DVC80 Newbie's First Impression

[Stuart English]

Chris asked me to posta short note on the main differences between the AG-DVC80 and AG-DVX100 cameras.

First what's the same (identical)
Chassis (Mag Alloy)
XLR and audio circuits
Microphone(s)
Lens (Leica)
Tape transport
LCD and Viewfinder
IEEE 1394 for NLE / dub
CCD pixel count

What's different
CCD output mode (interlace only - no 24P or 30P)
DSP functionality ( more limited operational range)
IEEE 1394 parallel back up to external VTR (none)
Time-Lapse (none)

There are other differences, but basicly the DVX100 is
a "production" camera, and the DVC80 a "news" camera.
Of course in this category of product there is a lot of cross
over between applications a camera may be designed for
and what it is used for, but these are the main points.

Even if you only ever shoot 480 line interlace, the DVX100
may still be the camera for you to buy for the DSP advantages
and additional timelapse and IEEE 1394 feature set.

The web site at www.panasonic.com/broadcast will have
complete spec sheets.

A final note. The DVC80 brochure makes more of the Mag
Alloy chassis, because it was written later. i.e the rumor
of "plastic" needed rebutting, so the MA chassis was
emphasized. But it is identical in both products.


Hope that this helps,

Stuart English
V.P Marketing
Panasonic Broadcast