There are those out there who believe that the stand-alone camera is largely a thing of the past, lost in usefulness to smartphones except for a handful of filmmakers and similarly niche users. But Panasonic is out to bolster the video camera, bringing the HX-A100 to this year's Consumer Electronics Show (CES), showing off what can happen when a camera combines first-person perspective with 4K video shooting.
The HX-A100 is described as a first-person camera, with a head-mounting system that allows for easy shooting in the first-person perspective, similar to cameras like the GoPro. Reports suggest that, in general, the camera is pretty much identical to the HX-A100 released just last year, with the all-important addition of 4K video shooting capability. Interestingly, Panasonic reportedly kept the full array of tech specs for the new HX-A100 under close watch, but reports did slip out that the camera was waterproof. The Panasonic shopping website, meanwhile, notes that the older model HX-A100 has a “tough design,” though details like depth are kept somewhat quiet.
Based on the earlier model, we can look for things like image stabilizer systems, a minimum focus distance of around 30 centimeters—around 11.81 inches—a level shot function system, white balance for a variety of conditions both indoor and outdoor alike, a built-in microphone, still image shooting and several other critical points to get added to the new HX-A100. Reports suggest that the image itself is pretty sharp and quite clear, as well as free of stuttering and can even produce a wide field of view. Indeed, the original could range from 104 degrees with the image stabilizer on to 160 degrees in full wide view mode. Also kept quiet was pricing on the new device, which is fairly common for a CES exhibit. But there's quite a bit of implication going on around this device, which coalesces around a few separate points of recent technological development.
One, there's the growth of wearable technology as a whole. This is a fine example of what wearable tech can do, specifically, offering a camera that mounts right alongside the head to make for easy first person video shooting. Two, it's also bringing in the 4K video shooting capability, which is likely to prove valuable down the line as more 4K video sources start emerging, like 4K televisions and video players. The technology essentially needs two points of development to succeed, and those points need to be as close to concurrent as possible: the hardware needs video to play on it, and the video needs the hardware to be cheap and accessible to make it worth playing.
But there's one other point many don't consider, and that's a bit of gaming hardware called the Oculus Rift. This—along with other head-mounted displays like Sony's recently-exhibited HMZ-T3Q headset—poses a new opportunity for filmmakers and video game makers alike to start offering up improved first-person experiences in both video games and more passive video. That in turn is going to put a little more emphasis on the first person perspective, and having a camera on hand that can not only shoot in 4K but also shoot well in the first person perspective is likely to be well-received by the larger public, especially once the Rift et al start to take off.
While Panasonic's updated HX-A100 may not see action in Hollywood right away, there's a lot of potential for this device on several fronts, and Panasonic may well have just given the stand-alone camera a new lease on life.
Edited by
Cassandra Tucker
