Canon XL2 and Canon XL1S Comparison

Canon's beloved XL1S has finally met its newly unveiled replacement. On July 13, 2004, in New York City, Canon announced the XL2, which boasts many improvements over the XL1S and the XL1. The brand new camcorder ships with virtually the same housing and body as the XL1S; it includes the same interchangeable lens system, and functions with new accessories that are compatible with the XL1S, which is nice for those who don't want to shell out the $5,000 that the XL2 costs.

Other improvements include a huge 20x zoom and an improved 16:9 mode, although the chips are still 4:3. The XL2 has options for shooting at 60i, 30p, 24p(2:3), and 24p (2:3:3:2), which is an improvement on the XL1S and brings Canon up to par with the Panasonic AG-DVX100. The XL2 also improves on the button placement of the XL1S and also ships with a new Software Development Kit which allows for camera setting sharing and adjusting using the computer. For a thorough specifications comparison table, see below....

Specification	Canon XL1S	Canon XL2
Power Supply	7.2 Volts DC	7.2V DC
Power Consumption	8.7 Watt	7.1W
Television System	EIS Standard	EIS standard
Video recording system	2 rotary heads, helical scanning system	2 rotary heads, helical scanning system
Audio recording System	16 bit (2 channel) & 12 bit (2 channel from 4, and 4 channel)	16 bit (2 channel) & 12 bit (2 channel from 4, and 4 channel)
Image Sensor	3 1/3" CCDs	3 1/3"CCDs
Gross pixels per CCD	270K	680K
Effective pixels	250K	350K
Pixel Shifting	yes	460K
Tape format	MiniDV	MiniDV
Tape speed	SP and LP	SP and LP
Maximum recording time	Sp:80min on 80min tape, LP:120minutes on 80min tape	Sp:80min on 80min tape, LP:120minutes on 80min tape
Fast forward/rewind time	2 mins, 20 sec (60 min tape)	2 mins, 20 sec (60 min tape)
Lens Mount	XL interchangeable lens system	XL interchangeable lens system
Focusing system	TTL autofocus	TTL autofocus
Manual Focus Type	ring	ring
Minimum focusing distance	2 cm	2 cm
Maximum shutter speed	1/15,000	1/15,000
Minimum illumination	2 lux	2 lux
Recommended illumination	100 lux	100 lux
filter diameter	72 mm	72 mm
Viewfinder	.7 inch, color LCD
LCD	color (180,000 pixels)	2 inch (200K)
Microphone	Stereo electret condenser	Stereo electret condenser
DV Terminal	4 pin connector	4 pin connector
S-Video IN/OUT terminal	4 pin mini DIN	4 pin mini DIN
Video IN/OUT Terminal	RCA jack	RCA jack (channel 3 and 4 & channels 1/3 and 2/4)
Audio OUT Terminal	RCA jack (L,R) 4dBm	RCA jack (channel 3 and 4 & channels 1/3 and 2/4)
Headphone	yes	yes
Audio IN Terminal	RCA jack (L,R) -11dBm (LINE),-35dBm(MIC ATT),-55dBm(MIC)	RCA jack (L,R) -11dBm (LINE),-35dBm(MIC ATT),-55dBm(MIC)
Microphone IN	3.5mm -59dBV	3.5mm -59dBV
Operating temperature range	32ø-104øF	32-104
Dimensions	223 x 214 x 415 mm	225 x 220 x 496
Weight (no battery)	3 lbs 12 oz	5.3 lb.
Weight (battery)	6 lbs 3 oz	7.8 lb.
16:9 effect	guides, squeeze mode	guides, non-squeeze 16:9 mode
grip zoom	yes	yes
handle zoom	yes	yes
adjustable zoom speed	yes	yes
movie mode?	progressive scan	24P (2:3), 24P (2:3:3:2)
white balance	auto, manual, indoor, outdoor	auto, manual, indoor, outdoor
zebra patterning	5 levels	5 levels
optical zoom	16x	20x
built in ND filter	yes	yes
still to tape	yes	no
2 photo buttons	yes	no
two gripping positions	yes	yes
fade trigger	yes	yes
exposure steps	28 (F/1.6 and F/16)	28 (F/1.6 and F/16)
shutter speed steps	27 (1/8 & 1/15,000)	27 (1/8 & 1/15,000)
Recording modes	easy:nearly every thing auto	easy:nearly every thing auto
	auto:no shutter, iris adjustment, frequency selection, clear scan	auto:no shutter, iris adjustment, frequency selection, clear scan
	TV:every available	TV:every available
	AV: no shutter, frequency selection, clear scan	AV: no shutter, frequency selection, clear scan
	Manual: no ex. Lock, AE level	Manual: no ex. Lock, AE level
	Spotlight: no exp. Lock, iris, shutter, AE level, gain, clear scan	Spotlight: no exp. Lock, iris, shutter, AE level, gain, clear scan
	During Exp. Lock: no AE level, Clear Scan	During Exp. Lock: no AE level, Clear Scan
Shooting Modes	60i	60i, 30P, 24P (2:3),24P (2:3:3:2)
Customized keys	yes	yes
Clear Scan	removes the black band when recording computer screen	removes the black band when recording computer screen
Audio Dubbing	yes	yes
Zoom features	ring, two toggles	ring, two toggles