Sony strikes again. No sooner had I reviewed the PMW-EX1 than the HVR-Z7U appeared. No sooner had I reviewed the Z7 than the PMW-EX3 appeared. I've just reviewed the EX3, and guess what? Like clockwork, there's another new handheld HDV camcorder to consider: the Sony HVR-Z5U.

Four innovative handheld HD camcorders in a year. A record, no doubt, that will stand for some time, but what's with the lower model number? Did Sony slip and forget to introduce the Z5 before the Z7? Given this veritable cascade of handhelds, has the company simply lost count? more>>

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Panasonic recently announced the immediate availability of the VariCam 3700 (AJ-HPX3700), its premier solid-state P2 HD VariCam camcorder that combines uncompromising cinematic quality, film-style operability and the exceptional reliability of solid-state, file-based recording.

Offering the ultimate in image quality, VariCam 3700 advances the art of high-end cinematography by teaming VariCam’s renowned filmic-look, variable frame rates, and subtle tone control with master-quality, 10-bit 4:2:2 AVC-Intra recording and a host of new functionality.

The VariCam 3700 provides premium-quality performance for narrative feature films, episodic television and commercial production. The 2/3in. 2.2 megapixel 3-CCD camera features full native 1920×1080-pixel acquisition and independent-frame recording with 10-bit, 4:2:2 color sub sampling. It records in full-raster 1920×1080 resolution in AVC-intra 100 for the highest quality, in lower-bit-rate AVC-Intra 50 for extended recording and in DVCPRO HD for added flexibility. more>>

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Industry News

Cincinnati Bengals Acquire Video for Coaching Analysis with P2 Camcorders
This season, the NFL’s Cincinnati Bengals have upgraded video acquisition for its coaching staff by assigning the critical task to four Panasonic P2 HD solid-state camcorders. Game-day video for analysis and league exchange is shot with two AJ-HPX2000 2/3in. 3-CCD P2 HD shoulder-mount camcorders, and the team’s weekly practices are shot with two AG-HPX170 1/3in. 3-CCD P2 HD handheld camcorders.

“Our expectations for the P2 cameras, wholly realized, is that they would improve image quality and make our workflow much more efficient,” Bengals’ video director Travis Brammer says. “Moreover, the NFL isn’t far from standardizing on HD for all video exchange, and once that happens we’ll be ready with these camcorders.” more>>