Hi guys, I am seriously considering one of the two cameras but not sure. The versatility of the panasonic, which i have quite a lot of experience with is amazing. It is the point and shoot camera for Naija guerilla style shooting. As for the Sony, I dunno yet but I am hearing great reviews as my friend is enjoying it for a couple of music videos he is shooting.

The HVX200 is more flexible, while the EX1 must be handled delicately: you must stabilize it, you can't shoot with a high frame rate, and you must avoid shooting black objects that are hot (they'll appear red).  But the EX1 more sensitive to light and has a higher resolution.  Does resolution matter if your destination is TV or DVD delivery?  Probably not.  So I would go for whichever one is cheaper.

Although I am a fan of the hvx i also love the many tweaking possibilities of the ex1. Hmm na wah oh. They make it harder for us to make up our darn minds. So Seun, any short film out yet?

So I can take it that there are no video production guys on Nairaland apart from our CEO, Seun. I will have to go somewhere else.

give me your email address and i will try and get you some reiviews i read sometime ago on ex 1. but the review show ex 1 to be better. cheers

here is something i just read now. you can read the full on http://techthoughts.org/2008/01/16/sony-pmw-ex1-vs-panasonic-hvx-200-easy-choice/

This first image is a crop from the PMW-EX1 (left) and HVX200 (right).
The files presented on the PairofHands web site were PNG files which showed little sign of compression. I cropped, moved the two vertical resolution sections closer together and then saved as a JPG with 50% quality. Visually, they are near identical to the source PNG files you can see on their web site.

The most telling point to me is that the HVX footage starts banding and blurring at 600 whereas the EX1 footage is clear through 800. It looks like it could have kept providing clear lines beyond 800 but the standard-def chart that was used goes no higher.

To me, it also looks like the HVX has a weird banding or some effect happening at 500 that is not present on the PMW-EX1. Gott give credit that Panasonic gets that much resolution out of those small chips.

For an extensive and interesting hands-on review of the EX1, from late 2007, check out DVuserUK. There’s an article by Nigel Cooper who had his hands on an EX1 to shoot footage in preparation for IBC:

I have read a number of reviews of both cameras and have come to the conclusion that the Sony definitely has sharper images than the Panasonic but I prefer the chroma and gamma curves that the Panasonic simulates. So for me, this is the verdict:
FOR BROADCAST (TV) PROJECTS, I WOULD CHOOSE THE SONY FOR OVERALL SHARPNESS
FOR STYLISED WORK LIKE MOVIES AND TV COMMERCIALS, I WOULD GO FOR THE PANASONIC

I have seen a lot of footage of both cameras on vimeo and for me image quality coming out of the ex1 is better than that of hmv200 . I think a better comparison would be with the hvx200a, hpx170 or even the hpx300. Those p2 card are so damm expensive .The main issue with the ex1 as you probably know is with rolling shutter.
Below are links to some of my fav footage from the ex1 on vimeo

http://www.vimeo.com/2700648

http://www.vimeo.com/3830969

http://www.vimeo.com/3924039

you guys are speaking in tongues ooo

I swear by the Panasonic cameras anyday jo! That's my personal choice now. The pictures from the Sony look too harsh and too much like video to me. The Panasonic gamma curves are second to none.

The Panasonics defiantly have a better film like look.  I feel that you can get a softer look out of the ex1 by playing around with the picture profiles and with the addition a 35mm adapter.

sojioguns I know that you have used quite a few of the pannys .
Which would you say produces better images
The HPX170 or the HVX200a
From the footage I have seen on vimeo I would say the HVX200a

Below are links to some of my fav footage from the HVX200a on vimeo

http://www.vimeo.com/3408367

http://www.vimeo.com/3891105

Now when comparing image quality between the ex1 and the hvx200a .Then I would there are as good as each other. The ex1 produces great sharp images the hvx200a produces great film like images .

Don't let the marketing gimmicks get to you. The HPX170 and HVX200 are basically the same cam apart from the features below:
- The 170 is totally tapeless, while the 200 has a tape mechanism
- The 170 has a wider stock lens than the 200
- The 170 has SDI out and the 200 doesn't

They both have the same imaging chip and software.

As far as I know panasonic's marketing has been what you are saying and that images from both cameras are more or less the same . I did not come to the conclusion that the hvx200a images are better than the hpx170 because of marketing gimmicks but because of footage I have seen of both cameras with my eyes
I think that the greatest tool one has to judge image quality are ones eyes.
I hope you appreciate that we sometimes see the same things differently

I for one would not buy the 170 for anything. Both cams are the same price and in Nigeria, we still can't do without tape technology yet.