In August, Sony will debut the HDR-CX12 camcorder. It’s a Handycam format camcorder, that records to Sony’s memory stick technology in 1920×1080 HD video, and also takes a pretty astounding 10 megapixel still photo.

It features a new technology called “Smile Shutter” that can analyze when a person in the frame smiles, and snaps a photo automatically at the same time you’re recording video.

From A Sony Press Release:

SONY INTRODUCES THE WORLD’S FIRST CAMCORDER
WITH SMILE SHUTTER TECHNOLOGY

SAN DIEGO, June 18, 2008 – Sony is taking the lead in the camcorder industry by introducing the first high-definition camcorder with both Smile Shutter™ and face detection technologies.

The HDR-CX12 Memory Stick® Handycam® camcorder can record full 1920 x 1080 HD video and 10-megapixel photos on Sony Memory Stick PRO Duo™ media and any Memory Stick PRO Duo (Mark2) media cards. Roughly the size of a soda can (2.8-inches wide by 5.3-inches tall by 2.8-inches deep), this ultra-compact model will allow for easy transfer of video and stills from media cards to a compatible PC to share via email, uploading to the Internet or burning to disc.

With Sony’s unique Smile Shutter technology you can capture smiling photos and record video at the same time. When activated the technology will detect and automatically take a photo when your subject smiles − without having to switch to photo mode or press the photo button.

It also features child and adult prioritization so you can capture photos when your intended subject group smiles. This camcorder can even detect and capture a smile while in standby mode – just aim the camcorder and you’ll capture smiling moments.

“Advanced technologies such as ‘smile shutter’ make memory capture automatic so you can relax and enjoy the moment at hand,” said Kelly Davis, director of camcorder marketing at Sony Electronics. “Leveraging these key technologies across multiple product lines is another example of Sony’s commitment to anticipate consumer needs by making video capture more seamless, easy and fun.”

Advanced Features and Performance
In addition to face detection technology, the camcorder is packed with powerful features such as ClearVid® CMOS sensor with Exmor™-derived technology for stunning video detail and clarity, a BIONZ™ imaging processor, an advanced Carl Zeiss® Vario-Sonnar® T* 12x optical zoom lens and Super SteadyShot® optical image stabilization for smooth video and clear photos.

The model has a 2.7-inch Clear Photo LCD Plus™ screen, Dolby® Digital 5.1-channel surround sound recording and a built-in zoom microphone to record clear dialogue. It has an assignable dial that can be customized to manually control focus, brightness and white balance.

The camcorder will ship with a supplied 4GB Memory Stick PRO Duo (Mark2) media card so that you are ready to start recording almost straight out of the box. A supplied Handycam Station™ cradle makes for easy DVD creation with its One Touch Disc Burn button. Also bundled is Picture Motion Browser software to easily view, organize and store video and photos on a compatible PC.

Price and Availability
The HDR-CX12 camcorder will be in stores early August for about $900. It will be available at Sony Style® retail stores, online through sonystyle.com and at authorized dealers nationwide. Pre-order sales will begin online on June 20th and at sonystyle.com on June 22nd.

(edited to add specs on camcorders, and new pricing information from Panasonic)

Panasonic sent around a press release today announcing two new HD camcorders, the HDC-SD100, and the HDC-HS100. Recording AVCHD to memory card, (and to hard drive in the SD100 model) they use 3MOS sensors. What’s the difference between MOS and CMOS you might be asking yourself? Well so are we, they seem to be functionally the same technology. CMOS stands for complementary-symmetry metal–oxide–semiconductor, while MOS is the same thing, just dropping the complementary-symmetry part. But I digress… Read the rest of this entry »

Maybe I’m showing my age, but I still can’t wrap my head around a one terabyte portable bus-powered hard drive. I remember when 9 gig drives were the standard high capacity drive, and honestly it wasn’t that long ago. So for those who need massive portable storage, like editing in the field with a laptop, check out the details of LaCie’s 1TB Little Big Disk below.

