| |
Model
|
| Sony PMW-EX3 | Sony HVR-Z1 |
| Picture ? | | |
| Manufacturer | Sony 
| Sony 
|
| Name | PMW-EX3 | HVR-Z1 |
| European name ? | PMW-EX3 | HVR-Z1E |
| US name ? | PMWEX3 | HVR-Z1U |
| lowest US price | 8320 $ | 5295 $ |
| On the market since | August 2008 | April 2005 |
| Manufacturers URL | link to Sony | link to Sony |
|
|
Test preview
|
| [ top ] | Sony PMW-EX3 | Sony HVR-Z1 |
| slashCAM rating ? | Very good
 | Good
 |
| test picture 1200 Lux | | |
| test picture 12 Lux | | |
Video
|
| [ top ] | Sony PMW-EX3 | Sony HVR-Z1 |
| Video formats ? | XDCAM EX
| MiniDV HDV DVCAM
|
| Recording Medium | SxS / PC Express
| MiniDV/HDV-Cassette
|
| video resolutions EU ? | MPEG2 1920x1080 1-30p MPEG2 1280x720 1-60p MPEG2 1920x1080 1-60i MPEG2 1440 x1080 1-60i
| HDV 1440 x 1080/50i MiniDV 720 x 576/50i DVCAM 720 x 576/50i HDV 1440 x 1080/60i DVCAM 720 x 480/60i MiniDV 720 x 576/60i
|
| video resolutions US ? | MPEG2 1920x1080 1-30p MPEG2 1280x720 1-60p MPEG2 1920x1080 1-60i MPEG2 1440 x1080 1-60i
| HDV 1440 x 1080/50i MiniDV 720 x 576/50i DVCAM 720 x 576/50i HDV 1440 x 1080/60i DVCAM 720 x 480/60i MiniDV 720 x 576/60i
|
| Max Bitrate ? | 35 Mbit/s | 25 Mbit/s |
| Compression format ? | XDCAM MPEG2
| DV MPEG2
|
| on-board memory ? | | |
| Optics |
| Optics Manufacturer ? | Fujinon
| Carl Zeiss
|
| Optical Zoom ? | 14 x | 12 x |
| Wide Angle 16:9 ? | 31,4 mm | 32,5 mm |
| Filter diameter ? | | 72 mm |
| Image Stabilization ? | optical
| optical
|
| ND Filter ? | 2 | 2 |
| Exchangable optics ? | Yes
| No
|
| Image Sensor |
| Number of sensors ? | 3 | 3 |
| Size of image sensor ? | 1/2 inch | 1/3 inch |
| image sensor effective pixel count 16:9 ? | 2073600 Pixel | 1070000 Pixel |
| Image Sensor Type ? | CMOS
| CCD
|
| Controls |
| White Balance ? | auto manual presets
| auto manual presets WB-Shift
|
| Focus ? | auto manual
| auto manual
|
| Minimum shutter time ? | 2.000 | 10.000 |
| Maximum shutter time ? | 1/3 | 1/3 |
| Apperture control ? | auto manual
| auto manual AE-Shift
|
| Infrared recording ? | No
| No
|
| Expanded Focus ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Peaking ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Signal Processing |
| Zebra ? | 70-100% | 70-100% |
| Histogram ? | Yes
| No
|
| adjustable sharpness ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Adjustable color ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Cinegamma ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Black Strech ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Knee ? | Yes
| No
|
| Colorbars ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Misc. |
| Shot Transition ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Custom Presets ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Set Time Code ? | Yes
| Yes
|
Configuration
|
| Connections |
| [ top ] | Sony PMW-EX3 | Sony HVR-Z1 |
FBAS ? synonymous: RCA, composite | | In Out
|
YC ? synonymous: S-Video | Out
| In Out
|
YUV ? synonymous: Component Signal | | Out
|
| HDMI ? | No
| No
|
DV / HDV (FireWire) ? synonymous: ILink / IEEE-1394 | In Out
| In Out
|
| USB ? | USB 2.0
| No
|
| Microphone / Audio input ? | XLR
| XLR
|
| Headphones ? | 3.5 mm mini-jack
| Mini-jack
|
| Lanc ? | No
| Yes
|
| Time-code interface ? | In Out
| No
|
| Genlock ? | In
| No
|
| Accessory shoe ? | Standard
| Standard
|
| HD-SDI ? | Out
| No
|
| Misc. |
| Weight (without battery) | | 1995 g |
| Weight (with battery) | 3600 g | 2182 g |
| Battery type | Sony BP-U30
| Sony F570
|
| Battery capacity | | 2200 mAh |
| Charger ? | external
| external
|
| Remote control | Yes
| Yes
|
| Size |
| Height | 250 mm | 139 mm |
| Width | 210 mm | 182 mm |
| Depth | 400 mm | 360 mm |
| Relative Size ? | 210 | 91 |
| Viewfinder |
| Viewfinder available ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Color Viewfinder ? | B/W and color
| B/W and color
|
| Viewfinder format ? | 16:9 | 16:9 |
| Viewfinder pixels ? | 921000 Pixel | 252000 Pixel |
| Display |
| Display available ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Color display ? | Color
| Color
|
