News straight from IBC regarding EX

[Emmanuel Plakiotis]

The sensor is native 1920X1080 not 1440X1080. That means that this is a better sensor than the ones found on the 335 and 355(these upgraded models can handle the dual layered double capacity XDCAM discs).
Recording formats: 1080i 50/60 and 24/25p AND 720p 50/60.
NO Standard def recording.
In 1080 there are two modes HQ which records the full 1920X1080 and normal which records 1440X1080 as the rest of the XDCAM line. The wrapper is different than normal XDCAM (its not MXF) and needs transcoding.
35mbit 420 Mpeg XDCAM HD and 25Mbit 420 Mpeg HDV
Firewire out for file transfer and HDV out no 35mbit XDCAM Out.

It’s PAL/NTSC switchable.
Has a really neat on screen menu and most of the basic functions are adjusted very easily without the need to go to submenus.
The lens is manual/auto switchable and when in manual has end stops and markings. When in auto focus you can manually override without having to switch to manual.
The grip is adjustable rotating 90 degrees.
It has HD SDI out that carries audio as well.
There is an introductory price Euro 6500 with two 8Gb cards. Then the same price will include only one 8Gb card. For US expect the same figure in dollars.
Card reader with two slots around Euro300, but you can copy from EX through firewire or put the cards straight to laptop if compatible.
The cards from other manufacturers (besides Sony and Sandisc) will probably work but are not officially endorsed.
There is a new XDCAM drive costing Euro 2500 which initially can play out XDCAM/HDXDCAM and within 6 months will also record XDCAM/HDXDCAM with software update. Very useful and economical for use with NLE or archiving.
The LCD screen hides under the handle and doesn't block the buttons on top of it.
European realise is scheduled for mid November.

Irrelevant but noteworthy:
The EBU (European broadcasting union) after extensive tests has concluded that 720p 50fps 50hz looks better than 1080i 25fps 50hz and urges the European broadcasters to adopt the 720p 50fps initially and upgrade to 1080p 50fps when feasible.

[John Hewat]

Originally Posted by Emmanuel Plakiotis

Firewire out for file transfer and HDV out no 35mbit XDCAM Out.

This is the point that I'm still yet to clarify.

Can I drag and drop files recorded in HQ 35mbit XD CAM 1920x1080 24/25p to the computer from the memory card??

Or do I need to capture live via HD-SDI?

I cannot figure that out from any of the published material or posts here on the forum.

I am substantially less interested in this camera if I have to capture the HQ footage via HD-SDI.

[Mark Kenfield]

Originally Posted by John Hewat

This is the point that I'm still yet to clarify.

Can I drag and drop files recorded in HQ 35mbit XD CAM 1920x1080 24/25p to the computer from the memory card??

Or do I need to capture live via HD-SDI?

I cannot figure that out from any of the published material or posts here on the forum.

I am substantially less interested in this camera if I have to capture the HQ footage via HD-SDI.

From what I can gather John you just throw the SxS card into your laptop/card reader, and drag and drop the .mp4 files you want (each recording is a seperate file) on to your harddrive.

[Alister Chapman]

As far as I know the camera will have a FAM mode (file access) where it will behave as a hard drive so you just drag and drop.

[Piotr Wozniacki]

Originally Posted by Alister Chapman

As far as I know the camera will have a FAM mode (file access) where it will behave as a hard drive so you just drag and drop.

Will FAM work oven i.LINK, or USB, or both?

[Alister Chapman]

The camera will have I-link. The standalone reader is USB 2.

[Piotr Wozniacki]

Originally Posted by Alister Chapman

The camera will have I-link. The standalone reader is USB 2.

The camera has both, Alister. See page 11 of the pdf brochure.
And i.LINK is HDV only, so I guess the main port for transferring 35Mbps VBR stuff is USB (apart of course from off-loading the cards outside the camera)