Sony PMW400 shoulder mounted XDCam

[Zach Love]

All I've got comes from twitter so far...

Sony Professional US ‏@SonyProUSA

The newest entry to the #XDCAM line is the PMW-400 #SonyNAB pic.twitter.com/KdEXZWs67L

[Jim Michael]

https://blog.sony.com/press/sony-exp...der-camcorder/

[Zach Love]

Thanks Jim!

[Andy Wilkinson]

So still no PMW-300 to replace the EX3? Surely it must be the next one on Sony's list.

[Jack Zhang]

Good that XAVC is an option, bad that it's only up to 30p.

I wouldn't be surprised to see the next smaller form factor cam to include XAVC S and XDCAM HD422.

[Paul Cronin]

Hear any cost? Lens included? Could this be the upgrade to the PMW-350?

[Jim Nogueira]

Originally Posted by Andy Wilkinson

So still no PMW-300 to replace the EX3? Surely it must be the next one on Sony's list.

I would have thought so, too. It's been a long wait for a replacement to the EX3.

[Zach Love]

Considering how popular the EX3 has been & the release of all the 4:2:2 XDCams, I am surprised we don't have a 4:2:2 EX3 by now. The EX3 was announced 5 years ago at NAB.

The EX1 was replaced by the EX1R after 2 years. Then the EX1R was replaced by the PMW200 after another 3 years. Yes, the EX3 update is very overdue...

Does Sony knows something we don't & has given up on the EX3. Hell, Canon hasn't updated the XH-L1 with their XF codec. Think how popular the XL1 series was. Maybe the semi-shoulder mount market is dead?

[Glen Vandermolen]

Originally Posted by Zach Love

Maybe the semi-shoulder mount market is dead?

Oh, I hope so! I've used the EX3 a lot, and it's one of the most uncomfortable hand-held cameras I've ever used. When I shoot with the EX3, I try to keep it on the tripod as much as possible.

[Emmanuel Plakiotis]

Is there any difference between the PMW400 and the older PMW500?

[David Heath]

If I remember right, then the PMW350 was followed by the PMW320 - basically the same, but the PMW320 had 1/2" chips, not 2/3". (And is a lot cheaper!)

So can we expect a 50Mbs (and XAVC?) version of the PMW320 before long? I'd like to think so, and maybe such could be the answer to both the EX3 and PMW320 upgrades?

[Glen Vandermolen]

Originally Posted by David Heath

If I remember right, then the PMW350 was followed by the PMW320 - basically the same, but the PMW320 had 1/2" chips, not 2/3". (And is a lot cheaper!)

So can we expect a 50Mbs (and XAVC?) version of the PMW320 before long? I'd like to think so, and maybe such could be the answer to both the EX3 and PMW320 upgrades?

David, if so, that may be the sweetest camera out there. 1/2" chips are fine with me, and with a broadcast codec in a true shoulder mount design, that would be a terrific little camera. And a lot cheaper than the PMW400.

[Zach Love]

My only doubt to this would be, why wouldn't they announce it for NAB?

A 1/2" interchangeable lens shoulder-mount 4:2:2 XDCam seems like such an easy decision & seems long overdue compared to the update history of the EX1. So I feel like Sony has some market research, or limited R&D resources, or something that is preventing this.

But still, look at the popularity of the EX3. Look at the popularity of 4:2:2 XDCam. Put the two together.

PMW200 uses the same chips & same lens, so Sony doesn't need to do something from the ground up, just a refresh on a good performer.

---

What is a little more of a stretch, but what I would love to see is an update to the Z7U. Either XDCam 4:2:2 or NXCam. It would be the only handheld 1/3" interchangeable lens tapeless camera on the market. And a nice compliment / competition to the JVC HM700 series & Panasonic HPX300 series cameras.

[David Heath]

Originally Posted by Zach Love

My only doubt to this would be, why wouldn't they announce it for NAB?

Good question - maybe to deliberately split the news, keep a drip, drip of new product news? You could ask why the PMW350 and 320 didn't come out together? Same situation? But I'm guessing.

And a nice compliment / competition to the JVC HM700 series & Panasonic HPX300 series cameras.

Yes, the PMW320 has had the undeniable advantage of 1/2" chips over the HPX300. But the HPX300 has the codec edge (full broadcast compliance, albeit at the cost of 3x the datarate). And both at similar prices, last I looked.

Match XDCAM422 with the PMW320 and the result then becomes the obvious choice in the budget true shouldermount range.

As for why it hasn't happened before, I can only guess that they were protecting their higher range. But with XDCAM422 in lower cameras (PMW100/150/200) AND in the PMW400, it seems inconceivable the same won't happen in a PMW320 revamp. I'm surprised it hasn't happened earlier.....

[Tom Roper]

Doug Jensen's video on the PMW400

PMW-400 on Vimeo