Helmut Kobler
Forum Replies Created
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I think the 64Gb cards are priced about $600 too high, or more. You can get 64Gb of very fast solid state memory for 10-15x less these days. Sure, it doesn’t have the custom RAID controller that a P2 card features, and the super-specialized memory chips that make up the RAID, but I have a hard time justifying a 10-15X premium for P2 tech.
Also, why haven’t the prices for the 32 and 16 GB cards come down? They’ve been out a year, and the price for every other solid state memory format has plummeted in that time, so why virtually NO price reduction on the 16 and 32 GB cards? This tells me that Panasonic chose to build P2 around a memory technology that’s so specialized and rare that it’s immune to dropping component prices throughout the rest of the industry. And that’s bad news for Panasonic, because customers are going to start looking at other, far cheaper media…
Come on, Panasonic! You’ve got to realize that no price reduction on your existing cards, after a full year on the market, is going to have people questioning the future of the format…
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HPX2700 has a newer sensor from what I understand. Also, it has chromatic aberation compensation, while the 200 does not. It also has Film Rec mode, while the 2000 does not.
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You might also look into LTO-4. It’s more expensive, but doubles the storage capacity (thereabouts). Also, I vaguely remember coming across an LTO-4 drive that was priced not TOO much higher than LTO-3 counterparts.
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That’s exactly what I was thinking, actually: ie, either offering yourself out as the DP, or if they have one, then accompanying the camera as a data wrangler.
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I hope some knock-offs are coming soon, and I really hope Panasonic takes it out of first gear and gets those 64GB cards on the market even sooner.
It’s just cruel to announce 64GB cards, and then make us wait 6 months before they ship (and that’s if they ship on time in appreciable quantities, which hasn’t exactly been Panasonic’s strong suit with P2 cards lately).
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The 2000 is definitely a fine camera in its own right!
As for asking why someone would get the 3000 over the 3700: Panasonic has said that the 3700 would come in around $60,000, which is a $15K markup over the 3000’s price. For that $15K, you get variable frame rates up to 30fps (but not 60 for slow mo!), and dual HD-SDI outs, and 4 audio inputs instead of 2.
FOr me, none of that is worth an extra $15K, especially when the 3000 delivers the same amazing full raster image.
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The 3000 also has the Varicam Film Rec mode and can reduce chromatic abberation when used with a compatible lens. But the 2000 is a better perforer in low-light (or no light, virtually). It has some features that news crews appreciate, like a digital super zoom, too.
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Thanks a lot for putting this together, Joe! I’ve been very very interested in the HPX3000 because I like P2 (especially once the 64GB cards start shipping), and I LOVE the idea of a 2/3″, 2.2MP imager on a shoulder-mount body, recording 10bit 4:2:2 video. .
Except for not being able to do slow motion, this camera seems to have everything, and for a pretty reasonable price. I’m not so enamored of the RED–for broadcast, a 4K imager isn’t that useful, and the RED is heavier and much harder to operate as a one or two-man crew.
ANYWAY….I’m surprised to hear that Panasonic has sold only 100 or so of these cameras. Does that strike people as an unusually low number? Perhaps the sales rep is mistaken, or maybe the HPX3000 is having a hard time finding its niche. For dramatic and commercial production, people are very aware of the RED, and new Sony cameras. And for reality tv/news/documentaries, the 3000 is definitely on the pricey side of cameras these days.
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On the bright side, the difference between a 3000 and a 3700 Varicam isn’t nearly as much as the difference between a 2000 and a 2700 Varicam. So you can feel better about buying a 3000 over a 3700.
The 2700 offers built-in AVC-Intra, Film Rec mode, variable frame rates 1-60, CAC, and a few other things that a stock 2000 lacks.
But the 3000 already has AVC-Intra by default, and Film Rec, CAC, etc. What you get with the 3700 is variable frame rates of 1-30 (this doesn’t seem that useful to me anyway, since there’s no slow motion), and a couple other tweaks, but nothing that really makes a big impact on the overall image, in my opinion.
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If you can manage it, I would try to avoid buying a kit with four 16 GB cards. Lately, it seems that most kits do not discount their P2 cards very much, so it would be better to simply buy two 32 GB cards for roughly the same price as the four 16s. Then you’ll have two free slots to add more 32GB cards when they become cheaper, OR 64 GB cards when they start shipping in the Fall.
Just food for thought….