A-Series P2 cards discontinued?

ullanta

ullanta

Veteran
Hope I haven't missed this conversation somewhere in the past, but it didn't come up in searches...

Seems that the A-series P2 cards in 32 and 64GB capacities are listed as "Discontinued" at B&H. Is this really the case? Is the E-series all that's left, or will there be a forthcoming new "long-life" series of cards?

Cheers,
Barry
 
I certainly haven't heard anything about discontinuance. Send a PM over to Mikko to ask Panasonic while there's still a day of NAB left...
 
Certainly the "super-cheap" A-series cards we talked about a while ago seem to have disappeared (the ones that were priced only slightly higher than the E-series) - has anyone seen a 64GB A-series in the $1100 range lately?
 
But are there other manufacturers who will continue to make them? This is the problem when a company makes not only the camera but the recording media. I guess someone at Panasonic saw the folly of providing the consumer with a product that was to good. I bet the next version of any higher end Pana cameras ie; HVX300( and yes I know there is a HPX300 ) or such will use CMOS chips and a proprietary recording media. Are the days of really good CCD cameras numbered?
 
Well, MDK, it's not like Panny has stopped with P2 - they're still making the E-series which are in some ways a much better deal given the price difference (disregarding the few months when the A-series got really cheap). I'm just an old-timer whose been using the "long-life" cards for years and haven't yet embraced the E-series... but I imagiine many folks, especially newcomers who never used an R or A series, are plenty happy with the price, speed, and reliability of the E-series....
 
The nature of business. Just like clients. They don't last forever. You pick up new ones. The E series will last a long time.
 
MDKfilms said:
But why give them a limited life span? What are they Replicants?
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Okay, first of all, a few clarifications:

1) P2 isn't going anywhere. Last time they announced the installed base of P2 cameras they said there were 60,000 worldwide. A couple of weeks ago at NAB 2010, they announced that number has grown to 140,000. P2 is the overwhelmingly dominant force in network/broadcast applications.

2) My guess (and it is only a guess) is that 95% of the P2 cards being sold nowadays are E series. The "A" has its advantage (nearly infinite lifespan) but is that worth 2.5x the price? Not to most of us. Not to 95% of us.

3) The "A" series is still listed as current on Panasonic's website. They're listed as in stock on tapestockonline.com, taperesources.com, and tapeandmedia.com. Who says they're discontinued? (I mean, besides B&H, and maybe it's just that B&H doesn't want to bother carrying the "A" series anymore so maybe they're just discontinued from B&H's system, not from the manufacturer!)

4) As for other manufacturers, check taperesources.com, they have the Fuji and Maxell cards in stock too, including both the "E" and "A" versions.

5) They didn't "give" the E series a limited lifespan, as far as I know. What happens is that they are using MLC memory, and MLC memory, by its very nature, wears out much quicker than SLC memory. SLC memory = expensive, MLC memory = inexpensive. If you use MLC memory you can make a much less expensive card, but it doesn't last as long. If you use SLC memory you can make a card that lasts much longer, but costs much more. That's what they did.
 
At this time, the "A" series P2 cards are current models, they have not been discontinued. Those are AJ-P2C016AG, AJ-P2C032AG, AJ-P2C064AG.

The price of the "A" series cards did not change when the "E" series cards were released. Apparently B&H had a large stock of cards which they chose to move at an incredible price. It was most definitely way, way below dealer price -- a of "their loss is your gain" situation. I must admit, a sweet deal for anyone wanting to pick up "A" cards cheap.

So, in that vein, it appears B&H has decided not to carry "A" series cards, understandably so.

But yes, some dealers still have them in stock and they can still be ordered from Panasonic. Maybe they will be discontinued in the future? Our Panny rep said he hadn't heard anything but he thought the 16GB "A" cards might be phased out soon (that doesn't mean it won't happen -- that's just what we've been told).

Best,

Jasmine Moore
Administrative Assistant
Specialized Communications / Noventri
20940 Twin Springs Dr.
Smithsburg, MD 21783-1510 USA
800-359-1858 (US)
301-790-0103
Fax: 301-790-0173
jasminem@spec-comm.com
www.spec-comm.com
www.noventri.com
 
Got this off of the P2Rentals.com page. If indeed these caculations are correct for the E-series, it's pretty disconcerting to me, especially with the prices for these cards. So basing it on the 16g, if you use it only ONCE at 1080i getting 16 min. of recording time, and NOT nore than ONCE per day... then the card would probably last 5 years. Not that I would buy a 16gig card, the least I would go with would be a 32gig if not the 64gig.. but I don;t exactly have $$$'s sticking out of my pockets. A lot of projects I've taken on have been for no money or little pay. I hoping to change that soon.. but either way... I'm hoping those caculations below are not accurate.

16GB Card = 16 mins. HD recording = approx. ¼ hour
Uses Per Day# Hours Recorded/DayExpected Card Life
Once ONLY¼ hour5 years
4X1 hour1.25 years
16X4 hours<4 months (.3125 year
 
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Go buy tape stock and add those numbers up. I'll bet you will spend 4x the amount on tape stock compared to P2 cards.
My investment in P2 cards have paid off.
3-64 GB E Series
1-32 GB E Series
7-16 GB R Series (4 came with HPX-500 and 1 with HPX-170)
1-4 GB R Series

FYI, I never paid full price for my P2 cards. Also bought some of them used.

One shoot for me will pay for a 64 GB E Series and I'll still have plenty of money left over. I haven't used tape in over 3 years.
 
Bottom line Steve is I know you're right about that. Just a little hard for me to rake out a lump sum for the costs right off the bat. But I do agree about it being a good investment. Was curious about the R-series ones. I do have a chance of purchasing a used 32gig R-series card for 500.00. In your opinion, do you think that is a good price?


Steve Eisen said:
Go buy tape stock and add those numbers up. I'll bet you will spend 4x the amount on tape stock compared to P2 cards.
My investment in P2 cards have paid off.
3-64 GB E Series
1-32 GB E Series
7-16 GB R Series (4 came with HPX-500 and 1 with HPX-170)
1-4 GB R Series

FYI, I never paid full price for my P2 cards. Also bought some of them used.

One shoot for me will pay for a 64 GB E Series and I'll still have plenty of money left over. I haven't used tape in over 3 years.
Click to expand...
 
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