The PXL-2000 (also known as Fisher-Price PXL2000 , Fisher-Price PixelVision , Sanwa Sanpix1000 , < b> KiddieCorder , and Georgia ) is a black-and-white camcorder manufactured in 1987 that uses compact audio cassettes as its recording media. The PXL-2000 was created by a team of inventors led by James Wickstead, who sold the rights to Fisher-Price in 1987 at the American International Toy Fair in Manhattan. When PXL-2000 is available in retail outlets, it comes in two versions, one with only the necessary cameras and accessories (power supplies, blank tapes, etc.), And the others come packed with portable black and white televisions that have diagonal screens 4.5 inches (110 mm) to be used as a monitor. There are also additional accessories sold separately, such as carrying case. The success of the PXL-2000 market is ultimately quite low with targeted demographics, partly due to price. Originally sold for $ 179 ($ 383 in 2017 dollars) and then reduced to $ 100 ($ 214 in 2017 dollars), PXL-2000 is very expensive for children's toys, but found a lasting little success with a collection of younger video artists more small as an inexpensive alternative to more expensive handheld videocameras. Persisting in the market for only a year, only about 400,000 units have ever been produced, resulting in the current status of PXL-2000 as a cult object sought among many artists and media historians.
Video PXL-2000
Technical information
PXL-2000 consists of simple asferic lens, infrared filter, CCD image sensor, custom ASIC (Sanyo LA 7306M), and audio cassette mechanism. It is installed in a plastic housing with a battery compartment and an RF video modulator that can be selected to North American 3 or 4 television channels. A plastic viewfinder and several control buttons complement the device.
An ordinary audio cassette tapes store video and sound. PXL-2000 has an 11-minute recording by moving the tape at high speed, almost 9X the normal playback speed of the cassette. The PXL record is about 16,875 in/s (429 mm/s), compared to the standard cassette speed of 1,875 in/s (48 mm/s) on the C90 CrO 2 cassette (chromium dioxide). Higher speed is required because the video requires a wider bandwidth than standard audio recording. (In magnetic tape recording, the faster the recording speed, the more data can be read/written per second, ie higher bandwidth.) PXL-2000 records video information on the left audio channel of the cassette, and audio on the right.
To reduce the amount of information recorded to fit the narrow bandwidth of the accelerated audio cassette, it uses ASIC to produce video time slower than conventional TV use. It scans 120 x 90 pixel CCDs fifteen times per second, feeds the results through a filtering circuit, and then to the frequency modulation circuit driving the left channel of the cassette head as well as the ADC, which creates the final image for viewing.
For playback and view-through purposes, the circuit reads the image data either from a recorded tape or CCD and fills half the digital frame store with a PXL reduction level, while scanning the other half of the frame store at normal NTSC levels. Since every half of the frame store only covers 1,000 pixels in its 120 x 90 array, the same as the CCD, the screen resolution is considered marginal, and the black border is added around the image, squeezing the framestore image content to the middle of the frame, preserving the pixels that should be lost in overscan. The low-pass anti-aliasing filter is included in the final video output circuit.
PXL-2000 has some weak points. The most common mistakes were decaying rotor belts, common on most band mechanisms in the 1980s, and foggy blue filters. The blue filter is a glass optical component mounted behind the lens to prevent infrared light reaching the CCD and producing miscolored images. They tend to become opaque in stored PXL, possibly as a result of outgassing of the plastic components of the camera. This problem can be fixed by unpacking the camera, removing the blue filter, and cleaning it with a window cleaning solution such as Windex. Many PXL-2000 cameras are also damaged by electrolyte leakage from old batteries, but these are usually not serious and can be repaired easily. Remaining cameras with tapes inserted for a long time may also require a ribbon path to be cleaned and a replacement wheel.
Maps PXL-2000
Package description
Model # 3300 Camcorder PXL-2000
- Camcorder PXL-2000
- Mini-bipod stands
- The video switch box
- Video cable
- One audio cassette tape PXL-2000
- Hint Book
- 6 "AA" Duracell battery
The original retail price of this package is about US $ 100.
Model # 3305 PXL-2000 Deluxe System Camcorder
- Camcorder PXL-2000
- Mini-bipod stands
- The video switch box
- Video cable
- One audio cassette tape PXL-2000
- Hint Book
- 4.5 "black and white TV (with AC adapter)
- 6 "AA" Duracell battery
The original retail price of this package is about US $ 150.
Revival
PXL-2000 has experienced a popularity revival from the early to mid-1990s among independent graphic designers, experimental/avant-garde, and underground filmmakers, due to its simplicity and point-and-snap resonance in a truly amateur subculture. Since PXL-2000 is both easily damaged and past production, its use parallels the romanticized mortality rate, unsuitable for serious mainstream allocations. Erik Saks writes that: "Whenever an artist uses PXL 2000, the whole shape is approaching extinction."
In 1990, Pixelvision's enthusiasm, Gerry Fialka, hosted PXL THIS, the first film festival dedicated to projects taken exclusively at PXL-2000. This festival continues to happen every year in Los Angeles, California. Given the initial promise of PXL-2000 accessibility, Fialka's vision includes accepting indiscriminate submissions, juxtaposing the work of established artists with amateur and children artists.
The PXL-2000 camera is still popular in film-making scenes - in fact, some individuals offer modifications to PXL-2000 to produce composite video, to interface to an external camcorder with composite video, or VCR. The camera itself is still in demand, taking prices as high as $ 500 on auction sites like eBay in 2012.
Popular usage
PXL-2000 was used by Richard Linklater in the 1991 debut film, Slacker . The sequence of two minute art performances in the film is entirely taken on PixelVision.
Peggy Ahwesh's
Video artist Sadie Benning is one of the most critically acclaimed PXL-2000 pioneers, one of whom was awarded to him by his father, James Benning, around the age of 15. Benning's early daily video work gained popularity among the arts, making him a lasting reputation as an innovator, with an important presence in video art.
Michael Almereyda used the camera for some of his films. Another Girl Another Planet (1992) and in short Aliens (1993) was shot completely, it was used for point of view shots of the title character at Nadja (1994), and it is used by the title character to create a video diary at Hamlet (2000).
This camera has also been used for several music videos, including "Mote" by Sonic Youth and "Black Grease" by Black Angels.
The video artist John Humphrey 2003, Pee Wee Goes to Prison was shot in PXL-2000, using a number of dolls and other toys to stage imaginary trials, detention, and finally forgiveness (by newly elected President Jesse Ventura) from Pee-wee Herman for the sale of Yohimbe.
The PXL-2000 is used by the characters of Maggie (Anne Hathaway) and Jamie (Jake Gyllenhaal) in the 2010 film, Love & amp; Other Drugs , although the black and white "recording" of the camera is displayed at full film resolution.
See also
- Mattel Vidster
- VCamNow
References
External links
- Fisher-Price PXL2000 in the Total Rewind Video Vintage museum
- The original manual to PXL2000
- High & amp; Low Res. Pdf Manual for Download
- PXL-2000 Forum with Camera Modification Guide
- US Pat. 5010419 An apparatus for storing video signals on audio cassettes
Source of the article : Wikipedia
0 Comments