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Sanyo's Xacti DMX-C1 digital video camera. Courtesy of Sanyo, with modifications by Michael R. Tomkins. Sanyo announces 3mpix digital camcorder
By
(Thursday, October 2, 2003 - 12:41 EDT)

Sanyo Japan has announced a new and rather interesting-looking digital video camera, the Sanyo Xacti (pronounced Zack-Tee) DMX-C1.

Coupling a 3.2 megapixel CCD image sensor with a 5.8x optical zoom lens, the DMX-C1 has a few features worthy of comment. For one, this is an extremely small device, apparently about the size of a cellphone (Sanyo says it is the smallest and lightest digital video camera with movie recording at VGA resolution or above). Sanyo also says it is the first Secure Digital-based digital video camera to feature MPEG-4 recording, with a maximum video length of 1 hour on a 1GB SD card.

Perhaps one of the most unique and interesting features is the ability to capture both video and still images simultaneously using the same image sensor. This is really quite a clever idea, allowing the photographer not only to record an event as VGA video, but by pressing a separate shutter button, to capture 3 megapixel still images without having to stop recording video. (If our translation is correct, there will be a brief pause in the video if the still image resolution is not the same as the video resolution, but this still beats having to actually stop and restart recording manually).

The Xacti DMX-C1 is designed to be held single-handed, watching the tilt/swivel LCD display and controlling the camera with your thumb. It will ship in Japan from November 7th, with pricing set at ¥75,000 (roughly equivalent to US$678 / €579 / CAD$908 / £405 ignoring exchange rate fluctuations, taxes and duties) and a monthly production of 10,000 units.

Sanyo Xacti DMX-C1
Sanyo's Xacti DMX-C1 digital video camera. Courtesy of Sanyo, with modifications by Michael R. Tomkins. Click for a bigger picture!
Effective Resolution Approx. 3,200,000 pixels
Image Sensor 1/2.7"-type RGBG CCD sensor with approx. 3,340,000 total pixels
Recording Media SD Memory card
File Format
Still Image JPEG (DCF compliant); DPOF; Exif ver2.2 compliant
Movie ISO standard MPEG-4 compliant (.MP4), MPEG-4 audio (AAC compression, 48KHz sample rate, 16-bit, 2 channel)
Image Size
Still Image [3.2M]: 2048 x 1536 pixel
[2.0M]: 1600 x 1200 pixel
[0.3M]: 640 x 480 pixel
Video [TV-SHQ]: 640 x 480 pixel, 30fps, 3MB/sec
[TV-HQ]: 640 x 480 pixel, 30fps, 2MB/sec
[TV-S]: 320 x 240 pixel, 30fps
[Web-HQ]: 320 x 240 pixel, 15 fps
[Web-S]: 176 x 144 pixel, 15 fps
Lens
f = 5.8 - 33.8mm (35mm equivalent: 38 - 280mm) 5.8x optical zoom lens
F3.5 (W) - F3.7 (T), autofocus
11 elements in 8 groups (2 aspheric elements, one double-sided); built-in neutral density filter
Focus Range
Normal: 10cm (W) / 80cm (T) - infinity
Super Macro: 2cm (W) - 60cm (W)
Shutter Speed
Still Image 1/2 - 1/2000 second (1/30 - 1/60 second with flash on; up to 2 seconds in night scene mode)
Movie 1/30 - 1/10000 second
Digital Zoom
Record 10x max.
Playback Depends on resolution (32x max. in 3.2M mode)
Autofocus System
Still Image 5-point AF
Movie Area AF
Scene Mode Auto / Sport / Portrait / Night / Landscape / Lamp
Digital Effects 6 settings including Normal / Slim / Monochrome / Sepia
Exposure Compensation + / - 1.8EV in 0.3EV steps
Flicker Reduction Yes
Sensitivity
Still Image Auto (ISO 50 - 200), Manual (ISO 50, 100, 200 or 400 selectable)
Movie Auto (ISO 200 - 800), Manual (ISO 200, 400, 800 or 1600 selectable)
Self-timer 2 or 10 seconds
White Balance
Auto Full auto TTL
Manual Fine / Cloudy / Fluorescent / Incandescent
Flash Automatic / Forced / Off (slow synchro capable in Night Scene mode)
Sound
Microphone Built-in stereo
Speaker Built-in monaural (mixed left + right channel output)
LCD Display
1.5" low-temperature polysilicon TFT color liquid crystal display with approx. 110,000 pixels (partial transmissive type)
100% field of view, 7-step brightness adjustment, 293° rotation
Functions when proprietary AV cable is not connected
Interface
Video output (NTSC / PAL compatible compostive video with stereo sound, via docking station or cable)
USB 2.0 full-speed mode compliant (via docking station or cable)
Power Source 1 x Lithium-Ion rechargeable battery (DB-L20 included); AC adapter / charger (VAR-AL20 included)
Power Consumption 2.9 watts (using included battery in movie mode)
Battery Life
Still Image Approx. 160 images
Movie Approx. 60 minutes
Playback Approx. 130 minutes
Dimensions 69 (W) x 108 (H) x 34 (D) mm (max. dimension); Volume: Approx. 149 cc.
Weight Approx. 155 grams (body only); Approx. 174 grams (including battery and memory card)
Accessories CD-ROM (Sanyo Software Pack 7.0), docking station, adapter, proprietary USB cable and proprietary AV cable, SD memory card (16MB), lithium ion battery, AC adapter / charger (100-240V) with power cord, camera case, hand strap and lens cap, remote control
.

Thanks to Jerry Sehl / OANI.net for this item!

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