Hitachi Kokusai Electric America will unveil a preproduction version of its new Z-HD5000 portable, dockable HDTV studio and EFP camera at the 2009 NAB show in Las Vegas, complete with 1080/59.94i or 1080/50i native scanning.
The Z-HD5000 is a two-piece dockable camera for various applications including studio, field and mobile video production. The camera can be docked to an optical fiber, triax, or RF wireless adapter, or a P2 HD recorder for standalone recording.
The cost-effective camera is designed to appeal to existing Z series customers who want to move up to HDTV without sacrificing quality and reliability or breaking the budget. It offers a compromise between the performance and functionality of high-priced HDTV cameras and the limited functionality of inexpensive, low-end HD camcorders. There’s also a choice of black/white or color viewfinder displays.
Offering comparable specs to the 2/3in progressive CCDs found in the company’s high-end SK-HD1000 camera — including high light sensitivity coupled with low vertical smear — the Z-HD5000’s native 1080i CCD sensors produce 800 lines of resolution, F10@2000 Lux, and an HD signal-to-noise ratio level of 58dB. However, while the SK-HD1000 has a motorized filter wheel, the Z-HD5000 has a manual filter wheel. Both cameras employ the same 14-bit A/D converters and accessories.