Request to Panny: 500gig P2 Store

S

SantaCruzMichael

Well-known member
Hey all,
Anyone at Panasonic listening?
Is there any possibility that a new version of the P2 Store will ever be released with a larger internal hard drive?
Having used them as rentals, I really like these units- the verify-enabled offloading with no laptop on set, shared battery system, the way it feels in your hand, the cool Porta-Brace case for it...
But I can't bring myself to buy one at their present capacity.

Given the advancements in hard drive technology, it seems like a larger capacity could easily be achieved. I would absolutely love to have a 250gig or 500gig p2 Store for shooting documentary stuff in extreme environments.
For me, this form factor would be perfect if it was high capacity.

That being said, I don't know what's happening under the hood. Is there something special going on inside that makes capacities larger than 60gigs (?!?!) hard to achive. Is there a RAID 0 configuration or something like the p2 card's distributed data stream inside the P2 Store?

For that matter, has anyone tried dismantling an old P2 Store and cramming a big drive in there?
Ooooh. That thought just raised my blood pressure. Can't believe I haven't seen this discussed.

Thoughts?
 
I think panasonic is using the p2 gear to fill this need. It's overkill for those who just want to offload like a p2 store since it has a screen for previewing, adding meta data and such. But it has the connections for external drives so the hard drive is basically limitless.

Many have discussed putting in a larger drive into the P2 store... none of those discussions are "success stories".
 
That's EXACTLY what the P2 Gear is for.

And you can use ANY USB-2 or firewire external hard drive with it.

Love mine.
 
P2 Gear

P2 Gear

Right, but the P2 Gear is prohibitively expensive.
And it doesn't have an internal hard drive at all, right?
So I have to connect an external drive, but the P2 Gear doesn't provide bus power, so I would need to plug the drive in.
So it's out of reach financially, and it wouldn't be as versatile on location...

I still want a P2 Store with a big drive.

_Michael
 
The P2 Gear is discontinued, the P2 Portable (HPG20) is the replacement.

There will never be a larger P2 Store, no. That's what the HPG20 is for. And it uses external hard drives, yes -- a hundred bucks will buy you 500GB. And yes, the HPG20 supplies bus power.

The HPG20 also will export individual clips onto a hard disk in existing format without having to custom-format the drive. And it can re-import clips off a hard disk back onto the P2 card. And it can play clips directly off the hard disk. And it can rename the volumes on the hard disk so that they don't show up as "no name" on a Mac. And you can offload more cards (23, I think). And it can serve as an HD-SDI recorder, rather than just as a playback device. And it can record in DVCPRO-HD or AVC-Intra! It's a 10-bit, 4:2:2, intraframe AVC-Intra recording device. And it can work as an intermediate monitor connection for your editing station, so you can view the FCP or Avid timeline (through firewire) on your external SDI monitor. And it can be used to input metadata on clips with its software keyboard. And it's PAL/NTSC switchable. And it's an HD->SD downconverter, but I don't remember if it can do upconversion. And it can be used as a 2-slot reader for your computer.

So it's a million things more than just a "P2 Store replacement", and for many folks it well justifies its ~$5,000 price. The ability to hook it to a Varicam and get better footage out of your existing tape-based varicam (1280x720 10-bit AVC-Intra instead of 8-bit 960x720 DVCPRO-HD) is a major selling point for hd-SDI camera owners.

If all you want is an inexpensive P2 offload station, you can't beat the Lenovo S10E with the Addonics adapter. You're talking about a 160GB offload station for $350, which is about 1/5 the cost of the P2 store. Plus it can use and bus-power external USB drives, so in essence it's an unlimited offload station, tiny, portable, and self-battery-powered.
 
Yeah, but it's five grand.

Yeah, but it's five grand.

Thanks Barry,
Yes the HPG20 is a great unit, but would be overkill for my purposes and is completely beyond my budget.
Glad to hear it has bus power. After seeing the price, I never researched far enough to confirm that. Still, this would require an external drive.
Offloading to a laptop is even more unwieldy.

