HD Camcorder real pixel output?

[yogart]

I’m looking to buy a HD camcorder trying to figure out what camera has the real pixel output close to 1920×1080, but it appears many are lower?

For example the Canon Vixia HF R11 has a 1/5.5 inch sensor with 2.3 total megapix, but the effective pixels for video is 1.56 megpix (1664x936).

The Sony Handycam HDR-CX110/L has 4200k pixel gross with video actual of 1350K pix (16:9).

The Canon vixia hf s200 total pix is 8.59 megapix with effective video at 6.01 megapix (3264 x2840).

So will the pixel density on the HF R11 and the HDR-CX110 look grainy as compaired ot the HF s200 when viewing on a 1080p screen?

[poisondeathray]

Those published specs for the sensors are not all that you want to look at, because there is a signal processing chain, and from the sensor there can be image processing and your final image quality can be vastly different. And it's really the final image that you get on your recorded media is what is important.

They all output 1920x1080 pixels for the final image, but what you want to look at is the actual resolved detail - i.e. how much definition in terms of lines and fine detail can it resolve. You want to look at reviews that test exactly that on test charts. One source for consumer oriented camcorders is camcorderinfo.com . They will list lines per height and width for each model.

Since you mention "grainy" as an important consideration , it would also be wise to look at is low light performance, often even more so than the resolvable detail.

[yogart]

1)The Sony specs says it has dual record at 2.7 mega pix (16:9). What does that mean?

2) These HD camcorders do not put out raw uncompress data? It appears that camera does the compressing using MPEG4-AVC / H.264? Correct?

[poisondeathray]

1)The Sony specs says it has dual record at 2.7 mega pix (16:9). What does that mean?

not sure , can you link the url? or spec sheet

Some models have the capability to record to 2 cards simultaneously for redundancy

2) These HD camcorders do not put out raw uncompress data? It appears that camera does the compressing using MPEG4-AVC / H.264? Correct?

Yes, most use h.264 compression

Some have the capability to bypass compression with live recording by using the HDMI out. You need hardware that can record this live stream then (e.g. blackmagic intensity pro)

[yogart]

1)the dual record is located under the Convenience column on this page:


http://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10151&catalo...specifications

2) I check that review site and others and they don't show these newer models. What do you think of the above model?

[poisondeathray]

it says dual record is recording video and stills (photos) simultaneously

Dual record capability lets you capture 3MP still images while shooting high definition video, so you can capture those special moments without having to switch recording modes.

I think the quality going to be quite a bit lower on that model, but you might not expect very much for ~$500. This review says lower quality with compression artifacts , but it's difficult to find consistent, technical reviews out there. Ideally you want an experienced reviewer who has handled many cameras, not just that one..., so they can give you comparisons. Ideally you want objective technical data (like test charts), not just some user's subjective opinion

http://www.digitalcamera-hq.com/camcorders/products/sony-handycam-hdr-cx110

[edDV]

The only camcorders under $8,000 that have pixel per pixel unity sensor to HDMI that I am aware of are the 3 CCD sensor 1280x720p JVC models ($3500 up). All the rest use single sensors with some form of optical Bayer color encoding plus image processing before HDMI output or MPeg encoding.

http://pro.jvc.com/pro/hm100/content.jsp?model_id=MDL101845&attributeId=2&feature_id=02

1920x1080p luminance is achieved by pixel shifting the red and blue sensor channels to add resolution to green to make 1080p Y luminance.

More of an issue for consumer camcorder resolution and light performance is the lens system. Low light capability mostly is a function of sensor and lens size.

[yogart]

1) What does artifact mean?

2) If can't find any reviews on the CANNON VIXIA HF R11. If you see anything please let me know.

I have learn a great deal so far. Thank you.

[poisondeathray]

1) What does artifact mean?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Compression_artifact

[edDV]

"Real Pixel Output" is not reached in consumer HD camcorders. Beyond that the lens is not up to the HD task except at high light (high f.stop)"

Please challenge that consumer camcorders are now up to the task. I may buy one.