Panasonic Announces 3 New 3CCD Camcorders, Breaking the $600 Barrier

by Robin Liss

Published on Jan 5, 2005 5:45 PM
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Today at a press conference at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas Panasonic announced three new 3 CCD camcorders, expanding their consumer line of 3 CCD camcorders to four models. The PV-GS65, PV-GS150 and PV-GS250 all feature the same 3 CCD technology which dedicates one CCD to red, one to green and one to blue. The entry model PV-GS65 is being priced at $600, $100 less than Panasonic's least expensive 3 CCD camcorder last year.

Panasonic's consumer level 3 CCD camcorders were first introduced at the 2002 CES with the PV-DV953, which delivered 3 CCD technology for under $1,500. Previously it had not been available for under $2,000. The $600 price tag of the PV-GS65 continues Panasonic's recent history of pushing down the prices of 3 CCD technology and delivering it to more and more consumers at a lower and lower price.

"This model [PV-GS65] actually going to be $599, so actually brining this 3 CCD technology to a new type of consumer. Maybe the consumer who didn't consider 3 CCD before would actually be able to enjoy the benefits and the color reproduction of 3 CCD," stated RudyVitti, national marketing manager for Panasonic's Optical Group..

All three new camcorders feature three 1/6 in. CCDs. The PV-GS65's 3 CCDs feature 420K gross pixels. Panasonic uses their pixel shifting technology to produce 1.2 Megapixel stills. The PV-GS150's 3 CCDs feature 740K gross pixels producing 2.3 Megapixel stills. The PV-GS150 replaces last year's PV-GS120 (Review, Specs, $479). The PV-GS250's 3 CCDs feature 740K gross pixels, producing 3.1 Megapixel stills. The PV-GS250 replaces last year's PV-GS200 (Review, Specs, Recent News, $1299). All three camcorders record their digital stills to SD cards. The PV-GS150 and PV-GS250 have high speed USB 2.0 jacks for transfering digital stills, while the PV-GS65 uses low speed USB 2.0. The effective pixel count on each CCD was not released by Panasonic.

All three camcorders have a 2.5 in. LCD screen. The PV-GS65 features a 10x optical zoom. Features have been removed on the PV-GS65 to get the price down. The PV-GS65 does not include the same Leica lens as the higher two models, and its accessory shoe is cold instead of hot. When asked whether or not that has an affect on video performance Vitti stated "To some affect it does, but once again the idea here is bring 3 CCD to a level where a consumer who wouldn't consider it before has the ability to actually purchase it now at that $599 price point."

The PV-GS250 now joins the PV-GS400 (Review, Specs, $1099) as the only consumer-level Panasonic camcorders with optical stabilization. Panasonic made a strong technical move when they introduced 3CCD technology below $1000 at CES in 2004. This year they are extending their push to lower the cost of technology to the consumer by introducing the first 3CCD camcorder with optical image stabilization with a list price below $1000. The PV-GS65 and GS150 continue to use electronic image stabilization. According to Rudy Vitti, the electronic stabilization is unchanged from last year.

On their entire line, including the new 3 CCD camcorders, Panasonic has completely redone the menu navigation buttons and menu navigation display. The joystick activates in modes other than record and functions similarly to the rocker of last year's 3CCD cams. The operating functions are displayed on the lower right of the LCD. Because the rocker was replaced by the joystick. Panasonic removed the 120 degree opening feature of the LCD because it is no longer needed to facilitate access to the rocker, according to Rudy Vitti.

All four of the 3CCD cams use the same battery format. In fact, battery size is now standard across the entire Panasonic camcorder line. Information on the battery capacities that will ship with each of the camcorders was not available. Also, no information was available on the battery charger. However, Panasonic really has no reason to change the chargers currently used for the PV-GS120, PV-GS200 and PV-GS400.

The PV-GS65, PV-GS150 and PV-GS250 all feature the same level of manual control as last years camcorders. Each camcorders give the operator independent control of focus, white balance, shutter speed, aperture and gain. The PV-GS250 adds a manual focus ring around the lens. Both the PV-GS150 and PV-GS250 come with wired remotes for controlling the camcorder's zoom and recording. Interetingly, Panasonic removed their MPEG recording capability from the 3CCD camcorders.

The PV-GS65, PV-GS150, and PV-GS250 will all be available in March. The PV-GS65 will retail for $599, the PV-GS150 for $699 and the PV-GS250 for $999.