For me, the P2 Store form factor still seems perfect. Take a look at the first minute of my reel at www.MonarkPictures.com.
Imagine you're sitting on that moving elephant, shooting steadicam while crossing a river. There's a P2 Store in a PortaBrace case on your hip. Smack the card in there, and pop another one in the camera. Press two buttons and the offload is happening while you keep your primary focus on getting the shot.

In this type of situation, the P2Gear would add a lot more functional complexity that I don't need, require a harddrive and a cable, and probably burn through batteries faster...and it's WAY more expensive. The design has all the advanced features built into the unit, without building in the part I need most: the hard-drive. What gives, Panasonic?
Forget about using a laptop in these circumstances.

My guess is the (now discontinued) P2 Store could be modified with a larger hard drive with some tinkering, but the existing firmware would still limit its capacity, right?

Anyone know how to write the modified firmware?

Cheers!
Michael
 
Like Barry said, it ain't gonna happen (ever). We beat this dead horse for a couple years, there are plenty of posts (and diatribes) on your topic . . . no one (to my knowledge) has ever reported being able to replace the existing drive with anything larger and made it work. Good luck.
 
I have an original P2 Store (never used because it was useless to begin with) that I'm very seriously thinking of ripping apart and sticking a Gumstick CPU, 500GB drive, and custom Linux app to simulate the operation of the P2 Store, plus a few new features.
 
I still use mine all the time. Just being able to dump 1 32 gig card in the field can be a lifesaver for me. I still use 4 gig cards as well so it's nice to be able to dump those as well.

I also use the P2 Store as a card reader for my MacBook Pro.

P2 Gear is just too expensive for me to purchase so I see myself using the P2 Store for quite a ways down the road yet.
 
Keep me posted on the mod!

Keep me posted on the mod!

Hey Pmark23,
I can't wait to hear about the modification if you attempt one!
Great to hear someone with Linux skills is on it.

Dregenthal, as far as beating dead horses goes, I am aware that this has been discussed in the past, but I still think it's worth talking about. The past diatribes on this subject only reinforce the fact that a high-capacity P2 Store would be a natural step in the product line. People want it!

For years, there were diatribes on how expensive P2 cards were, with no foreseeable solution from Panasonic, but now here we are with E-Series cards at much more affordable prices. :dankk2:
 
I owned a P2Store, loved it. Nursed me through 4, 8, and 16 gig cards.
Now that 32 economy cards are two thirds the price I paid for my first (4 gig) cards it's a non-starter for me. Yeah sure, I'd like to see it happen but my remark was only that you're not going to see it coming from Panasonic (or in a production format from anyone else . . . think licensing).

Might as well just buy a FireStore?
 
Hello all,
I'm bumping this thread, because I still think a 500gig P2 Store is the natural evolution of the P2 product line. Chew me out for beating a dead horse if you want to.
I think Panasonic is going off the rails just offering the HPG line of devices.

For Mac users, the incompatibility of Snow Leopard with the Duel adapter is just one more reason why this is needed.....
GET WITH IT PANASONIC.
 
Ha ha. I had a feeling Barry and David would chime in. You guys are on it!

Again, the PC laptop will NEVER be a solution for the shooting environments I get into. Barry, that's a terrific suggestion for people who post messages looking for the cheapest option. I am willing to pay 3-4 times that for something that will work like a P2 Store with a bigger drive. Panasonic already engineered it.

JUST UPDATE IT, PANNY!

I WON'T pay $3,600 to $4,300 for an HPG device and I suspect most people who are independent owner/operators won't either. Barry has outlined some neat features these devices have, but I don't need any of those extras. And at that price, why not just grab an extra HVX? Use it for all the same things, and as a B camera?

I feel a little frustrated that your PC laptop solution has become the default response to these workflow questions, and Panasonic seems to have given it their tacit approval by doing nothing to address more demanding workflow environments.

Thank you SNPX!
 
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