VIEWFINDER INDICATIONS
All feedback to the camcorder operator comes via the fiewfinder screen, composed and superimposed on the picture by a character- generator IC, which may be incorporated in the main processor chip. Working on indications sent to the processor from sensors on the tape deck, in the camera section and elsewhere, the character genera- tor provides a wide range of status, indication and warning symbols, plus – very often – a simple titling facility so that captions and titles can be recorded on tape.
CAMCORDERS
Camcorders combine the camera principles described in this chapter with the videorecorder systems described in Chapters 13–19 of this book, and use miniature deck assemblies and (often) small head drums. They use either low- or high-band formats (see Chapter 14) and small cassettes of the Video 8 or VHS-C type. Hi-Fi stereo sound, either in f.m. or pulse-code form, is also incorporated in some models. Digital cameras will be dealt with in Chapter 19.
The requirements of small size, light weight and minimum power consumption, together with competition between makers and formats for the best performance and greatest sophistication, has put camcorders in the forefront of electronic technology. Surface-mounted components, multilayer and flexible PCBs, LSI chips, advanced data- bus systems, and digital techniques are used in this equipment, together with tiny close-tolerance mechanical components. Reliability is good, due in part to the low power levels required and the absence of energy (heat)-dissipating components. The disadvantage is that dismantling is difficult, and access for diagnosis and repair is hampered by the tightly packed components: special connecting- lead kits are needed to get the machine operational while dismantled. Servicing aspects will be more fully discussed in Chapter 23.