There's been a rebate on the GL-2 for a LONG time now (over a year?) but still no GL-3 in sight. So I don't know that you can draw conclusions from this....

I have a feeling it well be soon. GL3 $2399. HDV/DV. I have this feelings when I'm in area 51,,,,,

Theory
 

I see no point in Sony upgrading the FX/Z1 right now, not with the "affordable" hd xd cams being released. Demand for the FX/Z1 still seems high.
Could it be that the origional tipster that set this whole thread into motion had his/her facts mixed up and was reporting on rumors of the recently released HC3?

It's now more likely that the FX2 will have a HDMI output! The HC3 (according to it's manual) Is confirmed to support HDMI!!!

It's been what two years since the FX1 came out? Z1U not long after that? It's probably about time for a upgrade. Does Sony wait for the big shows like NAB to announce?

Personally I think you'll be waiting awhile for an upgrade, but of course nobody knows. Looks like it's been just under two years since Sony showed a non-working mockup of the FX-1 at CeBIT:

http://www.sony-europe.com/PageView....=1079021485605

It wasn't shipped until November 2004. I believe the Z1 didn't ship until January 2005. Seems like it's too soon for them to replace cameras which are reportedly selling very well. How long did it take for them to replace the VX-2000 and PD-150? I'd guess 3 years or more, but not really sure.

If you look back at Sony's replacement record, the top end stuff (VX/PD) hang around unchanged far longer than the consumer cameras. The VX2000 was on the books for 4 years before the VX2100 mild face lift replaced it. So too with the PD150/170. The VX1000 was a long-life camera and the VX9000 just came to a stop.

The FX1 has been with us 18 months, so I really feel it's replacement (even a mild face-lift replacement) is some way off. Of course I could well be wrong, for as they say in stocks and shares - past performance is no indication of future trends.

tom.

Well maybe things are moving faster now with HD/HDV than standard DV did. If you want you can still buy and use standard DV cameras, but if one of these companies plan on staying ahead on HD and selling more than they other company they need to make changes. HD/HDV is just to new to sit on one camera for four years. I don't think it will happen.

People said the same think about Canon. "Canon will what years to come out with HD. Canon isn't a leader, they wait to see what everyone else is going to do first!!" What happened last year? Canon comes out with the XLH1. They didn't sit around and wait. I really can't see Sony waiting either.

Actually, Canon may not have waited "years", but they certainly did wait.
It was pretty clear that consumers knew what to expect from the other manufacturers before Canon.
Sony already had a fleet of HDV cameras, JVC delightfully surprised quite a few with its third HDV offering, the HD100, and we all remember the build up of anticipation surrounding the Panasonic HVX and its cloak and swagger campaign.
I tend to agree with the notion that even though Canon isn't always the first to announce a product, their products still manage to establish themselves as class leaders after they are announced.

OTOH, Canon still hasn't come out with an "affordable" HD camera. How long has the GL2 been on the market? I considered it when when I bought my VX-2000 back in 2001!

It's all about the market. There isn't a lot of reason for any company to release new models as long as they're making money from sales of the existing one....

How much can they be making on the GL2?

Actually, that would have been the GL1. The GL2 was announced in the summer of 2002. It's been out for almost 4 years, debuting at an est. price of about $3000. At that time the XL1 was priced around $4500, leaving a $1500 price gap between its top two models.
By calculating the differnce in today's market, with the XLH1 being priced at $9000, twice what the XL1 was, then the difference can be multiplied leaving the GLH1 priced at around $5500 or $6000.
I'm not sure how consumers will repond to that pricing, since the specs and the camera itself remain pure speculation, but when factoring in that the competition will have HDV cameras for a fraction of the cost, the Canon had better bring something very interesting to the table.

$6,000 would be high still. I think the XLH1 is overpriced, the HVX200 is over priced, well at least the P2 card is overpriced. I saw a post somewhere and this guy was waiting on backordered P2 cards. He decided it would be better to buy a mac G4 Powerbook to use! Sorry but that is overpriced.

Sony prices have been more down to earth if you ask me. I guess it's still early in the HD/HDV game.

If Sony can do it for $3000 with the FX1 then Canon can do it for the same price. Though I would hope Canon would do it right.

Here's to hoping this camera is announced at NAB.

I'm sure Sony thinks they have done it right since they are selling tons of HDV cameras.