Sony HXR-NX5U and HDR-AX2000 Camcorder

[Michael Liebergot]

Your right.
Seems that they changed it back to what the pricing was originally lowered to.

Man Sony drives me nuts sometimes.

[Marshall Levy]

Hey, Mike. Haven't been on this forum in forever. The pricing is fluctuating constantly, with many resellers still near the 4500-5000 mark. Some units are already in the US and set for delivery the first week of February and I should have one during that time with a few more -hopefully- soon to follow.

The pricing is supposed to be at or just above $4K for the NX5U and low-mid $3K for the AX-2000. The NX5U 128G Reader can be purchased for varying amounts between $650-800 in most instances.

The current Sony rebate is $500 towards the reader and for purchases by March 31st.

For Sony financing, which is done through LeaseDirect, it's 12 months at 0% but just keep in mind that they will do the following three things in the agreement:
1> There's a $99 processing fee
2> You must have the financed equipment insured or they will charge you a per-month insurance on the equipment
3> They will collect sales tax on each payment due so be sure that if you're paying tax on the purchase through your reseller, you're not double-taxed. And come tax time, you don't get hit a third time, either.

[Michael Liebergot]

Interesting, as Sony never officially posted a release date for the camera.
As the only release date for their AVCHD lineup that I saw was on Amazon for the AX2000 and a release date of Feb. 8th.

I'd love to get my hands on one of yours and hear some feedback from you first hand.

[Robert M Wright]

Nothing cools off my interest in a cam as quickly or more effectively than raising the price. JVC did that a few years back with the HD100U. I had been looking at it very seriously, but when they raised the price, I never considered it again (or even paid much attention to it after that either). Same thing with the HMC150 awhile back. The NX5U definitely has my attention at this point and I could see perhaps getting one before the year is out. If the price of the NX5U goes up however, more likely than not, I'll probably never own one.

[Michael Murie]

Originally Posted by Michael Liebergot

Interesting, as Sony never officially posted a release date for the camera.
As the only release date for their AVCHD lineup that I saw was on Amazon for the AX2000 and a release date of Feb. 8th.

When they announced the cameras officially at CES, the NX5U was supposedly shipping "this month", while the release date for the AX2000 was "sometime in March". Sony said the NX5U was shipping last week when I spoke to them....but I don't know in what quantities.

Since then, Amazon has the ship date of February 8th for the AX2000, but Sony's website still just says "Notify Me" about availability.


Re: NX5U pricing: So far, it's not the list price that's changed. That's still $4,950. It's the selling price that's been fluctuating a bit.

[Michael Liebergot]

Originally Posted by Robert M Wright

Nothing cools off my interest in a cam as quickly or more effectively than raising the price. JVC did that a few years back with the HD100U. I had been looking at it very seriously, but when they raised the price, I never considered it again (or even paid much attention to it after that either). Same thing with the HMC150 awhile back. The NX5U definitely has my attention at this point and I could see perhaps getting one before the year is out. If the price of the NX5U goes up however, more likely than not, I'll probably never own one.

Well something to consider is that originally the NX5 was announced at $4,490, then in only a few days the price was reduced by $500. Then it went back up again a few hundred dollars and in under a day back down again to $3,990.
So it seems that Sony never really came up with a price point for the camera and is trying to gauge and adjust on the fly.

It's really simple, the more affordable any product is, the more they will sell. This economy or any economy doesn't make a difference. People always respond better to bargains and affordable products, over expensive ones.

What I am curious about is if/when the price point will drop on the AX2000, as with only a $500 price difference between it and the NX5 will drive many people to the NX5. Realistically, if there's a $1,000 difference, then many will opt for the AX2000 or like myself one or a few, NX5's and one AX2000's.

[Ron Evans]

I don't think the Sony list price changed at all. You can't blame Sony for dealer price changes.

Ron Evans

[Marshall Levy]

Sony hasn't changed the pricing as MSRP is still intact. Unlike the EX1 where resellers had to stick to a minimum selling price, it's the dealers who are constantly changing their prices right now, all, I'm sure, based on the unknown as well as pre-order demand. It's like with anything in our industry....buy a tiny little three-cent bracket from a certain company for $500 or buy a complete lighting truss for $200, whereby the metal can be melted to make 100 of those three-cent brackets. If demand warrants the price, then there ya' go.

