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Panasonic Pro AG-HVX200A 3CCD P2/DVCPRO 1080i High Definition Camcorder with 13x Optical Zoom (16GB P2 Included)

February 22, 2009 by Lifestyle Editor  
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panasonic-pro-ag-hvx200aCustomer Reviews:



5 out of 5 stars Coming from DVX100… February 21, 2009
yogagirl (chicago)
This camera uses P2 cards or you can plug in a Firestore (you have to drop another 2K for that). I am using it with a Firestore in a chassis rig ($350) underneath the camera. This is a better setup for tripod work, but less than ideal for shoulder shooting. Its bulky and slightly delicate because you have the Firestore plug right next to the headphone jack, right in the same area as the record button. This could cause a serious problem if you accidently jar the plug while reaching for the record button.

The whole process of setting up a Firestore with the camera’s menu system, and navigating the Firestore menu to record and organize footage is a little more involved than just using mini-dv tape, but the convenience of recording to a hard drive is wonderful. It takes far less time to get the footage into the system. Of course, this is compressed, but still very good quality HD footage. I couldn’t fathom going back to SD minidv.

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Panasonic Pro AG-HMC150 3CCD AVCHD 24fps Camcorder

February 22, 2009 by Lifestyle Editor  
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panasonic-pro-ag-hmc150Editorial Reviews:


Product Description


The powerful tapeless AG-HMC150 joins the Panasonic line of professional HD camcorders. This AVCCAM camcorder features highly-acclaimed functions for the popular AG-DVX100 Series of DV-tape based camcorders to tapeless HD recording. Using the cost-saving AVCHD format to record onto SDHC or SD Memory Card media, the AG-HMC150 produces exceptional images and responds to creative production needs. It also features a 28mm (35mm equivalent) wide-angle lens – widest in a professional camera of this class – and a newly developed 1/3-inch 16:9 progressive CCD. It further enhances image quality by adding a higher-quality PH mode to the clean, extended-time recording abilities of the AVCHD format. The AG-HMC150 handles full-pixel (1920 x 1080/1280 x 720) 24p and 30p progressive recording, and includes cinelike gamma and other versatile functions to meet the special needs of creative image production.
Customer Reviews:5 out of 5 stars Nothing new to add… other than I love this camera January 16, 2009
Michael Harvey (Renton, WA United States)
4 out of 4 found this review helpful

One thing you need to keep in mind is that editing AVCCam/AVCHD is a P.I.T.A. I’m using CS4 on a 2.4 quadcore with 8gig of RAM and Vista64 and it’s sluggish with frequent lockups. I’m getting Cineform ProspectHD v4 when it comes out to compensate. Vegas 8.0c well I’m told, and FCP need to convert it to ProRes (or whatever it’s called). I think Avid needs to convert it to a native codec as well. Panasonic does offer a free converter to DVCProHD on there website

That said… the camera itself is awesome. Really. I’m coming from the DVX, and this is leaps and bounds above that (which is saying something). The images I’m getting are beautiful. I’m planning on going out now on my days off to shoot just for the fun of it.

I really can’t add anything that hasn’t been said already by others. But if you’re looking at the HVX200a or HPX170 (they all share the same chips, and the HMC shares the same glass as the HPX), but don’t want to deal with the costs of P2 or need all of the features of the HPX or HVX, I would HIGHLY recommend buying this instead.

Just be prepared for some editing headaches at first (the problem with bleeding edge technology is sometimes you need to get stitches).

5 out of 5 stars Completely astounding camera – will improve your life January 14, 2009
Felter32 (Philly burbs)
3 out of 4 found this review helpful

I saw this at macworld and spoke with the reps there, and got to play with the camera a little. I am not completely a “user”, nor am I an owner – yet. However, I intend to purchase as soon as I can justify it to the powers that be. I presently use a DVX100a, and have used other prosumer DV cams from Canon, JVC and Sony. None of the competition really has anything unique that is worth looking at in my opinion. The GL2 was a POS next to the DVX, and the GL2 was really better than most other prosumer models, even from Sony. What I’m getting at is that the HMC is a vast improvement – in the layout of the controls alone – from the DVX. When you consider the shooting options of the HMC, and the technology behind recording to an SD card using prores, this camera is a game-changer. The footage looks a lot less saturated than HDV in a canon, and warmer than XDCam in sony’s, and the media is way more flexible than even miniDV tapes. The camera feels about the same weight of a DVX with the full size battery, and is SOLID. My only concern is that the format of the prores files requires you to have a lot more disk storage for editing, and a more powerful processor than in a computer made 3 years ago. You have to expect it if you decide to shoot for HD. Its a new ballgame, folks.

5 out of 5 stars WOW :-) November 16, 2008
Bob Mckelvy (Rockport, TX USA)
15 out of 15 found this review helpful

I received my 150 a little over a week ago. Bought it because I wanted to move up to HD and get out of the tape business. It did not come with an SDHC card. Bought an 8 GB to carry me over until my 16 GB cards arrive via Amazon. I am still on the learning curve on it. Especially liked the large comfortable color view eye piece. I was also amazed by the clarity of the video play back on my 48″ LCD screen. Used the three cable output first, that came with the camera( Video, Lt. Rt. Audio )

Very clear video, much clearer than my trusty old Canon GL-2 It does not come with an HDMI cable. Bought one locally and tried it. Plugged one end into the HDMI out port on the camera and the other end into the HDMI port of my TV. I was blown away by how clear it was !! The video was clearer than some of the stations I view in HD.

On playback, you are given a thumbnail of the first frame of each scene you shot when you turned the camera on. On playback, you can skip around the scenes you want to view , or delete if needed. The focus assist is another nice feature. When you use it, it momentarily zooms in on the middle of your next shot so that you can fine focus if needed.

It has many other features that I have not tried yet. On editing, bought the Pinnacle 12 Ultimate because it is set up to handle the AVHCD format and a PC with the AMD quad Phenom processor with 3 GB of RAM. Waiting for a more powerful graphics card to arrive before trying to edit in this new format. The battery that came with it is small. Would recommend buying the larger battery as soon as you can to balance it out. Right now, it feels a little out of balance because of the smaller battery. Also liked the solid magnesium body. No plastic anywhere ! Overall, I am impressed with this camera.
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