

Memory cards are, in my opinion, the best medium. And now with the storage capacity reaching respectable levels, I can find no shortcomings in this system. You can quickly review your clips and start shooting again immediately. You just pop one or two cards in, turn on the camera and start shooting. I have to say that I am very enamored with the camera's P2 storage. The HPX170 weighs only 4.19 pounds, compared to 5.5 pounds for the HVX200. This camera is ergonomically well designed, and the improved placement of audio and menu controls make it an ideal field camera. The first thing I noticed about the HPX170 is how light and easy it is to hold in one hand. For example, the digital zoom option has to be assigned to one of the user-defined buttons. A few of the new features may require a quick trip to the manual.
#Panasonic p2 hd ag hpx170 pro
The HPX170 has all of the features found in the HVX200, including, of course, the convenience of the P2 workflow, which is well integrated into Final Cut Pro and Avid systems.Īnyone who has used the HVX200 can pick up the HPX170 and use it right away. And there's a new button that changes the LCD screen brightness level to increase its efficiency in dark or bright locations. There's also a digital zoom option that multiplies the zoom magnification (but only available when recording in 1080/60i). The audio level controls have been moved to the side of the camera where they are easier to access while shooting. The menu controls have been repositioned to the side of the eyepiece and have more logical button orientations. With the flick of a switch, you can use the large focus ring as an iris control. One of these is a slightly wider range of ND filters (1/4, 1/16 and 1/64 on the HPX170, as opposed to 1/8 and 1/64 on the HVX200). There are a number of other features and improvements that have been added to the HPX170. However, the HPX170 offers 20 steps within that range instead of 12. This provides a quick light-metering option in addition to the zebra pattern.īoth the HVX200 and the HPX170 have a range of 12 fps to 60 fps for creating authentic fast to slow motion. The built-in waveform monitor is easily activated by a button inside the LCD screen door. Images are captured by three 1/3-inch CCDs that have been improved to reduce smear and noise in low-light situations.
#Panasonic p2 hd ag hpx170 full
The HPX170 is a full HD camera that provides 4:2:2 sampling, low intra-frame compression, and a data rate of 100 Mbps. However, if acquiring in the 720/24pN mode, recording time is extended to 320 minutes. This translates to 128 minutes of HD video. The camera has two card slots, allowing a maximum storage capacity of 128 GB. The largest card currently available is 64 GB. Solid-state P2 memory cards are the recording media for the HPX170. But as the migration to HD becomes more complete, there is a diminishing need for DV tape recording capability. The format capability matches that of the HVX200 however, the HPX170 does not have a Mini DV tape drive. This makes the recording process more efficient and more than doubles the recording capacity of the P2 cards. These options record only the exact number of frames, as opposed to using a more common method that extracts them from a 60i stream. When recording in the 720 mode, there is the option of using 720 30pN or 720 24pN. Audio is four-channel, uncompressed 16-bit digital with two XLR inputs and physical on-camera volume controls. Although tailored for HD, it records 480 60i, 30p and 24p using either DVCPRO, DV or DVCPRO 50 codecs. The Panasonic HPX170, like its predecessor the HVX200, is a handheld HD camera that records virtually all existing video formats onto high-capacity P2 memory cards.

The result is the lightest and smallest P2 camera with improved CCDs, a wider-angle zoom lens, HD-SDI output, a built-in waveform monitor/vectorscope, and modifications in menu and iris control. But in creating a new P2 camera model, Panasonic also seized the opportunity to add some improvements. Panasonic AG-HPX170 The easiest way to describe the Panasonic AG-HPX170 is to think of it as the HVX200 minus the Mini DV tape drive.
