Yes, the picture looked good with little distortion, one reason it didn't seem like a .5x as we were told.

Yes, a 58mm converter is too big and defeats the purpose of this camera.

I agree it would be preferable to have a wider stock lens, especially considering the purpose of this camera is handheld, and there isn't even a lanc or other connection for a remote zoom controller.

This camera is ideal for the Merlin, and it would be even better with a slightly wider stock lens, though the converter is lightweight enough that it shouldn't be a big issue for this use.

I think the production cameras have to tell the story. The prototype I saw had a couple of things about the zooming I didn't like, but this was with the converter on and could possibly have been due to the way the camera was mounted on the plate.

On the monitors there, when pointing the camera into the dark areas of the setup, the picture did not look great, but I don't think that means anything until the final camera comes out. I would guess that the camera is still being worked on extensively, and that is why there is no video available. Small adjustments make big differences, so I would expect on release the camera will be within the parameters advertised.

If the controls work well and the picture is as advertised, this camera is very comfortable to operate. It is comfortable handheld, and it is perfect to quickly plop on a small beanbag in tight quarters. And so on.

If the video matches (or surpasses?) the XH cameras, it should be a winner.

Workflow for Vegas Pro 8c
 

I just read through the new pdf for the GY-HM100 http://pro.jvc.com/pro/attributes/CA...00_kcs8409.pdf and it says that there will be
"direct file access" to FCP but that the MP4 file workflow will have an import and
ingest process to the "major" NLE systems. My question is what is the difference between the two is it just a matter of upload speed to the NLE? Do you think Vegas will support in the near future some kind of direct access like FCP via version upgrade? I'm currently using Vegas Pro 8c.

Vegas (or any other NLE) will use the exact same workflow for the HM100/700 MP4 files as it would for Sony EX1 or EX3 MP4 files. The files are identical.

Sony Vegas and HM700 XDCAM files
 

If you have the Calibrated{Q}XD codec (there's a trial version available, full version costs $80) as well as Quicktime then Vegas Pro 8 will read the .mov files directly, without needing to go through the MXF/MP4 conversion.

Calibrated{Q} XD Decode for Windows

I have tried this using the XDCAM demo file from Andy Shipsides, the trial version of the Calibrated decoder and Vegas 8 on a Vista laptop, worked fine.

Regards
Dave

I figured there would be some kind of 3rd party support, thanks for the link.
Who knows maybe the next Vegas update will be capable of performing this task.