Kino-Eye HD Prosumer Camcorder Comparison (v3, revised 3/8/06)

This is a work in progress, please send your comments, corrections, and suggestions to David Tamés by email to david [at] kino-eye [dot] com, thank you!

 
Make and Model Sony HVR-Z1U JVC GY-HD100U Panasonic AG-HVX200 Canon XL H1
Image of Sony HVR-Z1U Image of JVC GY-HD100U Image of Panasonic AG-HVX200 Image of Canon XL H1
HD Recording Format HDV 1080i (HDV-2) HDV 720P (HDV-1) DVCPRO HD HDV 1080i (HDV-2)
Video Compression MPEG-2 using 15 frame IBP GOP Structure (profile & level: MP@H-14) MPEG-2 using 6 frame IBP GOP Structure (profile & level: MP@H-14) DVCPRO-HD (DCT based inter-frame compression) MPEG-2 using 15 frame IBP GOP Structure (profile & level: MP@H-14)
Data Rate 25 Mbit/sec 19 Mbit/sec 100 Mbit/sec 25 Mbit/sec
Color Subsampling 4:2:0 4:2:0 4:2:2 4:2:0 in HDV Mode, 4:2:2 via Component & SDI outputs
Recording Medium miniDV tape miniDV tape or third-party hard drive recorder (dual record mode support) P2 card or third-party hard drive recorder (e.g. FireStore FS-100) miniDV tape, external third-party hard drive recorder, you can record higher quality component HD to external HDCAM or simiar deck via Component & SDI outputs
HD Shooting Modes 1080/60i, 1080/24i a.k.a. CineFrame (2:3:2:3) 720/24P, 720/30P 1080/60i, 1080/24p, 1080/24pA, 1080/30p, and 720p. When recording in 720p, variable frame rates of 12, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 30, 32, 36, 48, and 60 fps are possible. 1080/60i, 1080/30F, 1080/24F (interlace to progressive converesion is performed by new DIGIC DVII processor WITH NO LOSS OF RESOLUTION as per Canon's claim)
Audio 2 ch. MPEG-1 Audio Layer II @ 384Kbps 2 ch. MPEG-1 Audio Layer II @ 384Kbps 4 ch. 48kHz 16-bit PCM in DVCPRO HD mode, 2 ch. 48kHz 16-bit PCM in DV (when Ch.1 and Ch.2 are set to external inputs, built-in camera mic is routed to Ch.3 and Ch.4 2 ch. MPEG-1 Audio Layer II @ 384Kbps, 4 ch. Mode @ 192kbps
Audio Inputs Built-in Mic, Switchable Mic/ Line XLR inputs with Phantom Powering Switchable Mic/ Line XLR inputs with Phantom Powering Built-in Mic, Switchable Mic/ Line XLR inputs with Phantom Powering Built-in Mic, Switchable Mic/ Line XLR inputs with Phantom Powering
Image Sensor 3 1/3" CCD (960x1080) interlaced 3 1/3" CCD (1280x720) progressive 3 1/3" CCD (960x540) progressive 3 1/3" CCD (1440x1080) interlaced
Pixels Recorded 960 x 1080 1280 x 720 1280 x 720 (actual imager pixels are less, but pixel shifting raises effective resolution) 1440 x 1080 Effective Capture (Same as HDCAM) captures 48 fields
Standard Lens Carl Zeiss 4.5-54mm f/1.6 zoom lens with SteadyShot image stabilizer Fujinon 5.5-88mm zoom lens Leica Dicomar 4.2 to 55mm f/1.6 zoom lens with an optical image stabilizer (32 to 423mm 35mm equivalent). The lens has a 82mm filter diameter Canon 20x HD XL Zoom with SuperRange Optical Image Stabilizer , 72mm filter diameter
Lens Mount Lens not interchangeable 1/3-inch bayonet mount Lens not interchangeable Canon XL mount
Optional Lenses and Accessories Wide angle adapter Fujinon 3.5-45mm 13x zoom; 1/2", C-mount, and wide-angle adapters Wide angle adapter Canon EF lenses can be used with this camera w/ EF adapter
Zebra / Spot Meter Yes / No Yes / No Yes / Yes Yes / No (Spot Metering only available in Still Capture Mode)
Number of Zebras / Range 1 / 75-100+ 1 / 2 / 50 to 99+ IRE ?
Custom Presets Yes (save to camera) Yes (save to camera or SD card) Yes (save to camera or SD card) Yes (save to camera or SD card)
Cine Gamma / Cine Color Matrix Yes Yes Yes Yes
Inputs Composite, S-Video, FireWire ? Composite, S-Video, FireWire Genlock, SMPTE time code, FireWire
Outputs Composite, S-Video, HD Analog Component 1080i, Firewire Composite, S-Video, HD Analog Component 720/60P, Firewire Composite, S-Video, FireWire, HD Analog Component (D4) SMPTE time code, S-video, composite, uncompressed analog SD/ HD component, uncompressed digital HD-SDI/ SD-SDI, Firewire
