about the FX1 being discontinued.

They say nothing about the new cam's chip size. I assume it's 1/3", anything less for HD would be silly.

A 3 CMOS sensor camera is often talked about, but is this even do-able? JVC dropped theirs. I just wondered if the rolling shutter and noise problems make this possible with current technology.

Canon's rumored to make announcements July 26, and Aug. 2 about upcoming products - probably a GL3? They recently took out a 24P license.

I still wonder if Panasonic will come out with a AVCHD DVX?

Sorry, if I'm rambling but AVCHD is supposed to offer less artifacts and less noise, so this is pretty exciting...that...and I did just eat A LOT of chocolate.
 
Yes I totally agree with Barry. Sony really hasn't given us what we wanted which is full progressive 1080p capture. I guess Sony feels that it has given us enough because 1080i is "Full HD". But not everyone wants this so called "Full HD" what some people really want is "The Best HD" like 720p captured at 60 frames per second and thats what Panasonic will give you when they come out with their AVCHD camera which will be perfect for the fast action sports.
 
I don't see how that can be the death of HDV, since it's just another format. It's like saying Digital 8 was going to replace DV. Didn't happen. I don't think, as Barry says, that Sony is NOT giving people what they want. In fact, it's just a consumer camera, a consumer format for them. Have you guys seen a picture? It's definitely consumer all the way. So how can we accuse Sony of not giving us what we want if their consumer division is putting out this camera?

Sony delivered the Z1, which I love, and the FX1, which I also dig. The HVX and the HD100, XL H1 are all powerful cameras. I don't think one is much better than the other. Different tools for different people.

heath
 
Well, I for one welcome our alien overlords...

Well, I for one welcome our alien overlords...

Heath McKnight said:
I don't see how that can be the death of HDV, since it's just another format. It's like saying Digital 8 was going to replace DV. Didn't happen.
heath
Click to expand...

There's a huge difference between D8 and AVCHD. D8 was Sony's attempt to recycle its 8mm inventory by offering DV quality on 8mm tapes. It brought nothing new to the advanced users/professionals who had already switched to DV.

HDV once offered the most resolution that consumers/prosumers could afford. If AVCHD offers twice the data within the same bandwidth at comparable costs, then its only a matter of time before the great geek migration begins. You don't have to thow out your Z1, but I would be surprised if the Z2 wasn't h.264.
 
I don't think you understand what I meant. From what I see with Sony, at least, is that AVCHD is a consumer format, much like D8 was. When Panasonic announces their version, if there's a pro-style camera, things will change.

As for data rate, looking at the white papers of HDV may make it seem unimpressive, but when I put some video up of the Z1, FX1, A1, etc., I'm always blown away.

heath
 
See, this is where I take exception.

What you see from Sony is consumer cameras. They did the exact same thing with DV. Does that mean DV is a consumer format?

Yes, and no. Yes DV is used for consumer cameras. But I don't think the PD170, DVX100B, and JVC DV500 should be called consumer cameras. They're undoubtedly professional. And they use the DV format. So does DV become a "professional" format?

The point of the matter is: AVC-HD is a superior format, on paper, to HDV in nearly every conceivable category. And sooner or later someone's going to make a camera that takes advantage of that format. And then it will be HDV that is "blown away."

The VX700 was not the defining camera for DV. The first cheeseball Sharp Viewcams that came out were not the defining cameras for DV. It was the highly prosumer VX1000 that defined DV.

The Sonys that have been announced so far? Cheesy handycams. Equivalent to the Sharp Viewcams or the VX700. Not in any way indicative of what the format can do.

Looking over those new Canons, I can't help but think -- "if only... if only they'd made these AVC-HD." And not the spinning-DVD version, but solid state. That would have been an out-of-the-park home run camcorder. That would have been the defining AVC-HD camera. And all talk of AVC-HD being a "consumer" format would have ceased immediately. It would instead be thought of as the new high-def format, and whether it's aimed at consumers or pros would be determined by the camera built around the format, not by the format itself.

Regarding Digital 8 -- that was a dead-end stopgap format from Sony, probably designed more to move their stockpile of 8mm tapes than anything else. It added nothing to the experience. It brought out nothing new. It was DV, but on a bigger clumsier tape. No wonder it died. Whereas AVC-HD adds a whole heck of a lot -- native raster recording, true 24p support, up to 7.1 channels of *uncompressed* audio, or 5.1 channels of AC-3. Better efficiency, equivalent (on paper) to about 36 megabits of MPEG-2. And, not the least of the improvements, is that it'll be *compatible* between manufacturers, unlike HDV.

Doesn't matter how you slice it, AVC-HD is a superior format to HDV.

Now it just remains to be seen whether the manufacturers will produce products that are worthy of it, or if by some bizarre twist of logic they'll insist on making superior cameras for the inferior format, and inferior cameras for the superior format.
 
How can you say that what Sony has put out is consumer? The Z1 includes balanced XLR inputs, 3 ccds, a Zeiss lens that's both manual and you can use the zoom rocker, shot transitions, color extract, 6 picture profiles, go from 50i to 60i, etc. Sure, there's no 24p and us filmmakers can find that to be annoying. But there are plenty of methods to get to 24p easily in post.

Again, I'll see what Panasonic does with AVCHD, but so far Sony has indicated that the camera is consumer.

Also, keep in mind that low-cost HD is still in its infancy, and there's plenty more to come. Like from Sharp, for instance. And most important, it's not the tool so much as how you use it. If a videographer or DP has little talent, a Dalsa Origin or a Panavision Genesis won't be any better than a webcam.

heath
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top