Successor to GL2 soon?

With the release of the XL H1 (does Canon really think that camera will compete with the FX1 given its price?), does everyone agree that we're bound to see a 'prosumer' HD GL-2 like, FX-1 priced Canon camera? I've heard Canon stopped producing the GL2 a long time ago too. Would they abandon their 'middle' market and just have camcorders priced under $1000 or over $4000?

What's everyone's thoughts? I can no longer deal with the issues the GL2 has been having for me and I plan on making a change in camera line during the 'offseason' from weddings between November and February of next year. I'm hoping Canon puts out something FX-1 like with a few better features (the 12x on the Sony is no good as well as the lack of a film look frame mode).

[Graham Bernard]

I was having a side bet with myself as to when this question would appear .. . nearly a week now? I thought 24 hours would have been sufficient!

. .anyways . . . . ..

Well, having "lassoed" me, it would be totally nutz of them to turn me off right now. I guess they would want me to make the step up to the XLH1. Well, I need more budget support, other than the camera buying decision, to do that one. PLUS, newbies will be wanting an HD option that has at least a 75% discount on the ranges for an HD option. PLUS Sony DO have a more budget aware ( like that? Budget aware? . . .my words . . ) SINGLE chipper. PLUS SD will fade away - how long? String time! I dunno.

Maybe Canon are looking at bigger HD single chip, which has full 16:9. Now THAT could be very interesting. What would be the DoF ability for a bigger chip? Is HD on a single chip better looking than the 3 x 1/4 we have now? Discuss?

Canon have the Glass. They have a 20x zoom. They DO have black paint! So the Kool Look is a goer. Plus they must know we are gagging for it! . .and of course we could video in HD and use the option to still deliver in SD - if we need too.

Grazie

[Steve Olds]

Silver paint :( never understood the silver paint I hate it, Oh! or white XL1 and a white lens? I do a lot of outdoor video on wildlife and siver sucks big time and white also. Had to make a camo cover for my GL2. Hope something new would be black. Steve

[Marco Leavitt]

Doesn't this belong in Area 51? But as long as we started ... The price of the new XL has me seriously worried about how expensive the successor to the GL2 is going to be. The GL series has always had most of the same features of the XL series, but I don't see how Canon can do that now without drastically raising the price. You can't have a $3,000 camera competing with a $9,000 camera. It would be insane.

[Michael Wisniewski]

That is the big question.

Will Canon keep the 3 chip design of the XL H1? Or is there a large single chipper in the works?

I've always been a three chip guy... only a 3 year 'vet'. What would the downside be to a one chip HD camera? Spoon feed me, please:)

[Michael Wisniewski]

Originally Posted by Matt Buerhaus

What would the downside be to a one chip HD camera? Spoon feed me, please:)

In theory, a one chip camera will have less accurate color rendition, but may have better low light performance.

[Michael Wisniewski]

My guess is that Canon will introduce 2 mid-range camcorders: A higher priced HDV model based on the XL H1 and a lower priced SD model based on the XL2. The SD version might even be labeled an Optura.

[Marco Leavitt]

I don't know who the market would be for a camera like that. I can't imagine anyone who genuinely plans to blow up to film starting a new project on SD right now. I sure wouldn't, not a feature anyway. If I already had an XL2 or a DVX100 maybe I'd consider it, but buy a new SD camera with 24p? What's the point?

[Chris Hurd]

Originally Posted by Matt Buerhaus

...XL H1 (does Canon really think that camera will compete with the FX1 given its price?)

Simply put, the Canon XL H1 does *not* compete with the Sony FX1 or Z1. Sony will not lose any FX1 / Z1 sales to Canon over the XL H1. It's a completely different camera intended for a completely different market.

[Michael Wisniewski]

Originally Posted by Marco Leavitt

... buy a new SD camera with 24p? What's the point?

If Canon can introduce the XL2 platform at around $1,500 I'll bet there'd be a lot of takers. I'm thinking take the basic XL2 electronics, a single 16:9 progressive chip, and give it a decent lense with an MSRP around $1,500. Then have the HDV version sit around $2,500-$3,500.

[Marco Leavitt]

Okay, I'd be interested at $1,500 too, but I don't see that happening. It'd be cool though, wouldn't it? :)

[Michael Wisniewski]

At the Expo, Canon noted that when they introduced the digital Rebel at it's $1,000 price point, they sold more DSLRs in 3 months, than their competitors had sold in the past 5 years. I'm hoping they'd like to repeat that performance in the camcorder arena.

[Marco Leavitt]

Well, I wanna believe you, but $3,500 for the HDV version still seems way too low because of the price of the XL H1, and a $1,500 GL3 would be a really, really shabby thing to do to all the faithful who bought the XL2. I mean, if you had just plunked down $5,000 on a camera and Canon turns around and offers virtually the same the thing for the price of a rebuilt transmission, wouldn't you just freak out? I would. I would buy Panasonic for the rest of my life, or at least until they pissed me off too. Then I'd buy, I don't know what, since Sony probably wouldn't be around anymore, way their headed. These are strange times.

[Michael Wisniewski]

Realistically, we may see the GL3 HDV at $4,999+ and the GL3 SD at $2,999.

But like you pointed out, what's the point of the GL3 SD at that price? That's why I'm hoping Canon goes for a lower MSRP, I think they'd clean up.