$5K Buys You JVC's 4K Handheld Camcorder, a World's First

Posted 01/11/2012 at 9:36am | by Paul Lilly

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Prior to CES 2012, the world was without a handheld 4K camcorder. JVC took care of that in quick order by unveiling its new GY-HMQ10, a handheld camcorder that captures, records, and plays video images at four times the resolution of high definition televisions. The GY-HMQ10 has a 1/2-inch CMOS image sensor with 8.3 million active pixels. It delivers real-time 3840x2160 footage at 24p, 50p, or even 60p.

"We’re witnessing the birth of what is destined to become a broad market for full 4K end-to-end production," said Edgar Shane, general manager of engineering. "The GY-HMQ10 is a breakthrough product that opens up 4K imaging to users who previously wouldn’t have considered it."

The heart and soul of the new camcorder is JVC's Falconbrid large-scale integration (LSI) chip for high-speed signal processing. According to JVC, lack of processing power is what's kept handheld cameras from previously being able to capture, process, display, and record full 4K images in real time. The GY-HMQ10 is able to output 4K images to a monitor or projection screen in real time with virtually no lag, JVC claims.

Other notable features include a built-in f2.8 10x zoom lens with optical image stabilizer, color viewfinder, and 3.5-inch touch LCD monitor with a new interface that's purportedly more intuitive than before.

The GY-HMQ10 will be available for purchase in March for $4,995.

Image Credit: JVC