Sony announces two new compact box cameras for remote operation

For NAB 2020 Sony would have introduced two new compact cameras and expanded its remote camera line up with the SRG-XP1 POV and SRG-XB25 box units. Norbert Paquet, head of live production solutions, Sony Professional Solutions Europe said, “We have two phases of our ‘NAB’ activity this year. The first one is our announcement of our new box cameras today.

“The reason we are keeping this announcement to the original [NAB] timing is that these cameras,

Norbert Paquet, Sony Professional Solutions Europe, head of live production solutions, pictured at IBC 2019 in Amsterdam

being fully connected network remote cameras, can help our customers’ perspective in terms of toolsets that are coming from us that enable remote communication or remote production with lower footprint in terms of staff, distributed operation, and everything connected.” The second tranche of ‘NAB’ announcements from Sony will follow on 30 April, across a range of industry areas and innovation especially to do with workflow efficiencies.

“These are tiny box cameras,” continued Paquet, “which are aimed to be placed anywhere and everywhere and can sit into a range of applications. One example is eSports where there is a big requirement to capture the players.

“Here we have a very tiny camera that is 12 centimetres deep. Also the XP1 is really unique in the sense that it is fixed lens but very wide angle so you can do beauty shots very easily. And because it has an IP output it is very easy to integrate into the production system. Very often in eSports, NDI is used for these types of cameras – and of course it is 4K 60p capable – so it’s really a unique point for this kind of small box camera.

“The XB25 has a slightly narrower field of view but has zoom capability up to 25 times, so the camera is slightly bigger at 16 centimetres but still very small and compact. That can complement creative options to be placed everywhere, again for example in eSports,” said Paquet.

The new cameras will be available from August 2020. Each has a wide-angle lens or optical zoom ideal for hard-to-access sites with limited space for a full-sized camera and dedicated operator. The cameras are designed for remote communication, monitoring and content production in a wide range of markets such as corporate, education, health care and live broadcast.

Image distribution and camera control with the SRG-XP1 and SRG-XB25 is simple as both cameras have NDI|HX capability via optional licenses and support full IP-based operation, they also use one network cable for power supply too. Real-Time Streaming Protocol (RTSP) and Real-Time Messaging Protocol (RTMP) also support easy recording and distribution of video and audio.

Remote shooting and real-time content can be produced and streamed when using the cameras with AI-based Edge Analytics Appliance REA-C1000. With Chroma key-less CG Overlay the SRG-XP1 can easily create attractive video content in confined spaces. This function can even remove the presenter and overlay them onto any background, without the need for a dedicated backscreen or specialist training.

Similarly, the SRG-XB25 can use the REA-C1000 zoom alongside the Handwriting Extraction feature so remote viewers of a presentation can see see written content and diagrams clearly alongside the presenter simultaneously.