Hmm, I don't know a lot about digital video cameras but I know some, I have one and I have friends that do know a lot. This doesn't seem anything more than an incremental change to the XL1, which did have quite a big impact on the digital video scene. This model doesn't change the price bracket of this class of camera in Canon's lineup. I think the introduction of sub $1k 3ccd cameras is bigger news than this.

If someone has $5k to spend on a camera they probably already have a decent camera. If they didn't already have a decent camera I don't see what the XL2 would change about their decision making process, 6 months ago they would have chosen the XL1. I know people who have moved down from much more expensive cameras to the XL1, I don't see the XL2 attracting hordes more.

The miniDV camera was a revolution in that it drastically lowered the barrier to entry. There is still room for some more revolution that will probably involve new storage technology and/or wireless in the camera.

Video is still hard to do, the next revolution will not have much impact on that. Lots of people have a miniDV camera and Final Cut today, very few are able to make video worth watching by anyone outside their circle of aquaintences. Editing is hard, lighting is hard, sound is hard, telling a story with video is hard, harder than most people who have not done it can imagine. You need to get all of those elements right if you want a video to be watched by 1000 strangers. The way to do that is to get down to your local public access cable station and take their cheap classes.

Good points.

I'm not saying that anyone is going to be able to make an interesting video. But the fact that price is becoming less of a barrier means that anyone who really wants to make a decent video (and has the talent) will be able to do so. Wordprocessors don't make me Shakespeare, but I wouldn't be able to write as much as I do (which I think is reasonable quality - hey, you're reading it aren't you?) without one.

Yes, this is an incremental change, but so are all the other things you mentioned. Eventually, however, those incremental changes add up.

And I agree on the classes, although sometimes trial and error can also be effective.

I agree with akb on this one, the XL2 isn't as revolutionary as some other advances in the DV world. Panasonic has several 3ccd dv cams in the $600-$1500 range which was more interesting technologically, and JVC has had an HD dv cam for about two years in the prosumer $3000-$5000 range.

Those are just technological innovations that geeks care about; democratizing is about getting the capturing and distribution of media in the hands of the people, where broadcaching concepts are much more intriguing.

The biggest leap for the XL2 over the XL1 is that it has a native 24p mode - since it already had a 30p progressive mode, that's essentially worthless for citizen-joe eye-one-the-street reports, but it does help if you're looking to transfer your work to film.

I've got a good friend in NYU's graduate film program with whom I discuss these technical matters a lot - even he doesn't give a crap about 24p. 24frames per second is an anacronism from an older era of film, touting native support for it [when the previous model supported a higher frame rate already] is just silly, quality-wise, you're better off with a 30p, or a higher res (as seen in HD dv cams). That or you want something smaller and more portable than before at a low pricepoint (e.g. the Panasonic 3ccd cams). Anyway, that said - an impact -HE- has noticed at NYU, is that with the lower cost point of DV, increasingly their labs and so on are being outfitted for it, which irks him since he's paying to go to a FILM school he would prefer to work with film. He already has done a lot of work with DV on his own, and did some very early work with digital video in his undergrad some 10 years ago - so for a hardcore film person like him, DV advances are more for what he would like to carry with him in his pocket for personal projects, not lug around on a set.

The XL2 is fine for gear heads, but it's got nothing to do with democratizing media content. It's not even a very impressive feature set given what it has to compete against now. If they'd offer it instead of the XL1s a few years ago, all the better, now it's just kind of meaningless bloat to canon's product line.