Sony PXW-X70 Professional XDCAM Compact Camcorder (PAL)
UPC's:
Good, but frustrating auto-focus
Great camera for a lot of what other folks have said, but... ...I apparently got one of the cameras that has an auto-focus that seems to not trust itself; it'll be crisp focus on the subject for a while and then suddenly go hunting to find something else to focus on. A second or two of it randomly searching, it'll go right back to your subject again for a while, and then second-guess itself and go hunting again. SUPER annoying, if not outright ... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Pro Quality
Great cam! Professionnal results. We shoot with th FS5 and the x70 at the samedi time. Works great.
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
lanc
Hey KevBob, Your wrong about lanc control on the sony pww x 70. Ive had an x70 for 3 years and use a remote control for everything. You however have to buy a converter cable to convert the 1/8 phone plug to the mini usb connector needed to get into the x70
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
So far, an awesome little camcorder
I got this as a companion to my regular cam, a Sony HXR-NX3 to give me a backup, allow me to do static wides and close-ups of theatrical performances, and to try 4k. This little beast is, hands-down, the best small camcorder Ive ever used. While it takes a bit of getting used to the menu-heavy feature management, its not too different from my NX3, so I was instantly familiar. Ive done one shoot with it so far, so no long-term experience, but its... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Many pros, but ultimately falls short
Ive had this camera now for a few years. There are many things to like, however, for me, it falls short. First, the pros: Very compact and fairly light. With a stereo mic and XLR cables, total weight is around 4 lbs. 10-bit 4:2:2 internal! Awesome; handles up to fairly heavy grading without issues. This is truly a nice recording format that gives you tons of editing options and ultimately produces great 8-bit 4:2:0 for delivery. Also, note I on... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Great camera for the money
Compact, lightweight, yet great image quality thanks to the 1 sensor and 422 color space. The Zeiss lens is sharp - I only wish is maintained the 2.8 longer throughout the zoom range. And Sony could have placed the menu button in a more convenient location. I work with several professional grade Sony cameras at work - including the FS7II and FS700 - the X70 is a nice stripped down version of those higher end cameras.
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
24 DIY Tv shows
I have used this X70 as a second unit camera in 24 DIY TV shows. It has been spray painted (by accident) been in a concrete dust many times, outside in the rain e-z and its good as new. The 4K upgrade works great.
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
This a great camera. DON'T BUY IT.
This is an amazing camera. It's everything it says it is...and B&H is a wonderful company with generally flawless service. But don't buy it. Why? Because Sony has what literally amounts to NO CUSTOMER SERVICE. When you call them, there are no direct lines to the tech people (unless you want to wait between 2 days and never). And even the simplest question can't be answered. So if you run into something that's really tough, you're stuck. If I... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
So far, so good!
This is truly an amazing little camera. I bought it to replace my old NX5U. It does everything that much larger camera does but it's better in the following ways: The image is sharper and clearer due to the the huge chip and XAVC codec. It achieves far better depth of field. In daylight and interior shooting, the images only become really noisy above 12-15 db with the aperture open wide. THAT is astounding. The only really annoying things a... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Great Run & Gun Camera
This thing is tiny, but packs a punch. I know that sounds cliche, but it's a true assessment of this camera. Its about the size of the small camcorders on the market, however with its 1 sensor, XLR inputs & manual dials it blows it away and is not just a camcorder. I use this for weddings, and don't let the tiny size fool you, its durable for the run & gun world. Speaking of weddings, I'm occasionally asked why I don't shoot DSLR (My 2nd cam curr... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Excellent Unit!
I use this product for recording live concert events. The zoom on this camera makes it extremely versatile and the camera performs well in low light and the ability to use professional microphones produces a much better product. If I had anything bad to say about this camera, it is that setting white balance is more of a chore than it needs to be, butyou can store custom white balances and access those quickly. I got the 4K upgrade and it works v... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
I plan to get more of this model for conference work!
The directions are a little hard to follow at first but I managed to get through this one without any hiccups. On the first camera and upgrade I bought a few months back I managed to misunderstand the directions and thought I ruined the upgrade license. Thanks to a very kind Sony support tech who helped me to recover what I had accidentally lost access to. They were kind, fast and worked on the weekend! I was really surprised when I heard back within an hour of an email sent to them.
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Excellent camera for the price!
