Totally called it

Just over 2 weeks ago in my article about video, I predicted that it wouldn't be long before one of the HDSLR manufacturers took their chip and lens mount and moved it to a more video friendly format. I didn't realize we'd be hearing about it within a month, but it makes sense. Panasonic announced today that they will be releasing a camcorder based on what looks like the chip from the GH1 and their micro 4/3 mount. This camera should solve a lot of the issues with HDSLR video, namely the form factor and audio inputs. No price announced yet, but I saw the number $6,000 get thrown around (no idea how valid that is). That seems a little high, considering the GH1 retails for around $1250. My initial guess was $2k, but apparently I underestimated the cost of adding audio inputs and the advantage of being the first to market. We'll see where they end up. $6k puts it pretty well out of the consumer/prosumer range, targeting it more at commercial videographers and indie filmmakers. At that rate it would be cheaper to still use the GH1 with an appropriate support system and an external audio recorder (somewhere in the neighborhood of $3k cheaper). Mistake.

The full press release can be found here (dpreview.com)

What are your thoughts on all this?

~S

[title of blog] on flickr