8mm Camcorders

8mm Camcorders

ES980

  • Japan
  • Americas
  • Europe, Asia, Oceania
  • Outline
  • Specifications
Marketed April 1997
Original Price For export only (no Japanese market price)

Like its compact predecessor, the ES980 was developed for the most competitively priced market. It featured FlexiZone AF/AE for automatic focusing and exposing, while employing such basic features as customizable keys. The addition of a 22x optical zoom lens and Vari-Angle Prism (V.A.P.) optical image stabilizer allowed further increases in shooting range and stability, even for novice users.

Video recording system 2 rotary heads, helical scanning system
– Luminance signal: FM azimuth recording
– Chrominance signal: Converted subcarrier phase shift recording
Audio recording system Frequency multiplexing with the video signal by rotary head (Hi-Fi monaural)
Television system NTSC system
Tape format 8 videocassette (P6 type)
Tape speed
(at SP mode)
14.34mm/s
Maximum recording time 150 min. (with a 150-min. cassette)
Fast forward/rewind time 6 min. (with a 120-min. cassette)
Image sensor 1/4″ CCD (charge-coupled device), 270,000 pixels (250,000 effective pixels)
Viewfinder 0.55″ color LCD viewfinder (approx. 113,000 pixels)
Built-in microphone Electret condenser microphone
Lens 3.9-62.4mm focal length, f/1.4-2.7, 6 groups 10 lenses with two aspherical lenses, filter diameter: 46mm, P = 0.75, Minimum shooting distance: 1cm (at wide), 100cm (at midrange), 100cm (at tele)
Focusing system TTL autofocus / manual focusing possible
Color temperature switching Auto-homing
Minimum illumination Approx. 3 lx
Recommended illumination More than 100 lx
Illumination range Approx. 3 lx-100,000 lx
Aperture Auto iris servo system
Output terminal (level/impedance) Video/audio output terminal 3.5mm mini jack (audio/video)
Video output terminal 1Vp-p/75 ohms unbalanced synchronized load
Audio output terminal -10dBv (at 47 kohms load) / less than 3 kohms unbalanced
External microphone terminal 3.5mm mini jack
Microphone inpu:t-67dBv (with 600-ohm microphone) / more than 5 kohms
Power supply 6V DC
Power consumption
(when recording and auto-focusing)
Approx. 5.4W
Operating temperature range 32-104°F (0-40°c)
Dimensions 97.5mm x 106.5mm x 199.3mm (excluding tiny projection)
Weight Body: Approx. 710g
When recording: Approx. 910g
(including battery, 8mm videocassette, button-type lithium battery and lens cap)