| |
Model
|
| Panasonic AG-AC160 | Panasonic AG-HPX170 |
| Picture ? | | |
| Manufacturer | Panasonic 
| Panasonic
|
| Name | AG-AC160 | AG-HPX170 |
| European name ? | AG-AC160 | AG-HPX171 |
| US name ? | AG-AC160 | AG-HPX-170 |
| lowest US price | (4748) $ | 4325 $ |
| On the market since | October 2011 | September 2008 |
| Manufacturers URL | | link to Panasonic |
|
|
Test preview
|
| [ top ] | Panasonic AG-AC160 | Panasonic AG-HPX170 |
| slashCAM rating ? | Very good
 | Good
 |
| test picture 1200 Lux | | |
| Test image 12 lux auto-mode | | |
Video
|
| [ top ] | Panasonic AG-AC160 | Panasonic AG-HPX170 |
| Video formats ? | MiniDV
AVCHD
| MiniDV
DVC PRO 25
DVC PRO 50
DVC PRO HD
|
| Recording Medium | SD Card
SDHC card
SDXC card
| P2 card
|
| video resolutions EU ? | AVCHD 1920 x 1080/50i
AVCHD 1920 x 1080/25p
AVCHD 1920 x 1080/60i
AVCHD 1920 x 1080/24p
AVCHD 1280 x 720/60p
AVCHD 1280 x 720/50p
AVCHD 1280 x 720/30p
AVCHD 1280 x 720/25p
AVCHD 1280 x 720/24p
AVCHD 1920 x 1080/30p
| MiniDV 720 x 576/50i
DVC PRO 25,576 / 50i
DVC PRO 50,576 / 50i
DVC PRO HD 720/25p
DVC PRO HD 720/50p
DVCPROHD 1080/25p
DVCPROHD 1080/50i
DVCPROHD 1080/24p
DVCPROHD 1080/30p
DVCPROHD 1080/60i
DVCPRO HD 720 24p - 60i
DVCPRO HD 24p 1080 - 60i
|
| video resolutions US ? | | MiniDV 720 x 576/50i
DVCPROHD 1080/24p
DVCPROHD 1080/30p
MiniDV 720 x 480/60i
720 MiniDV x480/24p
MiniDV 720 x 480/30p
DVCPRO HD 720 24p - 60i
DVCPRO HD 24p 1080 - 60i
|
| Max Bitrate ? | 24 Mbit/s | 100 Mbit/s |
| Compression format ? | DV
MPEG4
| DV
DVC PRO HD-proprietary
|
| on-board memory ? | | |
| Optics |
| Optics Manufacturer ? | Panasonic
| Leica
|
| Optical Zoom ? | 21 x | 13 x |
| Wide Angle 16:9 ? | 28 mm | 28 mm |
| Filter diameter ? | 72 mm | 72 mm |
| Image Stabilization ? | optical
| optical
|
| ND Filter ? | 3 | 3 |
| Exchangable optics ? | No
| No
|
| Image Sensor |
| Number of sensors ? | 3 | 3 |
| Size of image sensor ? | 1/3 inch | 1/3 inch |
| image sensor effective pixel count 16:9 ? | 2200000 Pixel | 1100000 Pixel |
| Image Sensor Type ? | CMOS
| CCD
|
| Controls |
| White Balance ? | auto
manual
presets
| auto
manual
presets
|
| Focus ? | auto
manual
| auto
manual
|
| Minimum shutter time ? | 1/2.000 | 1/2.000 |
| Maximum shutter time ? | 1/6 | 1/24 |
| Apperture control ? | auto
manual
| auto
manual
AE-Shift
|
| Infrared recording ? | | No
|
| Expanded Focus ? | Yes
| No
|
| Peaking ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Signal Processing |
| Zebra ? | Off
70%
100%
70-100%
| 50-105% |
| Histogram ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| adjustable sharpness ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Adjustable color ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Cinegamma ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Black Strech ? | Yes
| No
|
| Knee ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Colorbars ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Misc. |
| Shot Transition ? | No
| No
|
| Custom Presets ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Set Time Code ? | Yes
| Yes
|
Configuration
|
| Connections |
| [ top ] | Panasonic AG-AC160 | Panasonic AG-HPX170 |
FBAS ?
synonymous: RCA, composite | Out
| Out
|
YC ?
synonymous: S-Video | | |
YUV ?
synonymous: Component Signal | | Out
|
| HDMI ? | Out
| |
DV / HDV (FireWire) ?