Weight and Dimensions ? 6.9 lbs. (3.1 kg) including lens (Th16x5.5BRMU), viewfinder, standard battery, microphone and tape; 9-1/4" (235mm) W x 9-1/8" (232mm) H x 12-3/8" (315mm) D ? ?
Pros Crisp LCD display, "Shot Transition" feature automatically records change of focus, zoom, iris, gain, shutter or white balance, very cost effective given feature set True 24P recording, Motion Smoothing reduces 24P judder, real lens, focus assist feature, interchangeable lens Variable frame rates, true 24P recording, small form factor, true 24P, spot meter, better image quality due to use of DVCPRO HD codec. focus assist works while recording, hot-swap P2 feature allows continuous recording without stopping 24F is effectively same as 24P as 48 1440x1080 fields are actually captured at the CCD and then converted to 24 Full Field frames by DIGIC DVII processor upon output WITH NO RESOLUTION LOSS. In 30F Mode, 60 fields ar captured at CCD and then converted to 30 Full Field frames by DIGIC DVII processor upon output WITH NO RESOLUTION LOSS. NLE software capture for 24F will be termed "1080i HDV/ 23.98". 20x HD zoom lens, four audio inputs, HD-SDI/ SD-SDI output, interchangeable lens capability, LCD EVF can be horizontally flipped for use with new upcoming & more affordable P+S Technik adaptor
Cons Not real 24P as CCD's only capture at 60 fileds per sec (CF24 is still technically 1080i/ 60i), focus assist does not work while recording, noticeable MPEG-2 compression artifacting, can't record Ch1 External Mic and Ch2 Internal Mic at the same time, audio input is both external or both internal Low resolution pop-out and viewfinder LCDs, MPEG-2 compression artifacting, (standard lens is not a true HD lens - HD lens option is additional $11,000, is is not accurate, as the alternative lens is wider too) P2 card-based workflow is more expensive than HDV tape, lens is not intercheangeable, LCD viewfinder is not very crisp MPEG-2 compression artifacting
Caveats The camera is a very straightforward, with few caveats, unless you care about true 24p progressive, and that's the one caveat Camera includes essentially a standard definition lens, add an additional $11,000 for the wider, true HD lens Requires use of additional P2 cards or external hard drive recorder to record DVCPRO HD video, an 8 GB P2 card is $1,400 and holds 20 min. of 720p/24 video. SD video can be recorded to internal miniDV transport. The camera is a very straightforward, with few caveats.
Street Price $4,800 $5,600 $6,000 ($8,800 with 2 8 GB P2 cards) $9,000
Note: all four cameras can also record SD PAL or NTSC, the HVX200 records PAL or NTSC depending on the market the camera was purchased in.

Commentary: An objective comparison of cameras is impossible, and can be misleading. The suitability of a particular camera for a specific use depends on its form-factor, features, performance, cost, design, technical capabilities, and even aesthetic concerns. Side by side technical comparisons are usually misleading, since audience members never think about things like resolution or color space. So it really boils down to overall image quality (all four of these cameras produce stunning images from everything I've seen so far, none is a clear winner), form factor and the features that matter most to you are the best decision points. Additional commentary may be found at kino-eye.com

 
Special thanks to Don Berube of Noisybrain Productions for his contributions to this document.
Copyright 2006 by David Tamés, some rights reserved. Released under the terms of a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.5 license, You are free to copy, distribute, and display the work and to make derivative works under the conditions of the license.