Re: Is the HDX900 history?

Ernie,

It has never been, nor never will be, the manufacturer's "policy" to listen to individual end users. In the past design criteria from network broadcasters often influenced product development and really that can be attributed to the development of the P2 and XDCAM file based video, but in reality, product design and technologgy is more often driven by the marketing guru's who can demonstrate to the top managers how many thousands (or millions in consumer electronics) of units at what price can predictably be sold. If changes to the products (usually by software) can be accomplished after the fact to accommodate real user issue can be done, all the better.

In this case, where you and others seek a cheap feeder deck, I'd have to say that it's a little late in the game, although as I recall, at last NAB (2007) there was some talk from Panasonic about just such a product, but it's obvious that in the fervor of promoting the P2 line, the marketeers prevailed in killing such a product as it would have confussed or delayed tape based users from considering transition to solid state.

To Panasonic's credit however, the P2 Mobile is a "killer product" which for a $12K street price offers 21st century technology and a significant improvement in quality (10 bit recording, AVC-I codec and no horizontal down res). At NAB, they rightly so, demonstrated this product as a way to leverage the aging Varicams into continued usefulness.