JVC GC-PX1: Perfect Camcorder-Bridge Hybrid is Big in Japan

According to high-tech companies, the specialists' days are numbered and the future will be hybrid.  To take just a few examples, mobile phones are becoming more like computers, sat nav systems offer media players, computer monitors can pick up TV signals and printers copy, scan and fax too.

Recently, digital cameras have been catching up with dedicated camcorders, adding new zooms that make for smooth transitions and better sound quality, often with decent stereo micas.

Camcorders have struggled to keep up: they can all now take still photos, but without much success.  The sensor isn't big enough on entry-level camcorders, while more impressive models struggle because their bulk doesn't make them suited to taking photos.  And because they can use a panoramic tracking shot instead, film-makers rarely have much use of wide-angle lenses and so camcorders don't have these either.

JVC hits back

So now the Japan Victor Company—JVC to you and me—has just sprung this new model into a very competitive market.  The manufacturer has decided that the time is right to hit back at digital cameras.

The basic components of the GC-PX1 sound like they come from a quality camcorder ... and a digital camera.  It uses a 10 Megapixel back-side illuminated CMOS sensor in the 1/2.3'' format, something we saw last year on a lot of compact cameras.  You can do lots of things with it that you would on any other camera, like adjust the sensitivity from 100 to 6400 ISO; shoot a burst of photos at 30 fps, or 60 fps at a lower 5.7 Megapixel resolution or choose between PASM scene modes.  Shutter speeds go as low as 1/4000 seconds and there's enough battery life for 320 photos apparently.

But the spec also mentions plenty of features you'd expect from a camcorder like plenty of internal memory (32 GB), long battery life (2 hours 20 of shooting), continuous stabilisation and a microphone and headphone jack.  The PX1's fast sensor and image processor mean it can record 60 Full HD frames per second using a progressive, not interlaced, scan!  The bitrate for video, not something you'd usually mention with a camera, is cited as being 36 Mbps, and there's a high speed mode that offers 400 fps at a resolution of just 640 x 340 pixels.

But like with other camcorders, there's no wide-angle.  The shortest focal length is 38.5 mm for still photos but 48 mm for video.  Unlike digital cameras, the PX1 doesn't use all of its sensor for shooting video.  The 10x zoom is nothing out of the ordinary either, although as both the focus and zoom are internal, it's quiet.

Hybrid styling

Overall though, the GC-PX1's mixed origins are more obvious on the outside.  If we wanted to be mean, we'd say it looked like a camcorder stuck onto a Sony NEX camera.

The former shows up in the long lens mount with a side-mounted flash, a scroll wheel by the left thumb, connectivity tucked away on the side and the mic up top, while the evidence for the latter comes from the vertical handle with a shutter release on top, a screen at the back that folds out, the PSAM mode dial and the flash controls next to the right thumb.

But what will people make of the PX1?  For the moment it's impossible to say.  Our first thought is to wonder about how useful that grip on the side will be on a product that will—despite its hybrid origins—still be doing a lot of filming.  For us, a perfect hybrid would look more like a digital camera, with a horizontal handle that you could you use for a while without hurting your wrist.

For the time being, the JVC GC-PX1 will only be available in Japan, but there's no news on pricing.

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