Digital camcorders are extremely popular these days, but the Panasonic AG-CX350EJ has caused quite a stir among amateur and professional cameramen alike. The AG-CX350EJ combines large-format memory card recording capabilities with on-air shooting in the here-and-now. This camera is an innovative development of the Japanese company Panasonic and has an impressive set of tools. The camcoder is aimed at professional cameramen, bloggers, documentarians and just those who like to shoot high-quality videos.
The Japanese manufacturer Panasonic has long established itself as a reliable manufacturer of equipment. The camcorder retains the traditions and concepts of assembly technology, with the exception of the addition of innovative technologies and interesting developments.
In principle, in the production of the body and camera elements, the manufacturer remained unchanged. In the manufacture of the camcorder, classic black plastic with a matte texture is used, as in the assembly of other representatives of equipment. However, the AG-CX350EJ is equipped with a high level of protection against moisture and dust, which makes it possible to shoot in extreme outdoor conditions. The impact-resistant housing is completely sealed. The nice thing is that there are no fingerprints left on the plastic after shooting.
Much attention was paid to the design of the chamber. The lens is protected by a lens hood and ensures safety during transport or storage. All buttons on the body are located close, that is, you can adjust the camera while shooting at a distance of "outstretched finger". The lens adjustment rings have a ribbed surface, which adds another plus to the comfort of use.
A portable camera should be light and more or less compact. Panasonic succeeded in doing just that - the AG-CX350EJ camcorder weighs only 1.9 kg. When shooting with a handheld camera, every 10 grams counts, especially when shooting for a long time.
The most important thing in a camera is the lens. Panasonic boasts state-of-the-art optical technology. The capabilities of the lens allow you to record wide-angle video materials with minimal defects and image distortion (24.5 mm angle) without the use of conversion equipment. The camera allows you to take high-quality images when interviewing or blogging in a limited space, such as a room or small space. This eliminates the effect of glare, which can spoil the footage.
Model AG-CX350EJ impresses with its magnification, which does not spoil the picture quality. The 20x optical zoom covers a wide focal length (up to 490mm regardless of mode). i.Zoom allows you to zoom in up to 32x in HD and up to 24x in UHD without compromising video quality. The camcorder also comes with 2x / 5x / 10x digital zoom.
The MOS sensor boasts F12 (60Hz) / F13 (50Hz) sensitivity (in UltraHD, and FullHD modes). The camcorder incorporates a five-axis hybrid image stabilization system that combines optical and electronic shake compensation capabilities of the device. The stabilizer corrects judder in five axial directions in all modes, including UHD. There are three modes to choose from: normal (standard), stable (effective for shooting with a fixed frame) and pan / tilt (effective for pans and tilts). You can shoot even under the most adverse conditions by holding the camcorder up or down.
The AG-CX350 supports HLG (Hybrid Log-Gamma), which is a joint development between the Japanese broadcaster NHK and the British Air Force. This ensures wide dynamic range support on HDR-compatible devices. Gamma mode can be selected from eight options: HD, SD, FILMLIKE 1, FILMLIKE 2, FILMLIKE 3, FILM-REC, VIDEO-REC, HLG).
The camcorder is equipped with a smart focusing system powered by a microdrive. It effectively tracks object movements and has high performance. Manual control of the lens with three rings allows you to adjust the focus, magnification and aperture sensitivity. Thus, you set up the camera for any shooting conditions. The manual lens setting has a high sensitivity and fast response, making it a pleasure to shoot.
The lens is also controlled via a remote control, which is not supplied with the kit. The remote control is connected via a 2.5 mm super mini jack. This control allows you to adjust the focus, zoom and iris sensitivity, which is useful when conducting an interview or recording a live broadcast indoors. In addition, you can control the functionality of the camera through the smartphone application.
The application is installed for free from the AppStore or GooglePlay. Using a smartphone or tablet, you can adjust the zoom, focus, iris sensitivity, white balance, video quality, start/stop broadcasting, and other functions. Moreover, from one gadget you can control 8 devices at once, but not simultaneously.
