PXW-Z150 FAQs

PXW-Z150 is an affordable, high quality 4K handy camcorder for broadcast and professional applications. It offers premium 4K image quality, 120fps high frame rate continuous shooting in Full HD mode, a choice of recording formats including 100Mbps XAVC Long, Wi-Fi network functions and a familiar, user-friendly interface.

The Z150’s compact, lightweight chassis and exceptional power efficiency enables flexible shooting for a wide range of applications in almost any environment.

Compact camcorders with high image quality and advanced professional features, such as PXW-Z150, are used in many different applications, including events, documentaries, corporate videos, promotional videos, etc. It is also ideal for broadcasters who reply upon an MPEG2 HD workflow with the included codec being beyond the EBU’s HD specification.

This model is not positioned as a successor to any specific models. It takes advantage of several technical innovations, such as Exmor RS, to provide a new offering within the Sony professional line-up.

The Z150’s size, performance and price place it between the PXW-X70 and PXW-X180/X160.

The Z150 is a global model which will ship at the end of March 2016, however the timing of its availability may vary according to region.

The 1.0 type sensor is approximately the same size as a 16mm film frame. The key benefit of this large size is low noise, reduced rolling shutter effect and less blur because more light reaches the sensor, offering clear and steady pictures even in a dark scene. The large sensor size also enables beautiful background defocusing (bokeh) to enable you to focus on what you want to show and defocus the rest of the image with spectacular 4K quality without binning.

In addition, Exmor RS achieves faster data readout thanks to its stacked structure which ensures Full HD 120fps high frame rate continuous shooting at 30P.

No, they are different. X70 uses an Exmor R CMOS Sensor while the Z150 is equipped with Exmor RS CMOS Sensor whose stacked structure makes possible a considerably faster data read out.

Z150 achieves higher quality shooting with less focal plane distortion thanks to the faster data readout of its Exmor RS sensor.

No, they are different. The lens structure is almost the same but the Z150’s lens is optimised for 4K shooting. Also, the operability of Z150’s lens rings (zoom/focus ring) is better than NX100.

Clear Image Zoom supports up to 2x magnification in FHD mode, up to 1.5x in 4K mode.

The XAVC Long format adopted offered by the Z150 achieves high image quality with efficient storage requirements by using Sony’s advanced implementation of the MPEG-4 AVC/H.264 codec. Its 4:2:2 10bit (Full HD mode) sampling process ensures granular gradation representation and high colour reproducibility. The file format is professional standard MXF so that it can be easily used in any standard workflow, from a videographer working alone to a production environment sharing content across multiple users.

Yes. SDI output is 3G/HD/SD while HDMI is v2.0 and can output up to 4K.

Currently no plans to support 4K 60p.

Streaming, FTP and remote control are supported. QoS streaming will be supported by future firmware update.

The Z150 has been designed from the start to provide the absolute best performance for Full HD and 4K production scenarios. The Z150’s advanced networking capabilities will continue to be updated. Sony’s unique QoS technology dramatically improves the clarity that’s possible on a wireless connection, giving you better pictures even with the limitations of today’s real-world networks. QoS will initially require a firmware update and PWS-100RX1 receiver.