I know there's a certain amount of risk involved but like Philip stated- I can always sell the camera if I'm not happy with it. I got one of the first Canon 1D Mark II's (first batched shipped to the U.S.) and it was perfect (still is in fact two and a half years later). So though I'm slightly concerned there will be some glaring glitch, I'm not all that worried. One other thing- Canon is a good company and if there are problems I have confidence that Canon will address them in a timely manner.

There's always a risk in a brand new camera, such as the upcoming Sony V1 for example; but the XH A1 is really a second generation because it's basically a new version of the H1. Sony's V1 is a totally new camera and if I were interested in it, I'd probably be inclined to wait a few months. The Z1 was different and I felt that, like the new Canon, it was really second generation because the FX1 had been out half a year or so before. There have been lots of minor issues with some first generation cameras from all the manufacturers that were fixed with minor upgrades in a second generation, often after just a few months. So I wouldn't worry a bit about this Canon--I think it's second generation. And on top of that, most everybody who bought the first generation, the H1, was very pleased. It seems to me that Canon is usually pretty solid in the first round, probably because they're always the last one in the boat. Maybe they try to take their time and do it right the first time. That would be a refreshing corporate strategy, wouldn't it.

I am holding mine in my grubby little hands finally!

Weird......it is like a baby XL. I haven't shot anything yet but the first thing I am already missing is the "standby" button. rather than turning the wheel on and off I'd rather just hit a button and go into standy if I could. I am thinking this is not on this camera. Oh well!

I'll post my impressions as I use it a little today.

Peace!

The Eagle has landed.

Smaller than the Z1...
Only a cursory look, opened only long enough to yank out the battery and charger. Thankfully, it has a separate off-camera charger, which was about my biggest concern that it might not.

Cut my hand, drew blood when I opened the blade to a box cutter knife with my finger in front of it, idiot. blood on the box and on my hands.

Back to work, sorry no review today, you got Marty for that...grin.

Don't get blood on the camera!:)

This sounds like a good idea for horror flick: "A camera that sucked blood"... We probably would need big one for that, shoulder mount that sucks from the neck ;-)

Take care Tom. Congrats to all new owners of XH-A1!

A quick snippet after 5-10 minutes monkeying around with it. I can't comment on the image quality as I haven't had time to hook it up to anything. The LCD is pretty cool. Seems about the same as the H1. The iris on the lens is a good thing but takes some getting used to....I guess. As of right this moment it feels very odd. It is also way more sensitive than the iris on any of the other XL cameras so faster movements creates large changes. This is a good thing as you can very finely move the ring and get smooth aperture changes. But if you try to tweak the iris like you do with an H1 you will go too far.

I am not quite sure what to think of the camera just yet. Remember, I am coming from an H1 and I also owned and XL2. SO my main issue is getting used to the form factor. For those using this "style" of camera I think you'll love it.

I just need to stop trying to put it on my shoulder!

Marty! We'll be picking one up relatively soon, so your accounts are very valuable to us. We use XL2s currently.

Yeah, I can't imagine it 'not' going on my shoulder, very odd! In fact, I've been researching my options to 'make' it a shoulder mount ... ;) rods, handles, shoulder pad on the centre of mass, matte box, and a LCD screen held far enough forward to be usable .. (is there no solution cheaper than a noga arm ..? very pricey, especially if I have to import from the US and pay import duty)

It's easy to think of situations where a 'naked' hand-held A1 would be brilliant, and I'd be much more likely to drag it around with me for opportune recording ... but I can't imagine using it for anything serious without a shoulder mount setup

Getting mine next Tuesday. The vendor has several left but I'm not sure I can mention it here. Will I be spanked or is it OK?

Out of fairness, most only name the vendors they've used who also sponsor this site.

I got mine from tapeworkstexas.com, I'm pretty sure they have some left. (if not, they've got a whole 'nother shipment coming very soon)

I would highly suggest them. They really took care of me.