synonymous: ILink / IEEE-1394 | In
Out
| In
Out
|
| USB ? | USB 2.0
| USB 2.0
|
| Microphone / Audio input ? | XLR
| XLR
|
| Headphones ? | 3.5 mm mini-jack
| 3.5 mm mini-jack
|
| Lanc ? | Yes
| No
|
| Time-code interface ? | No
| No
|
| Genlock ? | No
| No
|
| Accessory shoe ? | Standard
| Standard
|
| HD-SDI ? | Out
| Out
|
| Misc. |
| Weight (without battery) | 2400 g | 1900 g |
| Weight (with battery) | | 2250 g |
| Battery type | Panasonic CGA-E/625
| Panasonic CGA-D54
|
| Battery capacity | 5800 mAh | 5400 mAh |
| Charger ? | external
| external
|
| Remote control | Yes
| Yes
|
| Size |
| Height | | 179 mm |
| Width | | 154 mm |
| Depth | | 397 mm |
| Relative Size ? | 0 | 109 |
| Viewfinder |
| Viewfinder available ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Color Viewfinder ? | Color
| Color
|
| Viewfinder format ? | | 16:9 |
| Viewfinder pixels ? | 1226000 Pixel | 235000 Pixel |
| Display |
| Display available ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Color display ? | Color
| Color
|
| Display size | 3,4 Inch | 3,5 Inch |
| Display format ? | 16:9 | 4:3 |
| Display pixels ? | 921000 Pixel | |
| Touch Screen ? | No
| No
|
| External controls |
| Manual Zoom ? | Rocker
Ring
| Rocker
Ring
|
| Manual Focus ? | Ring
| Ring
|
| Manual Aperture ? | Ring
| Wheel
|
| Focus switcher ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| ND Filter ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Exp Lock ? | | |
| Gain ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| White balance ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Push AF ? | Yes
| Yes
|
| Audio Levels ? | Yes
| Yes
|
Custom Keys ?
synonymous: User buttons | 3 | 3 |
Audio
|
| [ top ] | Panasonic AG-AC160 | Panasonic AG-HPX170 |
| Audio Formats ? | Dolby AC-3 Digital 2 channel 48 KHz
2 channel PCM
| MiniDV: 2x48kHz 16bit PCM
MiniDV: 4x32kHz 12bit PCM
DVC PRO 4x48kHz 16bit PCM
|
| Microphone ? | external XLR
| Stereo internal
external XLR
|
| Audio Control ? | auto
manual
| manual
|
| Audio levels ? | Viewfinder
Screen
| Screen
|
Still
|
| [ top ] | Panasonic AG-AC160 | Panasonic AG-HPX170 |
| Recording Medium ? | No
| |
| Medium included ? | No
| |
| Effective pixels ? | | |
| Resolutions ? | | |
| Standard ? | | |
| Flash ? | | |
Misc.
|
| [ top ] | Panasonic AG-AC160 | Panasonic AG-HPX170 |
| Specials | | -european modell is named AG-HPX171
In the 720p mode the frame rate can be changed in 20 steps from 12 to 50 fps (European model; international NTSC-model to 60fps)
|
Product Shots
|
| [ top ] | Panasonic AG-AC160 | Panasonic AG-HPX170 |
| View 1 | | |
| View 2 | | |
Test results
|
| Test pictures |
| [ top ] | Panasonic AG-AC160 | Panasonic AG-HPX170 |
| luminance resolution | | |
| chrominance resolution | | |
| lens distortion | | |
| test small ISO image | | |
| noise / internal microphone | | |
| test picture 1200 Lux | | |
| Test image 12 lux auto-mode ? | | |
| Test image 12 lux optimized ? | | |
| slashCAM rating |
| Lowlight ? | Good | Satisfactory |
| Resolution ? | Excellent | Satisfactory |
| Color performance ? | Very good | Good |
| subj.Picture impression ? | Very good | Good |
| Optical Zoom ? | Satisfactory | Satisfactory |
| Wide Angle ? | Excellent | 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 | Very good |
| Dynamics ? | Very good | Very good |
| Conclusion slashCAM |
| slashCAM rating ? | Very good
| Good
|
Total score ?
(maximal 570) | 465 | 385 |
| Pros | + Good ergonomics
+ largest zoom range in its class (22x)
+ records on low price SD cards
+ overall concept is consistent
| Good wide angle
+ Professional controls
+ genuine 720/50p mode and a variable framerate
|
| Cons | - SDI-out 8-bit only
- colored peaking could be stronger
- only 3 custom keys
| - low sharpness due to pixel shift
- P2 cards are more expensive than tape
- 4:3 display with low resolution
|
| Conclusion | The Panasonic AG-AC160 is a fair alternative for those who neither need an AVC-Intra workflow or a multi-camera synchronization -- those extras are provided by the sister model AG-HPX250 only.The AG-AC160 focuses on the essential functional and ergonomic features of filming -- no gimmicks or undersized keys (apart from the audio buttons) distract from its main objective.Definitely a persuading operating philosophy.The highlights clearly are the immense zoom range and very well balanced overall concept.Panasonic has a broad experience with this kind of camcorder design and it shows.The Panasonic AG-AC160: an AVCHD camera with few weaknesses but many pro features which put the main focus on filming, and all this for a fair price tag of 3.990 Euro net - what more could you ask for? | Panasonic´s AG-HPX171E scores with its handling and the Leica lens shows very little chromatic aberrations.Thanks to finally cheaper recording cards the AG-HPX171E can be seen as an allround-model suited for both documentary and fiction shooting.But pixel counting searchers for ultimate sharpness will be happier with other models, as will those who do not wish to invest in P2 cards. The resolution of the display is too low. |
More information
|
| Reviews and Forums |
| [ top ] | Panasonic AG-AC160 | Panasonic AG-HPX170 |
| slashCAM Review | | |
| external reviews/tests |  provideocoalition.com
blog.abelcine.com
| provideocoalition.com
provideocoalition.com
|
| Forum posts | | The SWR and its AG-HPX171
AG-HPX170/AG-HPX171 Pro Panasonic P2 Camcorders
|
| |
