DV Info Net - Sony announces the XDCAM EX

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- Sony XDCAM EX Pro Handhelds (https://www.dvinfo.net/forum/sony-xdcam-ex-pro-handhelds/)

- - Sony announces the XDCAM EX (https://www.dvinfo.net/forum/sony-xdcam-ex-pro-handhelds/91594-sony-announces-xdcam-ex.html)

Of course all this is wild speculation, because Sony haven't mentioned a price point at all.

It does look like a lovely form factor with a proper (albeit fixed) lens and properly accessible controls - I hope Sony doesn't monkey around with it too much before delivery!

However, nobody in their right mind is going to pay more for this than for the HPX500, which I believe is priced cheaper than the F350...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Peter Jefferson (Post 660914)

Wow...

this looks like Sonys answer to the JVC models... the XDCam workflow is also a godsendSeems sony are playing the smart game as they did with the PD150 and DSR200/250 units...

The fixed lens shouldnt be an issue IMO... weve all been working with them for long enough to accept that its cost vs choice.
This is somethign weve needed to consider when tossing these cameras up for all these years.. and this is no different.

IMO a camera of this nature is worth every cent. Its what weve been wating for.. It does what the HVX can do but offers existing workflow solutions for every NLE on the market without the bullshit politics and workarounds. It offers a larger CCD which we've all been bitching for and an ergonic design which has been proven time and again.

IMO THIS is what weve been waiting for... no more whinging abotu HDV formats and compression, no more complaining about low light inabilities, no more complaining about what we CANT do...
Now we have a tool which can virtually let us do anything we want in virtually any environment.

My hat is off to Sony..

While it's true that it looks like nice competition (depending on pricing) for the HVX200 and an alternative to some of us who still cringe at the idea of HDV, shouldn't we wait to see test footage before claiming "we have a tool which can virtually let us do anything we want in virtually any environment"?

Not trying to rain on anybody's parade, I'm as excited as anyone about this new model, but I've learned from passed releases that paper specs and real life operation do not always go hand in hand.

I'm especially interested about the EVF/LCD finders' resolution and reliability. If there was one thing that disapointed me about the operation of the HVX200 was the innacurate viewfinder / monitor on it. Though I understand why they can't put a nice high res finder in there, someone will eventually need to get creative and supply a viewfinder that will allow for critical focusing in run and gun situations while not breaking the bank. Or at least provide an alternative like the FU-1000 on the XL2. Hope this cam is a step up regarding that matter.

"I'm especially interested about the EVF/LCD finders' resolution and reliability. If there was one thing that disapointed me about the operation of the HVX200 was the innacurate viewfinder / monitor on it. Though I understand why they can't put a nice high res finder in there, someone will eventually need to get creative and supply a viewfinder that will allow for critical focusing in run and gun situations while not breaking the bank. "

I dont know if u recall, but i dismantled a DVX EVF and discovered a 1.5' 180k pixel LCD and the only thing in between was a magnifier... i agree.. with what we pay, paying afew hundred extra for a higher res montior isnt much to ask.. i mean teh technology IS THERE...

I don't remember mentioned it anywhere. Is this a 3xCCD camera?

I first found out about this camera a www.gizmodo.com. They are quoting a price of $8000 and shipping near the end of the year.

Very exciting news.

Dan Weber

$8K is a good price point... let's hope it doesn't creep up between now and release!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Glenn Krawczyk (Post 661012)

All I'm saying is that unless it's priced competitively, why wouldn't you spend a few of thousand dollars more and get a pro camera that's capable of shooting material for anything up to a feature film?

The problem for some of us is that there's a big product/pricing gap between entry-level HD cameras for a few thousand dollars and "pro cameras" costing ~$25-30K or so with a decent lens and accessories. The XDCAM EX sounds like it could be an excellent answer to this problem: slightly larger sensors for better low-light response, higher data rate than HDV for reduced compression artifacts and (hopefully) memory which is more affordable than P2 cards for a practical I.T. workflow. I hope Sony pulls this off, because it's been frustrating not having a product like this out there.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kevin Shaw (Post 661210)

A good thing I see about this new cam is like any competing format, there will likely be a war between Panasonic and Sony for their tapeless solution, SxS for Sony and P2 for Panasonic. This will likely accelerate both size increase and price drops on those memory cards, since a lot of people will consider this the difference maker between the 2 platforms.

An other good thing from the limited info available on the XDCAM EX is that there does not seem to be any tape recording solution on the camera. This marks the begining of the end in "transition" type cameras and while I'm no designing expert, the fact you no longer have to account for tape transport mechanisms must provide simplified (and less expensive) designing options, which I assume could in turn be transformed in either price drops or better technology on other features.

Good point, the lack of a tape system probably pays for a portion of the 1/2" chips as opposed to 1/3"

I'm curious to see how the 24p is handled in this camera.......

It says CineAlta on it, so maybe, just maybe :D

Let's not forget that being able to record up to an hours worth of media on a single card is making this very interesting for us long-form corporate types.

This looks promising. I've been waiting and waiting for "the camera" for me. I'm still using a PD-150 which I actually like a lot. I didn't want to jump into HD until I saw a camera which had the particular features that I felt were important. This camera is looking promising and if it delivers as promised it will be my next camera. Real lens, half inch chips, the benefits of tapeless but without the huge costs.....it looks good so far.....

I found out that it’s a 3 CMOS camera and its expected to be released this November.

Scroll down and you will see a graphic of the camera and a 16 GB card
http://www.dvuser.co.uk/content.php?CID=158

I stole the link of this thread:
http://dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=91617

I know that the artist's mock up drawing says 3 CMOS but has that been confirmed? All the information I've read says that it may or may not be CMOS instead of CCD's.

Here’s a post of mine from February 14
http://dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.ph...523#post625523
“If you think about, if Panasonic looses the tape drive of the HVX200, they could easily make the chips bigger than 1/3” and/or add more P2 card slots.”
Sony ends up doing what I predicted Panasonic would do. Get rid of the tape deck and you are able to fit bigger imagers.

Since Sony didn’t want to use Blu-Ray discs, they should have a portable Blu-Ray storage drive just like the DVD drive that you can get for the JVC HD7. Hopefully by November they are able to make it as small as JVC’s DVD drive.

Panasonic could still be a big force if they release a successor to the HVX200 with bigger imagers and the 100mbps AVC codec.

The concept drawing of the EX has many inaccuracies. The camera is 3xCCD's. Possibly the same ones that are on the current XDCAM HD.