Panasonic's new version of HPX300

Street price for the 370 looks to be $9200, not including P2 cards.

http://www.evsonline.com/sales/vide...der.html?SID=f41ee2b9703b44b6e9c28ecf3b661447


A brief chat with a Panasonic exec here:
http://www.multichannel.com/article/451126-Panasonic_Bets_on_U_L_T_for_Better_HD.php?rssid=20076

". . . Certainly, there is less money out there. The days of selling a lot of $30,000 camcorders are probably waning. The sweet spot seems to be around $10 grand . . ."

". . . It is always a challenge when you had been selling $100,000 decks and then you can get similar quality for $5,000 . . ."
 
One thing that I thought about while watching that video was that since the sensitivity went up so much, shooting anything with the 370 will have longer DOF, since you'll need to stop down to achieve the proper exposure.

And another I'm not getting is why not just call this the HPX300A... cause that's all it seems to be.
 
I'd like to hear from a Panasonic rep here about the possibility of upgrading the sensor in a 300. I like most 300 owners who have recently purchased this camera would be happy to pay for the sensor upgrade. I'm not at all unhappy about my 300, it's a great camera but the new block seems to have answered all of the criticisms directed at the 300. Not only could Panasonic sell 370's but I think they would do well to offer the upgrade path to existing 300 users. I'd imagine a lot of us would happily hand over our money to upgrade the camera.
 
ryaninoz said:
I'd like to hear from a Panasonic rep here about the possibility of upgrading the sensor in a 300. I like most 300 owners who have recently purchased this camera would be happy to pay for the sensor upgrade. I'm not at all unhappy about my 300, it's a great camera but the new block seems to have answered all of the criticisms directed at the 300. Not only could Panasonic sell 370's but I think they would do well to offer the upgrade path to existing 300 users. I'd imagine a lot of us would happily hand over our money to upgrade the camera.
Click to expand...
Totally agree with it.I have also the hpx300 , and i shoud really like such an upgrade.
Mailed to panasonic, but still no reply...

Stijn
 
Certainly they must be monitoring all forums. As a goodwill gesture to the loyal customer base they'd be wise to offer the upgrade at less than the cameras' current street price difference which is $1500. Or maybe the original owner sends the camera & $2000 and gets a new 370 in return. I'd think any upgrade option would depend on the supply and demand for the new sensors. If the 370 is a hot seller and those sensors are slow out of the factory there might be a wait.
 
Considering the cost and time.., it might be better to offer a trade in program, then they could recycle the 300s into 370s at a later date.
 
There already is a way to turn a 300 into a 370, it's called ebay. Sell the old, buy the new, start your warranty running again. That's the way we've been doing it for years; sold my DVX, bought an HVX; sold my HVX, bought an HPX170, etc.

Will they offer a trade-in program? Probably not, although I have tried to make a compelling case to them as to why they should consider it. But it's just not common practice, so don't expect it.
 
Interesting reading here (took me a while too!). The 301a (aka 370) seems to be the 301 with the gripes removed and the chip sorted.

Can I get great images out of the current 301? Yes, but there are constraints. I often operate in a bit of a straitjacket and have had to buy more lamps! Does hearing about this new camera (as a 'back to the wall' early adopter) leave a bad taste? Yes. Should the 301 have been this good from the off? Of course - it damaged Panasonic's camera making rep after all - especially as they make in-roads into Sony's long standing stronger market share (certainly amongst us and the old Sony industry people we know).

So it would be good have at least have a cost option to swop the sensor block and hence banish the marching ants for good. At least to have the choice...

The E-Bay selling option is difficult to schedule and cashflow...just 3 days of full size cam hire is a hit and ruins the business model.

BD

PS maybe I should have listened to my instinct on the glaringly shady Panasonic spec omission some 10 months ago http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showpost.php?p=1612029&postcount=16 . Nice to see the cat is out of the noise bag now...
 
Barry_Green said:
Steve Cooperman is the new product manager for the HPX300/HPX500 series; he has been the manager for the HPX2000/2700/3000/3700 for quite a while.

I don't think he has much (if any) forum presence, but he (and the sales support engineers) are readily contactable for any support issues.
Click to expand...

Barry, are you able to direct me to a way to contact Steve directly? I need help in getting a copy of my Extended Warranty Certificate for the rebate application. I have had my registration in for a month and have not yet received the certificate. I contacted Jan and she e-mailed someone, but if she is no longer in charge of these models, she may not have the authority I need.

Thanks for your help.
 
Jeez everyone stop complaining. We knew what the story was going in with the 300. That's why I held off. I didn't buy an EX1 or EX3 for several reasons. Still cranking out images with an HPX170. Had 2 HVX200's just sold one. That's the way the equipment cookie crumbles. I've been doing that since about 1968. Always do your research up front. When I bought my first 200 I knew about limits of noise and resolution and turned out beautiful images anyway. Panasonic is an excellent company with great products.
 
I don't think it's unreasonable to ask for an upgrade path for a camera barely a year old that has been superceded. Yes I too did my research up front and knew the limitations of the camera however now that those limitations have been fixed why not offer purchasers of the 300 (aka beta testers) the opportunity to upgrade for a fee ?
 
thanks for clearing that up for us. We can put this matter to rest now then can we ? If you read any of my posts you would have read that while I think it's unlikely I would like to hear from Panasonic on the issue. We live in an era where technology moves very quickly but we also live in an era of firmware and hardware upgrades so why not offer the chance for owners to upgrade for a fee? Lets see what Panasonic say on the issue before shooting down the prospect. It's at least worth raising.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top