[Cristian Adrian Olariu]

Does anybody bought the camera (NX5) yet?
There are some confusing details on the internet about this camera. I was hoping that it will have all the options from the Z5, as anybody says is they are practically the same. But the reviews of the prototypes showed that some functions are missing. When I read the manual from NXCAM microsite I was surprised that those functions didn't actually appear (shot transition, histogram, Extended Clear Scan, copy Color Profiles from/to memory cards, interval recording, Color Correct function on Picture Profile settings). I found also the manual in multiple languages and for PAL region, it says the same thing.

BUT...

I looked at the AX2000 web page. And there I saw some of the functions missing from NX5 (histogram, shot transition, interval recording). On bhphotovideo AX2000's page, Features tab, it clearly states the Histogram function. So, does anybody know more details that clarify the mystery? Clearly there is a mistake somewhere. I don't see how only the AX2000 would have the Histogram, or the interval recording.
Sony says that NX5 don't replace the Z5, maybe they really ripped off those functions to make a difference between the two. I don't know, I just hope that the final NX5 product will include ALL the functions/options from Z5, it doesn't seem fair to be otherwise.
I watched the 'Open Box' clip for the NX5 on Vimeo

Sony HXR-NX5N Open Box/ on Vimeo

This guy is from Taiwan and he said it's the final product, but didn't answer to my questions about the functions on NX5.

If you know some additional information, please share with us.

Cristi

[Sean Seah]

the NX5 does have the histogram function and everything Cristian mentioned. I meddled with the prototype about 3 weeks ago. I'm getting the production model this Friday for another test run.

[Michael Dontigney]

He's saying the AX2000 is uncertain to have the histogram. Not the NX5.

See? "I looked at the AX2000 web page. And there I saw some of the functions missing from NX5"

[Cristian Adrian Olariu]

Originally Posted by Mike Dontigney

He's saying the AX2000 is uncertain to have the histogram. Not the NX5.

See? "I looked at the AX2000 web page. And there I saw some of the functions missing from NX5"

Please excuse my English, it's not native for me. Sean understood what I was trying to say.
I will try to explain it differently:
NX5 should have all the functions/options from Z5.
Here is the NX5 operating manual:
http://pro.sony.com/bbsccms/assets/f...Ops_Manual.pdf
If you compare to the Z5's operating manual, you will notice some differences.
The NX5 manual doesn't say anything about the following functions: shot transition, histogram, Extended Clear Scan, copy Color Profiles from/to memory cards, interval recording, Color Correct function on Picture Profile settings. And there are more.
AX2000 shouldn't have these functions either because it's the stripped version of the NX5. But on AX2000 official web page I found this information: "ASSIGNABLE BUTTONS - This feature allows you to assign features ... Marker / Peaking / Pict. Profile / Shot Transition." Also, on bhphotovideo - AX2000 page, you will see this: "Histogram Display - When the histogram feature is turned on, a graph of the image's brightness..." And finally, in the official press release, AX2000 product specification there is specified somewhere: "Interval Rec. - YES"
So if AX2000 has this functions, then NX5 should have them too. But obviously somewhere is a mistake. There are two options:
1. the manual is wrong because it's not the final version or
2. the press release and the web pages mentioned are wrong and they should be corrected.

According to Sean, the histogram and other functions I mentioned are present on NX5. I just wish that he is right. AX2000 doesn't concern me.

[Greg Boston]

I had a few hours of hands on with the NX camera at an event in Austin earlier this week. My overall impressions were very positive and that 128gb flash drive is very nice. Only two things that I noticed which were of concern.

1. The scroll wheel on the side of the camera doesn't give enough traction for your finger. I found that I needed to use the edge of my fingernail to reliably scroll through the menus. If I used enough finger pressure to 'grab' the wheel, I would end up with inadvertent pushes of the scroll wheel, causing me to 'select' things that I didn't want to select.

2. Could have been just THIS camera, but the optical stabilization when turned on resulted in a lot of noise emanating from the camera body. Sounded like my coffee pot when it's heating water. (Note: If the NX camera does serve hot coffee, then I'll forgive the noise.)

The LCD screen is very sharp, but you get the option of having peaking turned on in 3 levels of sensitivity and a choice of colors, making focus very easy.

The camera's power button is on the zoom handle where your right hand thumb rests and has a record button in the middle of it. I found that it was too easy to inadvertently press record with that button. Having a bit more recess would help eliminate that issue.

All in all, a nice little camera package.

-gb-

[Michael Murie]

Was that with the new Active Stabilization, or even with the regular stabilization?

[Adam Gold]

From the manual, the power button arrangement appears to be the same as every other Sony cam. Did you find it somehow different?