The built-in HEVC codec provides high quality image transmission at a frame rate of 10 bits and 50 frames per second (with UHD recording format). While maintaining smooth playback on 7th Gen Intel Core i7 processors and above. In addition, slow motion is available when shooting at high resolution.
The camcorder supports MOV, AVCHD, P2 MXF formats. MOV files are compatible with many devices and are easy to process. This format is used on past generation Panasonic cameras and supports the ability to name files up to 20 characters. Despite its bells and whistles, the camera also supports the simple AVCHD format, suitable for amateur shooting or vlogging.
One of the advantages of the camera is shooting in MXF P2 format, which is designed for streaming processes between different platforms. With this capability, a portable camera can shoot live and stream directly to YouTube (or other platforms). This feature is useful for vloggers and bloggers who do not want to bother with transferring material to a PC and prefer to run a channel in real time.
Separately, we note the function of capturing one frame. When playing back a video on the camera, you can capture a frame and save it as a JPEG. Capturing can be done by storyboarding or intuitive tapping on the touch screen. As for recording video to media, all footage is stored on SDXC / SDHC / microP2 flash cards. Moreover, the camera has 2 slots for media. It turns out that you have the opportunity to continuously record. When the memory on one card is full, the recording is made on the second one. At this time, you can change the card in the first slot to a free one. In addition, dual recording mode is supported: all material is duplicated on both media. This is handy when you need to share a video with others.
Another interesting way to save video material: a part of the video is recorded on the first slot, and all the video is recorded on the second. So you can highlight the main frames, for example, for a blog, and keep the entire shooting purely for yourself. It is worth noting that every 10 hours of shooting, the video process stops for a few seconds to restart.
We have come to perhaps the most interesting. Streaming is possible via RTSP\RTMP in HD format. This method is supported by Facebook, YouTube, as well as other streaming services. You can broadcast concerts, football matches and other events to the general public in the "here and now" mode.
An innovative feature that distinguishes the AG-CX350 camcorder from all other cameras is NDI \ HX support. This technology allows you to transfer a picture and control the camera using an IP connection without using an external converter. True, to use this feature you will need an activation key from NewTek, which costs about $300.
The camera supports SDI and HDMI parallel output. UHD video output only support via HDMI, HD video output with 10bit, 4:2:2 high quality image via SDI. When shooting in HLG, HDR or SDR formats, you can select any output format. Support for multi-camera recording TC Synchro is interesting. The camera number is added to the recording folder name. True multi-camera recording is supported when recording in MOV format.
You can immediately see the picture on the display of the high-resolution camera and OLED technology. The 3.2-inch monitor uses RGBW pixel display, making it easy to shoot on a sunny day. The 3:2 aspect ratio allows you to display the time and camera status without overlaying the image. The touch panel provides comfortable setup of the camcorder and excellent color reproduction.
As for recording sound. The camera supports 24-bit PCM with the ability to record high-resolution audio. To do this, use the built-in stereo microphone (two-channel) or the additional input installed in the XLR. In MOV mode, 24-bit linear PCM recording provides higher sound quality - 4-channel, when an additional microphone is connected. The AVCHD format is only possible in two-channel audio recording, however, you can adjust the volume or output to headphones.
The battery is an important element of the camera, which can play a role when choosing a camcorder. The AG-CX350 boasts low power consumption when running at factory settings (the lowest consumption among UHD / HD camcorders) and a large battery capacity (5900 mAh). This allows for over 34 hours of uninterrupted shooting at the lowest resolution of the AVCHD format. These are impressive numbers for their segment. In addition, a fast charging function is available.
The AG-CX350 is an innovative new camera in its segment. The model uses an impressive set of tools and professional chips with which you can shoot in any conditions. The AG-CX350 is one where you don't have to worry about optics or adding accessories to get more functionality. You just take the camera and shoot. Even the standard mode allows you to shoot high-quality video material. Equipped with live broadcast functions, smartphone control and low power consumption, this camcorder is perhaps the best on the market.
