UX180 - Disappointed in 720p60 and 16bit Audio

B

Bassman2003

Veteran
Hello,

I finally got around to reading up on the UX180 to see if I might want to replace a PX270 with this camera. The UX180 has some nice features but I am very disappointed that Panasonic has decided to leave 720p60/50 in the dust. This is still the television standard folks! Not everything needs to be shot in 4k. This is a mid level workhorse camera and they are leaving out a workhorse resolution imho. What is the harm in adding a 25 or 50mbps 720p60 recording format? The 8mbps is basically a proxy recoding...

Also, in 2016 making a "professional" camera with 16bit audio is getting to be ridiculous. Come on! Consumer specs in a pro camera is how I see it.

Why has Panasonic left the pro cameras with P2 out in the cold? The DVX200 and all of the new camera announced recently are firmly in the prosumer camp imho. I want to own great cameras, not just good cameras.

Rant over and Panasonic, if you are listening, no sale from this PX270 owner. Add 720p60 as a real format and I would be on board.
 
As has been said approximately six million times on this board -- they do their product development in cycles. They refresh one product lineup, and then they move on to the next, and the next. This season they're refreshing the low-cost camera line - starting with the DVX200, and now replacing the AC160/AC130/AC90 with the UX180/HC-X1/UX90. This has nothing to do with the P2 lineup. It doesn't mean they're abandoning P2, or ignoring P2, or "leaving them out in the cold." It means that for this season they're focusing on the low-end SDXC-recording line.

I can almost guarantee you the P2 lineup will be next. It wouldn't take a rocket scientist or Kreskin to deduce that the next thing they will introduce, at likely NAB 2017, would be a refresh of the P2 lineup. They've refreshed and re-introduced top-end 2/3" and larger cameras, they've just completed a refresh of the entry-level line, so obviously the low/mid P2 line is next. There was a substantial differentiation between the PX270 and the AC160 in the last generation; the cameras shared pretty much nothing between them. The processing hardware in the PX270 was basically repackaged from the PX5000. So I would not be surprised at all if there is a new P2 camera next year, using comparable body and lens from the UX180, but with substantially increased processing horsepower under the hood, and a higher pricetag to go with it.

That is all speculation, of course. I know of no such P2 camera actually in development. But again -- it fits their pattern quite well and is exactly what I would expect to see and I'd almost bet on it.
 
Sorry Barry, I missed the six million mentions. But seriously, how can we be expected to know the internal workings of Panasonic? The PX270 came out in spring of 2014. I thought since the "UX" prefix was different than the HC-1 it kind of looked like the new "pro" level camera...

Anyway, why are they leaving out decent 720p60 recording modes? Seems like an easy downsample and output situation from my point of view. I film a lot of things in 720p60 because it is in the Blu-ray spec and does not take up huge backup space.
 
Thanks. I love my PX270s so I am not looking to replace but maybe swap one to have the 4k & higher framerate options. But only if it is a lateral spec move ie 24bit audio, 10-bit nice codec recording and 720p60. Shooting multicam events in 1080p can get out of hand quite quickly with data.
 
Bassman2003 said:
Sorry Barry, I missed the six million mentions. But seriously, how can we be expected to know the internal workings of Panasonic? The PX270 came out in spring of 2014. I thought since the "UX" prefix was different than the HC-1 it kind of looked like the new "pro" level camera...
Click to expand...
The UX cameras are below the DVX200 in the lineup. The UX90 is going to cost only about $2,000, and the UX180 is going to be somewhere around $3500. They are not replacements for the PX270.

Anyway, why are they leaving out decent 720p60 recording modes? Seems like an easy downsample and output situation from my point of view. I film a lot of things in 720p60 because it is in the Blu-ray spec and does not take up huge backup space.
Click to expand...
I don't have an answer for you on that. They've had decent 720/60P PH mode in prior AVCHD cameras so they should be able to deliver at least that, but for whatever reason, they aren't putting it in.

I would certainly expect a P2 variant (if there is ever to be one) would likely have 720/60P support in a good-quality codec.
 
Sony, Canon and Panasonic have not yet released there pro 1" cameras. All the current models they have sit closer to the prosumer side of things more than anything. Its one of the reasons why I decided to wait on making a camera purchase. Once I saw what the UX180 was, I knew there would be a pro version coming after it. I was ready to buy it, but saw no reason to do it, cause I know a better model is on its way. The 1" segment is just now starting to take shape. Its the segment I am most looking forward to. I think all three companies can put out some really good pro 1" cameras. NAB 17 I think we will see the 1" camera fully matured. If Canon puts that XC10/15 sensor in a pro body with better codecs and L series quality lens, they can take my money.
 
Last edited:
It would be nice if they could squeeze more aperture out of the lenses. f2.8 for at least half of the zoom range. Constant f2.8 in a 20x zoom is probably too much to ask for but this recent trend of f2.8 for the first few mm is kind of marketing hype.
 
agreed maybe 2.8 at 15x is more possible. 1" is not super 35 its super 16 basically. So hopefully its possible since its a much smaller sensor. I think the only company that could come close to that would prob be Sony with a Fujinon lens on a 1" body.
 
They are also leaving out 1080P30 which has been my file capture type for the last 7 years or so.

Leaving this and 720P60 out when they have been in every predecessor camera doesn't make sense to me either.

So far I am not in the capture large and downrez camp, but I dont have any experience with above 1080 yet. But if the files are far larger for the 4K, say double the size, I just dont have the space and horsepower (currently) to capture and edit that large except for special projects. I do love the idea of 4k. Too bad I dont have any monitors or displays that are 4K. I may have to move more quickly on 4K than 3D. By the time I was ready to buy 3D it was already gone.
 
As davedv said, it does have 1080/30p. It doesn't likely have AVCHD recording of 1080/30p, but it does have .MP4 and .MOV recording at the higher bitrates (50 & 200 mpbs).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top