Z7 body only / mix 'n' match?

[Colin McAuliffe]

I think the EX and the Z7 are going to appeal to completely different types of shooters. Sure, if you are shooting indies, music vids, or big commercials, go for the EX, bigger chips, better codec, etc.

However if you are like me, shooting lots of ENG, corporate and broadcast work for lots of different clients, in both SD and HD, the EX isn't an option. At the end of the day, the vast majority of my clients need a tape handed to the field producer to be edited right away. Sure, occasionally I might be able to go tapeless, but not enough to justify a rig that can't go that route. I wouldn't be able to work it enough to pay it off, so the z7 or the s270 are perfect for me.

[Hedley Wright]

Originally Posted by Brian Standing

You're absolutely right, of course. I'm just speculating (and that's really all it is at this point) that the Z7 is priced uncomfortably close to the EX1. I expect most of the market at which the Z7 is aimed will choose the EX1, because of its superior codec and imagers.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed, others will stay away, like I will, until Sony is forced to drop the price.

The price difference grows considerably when you factor in the additional costs of SxS media, editing upgrades, batteries, replacements for lanc controllers, archiving media etc.

The Z7 is targeted at HDV users moving towards tapeless ingestion at a low cost whilst retaining tape archive without additional time (hurrah!), whereas the EX1, whilst at first glance appealing to HDV upgraders, is I suspect really aimed at providing a new highly portable format and form factor to the XDCam user base.

[Mike Paterson]

It would be great if you could specify which lens the camera comes with - standard or wide - but I suspect it ain't going to happen. Does anyone have any of what the price for the wide lens will be?