Use standard SDHC / SDXC cards in Panasonic P2 cameras w/ adapter.

[Zach Love]

Please correct me if I'm wrong. But it sounds like to me with the roll out of Micro P2 cards, the current crop of P2 cameras will be able to record to generic SDHC / SDXC cards in the same manner we've been able to use SDHC cards in XDCam EX cameras for years.

Panasonic microP2 Technology / English - YouTube

Wow.

Obviously MicroP2 cards are higher quality, faster & more reliable than "generic" SDHC / SDXC cards. But the ability to use a $30 card in a HPX250 is going to be appealing to a lot of people.

[Zach Love]

Found out this is old news. But it is new news to me (must've missed it at some point).

If nothing else, the video posted on Monday by Panasonic is a good run down of what MicroP2 is.

[Glen Vandermolen]

Aren't the SD cards used in the XDCAM cameras limited to 35mbps, 4:2:0?
Do the micro P2 card adapters have the same limitation?

[Zach Love]

From what I've read, SDHC in P2 cameras will be limited to 50mbps.

Considering all the different flavors of codecs those cameras have, you'll have some 4:2:0, but a couple 4:2:2 options too.

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In the XDCam cameras I've read also it is limited to 35mbps 4:2:0. Although I think many good SDHC cards could handle the 50mbps XDCam 4:2:2. So the limiting factor would be the camera just not allowing to higher quality codec to be recorded, as opposed to the card just giving up due to exhaustion.

I don't have any of the 4:2:2 XDCams, so I haven't try to see if there is a way to record 4:2:2 to SDHC.

[Denis Danatzko]

This microP2 situation is confusing.
It's my understanding that, despite all the hoopla, HVX owners will never be able to use microP2 cards.
Is that correct? Never?

I've been a loyal Panasonic customer for 8 years, and was really hoping to take advantage of microP2, but now I'm very disappointed and feel that loyalty has been betrayed.

So what will be the likely effect on the price of - and demand for - full-sized P2 cards?
Are we HVX owners likely to find any bargains? Or will they just become more and more scarce, and maybe even more expensive?

[Glen Vandermolen]

Originally Posted by Zach Love

From what I've read, SDHC in P2 cameras will be limited to 50mbps.

Considering all the different flavors of codecs those cameras have, you'll have some 4:2:0, but a couple 4:2:2 options too.

---

In the XDCam cameras I've read also it is limited to 35mbps 4:2:0. Although I think many good SDHC cards could handle the 50mbps XDCam 4:2:2. So the limiting factor would be the camera just not allowing to higher quality codec to be recorded, as opposed to the card just giving up due to exhaustion.

I don't have any of the 4:2:2 XDCams, so I haven't try to see if there is a way to record 4:2:2 to SDHC.

Right now, there is no AVC/Intra or DVCPRO HD codec that is 50mbps, 4:2:2, is this correct?

I think the only 50mbps, 4:2:2 AVC codec will be the Ultra Long G. If so, only the new HPX600, 5000 and new Varicam will be able to use this.
If so, that means all the existing P2 cameras (minus the 600) can never record 50mbps, 4:2:2 onto a micro P2 or SD card. They would be limited to Intra 50 or DVCPRO 50, which are 4:2:0 codecs.

Can anyone confirm this?

[Zach Love]

DVCProHD 720pn30 (Progressive Native) is 4:2:2 & 50mbps. I use this often when shooting with a HVX to double the record times of a single P2 card.

So if you really need 4:2:2 & 720 is fine, then you can do it w/ SDHC

Originally Posted by Denis Danatzko

This microP2 situation is confusing.
It's my understanding that, despite all the hoopla, HVX owners will never be able to use microP2 cards.
Is that correct? Never?

I've been a loyal Panasonic customer for 8 years, and was really hoping to take advantage of microP2, but now I'm very disappointed and feel that loyalty has been betrayed.

So what will be the likely effect on the price of - and demand for - full-sized P2 cards?
Are we HVX owners likely to find any bargains? Or will they just become more and more scarce, and maybe even more expensive?

I'm guessing that it is a hardware issue inside a HVX that it wouldn't "understand" a MicroP2 card. If you've owned a HVX for 8 years, you've gotten your money's worth. I would say be happy with that.

If you have an 8 year old Mac, you're pre-intel & nothing new from Mac has worked with your machine for years.

I"m guessing that since Panasonic is offering a free firmware update to all the other P2 products, they're trying to get this to as many customers as possible. So if it was possible, I think it would happen.

I'm also guessing they're not going to discontinue full sized P2 cards anytime soon. There might be a little influx of full sized P2 cards to the market, since offloading MicroP2 is going to be easier (SD card readers are dirt cheap & built into many computers), but many people will still hold onto their full sized cards.

[Jack Zhang]

Originally Posted by Zach Love

In the XDCam cameras I've read also it is limited to 35mbps 4:2:0. Although I think many good SDHC cards could handle the 50mbps XDCam 4:2:2. So the limiting factor would be the camera just not allowing to higher quality codec to be recorded, as opposed to the card just giving up due to exhaustion.

I don't have any of the 4:2:2 XDCams, so I haven't try to see if there is a way to record 4:2:2 to SDHC.

In XDCAM, the storage media must be formatted to UDF in order to use 50Mbps. SDHC and SDXC cannot be formatted to UDF in camera, (and the adapters are locked to FAT32 mode in camera, so no computer UDF formatted card can be used) so it is impossible to use 50Mbps on a SDHC card. XQD however can be formatted to UDF, so that is what many people are choosing on for instance the PMW-200.