Adding features to your camcorder - Is it possible?

Our world, as you probably already found out, is motivated by the will to make money - lots of it, if possible! Big electronic companies included. One of the ways to make more money on your product is market segmentation - selling each segment the best fitted product for as much as that segment is willing to pay! for instance, pros are known for demanding hi-quality products (3-ccd cameras), longer-lasting, heavy ("pro") looking, while the average user seeks handy, low-cost equipment. The important thing to remember, is, that in contrary to common belief, most Hi-end "pro" features cost only a few cents (for the manufacturer) to add.

For example - we will look at the most important and costly feature - picture quality: Current formats are very old (in electronics products terms). The VHS system developed in the '70s, is still with us, with almost no change in picture quality. S-VHS is an improved system, being used by the semi-pro market and hi-end consumers. Here is what most people (yes, even most "pros"!) think is needed to make a recorder able to record and play S-VHS:

• New, better quality heads to handle the improved S-VHS resolution.
• Improved tape to handle the extra info.
• New, improved circuitry to handle the enlarged bandwidth of video signal.

In short - totally new VCR! right? -Wrong!!! A few tests I made on one of my old '82 VHS model VCR shows that even an original video head, made in the early 80', almost completely worn-out by now, can handle S-VHS! surprised? - How about cassettes? Even old cassettes, from the 80's where found to be capable of handling S-VHS signals pretty well providing they were made by one of the leading companies. (remember - those are old VHS tapes, not S-VHS!) today, all VHS cassettes tested, including no-name far-east made products, can handle S-VHS with no quality loss! Makes you wonder why you are paying more than double for a stupid golden 'S' on the box, right?

VHS tapes are probably the same as S-VHS. Its cheaper to have one production line instead of two separate ones! The Idea of cutting maintenance costs by maintaining one instead of two or more production lines is true for every product. A manager of an electronics company checks how much the investment in another production line will show on the profits. if its cheaper to give the client something better than what he thinks he is getting, than why not?

Now, you probably ask, why not sell just S-VHS cassettes at a VHS cassette cost, to be used in both VHS and S-VHS machines? Its very simple - why not charge more from those who are willing to pay for S-VHS?

As I said, we already have two things needed for S-VHS in our old VHS machine. the only difference is the electronics. with new VCR's, the difference is actually one small circuit board, containing some extra filters for the wider bandwidth. most other component already supports S-VHS, and just have to be "switched" to S-VHS mode.

Important! All mentioned here about VHS is true for Video8 and Hi8!

Now for what you all been waiting for: Why do I say YOU can add features to your camcorder?

• The "one production line" theory, means both hi-end and low-end products are basically the same. It is definitely true with products from the same series or products, having the same looks for all the series, just missing a few buttons and controls on low end products.
• The fact that all Hi-end features cost nothing to the manufacturer (A good example to that fact is that x60 digital zoom and x30 are done by the same chip!)

Its working!

For about ten years I've been studying all sorts of video equipment. most models came with empty "sockets" or holes on the electronic board, discovered later to be "uninstalled" features, found only is Japanese models, sold only in Japan.

Adding those features meant obtaining the schematics of the improved model, and than getting the extra parts and soldering them in. This could only be done by someone that knows his way around electronic circuit boards.

Than came the "hard times" - chips became smaller, harder to solder for the average guy. But these days where soon to follow by the current age of computer controlled products. A small computer called a "Microcontroller" is found today in all video products. it controls everything - from the recorders mechanical systems, through all electronic adjustments (used to be done with small resistors inside the instrument) finally to the enabling and disabling of features!

More to come....

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