JVC today released information on a new range of AVCHD camcorders: the GZ-HD40, HD30 and the HD10. The series includes a top-end shooting capacity of 50 hours (HD40) and also the world’s smallest Full-HD camcorder, the HD30.
The HD40 and HD30 are also the first ever AVCHD/MPEG2 dual-format camcorders, meaning a combination of the long time compression offered by AVCHD with MPEG2’s superior editing and post-production features.
Both offer Full-HD recording to 1920 x 1080 resolution in both formats, to a 120GB hard drive in the HD40, or 80GB in the HD30.
World's smallest
The third new model, the budget-conscious HD10, sports 1440 x 1080 recording in AVCHD format only, to a 40GB hard drive.
The HD30 is also the world’s smallest Full HD camcorder, with a 1.8in HDD.
The new HD Everios use new CMOS imagining chips with interpolation technology, which includes codecs for AVCHD in all three, and MPEG2 in the HD40 and HD30.
Noise reduction technology and 1920x1080/60P HDMI output is also included in all models.
Feature focus
New ease-of-use features include Intelligent Grouping, which groups together scenes of a similar theme for easy access, and Digest Playback, which creates a movie trailer-esque montage of scenes when burned to a DVD.
Though UK prices have not yet been announced, the equivalent US figures are $1,299 (£650) for the GZ-HD40, with the GZ-HD30 at $999 (£500) and the GZ-HD10 at $799 (£400). The camcorders will be available in the US from August and in the UK soon after.
