Panasonic AG-HPX300 Camcorder announced

Panasonic announced today the release of the new 10-bit AG-HPX300, a 2.2-megapixel, 1/3-inch 3-CMOS camcorder. The HPX300 records to P2 memory cards in both AVC-Intra and DVCPRO HD at 1080i/p, 720p, and standard definition. Featuring interchangeable lenses, a shoulder-mount design, and several new features, it appears designed to challenge the Sony PMW-EX3, JVC GY-HD250, and Canon XL H1S. The AG-HPX300 will retail for $10,700 (including a 17x Fujinon lens), the lowest price to date for an AVC-Intra camcorder. It is expected to become available in March 2009.

The Panasonic AG-HPX300 records up to 10-bit, 4:2:2 video. The company is hoping that these specs, and at this price, will persuade customers to consider the HPX300 over a camcorder like the Sony EX3, which records in long-GOP, 8-bit, 4:2:0 (after compression).

"It's not what you look at through camera live, it's what you actually record," stated Robert Harris, vice president of marketing and product development for Panasonic Broadcast. "Typically, how you see [competing camcorders] displayed is they'll have a live output. You get a nice, clear image out of the imager. But when it comes time to record it, it's 8-bit. It's 256 shades, while ours is 1024 shades."

The CMOS chip inside the camcorder is newly designed. It features a on-chip chromatic aberration compensation, as well as dynamic range stretch, which reads the content of the image to compensate for overly bright or dark areas. Panasonic also claims that the pixel density on the CMOS chip is lower that comparable sensors.

The AG-HPX300 features a 1/2-inch, 1,226,000-pixel LCOS viewfinder, which includes on-board focus assist, audio monitoring, and even a vectorscope. There is also a 3.2-inch, 921,000-pixel LCD on the side of the camcorder.

Panasonic has also announced a matching studio configuration package for under $10,000 (not including camera).

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