Sony announced the PXW-Z150, a new 4K UHD (3840×2160) compact camcorder with a stacked 1-inch Exmor RS CMOS sensor for enhanced low-light capabilities.

The Z150's built-in lens is a 29–348mm G lens with 12x optical zoom augmented by Sony's proprietary Clear Image Zoom technology, which extends the reach to 24x in HD and 18x in 4K. 4K recording is in XAVC Long at a maximum of 100 Mbps.

The camera has an OLED viewfinder and LCD display along with a built-in four-stop ND filter and three independent lens rings. Wi-Fi is buit in for live streaming, FTP, and remote control applications, and the Multi-Interface Shoe allows Sony accessories, including wireless mics, to be connected without cabling.

With an MSRP of $3,595, the PXW-Z150 is aimed mainly at corporate and event videographers, though Sony says its feature set is designed to appeal to a broad universe of users. For example, Marketing Manager Jeanne Lewis told StudioDaily that its ability to shoot 1080p at up to 120fps should appeal to sports videographers, and its support for long-GOP HD codecs (including XAVC Long 4:2:2 10-bit at 50 Mbps and MPEG-2 HD at 50 Mbps and 35 Mbps) is attractive to broadcast customers.

"The PXW-X70, a palmcorder with a one-inch sensor with a 4K upgrade available, was one of our best-selling models, but we had some complaints that it was actually too small — that users didn't feel as professional walking into an event with that model," Lewis said. "The Z150 has a body similar to our older HXR-NX5, but refreshed with one sensor, 4K recording, and accepting SDXC and SDHC cards."

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The Z150 is also the first professional camcorder to use Sony's EXMOR RS sensor technology, which uses a "stacked" design to improve low-light capture capabilities. "A traditional CMOS has its pixels and electrical circuits in the same layer, but a stacked CMOS has its circuits in a different layer and only pixels in the top layer," explained Sony product manager Taka Kagawa. "So there is more room on the top level of the device and, as a result, we can make a bigger pixels, and bigger pixels mean we can capture more light. It has better sensitivity, wider dynamic range, and more benefits for the end user."

Because the circuitry is on its own layer, Kagawa said, it can be more complex, too, with high-speed readout — meaning the Z150 captures a full UHD image on the sensor, with no pixel-binning.

The PXW-Z150 is expected to ship in April.