Hit me with your best shot: just as manufacturers promised, the last 12 months has seen a flurry of camera launches offering everything from non-linear acquisition to affordable high definition--with evidence that the former is already infiltrating the latter.(technology update)

It was Ikegami that first blazed the tapeless trail with Editcam, a camcorder initially launched with Avid, recording onto a ruggedised hard disk pack. Avid has since taken a step back to retain a neutral position in a market where several other manufacturers have joined the tapeless acquisition fray, but still provides the compression technology.

For some reason Editcam has been more successful for government applications--notably in the US armed services--than in mainstream broadcasting, where it has nonetheless established a niche presence.

The latest standard definition ...

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