Does the HVX-200 come with software or drivers that allows straight injest of a DVC Pro HD Stream from the camera to, for instance, a laptop on location--or does that only work with the P2 Card?

You can absolutely shoot directly into any NLE using FireWire, for example as a "Capture Now" operation using the "non-controllable device" setup in Final Cut.

Robert,
For clarity's sake, let me further ask: is this method of injest is possible without the use of P2 card anywhere in the workflow (not even in the camera).

And, will it work in Premiere

Thanks.

That's right, the camera is always sending out AV signals whether there is a P2 card in the camera or not. When the HVX was first released P2 cards were a rare, highly sought-after commodity and many of us who bought cameras couldn't get cards, so the direct-capture method was the only option and it worked great.

I'm not a PC guy and have no experience with Premiere but I would imagine it has the ability to do a direct-FireWire capture. Try the Premiere forum on this site, I'm sure it's covered.

Robert,
Thanks very much.