do we still have NO new HDcams that are cheap?
 

when will we see somthing even a MOD to get highquality HD res images out of a SD 1-3mega pixel cam OR a brand new unit from SOny/panasonic/jvc?

The HDV consortium of manufacturers released the specs only just last October. Typically the design process takes 12 to 18 months for a camcorder concept to become a shipping product. So, you can expect HDV camcorders later this year to early next year. Hope this helps,

I read somewhere that Sony let some info out about some "cheap" HDCams for NAB. :)

15k US dont sound real cheap. But anyways. At least they are HD cams :)

"At least they are HD cams"

But I wonder what the compression will be like compared with DV, etc, and what kind of HD. Then there is the matter which you brought up. Price. And since I've seen cams getting constructed cheaper and cheaper each year, I wonder if these new "HD" cams will be but mere toys compared with the earlier DV cams. For example, earlier cams had low lux requirements (coupled with large CCDs and large lenses), and most of these earlier cams actually had useable viewfinders, unlike today's small, low pixel'd things.

Canon does not have an expensive line of HD cams to "protect" like Sony does, so you can look for Canon to maximize features on a new HD cam.

At around 10k ;-)

I'd bet they will come out with new ones recording to that HDwhatever format that JVC is using on their consumer camera. After all--another format means more sales. While the Europeans and other PAL countries happily go on recording better quality than NTSC and not worrying about what HD format to lust after.

Bill,

yes, I can't help but think that us Pallites will just wait for the rest of the world to sort out the low end HD format war...

Now, how do we get manufacturers to create affordable 10 bit cams?

Julian

Well.. it has to be in the whole chain that comes down.

A 10k HD camera is cool. but if you need a 25k HD deck to read the Tapes and a 10k Raid Array to store it, it's still going to be quite an investment.

The new HD format uses DV tape for storage, so decks should be cheap. It still takes a lot of computer power to decode/encode the format, or else you have to convert it to a more editable form. Some people with the JVC HD cam do online/offline with DV.