Although our gut reaction to seeing the words “new” and “memory card specification” in the same sentence is a hearty “WTF mate?!”, the SxS format seems to be different, and perhaps justified. Sony and SanDisk are teaming up to produce the SxS cards to be compatible with ExpressCard slots and be used in pro camcorders—like the ones we’re seeing at NAB this week—and are useful for people who really need quick access and transfer speeds.
How fast? How about 800 Mbps? Plus it’s going to be nice and thin at only 5mm, so it will fit into the sleeker pro cams that are all the rage these days. The first camcorder from Sony to support this format will be the XDCAM EX series, which are available later this year. – Jason Chen
SanDisk and Sony Announce SxS(TM) Memory Card Specificaation for Professional Camcorders [Japan Corp via Digitimes via Tracy and Matt]
Sony finally followed Panasonic’s lead by introducing a prosumer-level camera that records to a flash drive. But not just any flash drive, the XDCAM EX records high-def video directly to two ExpressCards. That’s good news for MacBook Pro owners as they’ll be able to pop the card into that snug slot and edit away.
Budding Spielbergs will marvel at the camera’s small size that can capture video at 1080i, 1080p, or 720p at variable frame rates. This means you can do graceful slow motion shots, or crank the speed way down to get some fast frenetic action. So when is this coolCam shipping, and at what price?
Sony’s PR guy told us the camera would ship later this year, probably in the fall, with a price somewhere in the neighborhood of $8000. Of course all of this is speculation at the moment, but the company’s Z1U camera retailed at that price when it was introduced three years ago. Sony was quick to point out the EX was not a replacement for the Z1U or the V1U but instead an intermediate camera between those two and the high-end HDC-950.
With its small size and solid state technology, just imagine how great the skateboard videos and shots of guys getting hit in the nuts will look on YouTube in high definition. –Stephen Schleicher
