AVCHD (Advanced Video Coding High Definition)[1] is a file-based format for the digital recording and playback of high-definition video. It is H.264 and Dolby AC-3 packaged into the MPEG transport stream, with a set of constraints designed around camcorders.
Developed jointly by Sony and Panasonic, the format was introduced in 2006 primarily for use in high definition consumer camcorders.[2] Related specifications include the professional variants AVCCAM and NXCAM.
Favorable comparisons of AVCHD against HDV and XDCAM EX[3][4] solidified perception of AVCHD as a format acceptable for professional use. Both Panasonic and Sony released the first consumer AVCHD camcorders in spring of 2007.[5] Panasonic released the first AVCHD camcorder aimed at the professional market in 2008, though it was nothing more than the (by then discontinued) FLASH card consumer model rebadged with a different model number.
In 2011 the AVCHD specification was amended to include 1080-line 50-frame/s and 60-frame/s modes (AVCHD Progressive) and stereoscopic video (AVCHD 3D). The new video modes require double the data rate of previous modes.
AVCHD and its logo are trademarks of Sony and Panasonic.[6]
- ^ Panasonic drivers brochure[permanent dead link] panasonic.com
- ^ "camcorderinfo.com - contact with domain owner | Epik.com". camcorderinfo.com. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
- ^ "XDCAM-EX vs. AVCCAM, by Barry Green". Archived from the original on 12 February 2010. Retrieved 21 June 2023.
- ^ "Review: Canon Vixia HF11 AVCHD camcorder, by Adam Wilt". Archived from the original on 2010-02-11. Retrieved 2010-03-25.
- ^ Release dates based on the oldest reviews available, all of which suggest that the models had just been released.
- ^ "AVCHD INFORMATION WEB SITE". www.avchd-info.org. Retrieved 21 June 2023.