I sort of don't get it.
Apart from saving A LOT of time in post, why should one use it?
The argument of no tear and wear of the tape mechanism is not standing. My XL1 goes in "stand by/sleep mode" pretty soon after a period of non activity of the tape mechanism. So in order to record direct to disk I HAVE to start and stop the camera with a tape inserted and running. The Sony PD150 seems to stay active for hours, so I can see a possibility of recording direct to disk without the tape running. Is there a solution to make the XL1 stay alive for a long time?

-> Is there a solution to make the XL1 stay alive for a long time?

Ejecting the tape allows the XL1 to remain on indefinitely while in camera mode.

Hope that helps,

Matt McEwen

Apart from saving A LOT of time in post, why should one use it?
it also allows you to continously record "hours" of footage...

aside from taking the tape out, if I'm not mistaken, you can also activate VCR shutdown to keep your camera awake...

aside from taking the tape out, if I'm not mistaken, you can also activate VCR shutdown to keep your camera awake... You can't do it on the original XL1.