Very sharp and clear. Colors are great and controls are user friendly. When it is taken out of the package, you can feel it is built like a little tank! Also love the SDI and HDMI option as well. The 10-bit color that comes out of the SDI is fantastic if you are broadcasting. Highly recommend if you need a travel size camera. Just make sure you have a computer that can edit the 4k 100mbs files. It's a doozy.
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Great camera so far
I got picked to be part of a show that is to air on the outdoor Channel. While the sponsors provide all my hunting gear, I was required to provide my own camera. I got this camera because it was the smallest of its kind and would be easiest for me to take in hunting situations. So far I really like it a lot! The quality is definitely a step up from the consumer grade cameras are used to run. I would recommend this to anyone who is somewhat of an ... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Excellent Video and Audio Quality
I got it on time, BHPhotoVideo delivered it within 2 days. Its the exact size that i wanted, not too big, not too small but right size! It has dual recording, meaning you can put 2 memory card and record in both at sometime or you can use Card A for recording and when its full it automatically switch to Card B. So, you hardly run out of memory card storage. If you have external mic, I have senheiser lavelier wireless mic system, so I connected th... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Great for the price
Overall love it and find it to do what I want it to do. White balance is a little burried for run and gun shooting. For a fixed lens and a video camera format you can still generate a useable amount of shallow depth of field. I really think my IR light is broken out of the box. But by the time i figured that out I really don't have enough down time to send it out for repair. Does seem like a feature I'd like to work into my jobs.
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Great, Compact, High Performance & am Happy
My producer is completely pleased with the clips from our first production using this camera.I haven't unlocked the 4K license yet (but other owners tell me that it is a nuisance to do so). The multi-purpose ring on the lens controls either focus or zoom (and makes some noise when changing between the two functions during a clip). The wired remote USB cable backs out of its port on the camera if allowed to dangle. Haven't been able to setup the link to my smart phone yet. The wireless remote doesn't get a strong signal from behind the camera (as my Sony DCR VX 2100 did).
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Undependable - Works great until it doesn't
Because I had been shooting only short video segments, I didn't realize that there was a problem until I started using this as a static camera for shooting live stage shows. Then, it started randomly shutting down after 10 mins, 15 mins, etc. When I sent it back (under a SquareTrade warranty), I was told that they couldn't replicate the problem, so they were returning the unit to me. I am now stuck with a useless camcorder because I can't depend ... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Telephoto is its strength
I have owned this camera for a year and a half and continue to learn how to maximize this camera with every shoot. It continues to please and impress me! It's biggest strength is the f4 lens on the telephoto side. That's a fairly fast lens when zoomed in, and the bokeh is amazing. Furthermore, when wide, the f2.8 does a great job blurring the background with the subject is even moderately close to the lens. I'm always amazed when reviewing footag... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Good Camera, But...
Good camera for the price, but it's unusable for certain types of shoots, due to the time needed to deal with duplicate file numbering. The camera resets file numbers every time a new flash card is used. This cannot be turned off.
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Backup to My NX3
I got this camera to fill in on small video jobs so I don't have to take the big camera all the time. I notice right away that the image is sharp, my NX3 always seemed soft. I choose not to get the 4k upgrade at this time cause my clients still want DVDs It's a great portable camera with good image output.
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Small camera with loads of features
Performs as advertised. Very substantial feeling. Nice video in both HD formats. XAVC requires transcoding for older NLE programs. Haven't installed 4K upgrade yet. Would have been nice to have separate manual rings for focus and zoom, other than that it has many desired controllable features that can be assigned to individual buttons eliminating the need to go to the menu. If you need more individual nonmenu controllable features, they are available on the more expensive cameras.
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
I like it so much, I might buy a 2nd!
I've had mine since July 2015 and I've been using it for documentaries, training videos, recording live stage shows... and the only thing that seems to be wrong is that I don't have more of these. I'm seriously considering buying a second to give me 2-camera capabilities when shooting live shows. I'm using GoPros now, but they just don't have what the X70 offers in quality and control. Note: The twin SD cards has saved me twice when one card had ... Show More
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
Workhorse
I've been shooting with my PXW-X70 for about a year and a half now. I love the controls, its light weight, the sharp, brilliant images, the two card slots and the flexibility for audio connections. I have been having one problem for a couple of months, though: A small percentage of the time when I power it on, no image appears, or a half-muted image. Powering it off and on again usually corrects the problem. Have any users out there been having this difficulty?
Reviewed on B&H Photo Video
