October 20, 2009 – Sony announced today the release of two new models to their XDCAM EX line of professional camcorders—the PMW-350 and the PMW-EX1R. The PMW-350 is an entirely new camcorder from Sony and it is the company's first memory-based camcorder to include a 2/3-inch CMOS chip. The PMW-EX1R, on the other hand, is an upgrade to the company's previous XDCAM model, the PMW-EX1.

Panasonic announced the release of a new professional camcorder, the AG-HMC45U, in Japan. The camcorder is part of the company's AVCCAM series, which use the AVCHD codec to record HD video. The AG-HMC45U will be available in Japan in August 2009 for 254,000 Yen (roughly $2,700 US dollars).

April 22, 2009 - RED Digital Cinema is usually home to one of the most popular booths at the NAB show in Las Vegas. This year, however, RED didn't even have a setup on the show floor. Instead, representatives from RED gave speeches at other booths, ran seminars during the week, and hosted a RED User event on April 22nd. On display at the RED User event was a RED ONE camcorder, a prototype model of the RED Epic, and a number of RED lenses. There was also a strong presence of third-party manufacturers who are designing products that are compatible with RED camcorders.

The AG-HPX300 is a newly released professional camcorder from Panasonic that currently retails for around $10,000. The shoulder-mount camcorder records to Panasonic's P2 memory card system and supports a variety of video compression options—including AVC-Intra 100, Panasonic's proprietary 10-bit 4:2:2 compression that is compliant with MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 standards. The camcorder also offers DVCPRO HD compression as well as three standard definition compression options. The P2 card system offers a tapeless workflow solution for pro videographers, but it also comes with a higher overall price tag than traditional HDV, tape-based models. The camcorder features a wide range of manual controls, and comes with a removable, 17x optical zoom Fujinon lens.

April 22, 2009 - Earlier this year, many people predicted Canon would announce a professional tapeless camcorder at the National Association of Broadcasters convention in 2009. With the economy lagging, however, it seems new camcorder announcements at NAB have been cut back. Few manufacturers have released new products and most have carried over a large portion of models from previous years. Over the past few years, Sony, JVC, and Panasonic have each released a line of memory-card-based pro camcorders, while Canon continues to rely solely on its tape-based HDV models.

April 21, 2009 - Panasonic is making a big splash at NAB with the showcasing of numerous 3D production systems. Along with a full HD plasma home theater display (first debuted at the CEATEC trade show in Japan), Panasonic has also presented a conceptual model of a high definition 3D camcorder. Previous 3D productions, including those highlighted in Panasonic's home theater display, were shot by rigging multiple 2D camcorders together to create the 3D environment. In an attempt to simplify 3D production, Panasonic's concept model features a twin-lens system for capturing 3D footage using only one camcorder.

April 21, 2009 - At the National Association of Broadcasters this week, Sony showed off its tiny AVCHD camcorder, the HXR-MC1/ACC. The camcorder, which is part of Sony's pro lineup, comes attached to a 9-foot cable that connects to a small control unit on the other end. The lens and imaging system on the HXR-MC1/ACC have the same specs as Sony's ultra-compact consumer camcorders, the HDR-TG1 and HDR-TGV5. The HXR-MC1/ACC is currently available with a suggested retail price of $2995.

April 20, 2009 - Sony announced the creation of an online video network as an extension of the Sony professional video community. The announcement came at Sony's press conference at NAB (National Association of Broadcasters) in Las Vegas. More details, and a possible unveiling of the online video network, should be announced in May or June of this year.

April 20, 2009 - At the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) convention in Las Vegas, Panasonic introduced the AG-HMC40, a new compact, budget camcorder in its professional AVCCAM line. As with all camcorders in Panasonic's AVCCAM line, the AG-HMC40 records AVCHD video to solid-state SD/SDHC memory cards. Panasonic has positioned the camcorder as a lighter, cheaper alternative to the AG-HMC150. The AG-HMC40 will be available in August with an MSRP of $3,195.

February 11, 2009 – Panasonic announced today a slew of new hardware tools to support its professional high definition solid state line of camcorders. The new line of field and production devices is primarily designed to expand Panasonic's P2 memory card camcorders and bring master-quality recording to professionals at a more affordable price. The AG-HPG20 recorder/player, AJ-HRW10 P2 rapid writer, and AJ-PCD35 memory drive are three of the new devices Panasonic has slated for February through April release. All of the new P2 devices are compatible with Panasonic's recently announced AG-HPX300 camcorder, scheduled for release in March.

Panasonic announced today the release of the new 10-bit AG-HPX300, a 2.2-megapixel, 1/3-inch 3-CMOS camcorder. The HPX300 records to P2 memory cards in both AVC-Intra and DVCPRO HD at 1080i/p, 720p, and standard definition. Featuring interchangeable lenses, a shoulder-mount design, and several new features, it appears designed to challenge the Sony PMW-EX3, JVC GY-HD250, and Canon XL H1S. The AG-HPX300 will retail for $10,700 (including a 17x Fujinon lens), the lowest price to date for an AVC-Intra camcorder. It is expected to become available in March 2009. (View photo gallery)
 

January 14, 2009 – Amidst the buzz over consumer products at this year's CES, JVC slipped two professional camcorders under the radar: the GY-HM100 and GY-HM700. These two new models are the first in the industry to capture natively in the QuickTime file format. They also continue JVC's push to move professional videography away from MiniDV recording—the HM100 and HM700 both record to dual SDHC memory card slots. The camcorders will be available this spring for a price to be determined.