Victor Company of Japan, Ltd. (JVC) has developed the "GZ-HD7" consumer camcorder (Everio series product), which can record 1920 x 1080i format video on its built-in hard disc drive (HDD), and will release it on the market in mid March 2007.
The highest recording format achieved by current consumer camcorders featuring high definition (HD) is 1440 x 1080i resolution. JVC claims this product is the world's first camcorder that ever supports so-called "full HD" by achieving 1920 horizontal resolution. Pricing is open but street pricing is expected to be around ¥200,000.
The capacity of the built-in HDD is 60 GB. In 1920 x 1080i format (dubbed FHD mode), about 5 hours of video and audio data can be recorded on the HDD. The camcorder is also capable of 1440 x 1080i format (SP mode) recording, in which video recording time extends to about 7 hours.
When the LCD monitor is on, power is 7.1 W. The "BN-VF815" secondary battery packed as standard allows continuous recording of about 1 hour and 20 minutes (with the LCD monitor on).
The camcorder records data in the MPEG-2 TS (transport stream) format by multiplexing variable bit rate (VBR) MPEG-2 video data and MPEG-1 Audio Layer II audio data. Maximum encoding data rate (bit rate when recording) is about 30 Mbps (average 26.6 Mbps, including audio data's 384 kbps) in FHD mode and about 22 Mbps (average 19 Mbps) in SP mode. In addition to these recording modes, the camcorder also provides "1440CBR mode," which is used to enable video output to HDV-compatible players, among other purposes. Maximum bit rate becomes about 27 Mbps in this mode.
"We explored a variety of recording formats. We also considered the AVCHD format (which compresses and records video signals in the MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 format), but judged its immediate introduction is difficult, in light of LSI's power, among other issues. We chose MPEG-2 as the technology that enables 1920 x 1080i recording sooner than any other technologies," said a company spokesperson. JVC stated it also took into consideration that the environment in which users can easily edit H.264 format video using PCs has hardly penetrated at the current state.
"Our ultimate goal is, of course, 1920 x 1080p recording. In fact, the camcorder's development was halfway based on 1920 x 1080p signal processing technology. However, when taking into account current LSI technology, among other factors, we reached a conclusion that it is a little too soon to introduce 1920 x 1080p recording" (JVC). Regarding the "xvYCC" standard for wide color space of video, which the latest camcorder does not support, the company spokesperson said, "We consider introducing the technology in the near future." The version of the HDMI port on the camcorder is HDMI 1.2a.
The camcorder uses a 3-CCD camera system. The CCD is a 1/5-inch model and its aspect ratio is 16:9. Its total resolution is 0.57 megapixels (effective resolution 0.53 megapixels = 976 x 548) and output is progressive. Of the CCDs respectively dedicated to R (red), G (green) and B (blue) recording, only the G-dedicated CCD's optical position is offset and fixed from the other CCDs' by one-half pixel in both vertical and horizontal axis, which is so-called "Pixel Shift structure" (already employed for the "GZ-MG505"). JVC secured total resolution of 2032 x 1116 and effective resolution of 1952 x 1096 pixels through this technology. The camcorder features optical 10X zoom. Its lens boasts a brightness of F1.8 at the widest angle and F1.9 at the most telescopic angle.
Its built-in 1.8-inch HDD is supported with a rubber damper, which is aimed at lowering impact from a shock and a drop. The model showcased at the press conference used an HDD manufactured by Hitachi Global Storage Technologies, Inc.
In the development in a bid to realize 1920 x 1080i recording, JVC started from entire revision of major parts, namely the camera block including the lens and prism as well as circuits capable of 1920 x 1080i video processing, among others. Tech-On! will deliver details about them in our follow-up story.
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