From a LaCie Press Release:

Little Big Disk Quadra 1TB: Small, Mighty and Full of Capacity

• Powerful, handheld storage device available up to 1TB
• Burst transfer speeds of up to 110MB/s via e-SATA or 80MB/s over FireWire 800*
• Quadruple interface for flexibility; FireWire bus-power for true mobility
• Sturdy, aluminum heat sink design with amazingly quiet operation

PORTLAND, OR (June 2008) – LaCie today announced the Little Big Disk Quadra 1TB, the
industry’s largest capacity, most powerful mobile storage solution to fit comfortably into the palm
of your hand. Joining already shipping 500GB and 400GB (7200 RPM) versions, the portable
Little Big Disk is LaCie’s workflow answer for speed- and capacity-demanding applications and
digital content creation.

This extremely fast, mobile device includes two 2.5-inch hard disks that work together in a built-in
RAID 0 configuration to enable up to 110MB/s burst transfer rates when using eSATA or up to
80MB/s if using FireWire 800*. With one eSATA 3Gbits, two FireWire 800 (FireWire 400
compatible with included adaptor), and one USB 2.0 interface, the Little Big Disk allows universal
connectivity for true cross-platform compatibility.

Featuring the well-known LaCie d2 heat sink design, developed by Neil Poulton, the Little Big
Disk is entirely fanless, which allows it to operate flawlessly without posing as a noise distraction
when editing content. The sturdy Little Big Disk is 100 percent bus-powered by the FireWire
interface, in spite of the two 2.5-inch disks inside, and weighs in at a little over 1.4 pounds. Up to
60 percent lighter than conventional desktop drives, this device is a great solution for users
needing versatile on-the-go storage for high-intensity computing applications.

“The Little Big Disk is suitable for multiple in-the-field applications. A professional photographer
will take thousands of RAW photos in one photo shoot, while a videographer needs tremendous
capacity and transfer rates to edit their footage,” said Arnaud Prezelin, LaCie Product Manager
for Creative Pro solutions. “Powerful yet portable, the Little Big Disk Quadra is an essential tool
for meeting a professional’s mobile needs. While traveling, users no longer need to carry heavy
devices and power cables to operate a high-capacity 1TB external hard drive.”

Fully plug and play with Mac® OS X 10.5 Leopard (including Time Machine) and Windows®
Vista™, the Little Big Disk Quadra comes preloaded with the LaCie Setup Assistant, a utility that
optimizes the drive according to your needs (Mac, Windows, or cross-platform environments).
The unit comes bundled with advanced backup and restore software EMC® Retrospect Express
for Mac and Windows. It can also be daisy-chained using one of the two FireWire interfaces with
other LaCie hard disks or DVD±RW drives.

Availability
The 1TB LaCie Little Big Disk Quadra is available now from LaCie direct and widely available via
LaCie’s specialized dealer network at the suggested retail price starting at $659.99. For more
information, visit www.lacie.com.

Today Rode announced a new shotgun mic model, the NTG-3. An interesting feature on this mic is the moisture-proof design, allowing the use of this shotgun mic in humid and rainy field conditions without having to worry about condensation building up on the diaphragm. We should probably point out that this does not make the mic waterproof (you still don’t want to get it wet)

More details on Rode’s offering below:

From A Rode Press Release:

Introducing the new NTG-3 – a precision, broadcast-grade shotgun microphone from RØDE Microphones.

The NTG-3 is the result of years of development by RØDE engineers, providing the professional broadcast and film industries with an affordable yet uncompromising microphone.

Using a technology known as RF-bias the RØDE NTG-3 is almost completely resistant to moisture, making it the only option when recording in any demanding environments where condensation is an issue. Be it in a tropical rainforest, arid desert or sub-zero snowstorm the NTG-3 can be relied on to faithfully record audio where traditional condenser microphones would fail.

