It’s not just compacts, though, with Panasonic also announcing a few new camcorders to complement its range.
We spent some time with one of them – the X900M, Panasonic’s top-tier model that brings technology from its broadcast cameras into a consumer model.
Taking advantage of Panasonic’s “3MOS Pro” system, customers receive the benefit of three sensors to produce 1080p Full HD video.
Image stabilisation is also improved, with Panasonic bringing in a five-axis stability system that effectively gives the camcorder a steadicam, making it possible to capture scenes with increased stability.
The X900M also features 32GB of storage built-in, as well as an SD card slot for expanding the memory further. Images can also be captured on the camera, with 16 megapixels available. Low-light is also catered for with an F1.5 lens, while the audio is captured in 5.1 surround sound.
Testing the camera, the stability control is excellent, with the image above citing just how obvious the improvement is. Image quality from stills, however, leaves a lot to be desired. While the video quality seems to be pretty good, the stills aren’t very sharp. Given that this was a pre-production unit, it’s possible that this could change closer to release.
The Panasonic X900M will be heading to stores in April for $1799 and will be compatible with the optional VW-CLT2 3D adaptor, available for an extra $399.