| Display size | 3,5 Inch | 3,5 Inch |
| Display format ? | 16:9 | 16:9 |
| Display pixels ? | 921000 Pixel | 250880 Pixel |
| Touch Screen ? | No
| No
|
| External controls |
| Manual Zoom ? | Rocker Ring
| Rocker Ring
|
| Manual Focus ? | Ring
| Ring Menu
|
| Manual Aperture ? | Ring
| Wheel
|
| Focus switcher ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| ND Filter ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Exp Lock ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Gain ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| White balance ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Push AF ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Audio Levels ? | Yes
| Yes
|
Custom Keys ? synonymous: User buttons | 4 | 6 |
Audio
|
| [ top ] | Sony PMW-EX3 | Sony HVR-Z1 |
| Audio Formats ? | MiniDV: 2x48kHz 16bit PCM HDV: 2x48kHz 16bit MPEG 1
| MiniDV: 2x48kHz 16bit PCM MiniDV: 4x32kHz 12bit PCM HDV: 2x48kHz 16bit MPEG 1
|
| Microphone ? | external XLR
| Stereo internal external XLR
|
| Audio Control ? | auto manual
| auto manual
|
| Audio levels ? | Viewfinder Screen
| Viewfinder Screen
|
Still
|
| [ top ] | Sony PMW-EX3 | Sony HVR-Z1 |
| Recording Medium ? | | No
|
| Medium included ? | | No
|
| Effective pixels ? | | |
| Resolutions ? | | |
| Standard ? | | |
| Flash ? | | No
|
Misc.
|
| [ top ] | Sony PMW-EX3 | Sony HVR-Z1 |
| Specials | The viewfinder is a hinged, magnifiying eyepiece in front of the display | |
Product Shots
|
| [ top ] | Sony PMW-EX3 | Sony HVR-Z1 |
| View 1 | | |
| View 2 | | |
Test results
|
| Test pictures |
| [ top ] | Sony PMW-EX3 | Sony HVR-Z1 |
| luminance resolution | | |
| chrominance resolution | | |
| lens distortion | | |
| test small ISO image | | |
| noise / internal microphone | | |
| test picture 1200 Lux | | |
| test picture 12 Lux | | |
| slashCAM rating |
| Lowlight ? | Excellent | Good |
| Resolution ? | Excellent | Satisfactory |
| Color performance ? | Very good | Satisfactory |
| subj.Picture impression ? | Very good | Very good |
| Optical Zoom ? | Satisfactory | Sufficient |
| Wide Angle ? | Very good | Very good |
| Configuration / image ? | Excellent | Very good |
| Configuration / sound ? | Excellent | Very good |
| Handling ? | Very good | Very good |
| Portability ? | Satisfactory | Satisfactory |
| Photo function ? | Poor | Poor |
| Optics ? | Very good | Good |
| Dynamics ? | Very good | Very good |
| Conclusion slashCAM |
| slashCAM rating ? | Very good
 | Good
 |
Total score ? (maximal 570) | 475 | 384 |
| Pros | + excellent image quality + Manual handling + Exceptionally well equipped + LowLight behavior + interchangeable lens
| + Very good image quality impression + Wide optics + handling well-conceived + Very well equipped + Supports also formats with 60i + individually controllable audio channels
|
| Cons | - Expensive SxS memory cards
| - No full HDV-resolution - DV-quality only average
|
| Conclusion | Thanks to its very good lens with digital CAC and outstanding low-light capabilities the Sony PMW-EX3 is momentarily unrivaled in the price range up to 10.000 Euros.Of course, those who can do without the interchangeable lens can go for the cheaper and somewhat more compact EX1. | Just as the consumer version FX1 the Sony HVR-Z1 lacks CCDs with full HDV-resolution, which is noticeable at least in the horizontals.Nevertheless, the subjective image impression is still very good due to the very good dynamic behavior with extremely little noise and the consistent color reproduction.Despite the comparatively large wide-angle, optical errors are within limits, only little distortion and chromatic aberrations can be detected.In low light-situations the FX1 is good, the low noise being a plus. |
More information
|
| Reviews and Forums |
| [ top ] | Sony PMW-EX3 | Sony HVR-Z1 |
| slashCAM Review | PMW-EX3 Review | HVR-Z1 Review |
| external reviews/tests | www.kameraverleih-deutschland.de
www.vimeo.com
| digitalcontentproducer.com
www.digitalproducer.com
videosystems.com
videosystems.com
www.digitalproducer.com
|
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