In addition to its robust properties the NTG-3 combines very low weight (163g), a durable anti-glare finish and
incredibly low handling and self-noise (13dBA) to become RØDE’s premier A/V microphone.

When not in use the NTG-3 can be stored away in the included weather resistant aluminium storage cylinder, providing additional protection when travelling and storing the microphone.

“The new NTG-3 is one of RØDE’s most exciting microphones.” commented Peter Freedman, President of RØDE Microphones. “I am confident that the robustness afforded by RF bias technology, combined with incredibly low self-noise and handling noise make the NTG-3 a clear market leader in the broadcast-grade shotgun microphone category.”

Australian sound recording guru, Ric Creaser (60 Minutes, Survivor, Australian Idol), was given the opportunity to field test the NTG-3 as a part of RØDE’s thorough product development. “The NTG-3 has amazingly low handling noise, which will make it a boom operator’s dream mic” observed Ric.

“The audio quality is exceptional; providing the full bodied, robust, punchy audio I have come to expect from only the most expensive high-end broadcast shotgun microphones.”

“Also the off axis capability is a little wider than a 416, therefore more forgiving when trying to capture two spaced sources; a real bonus. I plan to use the RØDE NTG-3 as my main microphone from now on – it is outstanding.”

Key features:
• Designed to withstand adverse environmental conditions
• 50% less self-noise than the majority of shotgun mics
• True condenser (externally RF biased)
• Extremely low handling noise
• High level of immunity to radio frequency interference
• High sensitivity
• Superior broadcast sound quality
• Weather resistant aluminium storage cylinder included
• Designed and manufactured in Australia
• 10 year warranty (online registration required)

For more information on the NTG-3 please visit www.rodemic.com/ntg3

On a brief stopover from our Portland Conference (which went very well, by the way, thanks for asking) we stopped by the storage providers LaCie to take a look at some of their new products. While the company headquarters is in France; the US operation, where they run tech support, sales, and still have a factory that assembles their product is located in Hillsboro Oregon.

We sat down to take a look at some of their video related products, and first off was the Biggest S2S, a 5 bay tower system that in full striped mode can handle uncompressed HD video. This tower comes with it’s own interface card, and is available in 2.5TB, or 5TB models.

On the opposite side of the size spectrum was the Little Big Disk Quadra. A tiny bus-powered RAID 0 array of two 2.5 inch hard drives, in capacities of 400GB, and 500GB. Perfect for editing with a laptop on location.

Right smack dab in the middle was the 2big Triple. A medium sized case holding two removable bays, with a Firewire 400, 800, and USB 2.0 interface. It changes between RAID1, o, or JBOD configurations, and comes in 1TB, 1.5TB, and 2 TB capacities.

Although well known as a storage comapny, LaCie also makes some very interesting displays. One model that will be of interest to video editors is the LaCie 324. It’s a 24 inch LCD panel, that incorporates a Faroudja video signal processor that is specifically designed to display video, handling scaling and color information for viewing various HD and SD frame rates and sizes accurately. Most other LCD displays are made to with computers in mind only, so it’s refreshing to see a manufacturer designing products with video editing specifically in mind.

We ended the tour with a walk through of the assembly area and warehouse. As the tour was progressing, I looked around at the multiple petabytes of storage lining the shelves, and I wondered at all the video and photo data that would eventually end up on these drives. I also wondered how many hours of irreplaceable footage in the future would be lost forever due to poor data management, or even hard drive failure. LaCie, of course is a big proponent of back-ups (preferably using another LaCie drive), and it is a necessity in todays digital acquisition environment, where tape is starting to fade away. What I think the video production community really needs though, is a digital equivalent of the shoe-box full of tapes in the closet. A product between the multi-million dollar content management servers of major studios, and more robust than simply another hard drive. An affordable digital server that’s not just for storage, but for archiving as well.