Canon XC10 4K camera announced with new XF-AVC format

Canon has officially announced the XC10 4K fixed-lens camera along with a new video format designed for 4K camcorders.

At the end of 2014, the rumor mill claimed that Canon was working on a 4K camcorder called XC10.  The shooter was supposed to be launched at a consumer-related event in the first quarter of 2015.

In more recent times, several photos of Canon China’s CEO presenting an unnamed 4K fixed-lens camera alongside actor Jackie Chan have been leaked online. On the other hand, gossip talks were mentioning a similar device aimed at competing against the Panasonic GH4 or the Panasonic FZ1000.

The product in question is finally official and it appears to be more of a professional camcorder than a consumer camera. It is called Canon XC10, as insiders predicted in 2014, and it is here with a new 4K video format named XF-AVC.

This is the Canon XC10. It is a 4K video recording camera with a built-in 10x optical zoom lens.

Canon XC10 becomes official as a 4K video camera

The shooter features a 12-megapixel 1-inch-type CMOS image sensor capable of recording 4K videos and is expected to become available this June for an unknown price.

The camcorder consists of a fixed-lens camera with a design inspired by a DSLR. It is compact and lightweight while being capable of recording 4K videos without the need of an external recorder.

The manufacturer says that the XC10 will also be able to shoot still images at 8.29 megapixels when recording 4K videos at 30fps and 12-megapixel stills when the camera does not record videos. The maximum ISO sensitivity is said to stand at 20,000, while the maximum bitrate stands at 305Mbps.

Canon XC10 features a mechanical shutter and it supports CFast 2.0 memory cards for high-speed writing. On the back of the camera, a tilting 3-inch LCD touchscreen is available, while an electronic viewfinder can be attached via the hot-shoe.

The display on the back of the Canon XC10 is a 3-inch LCD touchscreen, which can be tilted.

Canon XC10 specs list includes WiFi, touchscreen, and 10x zoom lens

The brand new Canon XC10 4K camcorder features 10x optical zoom lens with a maximum aperture of f/2.8-5.6. Its full-frame focal length equivalent stands at 27.3-273mm, so it should be perfect for wide-angle and close-up footage.

This camera features HDMI output and built-in dual-band WiFi. It can be connected to a mobile device or to a PC for remote controlling. According to Canon, the camera can be used in combination with a drone for aerial footage and movie production.

Some rumors said that the grip was removable. However, it is still unclear whether it can be removed or not, but the DSLR-like grip is rotary. It can be rotated backwards or forwards in order to capture shots from unconventional angles.

Canon XC10 also features built-in optical image stabilization technology, ND filter (reducing three stops of light), stereo microphone, 8-bit log, timecode support, and a DIGIC DV 5 processor.

Canon XC10 comes with built-in WiFi and and HDMI output.

Canon launches XF-AVC video format for professional 4K cameras

Instead of using existing 4K video formats, Canon has developed its own technology. It is called XF-AVC and it is more efficient when recording high-resolution videos, Canon says. Beside 4K, the XF-AVC can be used for capturing 2K and full HD videos, too.

The company says that the format supports 10-bit 4:2:2 Intra Frame videos for 4K video recording. Its compression format is MPEG-4 AVC/H.264, which preserves image quality, whereas the file format has been named MXF.

In addition to the XC10, the brand new EOS C300 Mark II will also support the new XF-AVC video format. This camcorder will be present at NAB Show 2015 and it is confirmed to become available in September 2015.