Canon XA10 - anyone seen footage?

I have a friend at CES this year.....I asked him to get some shots of it. If he comes through....I will post what he finds.
 
Looks interesting, from a quick glance I'd say it's aimed squarely at the HMC 150, for $1k less - not sure how it compares with bitrates and scene files.

I really need a "real video camera" to supplement my DSLRs, about to get the 150 - the Canon ships in March...
 
If you don't need the pro Audio top handle, The consumer HF G10 appears to be the same camera for less money. Would make a good two camera combo. I always wished they would have Pro'd up the HV series like that, but they never did. If I make the move to solid state this year, it could definitely be an option.
 
The XF100's will hit the shelves in late Jan. or early Feb. Super cool little unit. Twice the bit rate of the 150 and 4:2:2 to boot. MPEG-2 edits pretty easy as well.
 
Ooooh this is perfect for my needs, price isn't too bad either! The Panasonic updates have been underwhelming to say the least, so I'll be eagerly awaiting the reviews for this camera...so far so good. Corrects VG10s fatal flaws (though the sensor is smaller). You can see annoyingly brief footage from the camera in the video below from 3:18 - 3:21

Very exciting...

 
More! This is the G10 version and there is footage from 0:51 to 0:55 and 3:00 to 3:05

 
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I'm with you Supertramp...someone finally did high end consumer right. Before it was like- Sony had good low light, but no progressive or audio control or full manual controls. Panasonic had some interesting models, but the LCD was low res and the only true progessive mode was one that isn't widely supported yet. Canon had the progressive options, good lcd, manual audio, but not really great in low light....I think this one puts it all together. For a high end consumer model at a fair price...that is.
Right after I say this....Sony announced the CX700....with 24P native. Panasonic announced their new line with better screens and improved low light capture.
 
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You are correct. Just like the HF-S21....the XA10 is a touch screen and seems as though you can use the screen to digitaly "rack" focus.
 
If you go by this link, it's basically an under-$2,000 version of the upcoming $3000 XF100 that uses AVCHD. Canon expects to ship the XA10 in March 2011. I'm happy with AVCHD, so this might turn out to be a great deal.

The Canon XA10 brings many of the features of the XF100 to an even smaller camcorder. The XA10 has the same 1920 x 1080 1/3" CMOS imager as the XF100, and it uses the same 10x zoom lens (30.4 to 304 mm focal range). The advantage of a 1920 x 1080 imager is that it should be able to operate in lower light, and it shouldn't have the rolling shutter and moire effects found when using sensors with higher resolution that have to be decimated in order to get HD video.

Perhaps the biggest difference from a performance standpoint is that the XA10 uses a 24Mbps 4:2:0 AVCHD codec instead of the XF100's 50Mbps 4:2:2 codec. That means that the XA10's output will have the same color space, grading, keying and editing limitations as other prosumer AVCHD camcorders. The XA10 has dual XLR audio inputs, built into a removable handlebar. It has 64GB of flash memory built in and two slots for additional memory, but unlike the XF100, which uses Compact Flash cards, the XA10 uses SD/SDHC/SDXC cards.
 
I own two XHA1's and I absolutely hate using tapes. Would it be a good investment to sell both of them and purchase two XA10's when they come on sale? Or is there a reason that I shouldn't?
 
Not yet clear if XA10 is better than A1, it could be. in my opnion the XF100 definitely better, but fifty percent more cost. also, controls on XF100 will be similar to A1 level, actually a little bitv more info and controls, but on the XA10 it will be worse. depends on if this is important to you.
 
Morox said:
I own two XHA1's and I absolutely hate using tapes. Would it be a good investment to sell both of them and purchase two XA10's when they come on sale? Or is there a reason that I shouldn't?
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If it is comparable in terms of image, it seems that maybe one of those XA10 cameras might be a good B-cam for an XF100 if you were needing a two cam setup for ENG stuff or event production. The XF100 seems to be the closest thing to a tapeless XHA1 in terms of ergonomics and price. Then again, the XF100 is the same price as an HMC150. You could always go with an HMC150 and a GH2 as your B-cam. That way you'd have both the traditional video camera in the 150, and then the GH2 would give you a B-cam while also allowing for photography and shallow DOF capabilities as well. IMO, it seems like more bang for your buck to go that way instead (the theory being that an HMC150 would be easier to match with something like a GH2 than trying to match the GH2 with a Canon camera, but you never know, still too early to say for sure).

If I were still going the traditional 1/3 chip video camera route, I'd look at the XF100 and maybe the XA10 as replacements for my XH-A1 and HV20. Personally though, I'm more interested in Canon's DSLR line, the Panasonic AF100, GH2, and that Sony NXCam 35 that will be coming towards the middle of the year.

I agree on the tape thing though. I am ready to go fully tapeless in 2011.
 
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Morox said:
I own two XHA1's and I absolutely hate using tapes. Would it be a good investment to sell both of them and purchase two XA10's when they come on sale? Or is there a reason that I shouldn't?
Click to expand...

The one concern I would have regarding this is ergonomics. I've played around with the XF100 cams and they are very nice for their size, but I missed a lot of the physical controls a larger camera brings. Really affects and changes the way you shoot.

The main thing about the new XA10 is it becomes even worse than the XF100 because a lot of the controls for the camera become part of the touch screen menu system. Which is not a great thing if you need quick access to options during shooting.

I know raw image quality is a factor, but usability is every bit as much a factor as well. You have to decide for yourself whether giving up all that external control from the A1 is ok with you (lens rings, physical buttons for adjustments, etc.)

This is the thing I am experiencing right now with my Canon XLH1S system. I love and need the all the physical control, it really brings the shooting experience to a certain level. I just added a Nanoflash for high-end tapeless recording for my cam. You should try considering the CF recorders for your cameras as well. As mentioned, the XHA1 is still a very good camera. We'll see how the new cams shape up!
 
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