Sony has extended its EX line of solid-state recording cameras with the introduction of a new shoulder-mount camcorder targeted at ENG, reality TV and documentary shooters.  The new PMW350 features three 2/3-inch (full raster 1920x1080) “EXMor” CMOS sensors, a sensitivity of F12 at 60i (F13 at 50i) and the option to record simultaneously to DVCam tape and two solid-state SxS Flash memory cards.

The new MPEG-2 based, 4:2:0 processing camera includes a new lighter body design (6 lbs) that houses the flash memory recorder and user-switchable auto/manual focus features. With lens and battery it weighs about 10 pounds. The body has been streamlined to enable operators to easily see over the camera when shooting and the operational buttons borrow their design from Sony’s larger PDW XDCAM camera lines, which provide easier access. It records 1080i HD at a date rate of up to 35 Mbps.

There’s a flip-out LCD black & white viewfinder, four-channel audio recording on board (the first camera in the EX family to offer this) and a 16x8 Fujinon bayonet-style HD lens. The lens features optical stabilization and chromatic aberration compensation. Because there’s no fans or motor drives, the camera also uses less power than Sony’s XDCAM Optical Media cameras—20 watts vs. 40-45 watts with optical.

“With F12 at 2,000 lux sensitivity with 59 db S/N, this is the first time that a CMOS sensor is actually exceeding the performance of a CCD sensor,” said Juan Martinez, Product Manager, Acquisition System at Sony Electronics. “It’s really an enormous improvement over what’s come before it in 2/3-inch acquisition technology.”

Time code I/O and genlock in for multi-camera shoots, HD SDI out, and 700 protocol connector for 8-pin remote control, making the camera well suited to studio production environments as well. A B-Mount on the back of the camera accommodates a variety of professional batteries from Sony and others.

WiFi capability via an external dongle is available to enable a shooter to insert metadata to clips in the field during production to streamline the logging process.

Best of all, the camera, with Fujinon lens, will cost $22,000 ($20K without lens). The PMW350 will be available in January 2010.

“It’s not a pool feed camera, but the camera that offers a lot of features at a great price point, so we think there will be a lot of interest,” said Sony’s Bob Ott, vice president of Optical and Network Systems at Sony. “Because of the current market conditions and the price points that people appear willing to pay, we expect this camera to set the market on its ear.”

For more information, visit http://www.sony/com/broadcast