I spoke to a Kata representative at VideoForum 2007 at Earl's Court in London today and she said they are developing a protective body sleeve specifically for the A1. She said it should be on the market in a few months.

Nice. Price range?

Sorry, I should have asked

Hmm, I wonder if it was Bellina (http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=35037) whom you were talking to. I would have asked you to say hello for me! Anyway, thanks for the report Mark...

I saw it ( or a prototype at least) And i have a feeling it was Bellina who showed it to me, as Pat from Production Gear described her to me.
It was a groovy little jacket thing like mad rich eccentric old ladies put on their poodles in winter, except it was made of the usual Kata fabric with button holes and clear pvc widows. Nice little gizmo for wrapping up the A1 but pricey too. I asked re the price but i've forgotten exactly, though definitely in the £150 range. When you consider some of the fabulous bags they do for £170 it seemed a tad overpriced to me. They do rain covers for 75 quid too but reccommend a larger model if you want to get an external mic inside.
Great show though. I bought a pack of 10 JVC HDV (M-DV63PROHD) tapes for £46 which were reccommended to me by the guy on the Cannon stand, and haggled down the "lighting for digital video" dvd to 20 quid . Hopefully picking up my camera from Production Gear in Elstree tomorrow.
Dom

Yep. I saw it too at the show. Bellina was at great pains to show me it. She described it as a protective cover (but not rainproof), basically to prevent scratches and knocks on the camera etc.

However, I was not convinced by it as I find the switches and push buttons on the A1 far too small for my large hands and I felt the body glove would further restrict access to the buttons. Nice idea though and probably would be useful in fairly cold weather conditions.

Picked up a Petrol PCCB-2-N case, a Petrol PMH-1 2.5 inch hood, and a Petrol PRC-DV Rain cover. Got them all at a good price and they didn't charge VAT.

Also picked up a Rhode NG2 Mic and a Rhode Dead Cat for £139. Couldn't get it anywhere near that on the internet. All in all great show!

The Petro bag I bought from B&H, the PCUB1-N, came with the rain cover for free. I haven't tried it out yet.