A recent Panasonic press statement confirms the availability of the new AVCCAM AG-AF100 Micro Four Thirds camcorder in December 2010.
Unlike the half-camcorder, half-camera Sony NEX-VG10, the coming AG-AF100 is built from the ground up as a camcorder, complete with HD SDI output, time code, XLR input and internal ND filter, among other features.
B&H has already listed the new camcorder with full features and specificiation listings; however, at the time of this post, it is not available for pre-order.
More details in the press release below.
Panasonic Press Release
Panasonic Corporation announces the December release of a new addition to its professional AVCHD video camera AVCCAM line-up: the Memory Card Camera Recorder AG-AF100 series.
The AG-AF100 series is the world’s first*1 professional HD camera recorder equipped with Four Thirds MOS image sensor. As the first model in the AVCCAM series to have exchangeable lenses, it can use a Micro Four Thirds digital single-lens or cinematic lenses such as prime lens with a conversion adaptor*2, as well as professional audio input (XLR), making it the perfect camera recorder for professionals.
The AG-AF100 series targets the video and film professional world, able to utilize Micro Four Thirds lenses, filters and adapters*2 to achieve image recording with a shallow depth of field and wider-angle through the large-sized image sensor. The camera recorder can record video in full HD (1080i/p) / 720p formats including 1080/24p native*3 mode with Full HD Variable Frame Rate (VFR) *4function. The video can be recorded on the bigger capacity SDXC memory cards in professional high quality PH mode (maximum 24Mbps*5).
An engineering sample of the camera recorder will be displayed in the Panasonic booth (11.E60) at the IBC international broadcasting convention held in Amsterdam from September 10 to 14.
Key Features
1. Equipped with a Four Thirds type image sensor and Micro Four Thirds lens mount. 2. Can shoot professional high quality video in PH mode with Full HD Variable Frame Rate function. 3. Has interfaces (HD SDI output / XLR input) and design required for professional production work. |
*1: Research by Panasonic (as of September 2010)?*2: Use of all lenses/ adaptors is not guaranteed.?*3: Native mode records only the effective frames and actual recording at 24 is 23.98Hz.?*4: VFR in 720p mode is not supported. Select 20 steps from 12p to 60p at 60Hz. Select 20 steps from 12p to 50p at 50Hz. Playback is available at 1080/24p, 1080/25p or 1080/30p. Playback at 1080/60p and 1080/50p are not available on this product.?*5: Average of 21Mbps (VBR)
?AVCHD and the AVCHD logo are trademarks of Panasonic Corporation and Sony Corporation.
?AVCCAM is the name of Panasonic’s professional AVCHD series.
?Micro Four Thirds and the Micro Four Thirds logo are trademarks / registered trademarks of Olympus Corporation in Japan, the USA, the EU and other countries.
Roberto Blondt says
As always, a very good product with one defect: proprietary add on (lens). I’ll never, ever buy this product, it does not have the flexbility to accept other lens than 4/3… If Panasonic were intelligent, they should make the camera with all mounts (i.e. for Canon, Nikon, Sony, Pentax and 4/3), that way would be a killer, but as I said before, I’ll never, ever change my mount just for one product… sorry Panasonic.
dick ranez says
I might have missed something. About the only feature that makes 4/3 or m4/3 cameras as something to consider is size and their lens flexibility. There are adapters for Canon FD, Olympus, Nikon, Leica, Minolta/Sony and Sigma and probably others if I bothered to look. Not sure what you’re using, but there must be a solution in there somewhere.
This is a groundbreaking camera, interchangeable lenses in a nearly affordable package?